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2 Nephi 3


Chapter 3

Joseph in Egypt saw the Nephites in vision—He prophesied of Joseph Smith, the latter-day seer; of Moses, who would deliver Israel; and of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. About 588–570 B.C.

And now I speak unto you, Joseph, my last-born. Thou wast born in the wilderness of mine afflictions; yea, in the days of my greatest sorrow did thy mother bear thee.

And may the Lord consecrate also unto thee this land, which is a most precious land, for thine inheritance and the inheritance of thy seed with thy brethren, for thy security forever, if it so be that ye shall keep the commandments of the Holy One of Israel.

And now, Joseph, my last-born, whom I have brought out of the wilderness of mine afflictions, may the Lord bless thee forever, for thy seed shall not utterly be destroyed.

For behold, thou art the fruit of my loins; and I am a descendant of Joseph who was carried captive into Egypt. And great were the covenants of the Lord which he made unto Joseph.

Wherefore, 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.

For Joseph truly testified, saying: A seer shall the Lord my God raise up, who shall be a choice seer unto the fruit of my loins.

Yea, Joseph truly said: Thus saith the Lord unto me: A choice seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and he shall be esteemed highly among the fruit of thy loins. And unto him will I give commandment that he shall do a work for the fruit of thy loins, his brethren, which shall be of great worth unto them, even to the bringing of them to the knowledge of the covenants which I have made with thy fathers.

And I will give unto him a commandment that he shall do none other work, save the work which I shall command him. And I will make him great in mine eyes; for he shall do my work.

And he shall be great like unto Moses, whom I have said I would raise up unto you, to deliver my people, O house of Israel.

10 And Moses will I raise up, to deliver thy people out of the land of Egypt.

11 But a seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and unto him will I give power to bring forth my word unto the seed of thy loins—and not to the bringing forth my word only, saith the Lord, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them.

12 Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write; and that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow together, unto the confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions, and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith the Lord.

13 And out of weakness he shall be made strong, in that day when my work shall commence among all my people, unto the restoring thee, O house of Israel, saith the Lord.

14 And thus prophesied Joseph, saying: Behold, that seer will the Lord bless; and they that seek to destroy him shall be confounded; for this promise, which I have obtained of the Lord, of the fruit of my loins, shall be fulfilled. Behold, I am sure of the fulfilling of this promise;

15 And his name shall be called after me; and it shall be after the name of his father. And he shall be like unto me; for the thing, which the Lord shall bring forth by his hand, by the power of the Lord shall bring my people unto salvation.

16 Yea, thus prophesied Joseph: I am sure of this thing, even as I am sure of the promise of Moses; for the Lord hath said unto me, I will preserve thy seed forever.

17 And the Lord hath said: I will raise up a Moses; and I will give power unto him in a rod; and I will give judgment unto him in writing. Yet I will not loose his tongue, that he shall speak much, for I will not make him mighty in speaking. But I will write unto him my law, by the finger of mine own hand; and I will make a spokesman for him.

18 And the Lord said unto me also: I will raise up unto the fruit of thy loins; and I will make for him a spokesman. And I, behold, I will give unto him that he shall write the writing of the fruit of thy loins, unto the fruit of thy loins; and the spokesman of thy loins shall declare it.

19 And the words which he shall write shall be the words which are expedient in my wisdom should go forth unto the fruit of thy loins. And it shall be as if the fruit of thy loins had cried unto them from the dust; for I know their faith.

20 And they shall cry from the dust; yea, even repentance unto their brethren, even after many generations have gone by them. And it shall come to pass that their cry shall go, even according to the simpleness of their words.

21 Because of their faith their words shall proceed forth out of my mouth unto their brethren who are the fruit of thy loins; and the weakness of their words will I make strong in their faith, unto the remembering of my covenant which I made unto thy fathers.

22 And now, behold, my son Joseph, after this manner did my father of old prophesy.

23 Wherefore, because of this covenant thou art blessed; for thy seed shall not be destroyed, for they shall hearken unto the words of the book.

24 And there shall rise up one mighty among them, who shall do much good, both in word and in deed, being an instrument in the hands of God, with exceeding faith, to work mighty wonders, and do that thing which is great in the sight of God, unto the bringing to pass much restoration unto the house of Israel, and unto the seed of thy brethren.

25 And now, blessed art thou, Joseph. Behold, thou art little; wherefore hearken unto the words of thy brother, Nephi, and it shall be done unto thee even according to the words which I have spoken. Remember the words of thy dying father. Amen.

      • according to (preposition)

        In a way that agrees with.

      • affliction (noun)

        Pain; problems.

      • after-this-manner (adverb phrase)

        In this way.

      • amen (interjection)

        Let it be so! Often said at the end of religious speeches and prayers.

      • as (adverb)

        Like.

      • B.C. (noun)

        Before the birth of Christ.

      • because of (conjunction)

        By reason of; through.

      • behold (interjection, archaic)

        Look! See! In fact.

      • blessed art thou (phrase)

        You are blessed. (Blessed means Having received help, protection, favors, or gifts from God.).

      • blessed (adjective)

        Having received help, protection, favors, or gifts from God.

      • brethren (noun)

        Brothers.

      • bring forth (verb)

        To reveal; to disclose.

      • brother, brethren (noun)

        Peer; neighbor; relative; kinsman.

      • captivity (noun)

        Being a prisoner or slave.

      • choice (adjective)

        Of high quality; special.

      • command (verb)

        To give a law, order, or binding instruction.

      • commandment (noun)

        Law; order; binding instruction (especially from God).

      • commandment (noun)

        Law; order; binding instruction (especially from God).

      • commence (verb)

        To begin.

      • consecrate (verb)

        To dedicate; to make special; to set apart for a sacred purpose.

      • convincing (noun)

        Persuading; proving.

      • covenant (noun)

        A promise God makes to a person or group if they will obey Him.

      • cry (verb)

        To call; to shout; to exclaim.

      • day (noun)

        Period; time.

      • latter days; last days (noun)

        Modern times; the period before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (sometimes also called the “end times”).

      • one’s days (noun)

        One’s life.

      • declare (verb)

        To announce; to state energetically.

      • deliver (verb)

        To help someone escape; to save someone; to set someone free.

      • descendant (noun)

        One’s children, their children, theirs, and so on.

      • destroy (verb)

        To kill; to thwart.

      • did, didst (verb, archaic)

        A term used before verbs to make them past tense.

      • doctrine (noun)

        Principle or teaching (especially about the gospel).

      • even (adverb)

        In fact.

      • even (adverb)

        Specifically.

      • even that (adverb)

        To the point that; so that.

      • even unto (adverb)

        To the point of; up until.

      • even (adverb)

        In the same way.

      • exceeding (adjective)

        Great; extreme.

      • expedient (adjective)

        Appropriate; advisable; desirable; good; fitting.

      • faith (noun)

        Belief in God, willingness to follow His gospel, and trust in the impressions of the Holy Ghost.

      • fathers (noun)

        Ancestors (one’s parents, their parents, theirs, and so on).

      • for behold (conjunction)

        Therefore; so you see.

      • for (conjunction)

        Because.

      • for (conjunction)

        Because.

      • for (conjunction)

        Because; because you see.

      • for (preposition)

        As; to be.

      • forth (adverb)

        Forward; away.

      • freedom (noun)

        The ability to choose; not being forced.

      • from the dust (adverb phrase)

        From the grave.

      • generation (noun)

        An age; a long period of time; the people living at a given time.

      • give unto (verb)

        To allow; to give the right to.

      • go forth (verb phrase)

        To move forward from a starting point.

      • God (proper noun)

        God the Father or His Son, Jesus Christ. God the Father rules all things with perfect justice, mercy, and love. Jesus Christ often speaks and acts for His Father. He suffered so that we could be forgiven of our sins and be resurrected. The Father and Son are separate individuals but are united in purpose.

      • great (adjective)

        Big; signficant.

      • hath (verb, archaic)

        Has.

      • hearken (verb)

        To listen; to take advice from; to obey.

      • Holy One of Israel (or Jacob) (proper noun)

        A title of Jesus Christ. (Israel and Jacob are names for God’s ancient covenant people, as described in the Bible.)

      • if it so be that (phrase)

        If.

      • in the spirit (prepositional phrase)

        In one’s heart and soul; with one’s most sacred and spiritual thoughts and feelings; under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

      • house of Israel (proper noun)

        God’s ancient covenant people, as described in the Bible (house means a nation or tribe); members of God’s Church.

      • Joseph (proper noun)

        Prophet who was the ancestor of one of the tribes of Israel, as recounted in the first part of the BIble

      • latter-day (adjective)

        Having to do with modern times; the period before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

      • law (noun)

        The law of Moses, which the people of Israel were required to live before the coming of Jesus Christ in mortality. It included animal sacrifices that symbolized the Atonement of Christ.

      • Lord God (noun)

        A term of respect for God the Father or Jesus Christ.

      • Lord (noun)

        A term of respect for God the Father or Jesus Christ.

      • Messiah (proper noun)

        A title for Jesus Christ. The titles Messiah and Christ both mean a king or priest sent by God to save the world.

      • mighty (adjective)

        Strong; powerful.

      • mighty (adjective)

        Great; wondrous.

      • The Book of Mormon (proper noun)

        The inspired record of a branch of the house of Israel that lived in the Americas from about 600 B.C. to A.D. 421.

      • Moses (proper noun)

        Prophet who led the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt to the land of Israel, as recounted in the first part of the Bible.

      • much (adjective)

        A large amount of.

      • mine (pronoun, archaic)

        My.

      • Nephi (proper noun)

        A prophet, fourth son of Lehi; author of the first two books of the Book of Mormon.

      • nevertheless (adverb)

        But still; in spite of this.

      • O (interjection, archaic)

        A word placed before the name of someone being addressed, often to show strong feeling.

      • obtain (verb)

        To get.

      • of (preposition)

        From.

      • one (pronoun)

        Someone.

      • proceed, proceed forth (verb)

        To come or go out.

      • prophesy (verb)

        To deliver a message or predict future events by inspiration from God.

      • repentance (noun)

        Feeling sorrow for one’s sins, making amends, changing one’s life, and seeking forgiveness.

      • restoring (verb)

        Bringing someone back; making them like they were before.

      • righteous (adjective)

        Good; virtuous; just; consistent with God’s law.

      • salvation (noun)

        Being saved by God from death and the effects of sin; being saved by God from enemies or other physical danger.

      • save (preposition)

        Except; unless.

      • seed (noun)

        Posterity; descendants.

      • seek, sought (verb)

        Try, tried.

      • shall, should (verb)

        Will, would.

      • should (verb)

        May; must; ought to.

      • it shall came to pass (verb phrase)

        It will happened.

      • shall keep (verb)

        Keep.

      • Joseph Smith, Jun. (proper noun)

        Prophet who translated the Book of Mormon by the gift and power of God.

      • sorrow (noun)

        Sadness; suffering.

      • testify (verb)

        To state that something is true.

      • that (conjunction)

        Who.

      • thee (pronoun, archaic)

        You.

      • thine (pronoun, archaic)

        Your, yours.

      • thou art (phrase)

        You are.

      • thou (pronoun, archaic)

        You.

      • thy (pronoun, archaic)

        Your.

      • unto (preposition)

        To.

      • unto (preposition)

        To.

      • unto (preposition)

        For; to.

      • unto (preposition)

        Sufficient for; resulting in.

      • unto (preposition)

        To.

      • unto (preposition)

        To.

      • like unto (preposition)

        Like; the same as.

      • unto (preposition)

        To.

      • vision (noun)

        A message God gives to individuals in visual form; a visit from a divine messenger.

      • wherefore (adverb)

        So you see; therefore.

      • wherefore (adverb)

        So.

      • wisdom (noun)

        Knowledge of what is right; ability to make correct decisions.

      • word (noun)

        Message; teachings.

      • work (verb)

        To do; to perform.

      • writing (noun)

        Something written; a written account or record.

      • ye (pronoun, archaic)

        You.

      • yea (interjection, archaic)

        Indeed; yes. This is pronounced “yay.”