1 AND verily I say unto you, [ Who exactly is he speaking to at this time? Those listening to the Saviors voice and their direct descendants v.7. ] I give unto you a sign, [ See Isa. 52:3 "when you shall be redeemed without money". Also a followup Isa 66:18-20 where the Lord says he will give a sign among the Gentiles for the gathering of Israel. These comments by the Savior here may be a follow up to those comments about the sign given. ] that ye may know the time [ While the Lord does not give an exact day of his coming he will give us a hint as to the time - it is when you see the following taking place is when these Scriptures written to the Lehite's (v. 2) are brought forth to scattered Israel through the Gentiles (v.3). ] when these things [ The prophecies of the second coming(The restoration of the House of Israel, the Remnant of Jacob coming and kicking the gentiles butts and forcing the Anti-Christ from America. Which will lead to the Anti-Christ going to Jerusalem and reigning with terror there for 3.5 years. ) - see Isaiah 52. Where it says what will happen. The Lords people will awaken and rising up from the dust. These are those who pass his tests of their loyalty and signifies their rebirth or re-creation on the son/servant level. Identified as the Daughter of Zion (the Woman Zion), as they ascend to this elect level after they have experienced their descent phase of personal trials. They will then become part of a “holy city,” (Isaiah 4:3-6; 6:13; 13:3; 35:8-10). They become the “holy people” to whom Jehovah comes after they have prepared the way before him (Isaiah 40:1-5; 62:10-12). ] shall be about to take place [ You will know when the fulfilling of the covenant with Abraham is about to take place. ] —that I shall gather in, from their long dispersion, [ The Ten tribes who were dispersed around 720 BC. ] my people, [ Who are his people? The house of Israel. He answers this when he says he will establish among them "my Zion". The very name of Israel refers to a person who is willing to let God prevail in his or her life. So in essence he is talking about those who are willing to submit to the will of God. ] O house of Israel, and shall establish again among them my Zion;

2 And behold, this is the thing which I will give unto you for a sign—[ Here is how you will know that the gathering is taking place. In other words this is how you will know. ] for verily I say unto you that when these things which I declare unto you, [ So when the words that the Savior has been teaching the people here in 3 Nephi during his visit with them. Or I am not done here I still have a few more things to tell you. ] and which I shall declare unto you hereafter of myself, and by the power of the Holy Ghost which shall be given unto you of the Father, shall be made known unto the Gentiles [ How is what he taught the people in the America's made known? With the coming forth of the Book Of Mormon. So you may know the gathering is underway when you see the Book Of Mormon coming forth. President Benson said that the Book Of Mormon both defines the process of the gathering as well as it is the instrument that causes the gathering to take place. Moses 7 Enoch saw it in a vision and described it this way "there would be a gospel come down out of heaven and a Book come forth out of the ground and they would both flood the whole earth". Feb 2006 the 100 millionth copy of the Book of Mormon was printed. ] that they may know [ That the Gentiles might come to a knowledge of these following two distinct groups. ] concerning this people who are a remnant of the house of Jacob, [ Or group number one. This group is the context here is the main body of the Lost Ten Tribes, whom the Father grafted beyond the confines of the vineyard. ] and [ So there is another group as well, group number two. ] concerning this my people who shall be scattered by them; [ We know that it was the second group that was scattered by the Gentiles - So this group would be the Laminites (American Indians). So when the Gentiles of the last days come to the realization that there are two separate groups - this is when these things are about to happen. The two groups are the remnant of Jacob, and there is the group that the Gentiles scattered when they got here. People are beginning to understand this right now which gives us a time frame that things are going to start to happen. (2 Ne. 8:22) ]

3 Verily, verily, I say unto you, when these things [ Both the knowledge of Mannessah (Book of Mormon) and the Remnant of Jacob (Lost 10 tribes). ] shall be made known unto them [ The Gentiles. ] of the Father, and shall come forth of the Father, from them unto you; [ Them=Ephraim. You=Manassah - the Lamanites. The Book of Mormon coming forth from Joseph Smith. Joseph Smith received his blessings through the tribe of Joseph, specifically Ephraim. ]

4 For it is wisdom in the Father that they [ The Gentiles. ] should be established in this land, [ America. ] and be set up as a free people by the power of the Father, [ Free people or USA - the Gentiles would have to be set up as a free people so that these words in the Book of Mormon could even come forth to the remnant of Joseph and the Gentile nation that would be established in the last days. Why must they be a free people? What does he mean a free people? The constitution that they live under allows them the freedom to practice religion however they may wish to. Without that religious freedom it would be difficult for God to establish a church. So despite everything that people say about how bad America is, we are taught that it was established by God. No wonder some parties want to bring it down. ] that these things might come forth from them [ "these things" the Book of Mormon and the fullness of the Gospel "might come forth from them". This is the purpose of the freedoms and the constitution of this land America. It is part of the Father's plan to have the Gentiles set up on this land promised to Lehi's children because they will bring the gospel to the remnants of Israel. 3 Ne 16:4. ] unto a remnant of your seed, [ The seed of Lehi. ] that the covenant of the Father may be fulfilled which he hath covenanted with his people, [ The covenant here is the latter day restoration of the House of Israel - the return of the ten tribes. ] O house of Israel;

5 Therefore, when these works and the works which shall be wrought among you hereafter shall come forth from the Gentiles, unto your seed which shall dwindle in unbelief [ We often relate unbelief to those who do not believe in the gospel at all; but how does unbelief apply to us that believe and yet are held back because we limit our belief? We do not believe as fully as we could and therefore limit ourselves as well? ] because of iniquity; [ Should we also consider that we might be guilty of iniquity when we do not have full faith and trust in God, such that he cannot bring forth all of his works in our behalf? ]

6 For thus it behooveth the Father [ It is the wisdom of God. ] that it [ The Book Of Mormon and the Gospel. ] should come forth from the Gentiles, that he may show forth his power unto the Gentiles, for this cause that the Gentiles, if they will not harden their hearts, that they may repent and come unto me [ So the Gospel is established for the Gentiles as well. That they might enjoy all of the blessings of the gospel as well. ] and be baptized in my name and know of the true points of my doctrine, that they may be numbered among my people, O house of Israel; [ The reason why he brought the Book of Mormon first to the gentiles - So that the Gentiles will have the opportunity to accept the gospel, repent, and be adopted into Israel's covenant. ]

7  And when these things come to pass [ This is Christ talking now. ] that thy seed shall begin to know these things — [ Shall begin to know about those things discussed in verse 2. About the Lamanites as well as the Lost ten tribes, the latter day restoration of the entire house of Israel. "We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and the restoration of the ten tribes." Thy seed=Mannessah. When they begin to understand the teachings of the gospel and the truths of the Book Of Mormon. This did not happen until the last half of this century, before the remnants of the seed of Lehi began to accept the gospel – about the time of  President Kimball –Interesting to note that President Benson followed President Kimball  What was President Benson most know for? Telling us to read the Book of Mormon and secondly he was know for his marvelous talk on pride. In 1964 My Dad in President Bensons office then assigned to Germany said that we had finished the focusing on taking the gospel to the gentiles and from this time forth the church would focus on taking the gospel to scattered Israel. The church really began to grow from then on... ] it shall be a sign unto them, that they may know that the work of the Father hath already commenced [ So when we see the Book Of Mormon brought to them we can know that the work to gather Israel has started. ] unto the fulfilling of the covenant which he hath made unto the people who are of the house of Israel.

[ From verse 1 to here are how we will know when he is about to return - End of the Sign of when he will come. So in other words when we see that the ten tribes have returned we will know that he is about to return. Buckle your seat belts. ]

8  And when that day shall come, [ The gathering of Judah, Joseph and the remnant of Jacob. ] it shall come to pass that kings shall shut their mouths; [ Why will they shut their mouths? Or the world will be stunned with amazement of what has happened. It will be beyond description, hence their mouths will be shut. Because of how fast the Lord will gather Israel, how nations will be brought down, walls and borders eroded - everything that is needed to gather them together as the gospel spread through out the world. The Kings will be left in awe and admiration that they will simply not know what to say. - quoted from Isa 52:15. ] for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that which they had not heard shall they consider.

9 For in that day, for my sake shall the Father work a work, which shall be a great and a marvelous work among them; [ What is the marvelous work? The Savior is referencing the words of Isa. 29:10-14 the marvelous work is the book that was sealed - the Book of Mormon. This phrase "marvelous work" included the following definitions of what it means: 1) Events that God will use to sift the world( 1 Ne. 14:7); 2) Bare forth the arm of the Lord (1 Ne.22:8); 3)Two latter day Messiahs - One real and one fake( 2 Ne. 25:17-18); 4)The marvelous work will cause the wisdom of the world to perish (2 Ne. 27:26); 5)All of the records of Israel will testify of these things (2 Ne. 29:1,3,7,13,14); 6) Will bear record that Gos is the same yesterday, today, and forever(3 Ne.21:9); 7)The three Nephites and John The Beloved have a role to play in the marvelous work of the last days (3 Ne. 28:31,29,33) ] and there shall be among them those who will not believe it, [ Some will understand what is going on while other will not understand. ] although a man shall declare it unto them. [ The events that are going to unfold will be so incredible that when they are declared to the word few will believe because they just cannot comprehend how they could happen. Even the Kings and all of the knowledgeable those that should be wise enough and educated, their mouths will just drop open. Just because they are told to them by a man they will need to be understood by the spirit to comprehend the meaning of these things. (Jer. 31:31,34) This is like the Jews who did not understand the writings of the old testament in their day - or they did not lack the written word but they did lack the comprehension of it. Not all men will not be able to comprehend it. (See Preface to the Doctrine And Covenants which is D&C 1) ]

10 But behold, the life of my servant shall be in my hand; [ Meaning Joseph Smith - Book Of Mormon Student Manual pp. 428. ] therefore they shall not hurt him, [ They will not stop the work to which he has been assigned. ] although he shall be marred because of them. [ How was he marred? D&C 135: 1 (1-3) 1 To seal the testimony of this book and the Book of Mormon, we announce the martyrdom of Joseph Smith the Prophet, and Hyrum Smith the Patriarch. They were shot in Carthage jail, on the 27th of June, 1844, about five o’clock p.m., by an armed mob—painted black—of from 150 to 200 persons. Hyrum was shot first and fell calmly, exclaiming: I am a dead man! Joseph leaped from the window, and was shot dead in the attempt, exclaiming: O Lord my God! They were both shot after they were dead, in a brutal manner, and both received four balls. ] Yet I will heal him, for I will show unto them that my wisdom is greater than the cunning of the devil. [ This verse appears to be the savior quoting Isa. 52:14. See also 3 Ne 20:44. ]

11  Therefore it shall come to pass [ So after a period of time. ] that whosoever will not believe in my words, who am Jesus Christ, which the Father shall cause him [ Joseph Smith. ] to bring forth unto the Gentiles, and shall give unto him [ Joseph Smith. ] power that he shall bring them forth unto the Gentiles, (it shall be done even as Moses said) they shall be cut off [ Will not receive the blessings - are not heirs. Notice how this sentence starts - those that will not believe my words - just as in 3 Ne. 20:23 It is not the Lord that cuts us off but we do it to ourselves. First we stop listening to the prophets and quit doing what they ask, then we loose our testimony of the true knowledge of god and the gospel, and thus we become bereft of the Priesthood and the holy ordinances which by their very nature would led us back to the presence of God. See JST Matt 1:22. ] from among my people who are of the covenant. [ Covenant with Abraham - So if we do not believe in his words we will not be heirs to the covenant blessings - if we do believe we can receive the blessings whether gentile or jew. The Lord told Abraham: "And I will bless them that bless thee; and in thee (that is, in thy Priesthood), and in thy seed (that is, thy Priesthood), for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (that is to say, the literal seed, or the seed of the body) shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal." (Abraham 2: 11) ]

12 And my people [ God's army. ] who are a remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles, yea, in the midst of them [ Scattered among the gentiles. ] as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, [ The word for "lion" in ancient Hebrew, is "ariel", or the "lion of the Lord" - and it stems from the word "arah", which is to pluck, to collect / harvest, to gather. You would think that lions would scatter the flock. However; Lions are associated in ancient Hebrew with gathering, rather than scattering. This is because when a herd of prey animals senses danger, they typically gather together for safety. Note that there is a whole flock of sheep and one lion. Even though the lion is in the minority he still has all the power. So it shall be with the Lords people in these times. ] who, if he go through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. [ This verse is similar to Jacob 5:8. ]

13 Their hand shall be lifted up upon their adversaries, [ Does this mean they will exercise the priesthood against their adversaries to move the work forward? ] and all their enemies shall be cut off.

14 Yea, wo be unto the Gentiles [ The world. ] except they repent; for it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Father, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots; [ Symbolic for military power. ]

15 And I will cut off the cities of thy land, and throw down all thy strongholds; [ A fort; a fortified place; a place of security. This is a quote from Micah 5. ] ;

16 And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thy land, and thou shalt have no more soothsayers; [ A foreteller; a prognosticator; one who undertakes to foretell future events without inspiration. ]

17 Thy graven images I will also cut off, and thy standing images [ Fixed; not movable. So as if they are moved it is by a great force. ] out of the midst of thee, and thou shalt no more worship the works of thy hands; [ The things of man as opposed to the things of God. ]

18 And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee; [ Referring to the groves used by the female counterparts of the prophets of Baal, Ashtoreth or Venus whom Jezebel worshipped. See 3rd Thousand Years for additional details. They were really whores, and sustained their church thru adultery. the groves were where they performed their various acts of sexual immorality 1 Kgs. 18:19. ] so will I destroy thy cities.

19 And it shall come to pass that all lyings, and deceivings, and envyings, and strifes, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, shall be done away.

20 For it shall come to pass, saith the Father, that at that day whosoever will not repent and come unto my Beloved son, them will I cut off from among my people, O house of Israel; [ Or house of those who are willing to let God prevail in their lives. So in essence he is suggesting that there are those who repent and let God prevail in their lives and they will be his people and those who do not repent and let God prevail will not be bless and number with him. Pretty simple. ]

21 And I will execute vengeance and fury upon them, [ The unrepentant gentiles. ] even as upon the heathen, such as they have not heard. [ How is going to do this? Through this remnant of Israel that is coming(the Lost ten Tribes). ]

22 But if they [ The Gentiles. ] will repent and hearken [ Hebrew "Shema" is translated here as hearken which means to "listen" and "obey". ] unto my words, and harden not their hearts, I will establish my church [ Mine elect, my people are those that hear my voice and harden not their hearts D&C 29:7 that my people may gird up their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming; for there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem. Moses 7:62 - among my people who do repent and are baptized in my name - 3 Nephi 18:16 it is my church, if it so be that they are built upon my gospel - 3 Nephi 27:8 for the works which ye have seen me do that shall ye also do 3 Nephi 27:21. ] among them, [ The repentent Gentiles. ] and they shall come in unto the covenant [ What covenant? The same covenant that God made with Abraham. So if they are willing to do that then they will be entitled to the exact same blessings. ] and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob, unto whom I have given this land for their inheritance; [ Both Jerusalem and Zion will be open to all of the house of Israel. ]

23 And they [ The repentant Gentiles. Those who do not reject the covenants that they have made with Jesus Christ. The Saints be it whatever denomination that they are. ] shall assist my people, [ The remnant of Jacob ie. the lost ten tribes. Israel or Zion (the Church) 3 Ne.16: 8-11 - If we compare v. 23-24 with Ether 13:6-8, we will note in the passage in Ether it states New Jerusalem will be built by the remnants of Joseph. And here it says the Gentiles "shall assist my people, the remnant of Jacob" when the New Jerusalem is built. This suggests the time when New Jerusalem will be built is when the Church is composed of a significant portion of natural Israel, and perhaps even a majority. This has to happen either with some sudden influx of Israel(Jacob) in large numbers joining the church or if the ten tribes were to return let's say then there would be a very large group from them. This might seem arbitrary or irrelevant, but in the context of Enos' allegory of the olive trees the tame olive tree ends up doing best and producing the most good fruit after the wild grafts which have gone bad are removed and replaced with grafts of returning tame branches. Jacob 5:63-68 Also Ismael was a descendant of Joseph thru Ephraim How does this apply to the Lamanites today? How are they doing in the work? Are they returning and participating in the growth of the church? Brazil has over 1 million members alone Oct Conf 2008 "The Truth Of God Shall Go forth" Elder Russell M. Ballard "During this 40-year period, (1930- 1970) the south American nations of Chile, Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Ecuador, Colombia, Peru, and Venezuela were opened to missionary work. In Central America, servants of the Lord unlocked the nations of Panama, Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua." ] the remnant of Jacob, [ Who is meant by the phrase "Remnant of Jacob"? 1) The remnant of Jacob (The Lost Ten Tribes is one remnant of Jacob) 2) The Gentiles who shall come unto the covenant and be numbered with Jacob 3) as many of the house of Israel as will come. (3 Ne. 21:22-25; 3 Ne. 20:22; Ether 13:1-12) Book Of Mormon Student Manual pp 428. ] and also as many of the house of Israel as shall come, that they may build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem. [ This city is a precursor to the second coming of Christ. It will be built after the remnant of Jacob returns to America. The early saints were commanded through Smith to start building New Jerusalem so as to establish Zion (cf. D&C 84:3-4), but as a result of various difficulties this was never achieved (cf. D&C 124:51). However, this did not preclude the world wide missionary effort discussed in v. 26-28. ]

24 And then shall they [ The Gentiles. ] assist my people [ Israel or Zion (the Church) 3 Ne.16: 8-11. ] that they may be gathered in, [ This is the last great missionary effort that will take place. ] who are scattered upon all the face of the land, in unto the New Jerusalem.

25 And then shall the power of heaven come down among them; [ See 1 Ne 14:14. How does it come to them? First thru the power of the Holy Ghost and eventually he (Jesus Christ) will return and live with them. Isa. 59: 20 (20-21). ] and I also will be in the midst. [ Savior shall dwell in New Jerusalem after the second coming. ]

26 And then [ After the Lord has come and is reigning in the New Jerusalem. ] shall the work of the Father commence[ What commencement I thought it had already started? Well it has but nothing like it is going to after the Lord is reigning on the earth. To this point we have been primarily gathering the gatherers. At this point all of the focus will be on getting those who are not resurrected; resurrected as part of the first resurrection - this is the work of the Father to bring about the eternal life of man, and so this is what the saints will be doing (temple work). Will there be a big need to leadership positions in the church? ] at that day, [ The day when the previous two conditions have been meet. ] even when this gospel shall be preached among the remnant of this people [ Mannesah. ] . Verily I say unto you, at that day shall the work of the Father commence among all the dispersed of my people, [ The gathering started first with the tribe of Joseph in 1830. The second son of Joseph - Ephraim descendants were given the privilege first to bear the message of the restoration of the gospel to the world and to gather scattered Israel Bible Dict (Duet33:13-17; D&C 133:26-34; 64:36) So in essence we have been for the most part been gathering the gatherers. We see this referenced in the temple symbolism. The ox was the symbol for the tribe of Ephraim - the baptismal font in the temple rests upon 12 oxen whose prime responsibility is to bear on their shoulders and carry to the world the ordinances of salvation - (symbolic of Ephraim and their responsibility to the other 12 tribes.) The work of the father also includes the restoration of the ten tribes. 3 Nephi 21:26. ] yea, even the tribes which have been lost, which the Father hath led away out of Jerusalem.

27 Yea, the work shall commence among all the dispersed of my people, with the Father to prepare the way whereby they may come unto me, that they may call [ We can assume that this will include the city of Enoch as well. ] on the Father in my name.

28 Yea, and then shall the work commence, with the Father among all nations in preparing the way whereby his people may be gathered home to the land of their inheritance.

29 And they shall go out from all nations; and they shall not go out in haste, nor go by flight, [ They will not be forced or leave under chaos, but rather in a very organized manner - under the direction of the priesthood. ] for I will go before them, saith the Father, and I will be their rearward. [ Quoted from Isa. 52:12; invokes the imagery of the original exodus under the direction of Moses where the where their was pillar of fire at night and a cloud by day to protect and lead them. ]