1. Jeremiah foresees the latter-day gathering of Israel
Jeremiah 16:14-16 The latter-day gathering
“Just as the Lord had gathered the house of Israel the first time under the leadership of Moses, he promised to gather them a second time after their long dispersion. The Lord told Jeremiah that this second gathering would be a glorious event (see Jer. 16:14-15). The scriptures contain a variety of prophecies pointing to the gathering of remnants of Israel, including references of a dramatic nature:
…there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt (Isa. 11:16).
“To the Prophet Joseph Smith the Lord said:
And they who are in the north countries shall come in remembrance before the Lord; and their prophets shall hear his voice, and shall no longer stay themselves; and they shall smite the rocks, and the ice shall flow down at their presence.
And an highway shall be cast up in the midst of the great deep. …
And in the barren deserts there shall come forth pools of living water; and the parched ground shall no longer be a thirsty land (D&C 133:26-27, 29).
“As ancient prophets foretold Israel’s scattering, they also often coupled that prediction with the promise of Israel’s eventual return. Typical of such promises are these words in Isaiah 54:7-8:
For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord thy Redeemer.
“How can Israel be gathered if they are dispersed among all nations and have no sense of their identity? How can anyone know who Israel is? And to what do they return? Modern scriptures provide the answers. The Lord said to the Latter-day Saints, ‘And ye are called to bring to pass the gathering of mine elect; for mine elect hear my voice and harden not their hearts’ (D&C 29:7). Obviously, of first importance is their receptivity to God and his teachings.
“From this scripture and many similar texts, it is clear that an important component of the latter-day gathering of Israel involves worldwide missionary work. Those who are spiritually ready among the nations hearken to the gospel message. That messengers to Israel will be involved in the return of Israel to their God is evident in these words to Jeremiah, given by the Lord as he spoke of this future return: ‘Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the Lord, and they shall fish them; and after will I send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks’ (Jer. 16:16). “(Paul K. Browning, “Gathering Scattered Israel: Then and Now,” Ensign, July 1998, 59-60)
Jeremiah 23:3 A latter-day gathering promised
‘The gathering of Israel consists of receiving the truth, gaining again a true knowledge of the Redeemer, and coming back into the true fold of the Good Shepherd. In the language of the Book of Mormon, it consists of being ‘restored to the true church and fold of God,’ and then being ‘gathered’ and ‘established’ in various ‘lands of promise.’ (2 Ne 9:2).’ (Bruce R McConkie, Ensign, May 1077).
Jeremiah 23:4 Shepherds
‘Real shepherds… care for, feed, and watch over the flock constantly… There is no human condition in which the unconditional love of a true shepherd is wasted.’ (Neal A Maxwell, “Unto the Rising Generation,” Ensign, Apr. 1985, 10)
Jeremiah 23:5-6 A righteous branch
‘Christ is the Branch, a name applied in ancient Israel to point attention to the great truth that the promised Messiah would come in the lineage of Israel and of David, that he would be a branch or part of that illustrious line.’ (Bruce R McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed. [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1966], 102)
2. God shall write his law in the hearts of his people
Jeremiah 31:31-34 Write it in their hearts
‘In order that this prophecy may be fulfilled, many members of the Church will need to repent and be more diligent in the study of the scriptures and in their prayers and obedience to the laws and commandments of the gospel. If they fail to do these things they will be cut off from the presence of the Lord in that great day when he shall descend as Lord of lords and King of kings to take his place and sit on his throne to rule and reign.’ (Joseph Fielding Smith, General Conference, October 1963)
Jeremiah 29:10-14 after 70 years be accomplished
When Cyrus was about fifty years of age, after subduing many peoples and small nations, he appeared with his army before Babylon, the then greatest of all cities, with its impregnable walls, three hundred feet high, and its mighty gates of iron and brass. Instead of attacking the walls, he diverted the Euphrates River that flowed through the city and used the channel under the walls by which to enter Babylon. He captured the city without difficulty, while Belshazzar, the king, with his courtiers were drinking themselves drunk and desecrating the sacred vessels of the house of the Lord which his father, Nebuchadnezzar, had brought from Jerusalem.
Within the city, Cyrus found the Hebrew prophet, Daniel, who had already interpreted the handwriting on the wall, having informed Belshazzar that he had been “weighed in the balance and found wanting” (Dan. 5:27). Having access to the Jewish records, Cyrus learned that the God of Israel had decreed that he was to rebuild Jerusalem. He promptly issued a proclamation to the Jews to return to Jerusalem and for the nations to assist them in rebuilding the city and the temple. This was accomplished exactly seventy years after Jerusalem was destroyed, thus fulfilling Jeremiah’s prophecy uttered more than one hundred years before. ‘(George Albert Smith, Conference Report, April 1945, pp. 135-139)
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