The Inclusive Nature of the House of Israel

Yesterday I wrote about the Book of Mormon’s focus on the house of Israel.  It can seem like the Lord is somehow playing favorites with His children because of the promises, protections, and covenants that are given to the house of Israel.  What about everyone else?  If we think of it in terms of lineage only, then surely there are many in the world today who are not literal descendants of Jacob, the son of Isaac (though how dispersed the literal blood of Israel is throughout the world is unknown).  And yet, I believe a careful study of the Book of Mormon’s teachings about the house of Israel shows that the Lord’s promises are in fact available to all of God’s children—it is certainly not just a question about lineage.  The Savior made this perfectly clear to the Nephites as He spoke to them: “But if the Gentiles will repent and return unto me, saith the Father, behold they shall be numbered among my people, O house of Israel” (3 Nephi 16:13).  Anyone who will repent and come unto the Lord can be a part of His people and receive all of His blessings.    

               Several of the Book of Mormon prophets similarly emphasized the inclusive nature of the concept of the house of Israel.  Nephi told his brothers, “Wherefore, our father hath not spoken of our seed alone, but also of all the house of Israel, pointing to the covenant which should be fulfilled in the latter days; which covenant the Lord made to our father Abraham, saying: In thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed” (1 Nephi 15:18).  The covenants made to the house of Israel will result in “all the kindreds of the earth [being] blessed.”  Nephi was also told in his vision, “Thou hast beheld that if the Gentiles repent it shall be well with them; and thou also knowest concerning the covenants of the Lord unto the house of Israel” (1 Nephi 14:5).  The angel also told him that the Bible would “contain the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; wherefore, they are of great worth unto the Gentiles” (1 Nephi 13:23).  The covenants of the Lord to the house of Israel will be a great blessing to those who are Gentiles.  Jacob prophesied about these blessings that would come to the Gentiles in the latter days in these words: “The Gentiles shall be blessed and numbered among the house of Israel” (2 Nephi 10:18).  The house of Israel and the covenants the Lord has made with it are not just for the blood lineage of Jacob—they are to bless the Gentiles as well.  Mormon wrote how the Gentiles can be blessed with these covenants of the Lord: “Turn, all ye Gentiles, from your wicked ways; and repent of your evil doings…. and be baptized in my name, that ye may receive a remission of your sins, and be filled with the Holy Ghost, that ye may be numbered with my people who are of the house of Israel” (3 Nephi 30:2).  Perhaps Nephi summarized best the way the Lord views all of His children: “Behold, the Lord esteemeth all flesh in one; he that is righteous is favored of God,” and “[God] denieth none that come unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile” (1 Nephi 17:35, 2 Nephi 26:33).  All those who will repent and live righteously will receive the covenant blessings promised to the house of Israel. 

               I like the way that the Bible Dictionary describes the name Israel.  It suggests that Israel can be used to denote “the true believers in Christ, regardless of their lineage or geographical location.”  This fits with the actual meaning of the name Israel: “One who prevails with God.”  Those who receive the blessings of the Lord’s covenant with the house of Israel are those who accept Christ and who through His goodness and atonement prevail over mortal trials to return to their Father in Heaven—no matter what their earthly lineage was.