124. The Richer Blessing Upon Ephraim

This speaks of the events of the latter end of the last days which leads to the coming of the Lord. It has ever been that Judah and the tribe thereof has usurp to the position of being heir to Jacob and the blessing of the covenant of the fathers from the days of Judah and Joseph until the present. The Bible written from the very Jewish perspective proclaims that it is 'Judah who has prevailed in Israel above his brethren and that of him the chief ruler' (1 Chronicles 5:2).

It has been presented in this text that this Jewish perspective is held as a result of a number of events. First, one must understand that it was Judah's purpose to have killed Joseph that he might obtain the birthright. And if not for the preserving hand of Rueben, Judah's design would have prevailed then, with the blood of Joseph on his hands at that point. But Joseph was sold into Egypt as a slave and thus presumed dead, or as good as dead. And Judah stood to be the head of Israel as a result, Rueben, Simeon, and Levi having lost their hiership through various grevious sins against Jacob and the Lord, though Judah's hidden sin against Joseph would have been as great if not greater were it also known. But Joseph prevailed in Egypt and remained heir of Jacob and Jacob blessed Joseph's son, Ephraim, to stand in the place of his firstborn Reuben and in the birthright and covenant of the fathers and to stand unto the sons of Jacob as Israel (See JST Genesis 48:5-11).

So wherein did Judah prevail? This is in two matters. First, King David chose Judah over Israel, Ephraim and the Kingdom thereof; as indeed David was by blood the son of Boaz a Jew. But the Bible also preserves that David did this though the great right in David was held by Israel. That 'greater right' was according to the Law of God, that Boaz 'a near kinsman', NOT the nearest, did perform the responsibility of the brother kinsman in two regards. He did as stated in the law and varified in the book of Ruth, did take Ruth to wife, the wife of Mahlon, the son of Elimelech, in order to raise up seed to the dead that the name of the dead be not forgotten of lost in Israel (Deuteronomy 25:5-10 & Ruth 4:5 & 10). He also performed that added requirement of the law in that he redeemed all the property of Elimelech, Chilion and Mahlon, which had been sold out, and paid under the law that which it cost to then bring that inheritence back upon the firstborn son of Ruth, Obed, as his family inheritance of the lands of the house of Elimelech. This the nearer kinsman was unwilling to do. Thus Boaz, a 'Jewish cousin' by maternal marriage to the Ephraimite named Ephrathite family of Elimelech did both raise up seed to the dead, making Obed the Son of the house of Elimelech as stated that Obed was a son born to Naomi, Naomi being the only living representative of the House of Elimelech, Chilion and Mahlon (Ruth 4:17). Obed was the legal and rightful son of Mahlon and the heir of the birthright of the house of Elimelech, which not only included all of the properties of Elimelech, Chilion and Mahlon so also redeemed unto him by the vicarious grace of Boaz; but Obed was also heir of that covenant blessing of the fathers which was preserved through Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph (D&C 27:10), Ephraim and down to and through Elimelech and Mahlon and to Obed as being that son raised up unto that family though Mahlon was dead by the Law of God as set forth in Deuteronomy 25:5-10.

Thus though King David of his own choice chose Judah over Israel, that is Ephraim, he only did so after he had lost his of position in the eternal 'covenant' as it sets out in D&C 132:39 that in consequence of David's sin against God in the case of Uriah 'he hath fallen from his exaltation', that is his position in the covenant line which covenant line would resort back to Jesse, David's father in his stead. And therefore whatever choose to do of his own according in denouncing Israel or Ephraim and that heritace and selecting Judah instead was of no consequence unto the 'covenant linage'. David's 'sons' would become the sons of Jesse and still of the covenant linage and of the right of the covenant, which covenant included the birth of the Savior unto that linage, that Ephraimite lineage. And thus the promise of the blessing of Jacob upon Joseph in his patriarchal blessing was still in force which stated concerning Joseph"

That the birth of the Savior is a prominent part of the Covenant of Abraham, of the covenant blessing of the fathers is explained in the LDS Bible Dictionary under 'Abraham, Covenant of' which states that that covenant 'Included in the divine promises to Abraham ... that (1) Christ would come through his linage'. This is an essential part of the 'richer blessings' of that Everlasting Covenant as it so states in the book of Moses.

Thus beyond fulfilling the blessing of the nations of the earth through being the servants of the Lord in the end of days in fulfilling that portion of the Covenant Blessing and Promises of Abraham an the Fathers, Ephraim does also qualify and receive the 'richer blessings' of being the legal and rightful covenant ancestor of the Messiah in that Jesus according to the Covenant is that Messiah ben Joseph so pronounced to come of Joseph through Ephraim. And thus the 'King of Zion' is also the rightful earthly heir of 'Zion'; which is the promised land of Joseph. And in this he does fulfill all righteousness.

Now that other respect in which Judah considers that they did prevail over their brethren is in the sattering of Israel, in that the Kingdom of Israel was scatter and 'lost' before the Kingdom of Judah was. And in that the Kingdom of Judah was all that did remain and from their own perspective, though many of the remnants of the other tribes did dwell amid them, the did claim and usurp that they did 'prevail over their brethren'. Now this consideration of prevailing 'over' another is in that they do place themselves above and over the other tribes of Israel.

But consider Ephraim's position of having prevailed. As the scriptures present Ephraim is but the servants of the Lord and in the truth aspects of the teaching of Jesus, let he who would be servant to all be their leader. Ephraim's order of 'prevailing' in Israel as the Lord's firstborn (Jeremiah 31:9) is in that capacity of service, bring the blessings of the covenant not only unto Israel his brethren but unto all the nations of the earth to the benefit of all who ever have, do now and will yet live upon this second estate. Now that is the true position of greatness, not in putting others down to 'rule over them', but in raising them all up that they might obtain heaven and be one with the worthy of Ephraim, with Christ and God the Father. And in this is Ephraim the greates of all the tribes and the Lord's servant, not as Judah so present themselves to be. Now many prescribe that the home and birth place of John was south of Jerusalem, even as far south as being south of Hebron. But this could not be according to LDS understanding as it is stated that John the Baptist was one of the children which came under Herod's edict and Herod's edict according to scripture was unto the children of the House of David throughout the region of Ramah, which Ramah was the hill country of Ephraim and why the deaths were morned by Rachel and not Leah, Ramah being the lands of Ephraim as well as those of the House of David.