40. Ancient Scripture Often Foreshadows the Future
"One In Thine Hand"

Often ancient scripture not only prophesies of the future, but just as history has its parallels, the events and words of ancient scripture can reflect the future as such events are prophetically repeated and as with the parables, they can foreshadow the future. Thus from the Old Testament comes one such tale which has it fulfillment in the events that have come after it.

A Child Divided

It seems that there were two women of the same house and each did lay their separate claims to the same child. The case was brought before the great king of wisdom and justice who decided the fateful and thus prophetic outcome of such parallel events to come in the manner of his own court decision. This of course is the tale of the two harlots of one house and their dispute over whose was the living and dead child, both claiming the living child to be their own. The scriptural account reads:

Now the first woman, harlot or inn/housekeeper, would be that of Rachel, Joseph, Ephraim and/or the northern kingdom of Israel. And the second would be that of Leah or Judah. Both such nations are well known in scriptures as playing the harlot in seeking after false Gods, thus the representation of being 'harlots' is a fair assecessment. Each women did lay claim to the living child, one as Messiah ben Joseph/Ephraim and the other as Messiah ben David/Judah. The judgment was to divide the child into two. And the one did being representative of Judah did persist in that the one living child be divided into two. Such a division of the child, the Messiah, would tend to destory the one true Messiah by dividing him into two. This the Jews have done by presenting that the Messiah be divided between Joseph, Messiah ben Jodseph, and Judah, as Messiah ben David. But the first or Rachel, in order to keep the child as one, was welling to yield up the child unto the other.

Therefore Judah, as the harlot who did overlay and kill the child Jesus Christ, the suffering child who they attributed to be Messiah Ben Joseph, will not have the living child Judah claims as Messiah Ben David to bring forth in the last days. And thus the great king and judge did determine in the end to give the living child to the first who was its rightful and legal parent, and that is Ephraim of Joseph in the latter-days. And in the latter-days it will be so, for it is Ephraim who doth bring forth the Second Coming of the child to the world as the Ensign to the nations, Ephraim being the rightful heir of Jacob as adopted as his firstborn son of the covenant.

Further, the irony of the scriptures do persist, as even in Rabbinical interpretation of the words of Ezekiel, the two claims of Messiah ben Joseph and Messiah ben David do become one and the same. That is the 'rod' or 'staff' who is Jesus Christ as is spoken of in Ezekiel 37. And just as various scriptures of true life parables and parallels have various depths of meaning, so does that scriptural account of the two harlots before king Solomon.

Now many LDS members do not look beyond the Book of Mormon and Bible relationship portrayed in Ezekiel chapter 37. But the Book of Mormon is merely today's representation of the history and stick of Joseph/Ephraim. The 'larger' history of the nation of Joseph and Ephraim as the kingdom of Israel extends beyond the beginnings and ending of the Book of Mormon. The brass plates of Laban may well we looked to as that part of the stick of Joseph which preceeded the Book of Mormon and the very latter-day history of the restoration may be further considered as a part of that extended history and stick of Joseph/Ephraim. And just as well is the New Testament and the latter-day histories of the Jews a part of the 'stick of Judah'.

Further, besides being the historical records of the seed, nations and kingdoms of Joseph/Ephraim and Judah, Each such record is set as a witness to Jesus Christ, the Messiah, before the world. And each speaks of Christ's relationship to them. Judah's or Leah's record presents the woman who overlaid her child and caused his death. Joseph's or Rachel's record presents the true, rightful and legal parentage of the Messiah and presents the nation which will usher in his Second Coming. Let's read Ezekiel's record.

Before we analyze this scripture, it should be pointed out that Christ as Jehovah has been endowed with the power of God the Father to act in his name. He often speaks by divine investature as the Father. And he often thus speaks of himself in the second person. Thus 'my servant David' who is to be our king is to be understood as Jesus Christ the son of God. He will be our God, the advocate of the Father to us. It is he who is the one and only true shepherd. It is he who will be our prince forever. Thus another name by which our ruling Lord will be known by is David, the Son of David, being the same as Jesus Christ the one and only Messiah, the Son of God.

Now in one level of meaning, the sticks are representative of the 'word' of God which will come out of Judah and out of Joseph, the latter being in the hand of Ephraim. And they are generally represented by the Bible of Judah and the Book of Mormon of Joseph. Then on another level, the records are those of two nations and those two nations are into which Jacob's seed is divided into, the nation of Judah and the nation of Ephriam or Israel. But then in an even deeper meaning the 'Word' is the same as Christ, that is Christ being the 'rod', 'staff', 'stick' or 'Word' (John 1:1) as it were of Ephraim and Judah via David of Boaz of Judah and of Mahlon of Ephraim. And the Lord God, the 'Word' as Messiah ben Joseph/Ephraim, and the 'Word' or Lord God, Messiah ben David/Judah, will become One God of the two nations and of the two nation's records. And the dispute will be settled as explained in the latter end of the last paragraphs of Ezekiel 37 above.

Now of further interest is that the Book of Mormon, while commonly presented as the 'stick or word of Joseph', is not the full and complete record of Joseph which testifies of Christ. It is what might be considered but a particle installment. To that ancient record, which tells of the Lehi and Mulek branches of Joseph (yes Mulek as seed of David is to be considered as seed of Joseph just as the Savior is to be so considered), there is more to be considered the 'stick of Joseph.' Our own modern scriptures of the Doctrine and Covenant are scriptural records written by the hand of Ephraim and are therefore a record of the more modern branch of the branches of Joseph. And then there is the plates of brass which some, among whom I am, consider to be but a more ancient extension of the 'stick of Joseph.' Those brass plates contained genealogies specific to the house of Joseph and many additional prophets who were prophets to the house of Joseph more so than to the house of Judah.

There are two scriptures which should be considered in defining a broader scope to the definition to the 'stick of Joseph' which reaches beyond the limited record of the Book of Mormon. First, it was Joseph of Egypt not Ezekiel who first received instructions from the Lord for there to be two records kept. In the Inspired Version, verse 31 of the 50th chapter of Genesis, Joseph of Egypt was told of the need for the two records. It reads as follows:

Thus one might well consider that from that date the records where kept and the plates of brass being but the house of Joseph record. The brass plates certainly contained more prophets in those plates who specifically prophecied concerning the house of Joseph being Zenos, Zenock, and Ezias. And that brass plate record was being kept by the house of Joseph, being in the possession of Laban and having the geneologies of Joseph upon them which are largely missing out of the Jewish Old Testament Bible. It is curious to consider that at the same time that Hilkiah the high priest of the temple in Josiah's day did find the record of the Law of Moses in the temple (see 2 Kings 22:8), Laban and his ancestors right there in Jerusalem had always had at their disposal the five books of Moses in the brass plates record which did contain that very law as part of the record of the house of Joseph (see 1 Nephi 5:11-16 particularly verse 16 which states that Laban and his fathers, plural, had been keeping the brass plates records, thus for many generations). Or perhaps the 'book of the law in the house of the LORD' did contain more detailed ordinance works than where common to the common record of the people in the five books of Moses?

The brass plate record is promised to come forth one day. And then we will likely know more of the truth of the promises of Joseph and how it is that the covenants of the fathers did by right proceed down to its rightful heirs through Joseph and Ephraim. I would think that the details of the genealogies of the house of Elimelech would therefore be therein contained. And with the coming forth of the brass plates and perhaps other records as well, the more complete 'stick of Joseph' will then be had among us. I look foreward to that day when more will be understood and clarified.