Book of Mormon Prophecy About America

Matt Palmer

I was reluctant to write this essay after being encouraged to do so by a couple of people I respect. I was worried the topic was all too obvious, at least among the types of people who might read these essays. However, I will put some thoughts down here and ask the reader’s forgiveness if the points are trite, as I believe the Book of Mormon is very clear about the future of America: it will be destroyed and returned to Lehi’s people as their rightful inheritance.

The Land of the Book of Mormon Belongs to the Seed of Lehi

This first point is essential to know when discussing the future of this land. Christ gave it to Lehi’s people at the command of the Father. “Verily, verily, I say unto you, thus hath the Father commanded me—that I should give unto this people this land for their inheritance.” 3 Nephi 16:16, see also 3 Nephi 20:14. This promise was not something that died with the Nephites. This was a covenant between God and Lehi, and God is bound by it and will fulfill it. “Notwithstanding our afflictions, we have obtained a land of promise, a land which is choice above all other lands; a land which the Lord God hath covenanted with me should be a land for the inheritance of my seed. Yea, the Lord hath covenanted this land unto me, and to my children forever, and also all those who should be led out of other countries by the hand of the Lord.” 2 Nephi 1:5. Jacob explained that the Lord said, “I will consecrate this land unto thy seed, and then who shall be numbered among thy seed, forever, for the land of their inheritance; for it is a choice land, saith God unto me, above all other lands, wherefore I will have all men that dwell thereon that they shall worship me, saith God.” 2 Nephi 10:19. Thus, this land belongs to Lehi as well as those who will be led here by the hand of God and ultimately numbered among Lehi’s posterity.

This covenant between God and Lehi is very similar to the covenant between God and Abraham. One aspect of the Abrahamic covenant, one the authors of the Book of Mormon continually emphasize, is fulfilled by the possession of certain lands. “And Abram passed through the land unto the place of Sichem, unto the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanite was then in the land. And the Lord appeared unto Abram, and said, ‘Unto thy seed will I give this land’: and there builded he an altar unto the Lord, who appeared unto him.” Genesis 12:6-7.

God’s covenant with Abraham was not conditioned on any future righteousness of his posterity, or from Abraham. Rabbi Jason Sobel describes the covenant this way:

The Lord made a covenant with Abraham known as the Berit Bein Ha-betarim, which translates as “Covenant Between the Parts.” Before this covenant, Abram saw his relationship with God as contractual—if he obeyed the Lord, then he and his family would be blessed, but if he disobeyed, that he and his posterity would lose the blessing. Contracts normally place obligations on all parties who enter into them. Both participants must fulfill prescribed obligations or else there are serious consequences, including the contract’s termination.

With this understanding, Abram was concerned that future generations would not remain faithful and thus forfeit the blessings of inheriting the promised land. According to the rabbi, Abram was given visions of all the future exiles. This is why he wanted to guarantee from the Lord that his seed would not be permanently exiled from the promised land as God exiled Adam and Eve from Eden.

A compassionate and gracious God assuaged Abram’s fear in Genesis 15 by helping him understand that their relationship was not contractual but rather based on a special type of covenant, a brit in Hebrew. In the ancient near east, the most common form of covenant was bilateral. When two parties entered into this type of covenant, they would sacrifice animals, cutting them down the middle. Then both parties would walk between the parts, symbolizing that the one who did not keep his end of a covenant agreement would be torn apart. This type of covenant was conditional: all commitments would be voided unless both parties kept the covenantal stipulations. The “Covenant Between the Parts” that God made with Abram was different: it was unilateral and unconditional. God put Abram into a deep sleep before God alone passed through the parts of the covenantal sacrifices (Gen. 15:12-20). The Lord was the guarantor. Even when Abraham’s children disobeyed and rebelled, they could temporarily, but not permanently, forfeit the covenantal promises the Lord made to Abram/Abraham.”

Mysteries of the Messiah by Rabbi Jason Sobel at 38-39.

Much like God’s covenant with Abraham, the covenant with Lehi is one that is to last “forever.” God gave the land of the Book of Mormon to Lehi’s seed “forever,” and God will return it to them in days to come.

“This” Land and “This” People?

A lot has been written and said about where the land of the Book of Mormon is and is not. Any other reading than the land of the Book of Mormon is in America is untenable. I will only make a few points and leave you to go down the various rabbit holes of Book of Mormon geography if you desire.

We know that when Jesus Christ visited the Nephites that He was physically present in the land Bountiful. 3 Nephi 11:1. Much of the book of 3 Nephi is dedicated to recording Christ’s prophecies about the covenant that He made with Lehi, and that covenant concerns “this people” and “this land.” We know some important things about “this” land from other passages in the Book of Mormon. Nephi was told: “the Gentiles who have gone forth out of captivity, and have been lifted up by the power of God above all other nations, upon the face of the land which is choice above all other lands, which is the land that the Lord God hath covenanted with thy father that his seed should have for the land of their inheritance . . .” 1 Nephi 13:30. We know that “this land” would be the place where New Jerusalem would be built, and it was the same place were the Nephites and the Jaredites lived. 3 Nephi 20:22, Ether 13:2-4.

The archeological record, however flawed and incomplete, suggests that the people of Central America and the people of the American Midwest were different peoples. We have no reason to believe that Mayan culture and population spread to the American Midwest such that a statement of “this people” and “this land” could reasonably be thought to include people from present day Missouri to present day Guatemala. It makes no more sense then than it does now. Imagine if Jesus appeared today in St. Louis and spoke to the people there about “this land” and “this people,” and the listener thinking, “wow, sounds like great things are coming to the people of Nicaragua!” Referring to that as “this land” is nonsensical, and only a very poor translator would render that idea as such into English.

LDS tradition is unified in the expected location of New Jerusalem in western Missouri. Christ stood in Bountiful and plainly stated that New Jerusalem would be in “this land.” If you think He was standing in the Yucatan, talking to Mayans, but was prophesying about Missouri, then I’m afraid I can’t help you.

Not only did Christ prophecy about the land on which He stood, but he also prophesied to the people in front of Him. “Behold, now I finish the commandment which the Father hath commanded me concerning this people, who are a remnant of the House of Israel. . . . And the Father hath commanded me that I should give you this land for your inheritance. . . . And behold, this people will I establish in this land, unto the fulfilling of the covenant which I made with your father Jacob; and it shall be a New Jerusalem.” 3 Nephi 20:10, 14, 22. We must do violence to the plain meaning of these words to conclude that Christ was standing in Mesoamerica talking to Mayans about Missouri. I simply don’t take that prospect seriously.

Now, as for who “this people” is today, I don’t know, and it may not be my place as a gentile to figure that out. I have some thoughts, but I don’t think it would be appropriate for me to share them. Time will definitely tell, as we will see below.

The Gentiles Inherit This Land and Lose Their Inheritance

Ultimately, Lehi’s people would temporarily lose their right to inhabit this land, just like Jacob’s people temporarily lost their right to inhabit the Holy Land. Lehi prophesied about the people brought from Jerusalem to this land, “if the day shall come that they will reject the Holy One of Israel, the true Messiah, their Redeemer and their God, behold the judgments of him that is just shall rest upon them. Yea, he will bring other nations unto them, and he will give unto them power, and he will take away from them the lands of their possessions, and he will cause them to be scattered and smitten.” 2 Nephi 1:10-11.

Nephi was shown the yet future event, “Behold the wrath of God is upon the seed of thy brethren . . . . And I beheld the Spirit of the Lord, that it was upon the Gentiles, and they did prosper and obtain the land for their inheritance; and I beheld that they were white, and exceedingly fair and beautiful, like unto my people before they were slain.” 1 Nephi 13:11, 15. The wrath that fell on Lehi’s people directly led to colonization of this land by the white gentiles. As those who chose to serve Christ, the Gentiles were entitled to the blessings this land had to offer Christian inhabitants. Nephi describes these in 1 Nephi 13. Jacob prophesied that “the Gentiles shall be blessed upon the land. And this land shall be a land of liberty unto the Gentiles, and there shall be no kings upon the land, who shall raise up unto the Gentiles.” 2 Nephi 10:10-11. Furthermore, Christ said the gentiles would “be set up as a free people by the power of the Father.” 3 Nephi 21:4.

The time would come, however, when the gentiles would lose their chance to possess this land. Christ said, “at that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my gospel, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth, and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and of secret abominations; and if they shall do all those things, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my gospel from among them.” 3 Nephi 16:10. At this time, the Lord will remember his covenant with Lehi that will still be alive in the remnant of Lehi’s people in this land. But if the Gentiles repent, they will not be tread down by Lehi’s people. 3 Nephi 16:11-14. However, “if they will not turn unto me, and hearken unto my voice, I will suffer them, yea, I will suffer my people, O house of Israel, that they shall go through among them, and shall tread them down . . .” 3 Nephi 16:15.

Christ elaborated on this in 3 Nephi 20-21:

it shall come to pass that whosoever will not believe in my words, who am Jesus Christ, which the Father shall cause him to bring forth unto the Gentiles, and shall give unto him power that he shall bring them forth unto the Gentiles (it shall be done even as Moses said) they shall be cut off from among my people who are of the covenant. And my people who are a remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles, yea, in the midst of them as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, if he go through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver.

3 Nephi 21:11-12

The Lord proceeds to describe the incredible destruction of the cities and strongholds of the gentiles. 3 Nephi 21:13-21. This is the future the gentiles await.

Land Returned to Lehi—Gentiles Grafted In

Out of the destruction of the Gentiles comes the rebirth of place of righteousness under the direction of the remnant of Lehi’s people. Pay attention to the way that these prophecies were deliberately worded. New Jerusalem is under the purview of Lehi’s people. This is a story about them. The Gentiles have the opportunity to be grafted in and partake of that narrative. But this isn’t about the Gentiles. It’s about Lehi.

Moroni wrote, “a New Jerusalem should be built up upon this land, unto the remnant of the seed of Joseph . . . . the remnant of the house of Joseph shall be built upon this land; and it shall be a land of their inheritance; and they shall build up a holy city unto the Lord. Ether 13:6, 8.

Christ said to the people of Lehi in Bountiful:

the Father hath commanded me that I should give unto you this land for your inheritance. And I say unto you, that if the Gentiles do not repent after the blessing which they shall receive, after they have scattered my people—then shall ye, who are a remnant of the house of Jacob, go forth among them; and ye shall be in the midst of them who shall be many; and ye shall be among them as a lion among the beasts of the forest, and as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, if he doeth through both treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thy hand shall lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off

3 Nephi 20:15-17

Once the gentiles are destroyed, and Lehi’s seed is blessed with the power of God, then Lehi’s people will build New Jerusalem, assisted by certain Gentiles. Christ said:

if [the Gentiles] will repent and hearken unto my words, and harden not their hearts, I will establish my church among them, and they shall come in unto the covenant and be numbered among this the remnant of Jacob, unto whom I have given this land for their inheritance; and they shall assist  my people, the remnant of Jacob, and also as many of the house of Israel shall come, that they may build a city, which shall be called the New Jerusalem.

3 Nephi 21:22-23.

Note that it is the remnant of Jacob that builds New Jerusalem. The Gentiles are permitted to be numbered among that remnant and to assist them in building New Jerusalem. But Christ says as plainly as can be said that He has “given this land for their inheritance.” If the Gentile wants to remain, it can only be done on Christ’s terms as one numbered among the remnant of Jacob, otherwise the Gentile will be swept off of this land. If it sounds to you like this prophesy is not concerned with the LDS church’s claims to authority and to be the embodiment of the Abrahamic covenant, then you are astute. This is not prophecy about the LDS church. This is prophecy about Lehi’s seed. It is incompatible with the narrative the LDS church tells about itself, and that disparity will grow painfully large when these prophecies are fulfilled.

Nephi’s Messages to the Gentiles

Nephi’s record contains various hidden messages and meanings, a topic I will be writing about in time. But in 1 Nephi 17, Nephi is contending with his brothers about the wisdom of leaving Jerusalem in their day. Nephi’s argument, however, is a stern warning to the Gentiles and the posterity of Lehi in our day.

Nephi notes that his brothers did not believe that Nephi was “instructed of the Lord.” Verse 18. Nephi paraphrases their argument:

We knew that ye could not construct a ship, for we knew that ye were lacking in judgment; wherefore, thou canst not accomplish so great a work. And thou art like unto our father, led away by the foolish imaginations of his heart; yea, he hath led us out of the land of Jerusalem, and we have wandered in the wilderness for these many years; and our women have toiled, being big with child; and they have borne children in the wilderness and suffered all things, save it were death; and it would have been better that they had died before they came out of Jerusalem than to have suffered these afflictions.

Behold, these many years we have suffered in the wilderness, which time we might have enjoyed our possessions and the land of our inheritance; yea, and we might have been happy. And we know that the people who were in the land of Jerusalem were a righteous people; for they kept the statutes and judgments of the Lord, and all his commandments, according to the law of Moses; wherefore, we know that they are a righteous people; and our father hath judged them, and hath led us away because we would hearken unto his words; yea, and our brother is like unto him.

1 Nephi 17:19-22.

Nephi’s response is to prove the concept of what has been prophesied about the Gentiles in America in our day by showing the pattern repeating with Israel in past events. I will break Nephi’s response down into points to give my own emphasis:

Nephi’s first point: Israel was delivered by Egypt because they chose to hearken to the words of the Lord, and because Moses was appointed to lead them out of bondage. The Lord commissioned Moses to work miracles to deliver Israel from Egypt and to provide for them in the wilderness. Verses 23-32.

Nephi’s second point: Israel was empowered to drive out the occupants of the Holy Land because those inhabitants had become ripened in their wickedness. The Lord cares more about a people’s fidelity to Himself than he does to any designation as chosen, or any particular bloodline, etc. The people of the holy land were driven out because of their choices, not because they were merely in the way of the Israelites. Indeed, Nephi specifically notes that the holy land became cursed to its prior wicked inhabitants and blessed to Israel. Verses 32-35.

Nephi’s third point: this dynamic is something within the Lord’s right, and it is something that He will do when it is just to do so. Nephi says specifically, “he raiseth up a righteous nation, and destroyeth the nations of the wicked. And he leadeth the righteous into precious lands, and the wicked he destroyeth, and curseth the land unto them for their sakes.” Verses 37-38.

Nephi’s fourth point: despite the holy land having been blessed to Israel in the days of Moses/Joshua, they were approaching a state of ripeness in Nephi’s day, which ripeness would justify and necessitate their destruction out of that land. Verse 43.

Nephi is not wasting space carving out his argument with his brothers here. He is proving to us the way the Lord deals with the nations, that nations will be raised up in righteousness and destroyed in wickedness, planted and rooted up, as it were. He is demonstrating that the pattern that applied to the Israelites in the holy land will also apply to the promised land, from which he wrote his record.

Are the Gentiles on Stolen Land?

In a word, no. It is fashionable to claim the Gentiles are occupying land stolen from Native Americans. However, despite the fact that the Lord has covenanted with Lehi that America would be their land of inheritance forever, it was also the Lord that brought the Gentiles here to reap the blessings of this land as long as they would live here in sufficient righteousness to lay claim to the Lord’s blessings on it. Nephi makes this point in 1 Nephi 17, discussed in the previous section above.

Behold, the Lord hath created the earth that it should be inhabited; and he hath created his children that they should possess it. And he raiseth up a righteous nation, and destroyeth the nations of the wicked. And he leadeth away the righteous into precious lands, and the wicked he destroyeth, and curseth the land unto them for their sakes.

1 Nephi 17:36-38.

This dynamic’s application to the posterity of Lehi is a constant theme in the Book of Mormon. See 1 Nephi 13:11-23, 2 Nephi 10:10, 3 Nephi 16:8-9, 3 Nephi 20:27-29, 3 Nephi 21:4-5, the rest of this essay. Likewise, the Book of Mormon clearly teaches that it was the Lord who brought the Gentiles to this Land and established them as a powerful and blessed nation. For scriptural proof, read the scriptures adjacent to the ones citied just previously.

Therefore, the Gentiles are not on stolen land, and their collective condemnation does not come from their manner of obtaining this promised land.  The Gentiles’ collective condemnation comes from their wickedness after enjoying the blessings of the promised land and, ultimately, from rejecting the fullness of Jesus Christ’s gospel once it is presented to them.

 Like Israel in Lehi’s day, like the Nephites in Mormon’s day, and like the balance of Lehi’s posterity at the ascendency of the Gentiles here, the Gentiles’ sins are collective and ripe. Thus, their punishment will be collective and total. The Gentiles and their lands are to be destroyed, and there will be a great karmic reversal on them, such as they did to Lehi’s posterity will be done to them, and this time there will be a mighty remnant of Lehi that no earthly power can withstand.

The Lord is not the sheltered, eternally cuddly, hippie the modern churches make Him out to be. He understands this world better than the rest of us put together. He understands karma and justice as well as mercy. He understands violence and its uses in this world, and there is no shalom in pretending He is not a Man of War (Exodus 15:3) as much as He is a the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). His word concerning the laws that govern the occupation of the American promised land won’t be negated by the cowardice of the modern churches.

That this point is largely lost among believers of the Book of Mormon today is yet more damning proof that they have rejected the Book of Mormon. The LDS church sees the Book of Mormon as nothing more than a sales hook to draw people in to their institutionalized idolatry. They manipulate the spirit behind its message so they can grind on the faces of the poor, all the while ignoring the layered messages it teaches, so they can preach peace where there is no peace and make the people to trust in lie after lie. Those who have the Book of Mormon laid out before them, and who yet reject its message in favor of men who teach their words are greater than the words of Christ as revealed through scripture, bear the greater weight of condemnation among the nations of the Gentiles.

Conclusion and Summary

The Gentiles are not the future of America. This land belongs to Lehi’s people. This land will be given back to Lehi’s people. Lehi’s people bear the responsibility of building New Jerusalem, and repentant Gentiles will have the opportunity of assisting in that work and enjoying the society established there. Lehi’s people built Zion once already (see 4^th Nephi) and they’ll do it again.

To summarize the above:

• The land of the Book of Mormon was given via covenant to Lehi and his seed forever.
• This land is centered in the American Midwest.
• Lehi’s people temporarily lost the Lord’s blessing to possess this land.
• The land was temporarily given to the Gentiles, who would enjoy great blessings in the land.
• The Gentiles will lose the Lord’s blessing to possess this land, and they will go out with terrible destruction and curses on them.
• When the Gentiles are destroyed, the Lord will empower Lehi’s seed to possess this land again, and they will destroy anyone and anything that gets in their way of realizing that blessing.
• Lehi’s people will build New Jerusalem in this land.
• Repentant Gentiles in this land will have the opportunity to be numbered among Lehi’s people, assist them in building New Jerusalem, and to enjoy life in New Jerusalem with Lehi’s people.