“Strange as it may seem to present day enemies of the truth, their very opposition to the receipt of more of the word of the Lord by way of the Book of Mormon is one of the signs of the times. Their opposition, summarized in the canting chant, ‘A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible,’ brings forth this severe rebuke from the Lord: ‘Thou fool, that shall say: A Bible, we have got a Bible, and we need no more Bible...Wherefore murmur ye, because that ye shall receive more of my word?’ (2 Ne. 29.)” (Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2nd ed. [1966], 719).
"The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, moreover, thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions: And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand. And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest by these? Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in mine hand." Ezekiel 37:15-19
The Nephites were descendents of Joseph from the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh. Lehi was of the tribe of Manasseh, and his wife Sarai was of the tribe of Ephraim. Ishmael was of the tribe of Ephraim. Lehi's sons married Ishmael's daughters, explaining why their descendents belonged to both the Tribe of Ephraim and the Tribe of Manasseh. Ephraim and Manasseh were the twin sons of Joseph, hence the writings of the Nephite prophets was the stick of Joseph.
As Nephi prophesied, the Book of Mormon has successfully brought many Gentiles 2 Nephi 30:3, many of the posterity of Lehi (Native North and South Americans plus Pacific Islanders) 2 Nephi 30:3–6, and many Jews 2 Nephi 30:7 to a belief in Jesus Christ as the Savior. Millions of converts to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints can be found in North and South America, the Pacific Isles, and many other places in Europe, Australia, Africa, and Asia. Every person on Earth falls into one of those categories.
Through studying the Book of Mormon and living the gospel, all people on Earth can gain power to avoid Satan’s deceptive illusions and be guided as they strive to stay on the strait and narrow path. In one of Nephi's prophesies, he warns that before the Millennium the Lord would cause a great division among the people and destroy the wicked with fire 2 Nephi 30:10. If we choose to be among the righteous, some of the blessings we can look forward to during the Millennium are peace, safety, knowledge, understanding, light, and the lack of temptation from the adversary 2 Nephi 30:12–18. This image brings me great hope and describes the desires of my heart.
