The Son of David Reigneth Bruce R. McConkie Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

Transcription

1 The Son of David Reigneth Bruce R. McConkie Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (From The Millennial Messiah [Deseret Book, 1982], pp ) The Lord Reigns on Earth OW little the world knows of the coming day when Christ, as our tenth Article of Faith says, "will reign personally upon the earth," meaning, as the Prophet tells us, that he will "visit it," from time to time, "when it is necessary to govern it." (Teachings, p. 268.) And how little even the saints know of the government that is to be, meaning that their King will reign over Israel, on the throne of David, being himself the Second David, and that, as a prelude thereto, the "Gentiles" will "lick up the dust" of the feet of the chosen people. (Isa. 49:23.) And yet these are profound truths that are spread forth in extenso in the revealed word. To understand the Second Coming, we must consider them in their proper relationship to all the events of the latter days. The holy word, given of old, abounds in such prophetic promises as these: "And the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that [millennial] day shall there be one Lord, and his name one." (Zech. 14:9.) The promise to Israel in that day is: "The king of Israel, even the Lord, is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not see evil any more.... The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; he will save, he will rejoice over thee with joy.... At that time will I bring you again, even in the time that I gather you." This is the millennial gathering! "For I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth, when I turn back your captivity before your eyes, saith the Lord." (Zeph. 3:15-20.) "I am the Lord thy God,... for there is no saviour beside me.... I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all thy cities?" (Hosea 13:4, 10.) And of the sanctuary from which the divine law shall go forth, the prophetic word is: "And the name of the city from that day shall be" Jehovah-shammah, "The Lord is there." (Ezek. 48:35.) Matthew includes in the interpretation of the parable of the wicked husbandmen the statement that the disciples of that day "understood... that the Gentiles should be destroyed also, when the Lord should descend out of heaven to reign in his vineyard, which is the earth and the inhabitants thereof." (JST Matt. 21:56.) In our dispensation the divine word says: "The Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon Idumea, or the world." (D&C 1:36.) "For I will reveal myself from heaven with power and great glory, with all the hosts thereof, and dwell in righteousness with men on earth a thousand years, and the wicked shall not stand." (D&C 29:11.) "And the Lord, even the Savior, shall stand in the midst of his people, and shall reign over all flesh." (D&C 133:25.) And our friend John, in the visions vouchsafed to him, "heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." (Rev. 19:6.) The Lord reigneth! How glorious is the day! Hallelujah (praise Jehovah), for Jehovah reigneth! Alleluia (praise Christ), for Christ reigneth! And the Lord Jehovah is the Lord Jesus; they are one and the same. When the Lord reigns, how will he do it? John says: "He shall rule them with a rod of iron." (Rev. 19:15.) What is the rod of iron? Nephi says: "I beheld that the rod of iron... was the word of God, which led to the fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life." (1 Ne. 11:25.) Thus, Christ reigneth in and through and by means of the gospel. There is no other way. Men will be subject to him because they believe the gospel. The gospel is his law. He has no other. And so we read relative to his coming: "And another trump shall sound, which is the fifth trump, which is the fifth angel who committeth the everlasting gospel-flying through the midst of heaven, unto all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people; and this shall be the sound of his trump, saying to all people, both in heaven and in earth, and that are under the earth-for every ear shall hear it, and every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess, while they hear the sound of the trump, saying: Fear God, and give glory to him who sitteth upon the throne, forever and ever; for the hour of his judgment is come." (D&C 88: ) Every knee shall bow! The Lord reigneth! He is King over all the earth! David Prophesies of Christ's Reign In the days of David, Israel's kingdom was glorious

2 indeed. The Twelve Tribes-"instantly serving God day and night" (Acts 26:7), as Paul expressed it-were united; they were independent of any other earthly power; freedom and power and prestige welled up in the hearts of the chosen seed. A thousand years later, when the Son of David walked among them, Israel had no kingdom. Her municipals were scattered among the nations where most of them served other gods and no longer knew the Lord Jehovah whose people they once were. The remnant in Palestine bowed beneath the Gentile rod and served the Herods and the Caesars whose swords were sharp and whose arms were as iron. Up to that time the prophetic word relative to the glorious restoration of the chosen people in might and power and dominion seemed as distant as it had when Nebuchadnezzar took their fathers into Babylon. The prophetic pronouncements of what was to be in the Messianic day were yet to be fulfilled. Hence we hear the ancient Twelve on Olivet, when the hour for the ascension had arrived, asking Jesus: "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6.) Restore again the kingdom to Israel! When will the Lord's kingdom come? When will it be set up again on earth as it once was-with a king and a court, with laws and judges, with power and magnificence? Such was not for the day of Peter and Paul; it was reserved for our day, and the promised consummation is not far distant. What is more appropriate, then, than to have David himself prophesy of his even greater Son who will one day sit on his father's throne and reign over the house of Israel forever? It is to the words of the sweet singer of Israel that we shall turn first as we consider the coming reign of the Second David. His words relative to the millennial day are comparable to those he spoke about the meridian day. The Spirit revealed to David wondrous truths relative to the two comings of his incomparable Son. The Lord most high is terrible," the psalmic word recites; "he is a great King over all the earth. He shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet." All nations shall be subject to Israel in that great day. The Gentiles shall bow beneath the gospel rod. "He shall choose our inheritance for us." The meek shall inherit the earth. "For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding. God reigneth over the heathen: God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness.... He is greatly exalted." (Ps. 47:2-9.) "O let the nations be glad and sing for joy: for thou shalt judge the people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth." This is the millennial day. "Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, even our own God, shall bless us." (Ps. 67:4-6.) From a prayer of David we extract these words which are clearly Messianic, though some of them, as originally given, applied to contemporary events. It was the prophetic practice among the Hebrews to use local circumstances as similitudes to teach the glories and wonders of the gospel and of the Messiah who would come to save his people. "He shall judge thy people with righteousness, and thy poor with judgment," David said. "He shall judge the poor of the people, he shall save the children of the needy, and shall break in pieces the oppressor. They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations." The Lord's reign shall be eternal; the saints shall possess the kingdom forever and ever. "He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass: as showers that water the earth." As the dews of heaven, so shall the knowledge of God descend upon those who seek his face. "In his day shall the righteous flourish; and abundance of peace so long as the moon endureth." How glorious shall be that blessed day of righteousness and peace. "He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust." Israel truly shall stand triumphant in that day. "Yea, all kings shall fall down before him: all nations shall serve him." Christ is King of all. "For he shall deliver the needy when he crieth; the poor also, and him that hath no helper. He shall spare the poor and the needy, and shall save the souls of the needy. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence: and precious shall their blood be in his sight.... His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed. Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only doeth wondrous things. And blessed be his glorious name for ever: and let the whole earth be filled with his glory." (Ps. 72:2-19.) Granted that some of the language is figurative and will not find literal fulfillment in the millennial day, yet the concepts taught are truly glorious. In substance and in thought content they all shall surely come to pass. Other psalmic pronouncements that will find total fulfillment only in the millennial day include: "Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations." (Ps. 82:8.) "O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness: fear before him, all the earth. Say among the heathen that the Lord reigneth.... He shall judge the people righteously.... He cometh to judge the earth: he shall judge the world with righteousness, and the people with his truth." (Ps. 96:9-13.) "The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice.... Clouds and darkness are round about him: righteousness and judgment are the habitation of his throne. A fire goeth before him, and burneth up his enemies round about. His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled. The hills melted like wax at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth." (Ps. 97:1-5.) "The Lord reigneth; let the people tremble.... The Lord is great in Zion." (Ps. 99:1-2.) "All thy works shall praise thee, O Lord; and thy

3 saints shall bless thee. They shall speak of the glory of thy kingdom, and talk of thy power; To make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom. The kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and thy dominion endureth throughout all generations." (Ps. 145: ) "The Lord shall reign for ever, even thy God, O Zion, unto all generations. Praise ye the Lord." (Ps. 146:10.) Those with spiritual insight find in the Psalms priceless pearls of wisdom and revelation. Truly, their pleasant words and sweet similitudes open the eyes of our understanding with reference to the coming reign of the Son of David. Christ Reigns on David's Throne The Lord Jesus Christ-the King of heaven and the rightful ruler of the earth-set up his earthly kingdom among men on the 6th day of April in That kingdom, now named The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is an ecclesiastical kingdom. It is ruled and governed by the priesthood; it administers the gospel; it holds the keys of salvation for all men. It is the only true and living church upon the face of the whole earth and is the one place where salvation may be found. It is, in the true and literal sense of the word, the kingdom of God on earth, and as such it is preparing men to go to the kingdom of God in heaven, which is the celestial kingdom. When the Lord, in the first instance, in the days of Adam set up his kingdom on earth, it was both an ecclesiastical and a political kingdom. From the day of the first man down to the flood, all of the righteous people in earth were governed, both ecclesiastically and politically, by the same leaders and with the same power-the power and authority of the holy priesthood. Apostate peoples who broke off from the true church, as then officered and organized, created both churches and governments of their own. Often these were united as one, patterning themselves after the true Adamic system; sometimes the two ways of life were separately administered. Such peoples had false religions and, from the true theocratic perspective, false governments also. There is only one true religion, the religion in which God rules by revelation. And, in the full and divine sense, there is only one true government, the government in which God rules. All things are spiritual unto the Lord; from his standpoint there is no such thing as a temporal commandment, and it is his right to rule in all things both temporal and spiritual. For the time being, however, because men are not prepared and are unwilling to take direction from the Lord; because they love darkness rather than light, their deeds being evil; because they choose to believe false religions and to be governed by political powers that fall short of the perfect and divine standard-because of these conditions, the Lord has ordained a system under which church and state should be separated. In the full and true sense this system of separation of church and state is in active operation only in the United States of America. Some other nations make reasonable attempts to allow freedom of worship, but most of the population of the earth is ruled by governments that also tell them what they must believe, how and what they must worship, and what they must do, as they falsely suppose, to gain salvation. These are corrupt, evil, and apostate systems. As the union of church and state under God is the most perfect form of worship and government, so the union of church and state under man leads to false worship and denies men a hope of full salvation. Whenever in our day the power of the state, with its armies and jails, usurps the prerogatives of the church and proceeds to govern in religious matters, the church of the evil one flourishes. Men are hailed before a Spanish inquisition; they are put to death for forsaking Islam and becoming Christians; they are driven into ghettos and murdered in concentration camps; or they are scourged in synagogues and crucified on crosses. There is nothing more evil, more cruel, more wicked than false religion that can survive only by the sword of Cortez, or the armies of Mohammed, or the gestapo of Hitler. Both church and state, as the world knows them, will soon cease to be. When the Lord comes again, he will set up anew the political kingdom of God on earth. It will be joined with the ecclesiastical kingdom; church and state will unite; and God will govern in all things. But even then, as we suppose, administrative affairs will be departmentalized, for the law will go forth from Zion (in Jackson County), and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem (in Palestine). But, nonetheless, once again the government of the earth will be theocratic. God will govern. This time he will do it personally as he reigns over all the earth. And all of this presupposes the fall of Babylon, and the death of false religions, and the fall of all earthly governments and nations. And these things, as we are aware, shall surely come to pass. Thus, when we speak of the Lord returning to reign personally upon the earth, we are talking about a literal return. We have in mind a King ruling on a throne. We mean that laws will come forth from a Lawgiver; that judges will be restored as of old; that there will be a full end of all nations as these now exist; that earth's new King will have dominion and power over all the earth; and that Israel, the chosen people, will possess the kingdom and have everlasting dominion. It is to these things that we shall now turn our attention. Isaiah, in one of his greatest Messianic utterances, acclaims: "And the government shall be upon [Messiah's] shoulder.... Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for

4 ever." (Isa. 9:6-7.) Isaiah's words, thus given, are but the foundation for the angelic proclamation of Gabriel to the Virgin of Nazareth of Galilee. Of the child Jesus whom she should bear, the angelic word promised: "He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end." (Luke 1:31-33.) Thus, Christ shall provide the government. He shall reign on the throne of David forever. Peace shall prevail, and justice and judgment shall be the order of the day. And it is Israel, the chosen ones, over whom he shall reign in a kingdom that shall never cease. There is nothing figurative about this; it is not something that can be spiritualized away. It is the coming reality; it shall surely come to pass. Isaiah, speaking of the Second Coming, also says: "Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the Lord of hosts"-for such he is!-"shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients gloriously." (Isa. 24:23.) His ancients are the prophets and patriarchs of olden times who, as we shall hereafter see, shall reign with him on earth. Isaiah also promises: "Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment." (Isa. 32:1.) And also, speaking of the millennial day when men "shall see the king in his beauty," Isaiah says: "For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he will save us." (Isa. 33:17, 22.) In the full and true sense, the Lord will not stand as Judge, or Lawgiver, or King, and will not save men to the full, until the Millennium. Our latter-day revelations bear a like testimony. "In time ye shall have no king nor ruler, for I will be your king and watch over you," the Lord tells us. "Wherefore, hear my voice and follow me, and you shall be a free people, and ye shall have no laws but my laws when I come, for I am your lawgiver, and what can stay my hand?" (D&C 38:21-22.) And also: "For the Lord shall be in their midst, and his glory shall be upon them, and he will be their king and their lawgiver." (D&C 45:59.) And yet again: "Be subject to the powers that be"-to the governments that now exist-"until he reigns whose right it is to reign, and subdues all enemies under his feet. Behold, the laws which ye have received from my hand are the laws of the church, and in this light ye shall hold them forth." (D&C 58:22-23.) For the present we are subject to the laws of the land; when the true and perfect millennial order prevails, all rule and government, both civil and ecclesiastical, will come from our Eternal Head. Others of the prophets also have somewhat to say about these things. In a rather remarkable passage Zechariah ties the gathering of Israel and the millennial reign together in these words: "Ho, ho, come forth, and flee from the land of the north, saith the Lord." This is his call to Israel and to Judah, his ancient covenant people, scattered as they are in the lands northward from Palestine. This is the call that has now commenced and will yet go forth with increased sound. "For I have spread you abroad as the four winds of the heaven, saith the Lord." Israel is scattered, and Israel must be gathered. "Deliver thyself, O Zion, that dwellest with the daughter of Babylon." Go ye out from Babylon; flee from the world; turn from your apostate and fallen ways; return unto the God of Israel. And as to those nations and this Babylon (the world) that have wrought so great a havoc upon the chosen seed, the divine word says: "For thus saith the Lord of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye. For, behold, I will shake mine hand upon them [the nations], and they shall be a spoil to their servants: and ye shall know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me." Israel shall finally prevail over the Gentile nations. Her eternal triumph is assured. "Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the Lord." The Lord Jesus Christ shall reign personally upon the earth. "And many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and shall be my people." Gentile nations shall be converted; the blacks shall receive the priesthood; nations long outside the pale of saving grace shall come into the fold and shall rise up and bless Abraham as their father. "And I will dwell in the midst of thee, and thou shalt know that the Lord of hosts hath sent me unto thee. And the Lord shall inherit Judah his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again." How wondrous it shall be. "Be silent, O all flesh, before the Lord: for he is raised up out of his holy habitation." (Zech. 2:6-13.) So shall it be in the coming day. Zechariah also says: "He shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth." (Zech. 9:10.) Ezekiel saw in vision "the glory of the God of Israel," and "his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory." With reference to the Lord's holy sanctuary, the voice said: "Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile.... And I will dwell in the midst of them for ever." (Ezek. 43:2-9.) His throne shall be in his holy house; his reign shall be a personal one, even the very soles of his feet again treading the dust of the earth; and Israel shall honor and serve him. Of that day Micah says: "And the Lord shall reign over them in Mount Zion from henceforth, even for ever." (Micah 4:7.) And because the law is to go forth in that day from an American Zion, he himself said to Nephite Israel: "This people will I establish in this land [the Americas], unto the fulfilling of the covenant which I made with your father Jacob; and it shall be a New Jerusalem. And the

5 powers of heaven shall be in the midst of this people; yea, even I will be in the midst of you." (3 Ne. 20:22.) Nephi speaks of the destruction of the kingdom of the devil in the last days, of the wicked being brought low in the dust, and of their being consumed as stubble. "And the time cometh speedily," when all this is brought to pass, he says, "that the righteous must be led up as calves of the stall, and the Holy One of Israel must reign in dominion, and might, and power, and great glory." (1 Ne. 22:23-24.) Truly, he shall reign whose right it is; he shall make "a full end of all nations" (D&C 87:6), and with his saints he shall possess the kingdom forever and ever. In that day a great voice in heaven shall say: "The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever." (Rev. 11:15.) The eventual triumph of the Lord's people is assured; there is to be a millennial day of glory and honor and peace; the fulness of the earth shall be theirs in that day, and all nations and kingdoms shall serve and obey them. But all the promised rewards need not be deferred until that day. Even now the saints can begin the process of inheriting the kingdom. They have power to begin to reap some of the millennial rewards. "I have decreed a decree which my people shall realize," the Lord said in the early days of this dispensation, "inasmuch as they hearken from this very hour unto the counsel which I, the Lord their God, shall give unto them. Behold they shall, for I have decreed it, begin to prevail against mine enemies from this very hour. And by hearkening to observe all the words which I, the Lord their God, shall speak unto them, they shall never cease to prevail until the kingdoms of the world are subdued under my feet, and the earth is given unto the saints, to possess it forever and ever." (D&C 103:5-7.)