Enoch received an everlasting covenant from God, with a promise that the Lord would return to the earth and dwell among the righteous of Noah’s seed. The inhabitants of the city of Enoch will return to the earth also to assist Joseph in the work of building the Holy City, called the New Jerusalem. A “city of Enoch” for our day is afoot, while truth and righteousness is now flooding the earth in preparation.

A terrifying tyrannical rampage of the King of Babylon will annihilate billions. He will target the notorious saints of God for extermination, who openly defy him and refuse to bow to him. The Lord endows with power and sends His end-time servant to inspire the faithful, lead them out of captivity and to demonstrate the Lord’s matchless power to frustrate the designs of any who dare to fight against Zion.

Isaiah prophesied in detail the war between good and evil in the last days. He paints a vivid picture of a great Assyrian king, who rises to power and coerces the nations of the earth into bondage and submission to the evil order. The Lord fulfills His promise to protect His covenant people by sending the end-time servant to deliver the faithful from impending doom and to reinstate Zion.

The mysterious allegory of the olive trees in Jacob 5 can be tough to understand. If one is familiar with the end-time prophecies of Nephi, Isaiah, Jesus and Joseph Smith it begins to make more sense. The servant counsels with the Lord about how to produce good fruit: saved souls who partake of the tree of life. Their plans include the reestablishment of the everlasting covenant, and the fulfillment of God’s promises to the fathers. Zion will come again by power.

Aaron taught Lamoni’s father (the Lamanite king) how to come unto Christ and be born of God. The steps were simple, precise and accurate. The king followed these instructions with faith, believing he too could enjoy the baptism of fire and the Holy Ghost. Ammon witnessed first hand the mighty conversion of the king and the remarkable fruits in the lives of his believing people.

A “marvelous work and a wonder” is the Lord’s description of His efforts to gather and save his elect from the most severe bondage and destruction plot in history. Joseph Smith laid the foundation of Zion 190 years ago. But he’s returning again with vengeance to scatter watchmen, tear down hedges, destroy their towers and redeem the Lord’s vineyard. Zion will return triumphant.

In the last days, only a portion of those who have entered into the Everlasting Covenant will endure to the end and avoid destruction. The rest will have become as “salt that loses its savor.” Isaiah’s metaphors illustrate the cutting back of the terebinth tree, and it regrowing upright again from its tenacious root stock. Those that prove true and faithful (the 10% of the 10%) will dwell in the New Jerusalem.

An angel sent Alma back to Ammonihah one last time to finish the job. Alma and Amulek taught the people a highly divisive higher doctrine, boldly proclaimed repentance and sealed their testimony with a prophecy of destruction. Our modern society today is very similar to the evil and conspiring Nehorites and their sleeping citizen slaves, who “do study at this time that they may destroy the liberty of thy people.” Will we ignore the call to repent, or choose destruction as the city of Ammonihah did?

Isaiah saw the symbols of the house of Israel in the metaphor of the “vineyard in a very fruitful hill.” In his song of the vineyard (Isaiah 5), he explains how the lord’s vineyard produced wild fruit, to which the Lord says “I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard.” The Lord of the vineyard starves the vineyard of weeding and withholds rain. Compare these parallels to the last days in the parable of the redemption of Zion.

Alma’s baptism by fire and the Holy Ghost and immediately turned to preaching the pure doctrine of Christ. His worked to sanctify his people. Alma’s calling was identical to that of Joseph Smith, Moses and every other true prophet. The story of Alma holds a key to understanding the crucial invitation to sanctify ourselves that’s still on the table. The clock is ticking.