Avraham’s Mailbox

Question: Can you explain the current armed conflict between Palestinians and Israelis from an Israeli perspective and how that possibly relates to latter-day scriptures? Answer: When I lived in Israel five years, the last two as an Israeli citizen, I was informed that it takes two years’ living in Israel to understand this conflict that […]

Question: If the casting out of evil spirits was common in the past, and human nature doesn’t change, why isn’t the casting out of evil spirits common today, such as in priesthood blessings, instead of resorting to drugs for abnormal behavioral problems? Answer: As many people can testify, the phenomenon of evil spirits exists today

Question: Do Isaiah and other scriptures say what causes the “great division” at the time the Jews and Lamanites believe in Christ and the words of Isaiah are fulfilled as predicted by Nephi in 2 Nephi 30:4–18? Answer: A part of what causes the division Nephi predicts appears in his prophecy itself, namely that “The

Question: Does Isaiah say anything about a millennial temple in America, considering Isaiah lived only in the land of Israel? Answer: Isaiah’s prophecy about ancient “Egypt”—which name acts as a codename of end-time America—mentions an “altar” in the midst the land of Egypt and a brotherhood of covenanters who perform temple ordinances. The context of

Question: Why doesn’t the Church teach us about the Davidic Servant? Is it because the Times of the Gentiles are soon to be transitioned to the Jews? Or, that the prophet complies with the instruction of Jesus Christ to keep him unknown? Answer: A lack of deep scriptural knowledge within the church and an unbelief

Question: Do the scriptures touch on anything concerning modern plagues, such as Covid 19, and how church members should respond to continued WHO and CDC policies sponsored by the church to take vaccines into their bodies? Answer: While it remains a personal decision whether to take any vaccine—including the now much discredited Covid 19 shots—the

Question: Regarding the story of the Prodigal Son in the Bible, I understand the word “Prodigal” is never used. That term was assigned by someone’s using it through time. I also understand that the two brothers represent Judah and Ephraim. Judah has maintained the feasts, etc. Identifying someone as a “Jew” prompts immediate recognition of

Question: I have been pondering the meaning of Mathew 7:7-8: “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” I believe it has a

Question: Who is the “remnant” who shall be in the midst of the Gentiles “as a lion” (3 Nephi 21:12)? This is a question I’ve struggled with because on one hand, Isaiah 10, where the word first appears, seems to denote those Israelites among the Assyrians who are not destroyed (Isaiah 10:19-21) when the Lord

Question: If the scriptures define the restoration of the gospel as the “beginning,” “commencement,” or “foundation” of the Lord’s great and marvelous work (I have wondered about this for a long time), is current missionary work and temple building, which were instituted by the prophet Joseph Smith, still a part of that beginning of gathering

Question: How do the seven laws of Noah, which some people advocate, relate to the gospel of Jesus Christ? Answer: The so-called “Seven Laws of Noah” or “Seven Noahide Laws” are a universal moral code formulated by Jewish rabbis for non-Jews. While several of these laws overlap with the Ten Commandments God gave Moses, all

Question: Where does the Jewish expectation of a “messiah the son of Joseph” come from, and how does it relate to a “messiah the son of David”? Answer: Jewish tradition espouses the idea of four messianic persons, the additional two being Elijah and a righteous high priest. It derives these expectations from a wide variety