The Jews Are “Beginning to Believe”
2 Nephi 6:14
14 And behold, according to the words of the prophet, the Messiah will set himself again the second time to recover them; wherefore, he will manifest himself unto them in power and great glory, unto the destruction of their enemies, when that day cometh when they shall believe in him; and none will he destroy that believe in him.
President Joseph Fielding Smith said:
“Not many of the Jews, I take it from my reading of the scriptures, will believe in Christ before He comes. The Book of Mormon tells us that they shall begin to believe in Him [see 2 Nephi 30:7]. They are now beginning to believe in Him. The Jews today look upon Christ as a great Rabbi. They have accepted Him as one of their great teachers; they have said that, ‘He is Jew of Jew, the greatest Rabbi of them all,’ as one has stated it. When the gospel was restored in 1830, if a Jew had mentioned the name of Christ in one of the synagogues, he would have been rebuked. Had a rabbi referred to Him, the congregation would have arisen and left the building. And so, we see the sentiment has changed. Now I state this on Jewish authority that they are beginning to believe in Christ, and some of them are accepting the gospel.
“But in the main they will gather to Jerusalem in their unbelief; the gospel will be preached to them; some of them will believe. Not all of the Gentiles have believed when the gospel has been proclaimed to them, but the great body of the Jews who are there assembled will not receive Christ as their Redeemer until He comes Himself and makes Himself manifest unto them.”
(Doctrines of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. [1954–56], 3:9.)
