Nephi, in his fledgling but prospering circle of saints in the promised land, must have a feeling of dispersal, of being scattered—considering how far he is from his native Jerusalem, and the fact that he is now separated from his older brothers because of their rejection of righteousness. Is it any wonder that he is attracted to the writings of Isaiah, one of whose major themes is the scattering and eventual gathering of Israel? How Nephi must yearn for the security of his people, for their adherence to the principles of covenant integrity so that they might be gathered and preserved as a community of faithful servants unto the Lord. How he must anguish over the visionary views given him of his people’s future apostasy and decline. How much he must rejoice to view the latter-day Restoration and gathering in of the remnants of his lineage as confirmed by Isaiah: “The remnant shall return, yea, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God” (2 Nephi 20:21). Nephi clearly perceives, like Isaiah, the coming “times of refreshing” (Acts 3:19) when the Lord will raise up an ensign to signal the ushering in of the last days: “And the Lord will set his hand again the second time to restore his people from their lost and fallen state. Wherefore, he will proceed to do a marvelous work and a wonder among the children of men” (2 Nephi 25:17; compare Isaiah 29:14). Thus Nephi lays out plainly the design of the Lord in preserving these very records for the blessing of coming generations: “Wherefore, he shall bring forth his words unto them, which words shall judge them at the last day, for they shall be given them for the purpose of convincing them of the true Messiah” (2 Nephi 25:18).