The Latter-day Saints (Mormons) commonly point to a number of Bible passages that they understand as prophecies of the Restoration of the gospel, the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith’s prophetic role, and the restoration of priesthood authority.
The important distinction is that these are Latter-day Saint interpretations of the passages. The biblical texts themselves do not name Joseph Smith, the Book of Mormon, or the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Here are the principal passages they use.
| Bible passage | LDS interpretation | What they see as fulfillment |
|---|---|---|
| Isaiah 29:4, 9–14 | A book comes “out of the ground,” followed by a “marvellous work and a wonder” | Book of Mormon + Restoration |
| Ezekiel 37:15–20 | The “stick of Judah” and “stick of Joseph” become one | Bible + Book of Mormon |
| Acts 3:19–21 | A future “restitution of all things” | Restoration of the gospel |
| Revelation 14:6–7 | An angel brings the “everlasting gospel” to the earth | Moroni and the Restoration |
| Malachi 4:5–6 | Elijah returns before the “great and dreadful day” | Elijah restoring priesthood/sealing authority |
| John 10:16 | Jesus has “other sheep” besides those in the immediate Jewish fold | Christ’s appearance to the Nephites |
| Ephesians 1:10 | God will gather “all things” together in Christ | Dispensation of the fullness of times |
| Isaiah 2:2–3 / Micah 4:1–2 | The Lord’s house established in the “last days” and nations gathered to it | Latter-day temple and Zion |
| Daniel 2:34–35, 44–45 | A kingdom established by God that ultimately fills the earth | Restored Church / Kingdom of God |
| Amos 3:7 | God reveals his purposes through prophets | Continuing latter-day prophets |
The LDS interpretation of Isaiah 29:4 is particularly distinctive:
“And thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, as of one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground…”
Then Isaiah says:
“Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder…” — Isaiah 29:14
The LDS Church explicitly connects this passage with the Book of Mormon. Its 2026 seminary material says that Isaiah 29:4 is fulfilled by the Book of Mormon, and identifies the “marvellous work and a wonder” of verse 14 with the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and restoration of the gospel. (Church of Jesus Christ)
The LDS interpretation is strengthened by their reading of Isaiah 29:11–12, where the words of a book are presented to someone who cannot read them.
This is one of the places where the LDS interpretation becomes particularly interesting for a biblical-textual study, because the surrounding context of Isaiah 29 is quite different from the way the passage is interpreted in LDS literature.
This is probably the most explicit LDS proof-text for the Book of Mormon.
God tells Ezekiel:
“Take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah…”
and:
“take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph…”
Then:
“And join them one to another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.”
— Ezekiel 37:16–17>
The LDS interpretation is:
Stick of Judah = Bible
Stick of Joseph = Book of Mormon
The two becoming one = the Bible and Book of Mormon becoming companion witnesses of Christ.
The LDS Church explicitly teaches this interpretation in its current scripture material. (Church of Jesus Christ)
Interestingly, Joseph Smith’s successors have used this passage very strongly. For example, an LDS Church manual says explicitly that “the stick of Judah” symbolizes the Bible and “the stick of Joseph” symbolizes the Book of Mormon. (Church of Jesus Christ)
Peter says:
“Repent ye therefore, and be converted…
And he shall send Jesus Christ…
Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.”
Latter-day Saints understand this as predicting a future restoration of Christianity after an apostasy.
The LDS Church explicitly identifies Acts 3:19–21 with the latter-day Restoration. (Church of Jesus Christ)
This is important because the LDS concept isn't merely that Christianity would continue. Their claim is that the original Church and its priesthood authority, ordinances, doctrines and organization were lost and subsequently restored.
John writes:
“And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth…”
Latter-day Saints connect this particularly with Moroni, the angel whom Joseph Smith said appeared to him beginning in 1823.
The LDS Church explicitly makes this connection. One LDS manual says that Revelation 14:6 was fulfilled when the angel Moroni appeared to Joseph Smith and told him about the plates containing the gospel in its fullness. (Church of Jesus Christ)
Their current teaching materials likewise ask students to compare the angel of Revelation 14:6 with Moroni’s mission. (Church of Jesus Christ)
Malachi concludes:
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD…”
and:
“And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers…”
LDS theology says this prophecy was fulfilled when Elijah appeared to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery in the Kirtland Temple in 1836 and restored the sealing keys.
The LDS Church explicitly teaches this connection. (Church of Jesus Christ)
This one is especially interesting because the LDS interpretation connects the passage to temple marriage, genealogy, baptism for the dead, and sealing families together.
Jesus says:
“And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring…”
Latter-day Saints interpret these “other sheep” as referring, at least in part, to people in the Americas.
The Book of Mormon then depicts the resurrected Jesus appearing to the Nephites and explicitly identifies them with the “other sheep” prophecy.
The LDS scripture guide itself cross-references John 10:16 with 3 Nephi 15:21, making the LDS interpretation clear. (Church of Jesus Christ)
Paul says:
“That in the dispensation of the fullness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ…”
LDS theology takes “dispensation of the fullness of times” as a specific designation for the last-days dispensation restored through Joseph Smith.
The LDS Church explicitly connects this verse with the Restoration. (Church of Jesus Christ)
If you are examining the LDS claims from a biblical/early-Christian perspective, I would divide the passages into three different categories:
Acts 3:19–21
Ephesians 1:10
Revelation 14:6–7
Malachi 4:5–6
These are used to argue that Christianity would experience a future restoration.
Isaiah 29:4, 9–14
Ezekiel 37:15–20
John 10:16
These are more specific because LDS interpretation connects them to the Book of Mormon itself.
Malachi 4:5–6 — Elijah and sealing authority
Revelation 14:6 — angelic messenger
Acts 3:19–21 — restoration
Ephesians 1:10 — latter-day dispensation
Amos 3:7 — continuing prophets
For your kind of Bible research, I think the most useful next step would be to examine Isaiah 29 and Ezekiel 37 in their actual Hebrew/Greek context, rather than simply asking whether the LDS interpretation exists.
For example, with Ezekiel 37, there are some very specific contextual questions:
What does the Hebrew word עֵץ (ʿēṣ), translated “stick,” actually mean?
Does the context identify the two sticks as two books, or as Judah and Joseph/Ephraim themselves?
What does verse 19 say the two sticks represent?
Does the passage concern the northern and southern kingdoms of Israel being reunited, rather than two future scriptures?
How did pre-LDS Jewish and Christian interpreters understand the passage?
Did any interpretation before Joseph Smith identify the two sticks with two books?
When did the “Bible = stick of Judah / Book of Mormon = stick of Joseph” interpretation first appear?
That would provide a much stronger way of evaluating the LDS claim than simply listing proof texts. The LDS Church itself is quite explicit about the interpretation, so we can then compare the LDS interpretation with the immediate biblical context and pre-19th-century interpretation.