It is unnecessary to here quote all of the many gracious promises made by the great Father of us all to His friend Abraham, and to that Patriarch's immediate posterity, as they are cherished by the Saints as of more than earthly value, as pearls beyond all price, as sweet comforters in the day of trial, and as strong towers of defense in the hour of temptation; yet it may not be out of place to refresh our minds by the recital of a few of the most prominent, that we may better comprehend the ideas and statements that follow after. It is recorded (_Genesis xvii: 4-7_) that the Lord covenanted with Abraham, saying: "As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations. Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee and to thy seed after thee." Again (_Genesis xxii: 16-18_.) Jehovah declares: "By myself have I sworn saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and has not withheld thy son, thine only son, that in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed." To Isaac and to Jacob were these glorious promises confirmed if possible in yet stronger wording. (_Genesis xxvi: 4-10; xxviii: 14_.) To the latter it was said: "And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth; and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed." The blessing of Jacob upon his son Joseph is doubtless so familiar to the majority of our readers, that we shall simply quote the latter portion: "The blessings of thy father have prevailed, above the blessings of my progenitors, unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills. They shall be upon the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him who was separate from his brethren." We will take but one step further in this direction. Jacob, in blessing Ephraim and Manasseh, the sons of Joseph, said: (_Gen. xiviii: 16_.) "Let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth." When Joseph reminded the aged Patriarch that his right hand was placed on the head of the younger boy, he declared: "I know it, my son, I know it. He (Manasseh) also shall become a people. And he also shall be great. But truly his younger brother shall be greater than he; and his seed shall become a multitude of nations."