Ether 6-15

Quote: In these chapters, we learn the history of the Jaredites. They contain just one doctrinal discourse, but they do teach solemn admonitions about the evils of wickedness, immorality, idolatry, political strife, power struggles, secret oaths, violence, failing to heed prophetic warnings, and refusing to repent, and thus these chapters are relevant today, even though they come from a very different time and place. (Inspirations and Insights from the Book of Mormon. John W. Welch pg. 295)

Quote: The narratives of the Jaredites and Lehi’s family crossing the ocean in their vessels share similar conditions and outcomes, yet the tales themselves serve two separate purposes. The Jaredite record states that the Lord God caused furious winds, and that the people were “tossed upon the waves of the sea” as their vessels were pushed forward to the Promised Land. By contrast, we know that disobedience caused the great storm on the voyage of Lehi’s family to the Promised Land. In other words, it was not an easy voyage – they had their trials, but they ultimately made it to their desired destination. In both narratives, the people were traveling to their promised land for the same general purpose. In one scenario, the Lord provided the tempest that pushed the Jaredites toward the Promised Land. Those people were allowed to learn and grow through trials and tribulations – not of their making – along the journey. In the other scenario, the disobedient choices of a few caused unnecessary delay and difficulty for everyone aboard the ship.

We can metaphorically apply this situation to ourselves. When we face trials, tribulation, or trauma, it may be for a greater purpose. We may undergo difficult experiences to reach our desired destination. We can also slow our own progress through haughtiness and disobedience. (Inspirations and Insights from the Book of Mormon. John W. Welch pg. 296)

Quote: Among the Jaredites, the people were brought unto repentance when the king protected the prophets. In contrast, when a later king did not protect the prophets, the people hardened their hearts and did reject all the words of the prophets, with the result that the Spirit of the Lord ceased striving with them, and Satan had full power over the hearts of the people. They then reached the fulness of iniquity, which brought down upon the fulness of the wrath of God. (Merrill, “They Wrote to us As If We Were Present,” 15).

Quote: Why did the Jaredite people reject the prophets? The Jaredites followed a pattern of prophetic rejection evident in all ages. The Jaredites would say with the corrupt Ahab, “I hate the prophet Micaiah; for he never prophesied good unto me, but always prophesied evil.” That kind of hate for a prophet’s honesty cost Abinadi his life. As he said to King Noah: “Because I have told you the truth ye are angry with me…Because I have spoken the word of God ye have judged me that I am mad or, we might add, provincial, patriarchal, bigoted, unkind, narrow, outmoded, and elderly. (Holland, “Cost and Blessings of Discipleship”, 7)

Quote: The experiences of Emer are some of the most promising moments in these chapters of rampant wickedness among the Jaredites. As a very righteous leader of his people, Emer was privileged to have the veil parted and see the Lord Himself….Moroni may have desired to show us through Emer that not only righteousness but perfect faith is possible in a world sandwiched in on all sides by wickedness. (Judd, “Jaredite Zion Societies,” 150).

Quote: Shortly after my call as a new General Authority, I had the privilege to accompany President James E. Faust for a stake reorganization. As I drove the car to our assignment in beautiful Southern Utah, President Faust was kind enough to use the time to instruct and teach me. One lesson I will never forget. Said he, “The members of the Church are gracious to the General Authorities. They will treat you kindly and say nice things about you.” Then he briefly paused and said, “Dieter, always be thankful for this, but don’t you ever inhale it.” This important lesson about Church service applies to every priesthood holder in every quorum of the Church. It applies to all of us in this Church. 

To be effective Church leaders, we must learn this critical lesson: Leadership in the Church is not so much about directing others as it is about our willingness to be directed by God. 

There is nothing wrong with wanting to serve the Lord, but when we seek to gain influence in the Church for our own sake—in order to receive the praise and admiration of men—we have our reward. When we “inhale” the praise of others, that praise will be our compensation. (The Greatest Among You, Uchtdorf. Ensign April 2017)

Quote: Moroni may have been inspired (or sobered) by the failure of Ether to stem the tide of destruction and mutual annihilation of the warring Jaredite factions. Ether had cried repentance from morning until night, but without success. He had prophesied many things, which people did not believe. This caused Moroni to ponder, why would they not believe? Why had his own people failed to believe? In response to his musings, Moroni was inspired to write about faith. He wants to show the whole world that “faith is things which are hoped for and not seen,” and that people “receive no witness until the trial of their faith. (Inspirations and Insights from the Book of Mormon. John W. Welch pg. 302)

Quote: The scriptures link three words powerfully together: faith, hope, and charity. The gift of hope is a priceless endowment from God. The word hope is used for many things we want to have happen. For example, “I hope it won’t rain,” or “I hope our team wins. My intent is to speak of our sacred and eternal hopes centered in Jesus Christ and the restored gospel and our confident expectations of the promised blessings of righteousness.

As we strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ, we see beyond our struggles to the blessings and promises of eternity. Like a light whose brilliance grows, hope brightens the darkened world, and we see our glorious future.

Just as the Holy Ghost brought hope to Adam, the power of the Lord’s Spirit enlightens the faithful today, illuminating the reality of eternal life.

The Savior sends us a Comforter, the Holy Ghost, a companion bringing faith, hope, and peace “not as the world giveth.”

We feel the Lord’s approval for our meek willingness, and we await the promised peace the Lord will send in His chosen timing.

The Apostle Paul taught, “The God of hope [will] fill you with … joy and peace … , that ye may abound in hope,” “rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation;” “through the power of the Holy Ghost.” .

My brothers and sisters, hope is a living gift, a gift that grows as we increase our faith in Jesus Christ. 

To fortify our hope in a time of increasing wickedness, the Lord has directed His prophet to dot the earth with His temples.

As we enter the Lord’s house, we feel the Spirit of God, verifying our hope.

There is no pain, no sickness, no injustice, no suffering, nothing that can darken our hope as we believe and hold tightly to our covenants with God in the house of the Lord. It is a house of light, a house of hope. 

Brothers and sisters, the peace you seek may not come as quickly as you desire, but I promise you that as you trust in the Lord, His peace will come. I testify that our hope is our Savior, Jesus Christ. He is the God of hope—the triumph of hope. . (The Triumph of Hope. Anderson. Liahona November 2024.)

The “Why?” of Ether

Quote: As Moroni wrote, “it is wisdom in God that these things should be shown unto you … that evil may be done away, and that the time may come that Satan may have no power upon the hearts of the children of men” (Ether 8:23, 26). 

Ether 1-5

THE TOWER OF BABEL

Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. They said to each other, “Come, let’s make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” But the LORD came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. The LORD said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” So the LORD scattered them from there over all the earth, and they stopped building the city. That is why it was called Babel—because there the LORD confused the language of the whole world. From there the LORD scattered them over the face of the whole earth.

Genesis 11:1-9 NIV Study Bible: Updated Edition (Kindle Locations 3038-3061)

 THE BOOK OF ETHER

The first thing to note is how atypical the Jaredite history is, in a book that otherwise focuses on an isolated branch of Israel and the mission of the house of Israel in general. Because the Jaredites are descended from a group of people who left the Old World before the time of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, they are not Israelites and thus know nothing of the Abrahamic Covenant or the Mosaic Law (hence their keeping of swine at 9.18). In addition, there is little indication that the Jaredites were Christian, which is unexpected in the Book of Mormon given its current subtitle, “Another Testament of Jesus Christ.” It is true that the brother of Jared saw the pre-mortal Christ in a vision, but he was instructed to seal up his account of that experience and not share it until Jesus came to earth and was “lifted up on the cross” (3.21, 27–28; 4.1). That seems to have been what happened, for while there are Jaredite prophets who warn their people to repent or be destroyed, they are never portrayed as speaking specifically of Christ, as opposed to the general term for deity, Lord (though one king, Emer, and one prophet, Ether, are reported to have seen private visions of the future Jesus.)

In these passages Moroni underscores the aspects of Jaredite history that he believes are especially relevant to Gentiles, Jews, and Lamanites in the latter days: God’s insistence that the inhabitants of the Americas should serve him or suffer divine retribution, the power of strong faith and perfect knowledge, the dire perils of secret combinations, the transformative power of humility and charity, and the urgency of historical precedents.

Hardy, Grant. The Annotated Book of Mormon (p. 679). Oxford University Press.

CHASTENING IN THE WILDERNESS

Perhaps they were building the barges but had not yet used them. For whatever reason, the time had come for them to depart, and the Lord had to chastise the brother of Jared because they had not yet done so.

The brother of Jared was chastised “for the space of three hours.” We don’t know how they would have measured time, but it was surely a significant amount. Had the brother of Jared not prayed at all? That is a possible reading, but another reading would be that he had not asked the essential question about when they should begin the journey that God had already told them to take.”

Brant Gardner, Book of Mormon Minute , Volume 4

MIRACLE OF THE SIXTEEN STONES

He does involve us in the process (the miracle) and that is so gracious of Him.

Dallas Jenkins, BYU Forum, October 2024

https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/dallas-jenkins/five-loaves-and-two-fishes/

THE VISION OF THE BROTHER OF JARED

As a rule, prophets are invited into the presence of the Lord, are bidden to enter His presence by Him and only with His sanction. The brother of Jared, on the other hand, stands alone then (and we assume now) in having thrust himself through the veil, not as an unwelcome guest but perhaps technically an uninvited one. ... Obviously the Lord Himself is linking unprecedented faith with this unprecedented vision. If the vision is not unique, then it has to be the faith—and how the vision is obtained —that is so remarkable. The only way this faith could be so remarkable would be in its ability to take this prophet, uninvited, where others had only been able to go by invitation.

Jeffrey R. Holland, “Rending the Veil of Unbelief,” 61.

Where other prophets were insulated from the shock of God’s full glory though the preparatory mediation of vision, angels, and texts, the brother of Jared is not. Empowered by some potent combination of deep faith, frank innocence, and compelling humility, the brother of Jared reaches straight through the veil and immediately grasps the live wire of divinity with both bare hands.

What others see in vision, hear from angels, or glean from prophecies, the brother of Jared sees with his own eyes.

Adam Miller, Seven Gospels

Unlike the Nephites, the brother of Jared does not try to escape his initial misinterpretation; he does not flee the punishment he believes is coming. Instead, he steadies himself, looks and listens a bit longer, and rises to stand when Christ calls him. He trusts God. And because he leans into his trust rather than his fear, he enters into Christ’s full presence. He’s taught to read the true meaning of Christ’s body: not an instrument of punishment, but the manifestation of God’s love and the fulfillment of his promise to be with us. Condescension. Immanuel.

When we banish God from our world and look for him with a telescope, expecting that he is far way, he appears threatening and angry. When we instead look for him close by, when we use a magnifying glass instead of a telescope, we see that his hand is extended in blessing, not in violence. 

Rosalynde F. Welch, Seven Gospels

FAITH

I sometimes regret the fact that we use the word "faith" in religious discussions.

Why? Because I think it's become a technical term that obscures for many what should be and is a very simple concept. This has created serious controversies and unnecessary misunderstandings. The Greek word "pistis," which English Bibles typically render as "faith," also means "confidence" or "trust," and these ordinary, everyday terms convey very neatly what scriptural faith entails.

The first readers of the New Testament didn't have to ask what "pistis" meant. Paul hadn't invented the word. They knew it already; it had been common in Greek for centuries. And in the standard English lexicon of classical Greek, the first definition of "pistis" is "trust in others."

While theological factions might argue -- and, in fact, have argued -- for decades over the definition of "faith," we all have a reasonably clear idea of what it means to have "trust" in someone.

When the Greek New Testament was translated into Latin, "pistis" was rendered as "fides," which again meant "trust" or "confidence." Our English word "faith" comes from the Latin "fides," but today we tend to think of "faith" as "belief in something without proof," and, often, more as agreement with a set of propositions than as trust in a person.

But God is a person, and saving faith -- although it surely entails agreeing with certain propositions -- is trust in him, as a person, to love us and to keep his promises to us.

Daniel Peterson

REDEMPTION

The brother of Jared follows a different path from the standard Nephi progression of faith, repentance, and baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, death, resurrection, judgement, and eternal life with God. Instead, the Jaredite prophet is reunited with God in this life, through sure faith and certainly knowledge.

In some instance, apparently, extraordinary faith can substitute for priesthood ordinance, particularly when they are unavailable.

Hardy, Grant. The Annotated Book of Mormon (p. 677). Oxford University Press.

A PERFECT KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

Moroni’s use of this same description in Ether 3 strongly implies that the brother of Jared saw, in advance, this same crucified-but-resurrected body. And, too, I think this description strongly implies that the brother of Jared’s “manner” of witnessing this body involved feeling for himself this same wounds in Christ’s hands, feet, and side.

Christ’s body isn’t present to the brother of Jared in the image of an unarmed and invulnerable sprit. Rather, just the opposite: Christ’s spirit body already bears the image of his crucified-but-resurrected flesh. Somehow, even before the world’s creation, Christ was already “the Lamb slain from he foundation of the world.” And somehow, even before he was born, Christ already inscribed his love for us on the palms of his hands.

Adam Miller, Seven Gospels

DISCIPLESHIP

The brother of Jared’s story is distinguished by the fact that he meets Christ. But the man himself is defined by his relationships and the space he makes for them. The bother of Jared’s life isn’t about himself, it’s about the people he is with. Perhaps, then, it is no surprise that he can give place to God, that he can make so much room for God to show so much of himself.

To be a disciple of Christ is to lean into this same work of being “there” for God’s arrival. To be a disciple is to devote yourself to the work of making space for God to not only show himself to you but in you and through you.

Adam Miller, Seven Gospels 

Mormon 7 - 9

Moroni Alone. Maddie Baker.

Chapter 7 - “Somewhat remarkably, Mormon makes an urgent, generous appeal to the posterity of the enemies who have just annihilated his people.” Grant Hardy, The Annotated Book of Mormon, chapter seven footnote.

Chapter 8 - Moroni wrote his first farewell in the 400th year (see Mormon 8:6), approximately 15 years after the final battle at Cumorah (see Mormon 6:5), with no date for his second farewell (Ether 12) and his final farewell was delivered after the 420th year (see Moroni 10:1), 20 years after his first farewell. 

Three Farewells 

1. The Voice of Justice - Moroni 8

2. Moved by Sympathy - Ether 12

3. Turned the matter over to the grace and will of God - Moroni 10

"Readers may wonder why Moroni would deliver a farewell address and then later go on to include an abridgment of the book of Ether, ten more chapters of a book bearing his own name, and two more farewell endings, one in Ether 12:38–41 and the other in Moroni 10:34. One consideration is that, as time progressed, his circumstances and perspectives may have changed and the agony of defeat may have dimmed and healed. In any event, Moroni may have welcomed the opportunity to convey different concluding messages that he felt the Book of Mormon deserved.

As Elder M. Russell Ballard has pointed out, “The Restoration is not an event, but it continues to unfold.” So too, with Moroni, his endings for the Book of Mormon also unfolded, as he was able to revisit and add point upon point to his concluding messages."

https://scripturecentral.org/knowhy/why-did-moroni-write-so-many-farewells

Kimberly Matheson - Mormon 7-9: Hope in Christ

"Moroni reminds us that even despair is an acceptable posture before Christ. Righteousness does not always result in happy, shiny people. Here a prophet of God, tasked with one of the most crucial steps in the transmission of the Book of Mormon, feels desolate in the face of certain trials. Surely, then, modern Latter-day Saints can also struggle under depression and loneliness and still be welcome in the pews, in prayer, in their callings. It is at times like these, in fact, that pews and prayers and callings arguably matter most.

But I am struck by something else in this early introduction to Moroni. Somewhere around verse 11, his tone begins to change. The change is slight—barely perceptible, even. But ever so faintly, Moroni begins to dwell less on his present and more on the future; he speaks less in terms of what he does not know, and more in terms of what might be possible (Mormon 8:12). And there are clues about the reason for this slightly renewed hope: he reports being “ministered” to by Jesus’ Nephite disciples (Mormon 8:11) and hints at some kind of revelation of “all things” (Mormon 8:12) that includes, at the very least, a vision of his latter-day readers (Mormon 8:35). Though we can’t be sure of what, exactly, Moroni has seen, it’s clearly something that begins to outstrip his individual despair. As he witnesses the larger scope of Jesus’s redemptive work, his individual misery begins, just barely, to matter less." 

https://mi.byu.edu/news-blog-section/mormon-7-9-hope-in-christ

Chapter 9

Chapter 9:19 Unchangeable God

Kimberly Matheson - "Mormon 1-6: The Day of Grace"

"In the sorrow of true repentance, we change by turning toward God, whose love is constant. In the sorrow of unrepentant sin, God appears to change by turning our sin against us, while we remain constant in our resentment.

Having a soft and repentant heart turns out to be just one side of our relationship with God. Someone in this relationship will be changeable and someone will not; either the Lord or we ourselves will turn out to be fixed in our attributes. But when we refuse to be the changeable party, we find ourselves among the stagnant bitterness of the damned. It is only when we are humble enough to repent that God’s constancy can come into view.

If we refuse to grant any change on our side of the ledger, God can only appear to us as erratic and unreliable. But where we are willing to change, to break our hearts and come with contrition before Him, we will find on the other side God’s goodness unchanging." 

https://mi.byu.edu/news-blog-section/mormon-1-6

Jack Welch - 9:27-29 Moroni gives us 22 commandments to know how to live and to be successful - 

BYU Hawaii speech - September 2021 - Jack Welch 

https://speeches.byuh.edu/devotionals/celebrating-moroni-day

1. Despise not.

2. Wonder not.

3. Hearken unto the words of the Lord.

4. Ask the Father in the name of Jesus Christ for whatever ye shall stand in need.

5. Doubt not.

6. Be believing.

7. Begin as in times of old.

8. Come unto the Lord with all your heart.

9. Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling before God.

10. Be wise in the days of your probation.

11. Strip yourselves of all uncleanness.

12. Ask not to consume uncleanness on your lusts.

13. Ask with a firmness unshaken that ye will yield to no temptation.

14. Serve the true and living God.

15. See that ye are not baptized unworthily.

16. See that ye partake not of the sacrament of Christ unworthily.

17. See that ye do all things in worthiness.

18. Do all things in the name of Jesus Christ, the son of the living God.

19. Endure to the end.

20. Condemn me [or others] not because of mine [or their] imperfections.

21. Condemn not my father [Mormon] or those who have written before him.

22. Give thanks that God has made manifest our imperfections, that ye may be wiser than we have been.

Mark D. Thomas - “Moroni: The Final Voice.” 2003

This holy wanderer on the border of life and death, on the boundary of meaning and meaninglessness, passes a note to us regarding the collapse of our own house on the top of our own final Cumorah. We think we are reading of the fall of Moroni’s world when we are only reading of what can happen in our own world if we disregard his salvific call to “come unto Christ” (Moroni 10:32) 

https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1314&context=jbms

Kimberly Matheson - Mormon 7-9: Hope in Christ

He presses forward in fidelity to a covenant work that outstrips his individual griefs, acute and unimaginable though they may be. He is a saint who lived and experienced life in its entirety, who expressed hope in Christ not by being happy and smiley all the time, but by showing up in faith precisely when he was not feeling happy and smiley.

https://mi.byu.edu/news-blog-section/mormon-7-9-hope-in-christ

Mormon 1-6

 Main Messages 

I can follow Jesus Christ regardless of what other people do

Godly sorrow and repentance will lead me to Christ and lasting chang

Jesus Christ stands with open arms to receive me

Quote: Ammaron knew that this 10-year-old boy was very precocious, and he trusted him. Being trusted with some major assignment can be very influential in the development of confidence in the formation of the character of a young person, and indeed Mormon remembered that description. Being told that he was trustworthy likely made Mormon even more so. He was, even at that age, a very responsible person.

 Quote: Webster’s 1828 Dictionary defines “sober” this way:  A person who is sober is calm, not under the influence of passion, without intemperate passion. He is cool, calm, moderate, free from inordinate passions, free from the heat of passion, calmness, coolness, habitual freedom from enthusiasm, inordinate passion or over-heated imagination. Gravity without sadness or melancholy. It also meant being moderate, frugal, continent, reasonable, and sensible.”

Mormon was, by nature, all of these things. His disposition was calm and level-headed in the worst of situations.

Quote: Mormon was no ordinary person. At the age of 10, he was appointed to become the steward of the sacred Nephite records. At the age of 15 he was “visited of the Lord’. And in his 16th year Mormon was made a leader over the Nephite army. Apparently, Ammaron, the Lord, and Mormon’s people all saw something extraordinary in his capacity and character as a young man.” These three significant events – his calling as a historian and record-keeper, his installment as a military leader, and the visitation of the Savior – likely influenced much of his editing and telling of the Nephite story.

Quote: I mention the first two attributes together—being an example in word and in conversation. The words we use can lift and inspire, or they can harm and demean.

Let us speak to others with love and respect, ever keeping our language clean and avoiding words or comments that would wound or offend.

Quote: The next attribute mentioned by Paul is charity, which has been defined as “the pure love of Christ.”3 I am confident there are within our sphere of influence those who are lonely, those who are ill, and those who feel discouraged. Ours is the opportunity to help them and to lift their spirits.

Quote: Next, we are to be an example in spirit. To me that means we strive to have in our lives kindness, gratitude, forgiveness, and goodwill. These qualities will provide for us a spirit which will touch the lives of those around us.

Quote: To be an example of faith means that we trust in the Lord and in His word. It means that we possess and that we nourish the beliefs that will guide our thoughts and our actions. Our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and in our Heavenly Father will influence all that we do.

In order to gain and to keep the faith we need, it is essential that we read and study and ponder the scriptures. Communication with our Heavenly Father through prayer is vital.

Quote: Finally, we are to be pure, which means that we are clean in body, mind, and spirit. We know that our body is a temple, to be treated with reverence and respect. Our minds should be filled with uplifting and ennobling thoughts and kept free from those things which will pollute. In order to have the Holy Ghost as our constant companion, we must be worthy.

Quote: As we prove to be examples in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, and in purity, we will qualify to be lights to the world.

My brothers and sisters, our opportunities to shine surround us each day, in whatever circumstance we find ourselves. As we follow the example of the Savior, ours will be the opportunity to be a light in the lives of others, whether they be our own family members and friends, our co-workers, mere acquaintances, or total strangers.

That each of us within the sound of my voice may pledge to follow Him, thus becoming a shining light to the world, is my prayer

Quote: Frustrated with the cowardice and wickedness of his people, Mormon looked for inspiration to another young general, who lived over 400 years earlier and was able to inspire his people to victory through righteousness. Captain Moroni, chief captain of the Nephite armies, is a man Mormon greatly admired. He devotes a large part of his abridgment to the wars fought by Captain Moroni and may even have names his son after this courageous captain. The description of Captain Moroni in the book of Alma (which was written by Mormon) gives some insight into Mormon’s personality. He admires Moroni for his skill as a general but even more for his faith in God. (Hatch, “Mormon and Moroni”, 107)

Quote: The scope and significance of that horrible slaughter may be seen more readily when we realize that the great American Civil War of the 1860’s, the costliest war, in terms of human life, that the United States has ever known, took the lives of 140,000 men in a five-year period. Here, 230,000 fell in a single day. (Jeffery R. Holland. Mormon: The Man and the Book Part 1)