Herod the Fox

Herod Antipus, known as “Herod the tetrarch” in the New Testament, was one of the sons of Herod the Great who murdered the children in Bethlehem and rebuilt the temple at Jerusalem, and both Herods are likewise remembered by Christians for their wicked deeds.  At the death of his father, Herod Antipas became the ruler in the Galilean region.  Herod took Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, for his own wife, and John the Baptist criticized him for it.  He told him, “It is not lawful for thee to have her” (Matt 14:4).  That led to the events surrounding John the Baptist’s beheading which was ordered by Herod.  When Jesus was taken before Herod at the time of his trial, the king “was exceedingly glad: for he was desirous to see him of a long season, because he has heard many things of him; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done by him.” (Luke 23:8).  So he wanted to see some sign of Jesus, and certainly was not interested in understanding whether He was really guilty of what He was being accused of.  He’s another example fulfilling the Savior’s words that “a wicked and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given unto it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas” (Matt 16:4).  Given the affair of taking his brother’s wife, clearly Herod can be labeled as adulterous.  He sought the sign from Jesus, and indeed it was not given.  In fact despite all that he had hoped to see when meeting Jesus in person, Jesus “answered him nothing” (Luke 23:9).  Herod was one of the few that Jesus called by a belittling name.  When some Pharisees came to Jesus and warned Him to depart, saying, “Herod will kill thee,” Jesus responded, “Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold I cast out devils, and I do cures today and tomorrow” (Luke 13:31-32).  He was a fox because he was deceitful, treacherous, and perhaps most importantly had murdered the man that the Savior regarded as “more than a prophet” (Matt 11:9). 

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And They Knew it Not

The reference of the Savior in 3 Nephi 9:20 about the Lamanites’ conversion is intriguing to me.  It almost seemed out of place as he spoke on broad themes of creation, His Divinity, sacrifice, and coming unto Him.  He said that those who will come with a broken heart and a contrite spirit will be baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost as the Lamanites who “were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not.”  He didn't give any more indication of exactly what event he was talking about, and the most likely candidate is the group of Lamanites mentioned in Helaman 5 of whom it was described, “The Holy Spirit of God did come down from heaven, and did enter into their hearts, and they were filled as if with fire” (Helaman 5:45).  The text there doesn’t given any indication that they didn’t realize they were being filled with the Holy Ghost, but it is not unreasonable since they had little understanding of spiritual things.  But why would Jesus mention this event in these very first words to the Nephites after His resurrection?  Perhaps He was teaching that the Holy Ghost could come upon anyone who will show forth a broken heart and contrite spirit and faith—even Lamanites steeped in all their wicked traditions.  I think He was also suggesting to the people that they should not be waiting for great miracles to bring their conversion but that the Holy Ghost may come almost imperceptibly.  Elder Packer spoke of this verse saying, "There may be more power in your testimony than you even realize."  After quoting this scripture he related this story, "Several years ago I met one of our sons in the mission field in a distant part of the world. He had been there for a year. His first question was this: 'Dad, what can I do to grow spiritually? I have tried so hard to grow spiritually and I just haven’t made any progress.'  That was his perception: to me it was otherwise. I could hardly believe the maturity, the spiritual growth that he had gained in just one year. He 'knew it not' for it had come as growth, not as a startling spiritual experience" (The Candle of the Lord, Ensign, Jan 1983).       

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The Story of Terah

The story of Abraham’s father Terah is a sad one.  He lived in Ur of the Chaldees and had three sons, Abraham, Haram, and Nahor.  He clearly had the Priesthood as mentioned in Abraham 1:18.  But he “turned from [his] righteousness… unto the worshipping of the gods of the heathen, utterly refusing to hearken to [Abraham’s] voice” (Abraham 1:5).  He became so far gone from the worship of Jehovah that he “endeavored to take away [Abraham’s] life by the hand of the priest of Elkenah” as a sacrifice to “dumb idols” (Abraham 1:7).  Abraham was miraculously saved by the angel, and then “a famine prevailed throughout all the land of Chaldea.”  Terah was “sorely tormented because of the famine, and he repented of the evil which he had determined against [Abraham]” (Abraham 1:30).  Abraham was then led by the Lord to leave the land of Ur, and Abraham wrote, “My father followed after me, unto the land which we denominated Haran” (Abraham 2:4).  So it seems that he had repented and was willing to follow the Lord and his son Abraham.  But it was short lived and it appears that his repentance was only due to suffering in the famine, for in the very next verse Abraham tells us, “And the famine abated… and my father turned again unto his idolatry, therefore he continued in Haran.”  Abraham was commanded to leave, and I wonder if he was worried that his father would again try to sacrifice him.  It’s likely that once he left he never saw his father again.  We learn in Genesis that “Terah died in Haran” (Genesis 11:32).  So what a sad story of Terah: he was righteous and received the Priesthood, turned to idol worship and tried to sacrifice Abraham, repented and followed Abraham to the land of Haran, and then he turned back to idol worship and died there.  I think his story does show the great power of forgiveness that Abraham possessed.  For Abraham to let his father come with him when he left the land of Chaldees after his father had tried to kill him was incredible indeed, even if Terah did repent.  I think the day that Abraham had to leave his father in Haran for good must have been like the day that Nephi left Laman and Lemuel in 2 Nephi 5: they both knew at that point that there would be no more repentance for their family members they loved so much.  But they had the assurance that the Lord was with them, and that made all the difference.  

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Thanksgiving

The word “thanksgiving” is used numerous times in the scriptures.  Here are some of my favorite references:

·         “Live in thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you” (Alma 34:38).

·         “Inasmuch as ye do these things thanksgiving, with cheerful hearts and countenances... the fulness of the earth is yours” (D&C 59:16).

·         “Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High” (Psalms 50:14).

·         “As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him: Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving” (Colossians 2:7). 

·         “Yea, [Moroni was] a man whose heart did swell with thanksgiving to his God, for the many privileges and blessings which he bestowed upon his people” (Alma 48:12). 

In that last reference, the next sentence says that Moroni “did labor exceedingly for the welfare and safety of his people.”  I think that those are connected: because Moroni’s heart did swell with thanksgiving to God, he labored exceedingly for his people.  Ultimately that’s what gratitude should do for us: as we understand and appreciate the great blessings that the Lord has bestowed upon us, we will want to serve Him and help those around us.  Moroni realized how blessed the Nephites were in the freedoms they enjoyed and in their religion, and so that inspired him to give his all in service of his people as he tried to defend them.  Similarly, Ammon showed great gratitude to the Lord for His mercy, and this led him to spend fourteen years preaching the gospel among the Lamanites.  He expressed his feelings this way: “Now this is my joy, and my great thanksgiving; yea, and I will give thanks unto my God forever” (Alma 26:37).  Perhaps as we think about our own gratitude to the Lord this Thanksgiving, we might ask ourselves not only what we are thankful for, but who can serve as an expression of our thanks. 

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Teancum's Selfless Service

Teancum has always been one of my Book of Mormon heroes.  I think that one thing that made him so great was that even though he was the commander of an army, he did not hesitate to risk his own life in defense of his people.  He was not like Amalickiah who didn’t even go on the first Lamanite attack that the wicked Nephite dissenter had so vigorously campaigned for (Alma 49:11).  We are first introduced to Teancum in Alma 50 with the affair of Morianton who led away some of the Nephites and threatened to overthrow “their liberty” (Alma 50:32).  Teancum headed up the army who confronted Morianton and “a battle commenced between them, in the which Teancum did slay Morianton and defeat his army” (Alma 50:35).  The fact that Teancum himself was the one who fought Morianton tells us a lot about his selflessness.  In the next chapter Teancum and his army fought the army of Amalickiah and when “sleep had overpowered them because of their much fatigue” Teancum himself did not rest.  He risked his own life to go into the camp of the Lamanites and cause the death of Amalickiah in hopes that it would help to end the war.  He could have easily asked one of his soldiers to do this job for him, but he was too unselfish of a man.  Several years later almost the same thing happened: both armies were camped and “weary because of the greatness of the march” (Alma 62:35).  Knowing that Ammoron and his brother Amalickiah had been “the cause of this great and lasting war between them and the Lamanites, which had been the cause of so much war and bloodshed, yea, and so much famine,” Teancum again risked his own life despite his surely overwhelming fatigue.  He slew Ammoron, but this time he was killed and he literally gave his life in service for his people, “a true friend to liberty” (Alma 62:37).  And in fact, his sacrifice essentially did end the war, for in the very next verse we learn that Moroni was able to drive the Lamanites out of the land after so many years of war.  Teancum was truly a great man because he so selflessly led, served, and defended his people.

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He Doth Nourish Them

One of the themes that we see in Nephi’s writings is the importance of our own efforts as we try to seek help from the Lord.  After the angel came and told him and his brothers that “the Lord will deliver Laban into your hands,” Nephi still didn’t just sit around outside the city walls waiting for Laban to be delivered (1 Nephi 3:29).  Instead he said to his brothers, “Let us go up; let us be strong like unto Moses” and he went by himself into the city, allowing the Lord to fulfill the promise of the angel (1 Nephi 4:2).  When he wrote of their difficult journey across the wilderness he said, “If it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth nourish them, and strengthen them.” (1 Nephi 17:3).  They had seen first-hand that as they tried to do their part by following the Liahona that keeping the commandments—a small act of loyalty on our part—leads to great blessings and guidance from the Lord.  Later when Nephi took the righteous with him away from Laman and Lemuel and started their own society, he wrote, “And we did observe to keep the judgments, and the statutes, and the commandments of the Lord in all things, according to the law of Moses.  And the Lord was with us; and we did prosper exceedingly” (2 Nephi 5:10-11).  Again we see this theme that diligence in seeking to do their part led to great blessings from the Lord.  I think he summed up this idea towards the end of his ministry when he wrote, “For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do” (2 Nephi 25:23).  There is something for us to do when we want to receive blessings and help from the Lord.  We can’t expect the Lord to help us if we won’t help ourselves.  

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As I Have Loved You

In the Old Testament the Law of Moses included these words: “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” (Leviticus 19:18).  During His ministry the Savior affirmed that the second great commandment was to “love thy neighbor as thyself” (Matt. 22:39).  And yet despite the fact that to love one’s neighbor was a well-known commandment that had been around at least for 1000 years in the Law of Moses, just before His death the Savior told His disciples, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another” (John 13:34).  On the same night He repeated the same injunction: “This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you” (John 15:12).  So what was new about this commandment?  Clearly it wasn’t the requirement to love others but rather the need to love as Christ had loved while on the earth.  Elder Oaks commented on this invitation of the Savior saying, “The commandment to love others as He had loved His flock was to His disciples—and is to us—a challenge that was unique.”  So how is loving others as He loved different than the commandment simply to love one’s neighbor?  The change from the Leviticus commandment to the “new” commandment was a change from “as thyself” to “as [Jesus] loved.”  So perhaps we can say that the new commandment was a higher law because Jesus loved othersmore than He even loved Himself.  He put others before Himself in all things, and ultimately He laid “down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).  Loving others like we love ourselves is hard enough, but loving others in the perfectly unselfish way that the Savior did is the quest of a lifetime.  Elder Oaks put it this way, “Our Savior’s command to love one another as He loves us is probably our greatest challenge” (Ensign Nov 2014, “Loving Others and Living with Differences”). 

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The Title of Liberty

 What’s amazing to me about the story of Moroni raising the title of liberty in Alma 46 is that he was only about 26 or 27 when he did this.  He managed to thwart the potential takeover of the government by Amalickiah by stirring up the hearts of his brethren to defend their lands and their freedoms, even though he was so young.  He clearly believed like Alma that “the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else” (Alma 31:5).  Because Moroni believed firmly in Christ he was able to preach and change the hearts of the people, even if it was only a 17-word sermon in the title of liberty.  This is why he could be so influential even at such a young age.  Amalickiah, on the other hand, didn’t have the same advantage.  He had to use “flatteries” to gain followers which gave him only tenuous allegiance at best. When Moroni’s followers were gaining power, Amalickiah had to retreat because he “saw that his people were doubtful concerning the justice of the cause in which they had undertaken” (Alma 46:28).  And ultimately relatively few of his original followers were in fact loyal to him since most came back to the Nephites, albeit forced, and accepted “the covenant of freedom” (Alma 46:35).  Moroni would spend the next 16 or so years of his life as the Nephite commander, and his ability to inspire the hearts of men to defend their freedoms and religion ultimately is what made him so successful.  It seems as if he spent all of his energy up in those long years of war, and he died shortly thereafter around the age of 43.  He showed that age should not be a limiting factor on being a power for good in the world.

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The Records

As Alma gave his last charge to Helaman, he asked him, “Believest thou the words which I spake unto thee concerning these records which have been kept?”  (Alma 45:2)  He was likely referring to the counsel that he gave to “keep a record of this people” in which he promised that the Lord would “keep and preserve for a wise purpose in him” and “show forth his power unto future generations” (Alma 37:2, 14).  After this question and a couple others, Alma told Helaman about a rather unusual prophecy regarding the future of the Nephites.  He said to Helaman, “Behold, I perceive that this very people, the Nephites, according to the spirit of revelation which is in me, in four hundred years from the time that Jesus Christ shall manifest himself unto them, shall dwindle in unbelief” (Alma 45:10). Why would Alma tell Helaman this?  What purpose did it serve for Helaman to know this?  It almost seems that it would be more discouraging than anything else to know that the people you are working so hard for would in later generations eventually all lose their way.  I think that perhaps what Alma was trying to say with this discussion of records and apostasy was, “Helaman, these records are more important than you can possibly imagine and they will be preserved.  Later generations of this people will need the records even more than you can possibly realize—so be sure to keep the record and keep it sacred!”  Earlier Alma had told Helaman that the records would be kept “for a wise purpose in [God], that he may show forth his power unto future generations” (Alma 37:14).  And of course we are now part of those future generations to which the Lord will show forth His power through the scriptures.  We should be forever grateful for prophets like Alma and Helaman who faithfully kept and preserved the scriptural records so that we would be blessed.

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Believing Thomas

When we think about Thomas in the New Testament, the first story that usually comes to mind is that of his disbelieving that Christ was really resurrected.  He said, “Except I shall see in his hands the prints of the nails… I will not believe” (John 20:24).  I believe Thomas was a valiant apostle and faithful man, and perhaps we are too quick to judge him and label him “Doubting Thomas” because of this account.  He was not disbelieving in the Savior or the gospel; He simply couldn’t fathom that Jesus who was dead had come back to life.  We don’t have a whole lot of information about Thomas, but a couple of other brief mentions of him help us to see him for the great man that he was.  It was Thomas who asked, “Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?”  This question was really a plea to know how to follow the Savior, and it elicited one of the most powerful verses in the New Testament: “Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:4-5).  In another account, when Jesus announced that He was going to go into Judaea again, the disciples expressed their concern because they knew that the Jews were trying to kill Him.  When Jesus told them He was going anyway, Thomas in a childlike manner said simply, “Let us also go, that we may die with him” (John 11:16).  Thomas didn’t value his own life above his allegiance to the Savior, and He trusted the Savior like Abraham trusted God when taking Isaac up the mountain: he simply believed in what God wanted even though he was certain it would result in death.  So when we remember that Thomas said, “I will not believe” we should also remember that it was he who , “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”  That's a man who believed in the Savior.

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Alma's Confidence in Corianton

Alma’s words to Corianton in Alma 39 were straightforward, and they sent a clear message to Corianton of his father’s disappointment with his actions.  I’m impressed, though, with the confidence that Alma showed to Corianton at the very end of Alma 42.  He told his wayward son, “And now, O my son, ye are called of God to preach the word unto this people…. Go thy way, declare the word with truth and soberness” (Alma 42:32).  This was the son that had just caused great problems to the missionary work among the Zoramites, but Alma still showed trust and great confidence that Corianton would change and could still be a successful missionary. In the very next verse we read that “the sons of Alma did go forth among the people, to declare the word unto them” (Alma 43:1).  There’s no reason to believe that Corianton wasn’t one of those.  I think that Alma’s own experience as a wayward youth who repented and turned his life around helped him to focus on Corianton’s potential instead of his sins.  Later on we see that Corianton continued faithful, for he was still declaring the word to the Church with his brothers a couple years later (Alma 49:30).  Alma followed the counsel the Lord gave to Joseph Smith, “reproving… with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost; and then showing forth afterwards an increase of love toward him whom thou hast reproved” (D&C 121:43).  He did reprove Corianton sharply, but then showed great love towards him by believing still in his ability to serve the Lord and contribute to His work.

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Justice and Mercy

In the book of Alma we learn a lot about the relationship between mercy and justice.  We read that the intent of the Savior’s sacrifice was to bring about “the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice, and bringeth about means unto men that they may have faith unto repentance” (Alma 34:15).  Alma taught this same thing to his son Corianton: “And thus God himself atoneth for the sins of the world, to bring about the plan of mercy, to appease the demands of justice” (Alma 42:15).  But even though mercy can “overpower” and “appease” justice, we also learn that mercy cannot “rob justice,” no, “not one whit” (Alma 42:25).  Mercy can “satisfy the demands of justice” but that will only happen for those who repent and accept the Savior (Alma 34:16).  “Justice exerciseth all his demands, and also mercy claimeth all which is her own” (Alma 42:44).  It’s interesting that here justice is masculine and mercy is feminine; this perhaps helps us relate mercy to the nurturing characteristics of mothers.  The Savior wants us to come to Him for mercy as we would to our mother, and we must show a willingness to follow His demands.  Ultimately our task is to seek out the mercy of the Savior through repentance so that He can satisfy the demands of justice.  Otherwise we will have to pay the price of justice for our sins.

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Simple Metaphors

In the New Testament, John recorded for us several powerful metaphors that the Savior gave to describe Himself using common objects.  To the woman in Samaria He proclaimed that He was a source of “living water” (John 4:10).  To those who had recently eaten bread given to them miraculously by the Savior, He said, “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger” (John 6:35).  He also told the Jews, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).  Later He proclaimed, “I am the door of the sheep….  I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved” (John 10:7, 9).  In the same discourse He also declared, “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth life for the sheep” (John 10:11).  In another book, John recorded Christ’s words that He was the visitor at the door: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him” (Revelation 3:20).  So we can think of Him not only as the door but also the visitor outside the door waiting to enter.  The way that Christ used these simple objects to describe His role helps us see that He should be a part of our everyday life.  He did not compare Himself to gold or to worldly wealth only obtainable by a few; no, He used the objects that we need, use or see every day: water, bread, light, doors, shepherds, etc.  Ultimately He is the source of all life on earth, and just as it is the simple items like bread and water that give us life and sustain us physically, in the same way Christ saves and sustains us spiritually. 

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Like Father, Like Son

I think it is interesting that Alma—the one who had been such a rebellious youth— had a son who went astray.  Corianton did not rebel against his father since he did go on the mission to the Zoramites in the first place, but he succumbed to temptation and apparently caused quite a few problems on their mission.  I have to think that the counsel that Alma gave to Corianton in Alma 39-42 was similar to the kind of counsel that Alma’s own father would have given him when he was in his rebellious state as a youth.  Alma must have done a lot of reflecting about his own sins from his early life as he pondered what he should say to Corianton.  It’s interesting that of the three sets of counsel that he gave his sons, Corianton—the one son who had actually committed serious sin—was the only one to whom he didn’t relate his own sins and story of how he came to receive forgiveness.  I wonder if it was because he didn’t want Corianton to justify his sins because his father had also made serious mistakes when he was younger.  One of the last things that he told Corianton was “Do not endeavor to excuse yourself in the least point because of your sins” (Alma 42:30).  Perhaps he had a problem with making excuses for his improper behavior.  But I think that Alma did want Corianton to understand his own story of forgiveness, but for some reason he didn’t think he was the best one to relate it to Corianton.  After Alma told his story of repentance to both Helaman and Shiblon, he then said to Corianton, “I command you to take it upon you to counsel with your elder brothers in your undertakings” (Alma 39:10).  It may be that Alma was hoping that Helaman and Shiblon would encourage Corianton and relate to their brother what they had learned about their father’s life.  Ultimately we know that Corianton did repent and continued as a missionary, something that must have brought great joy to Alma (see Alma 49:30).

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Sojourn in the Wilderness

Nephi told us that his family “did sojourn for the space of many years, yea even eight years in the wilderness” before arriving at the place they called Bountiful where he built the ship (1 Nephi 17:4).  The actual distance they traveled from Jerusalem to Bountiful (most likely a region in current day southern Oman) was probably about 2500 miles, roughly twice the distance that the pioneers had to travel from Nauvoo to Salt Lake City.  That would give Lehi’s group an average rate of about 0.85 miles per day—surely they could travel faster than that, even if it was in the desert!  Alma gave us some insight into why it took them so long when he taught his son Helaman about the Liahona: “They were slothful, and forgot to exercise their faith and diligence and then those marvelous works ceased, and they did not progress in their journey.  Therefore, they tarried in the wilderness, or did not travel a direct course, and were afflicted with hunger and thirst, because of their transgression” (Alma 37:41-42).  He them related to Helaman how this was symbolic for all of us, and that we too will not progress spiritually if we are slothful.  It reminds me of the fact that the brother of Jared’s group sat on the seashore in their journey “for the space of four years” and did not progress any towards the promised land where the Lord wanted them to go.  The Lord then came and chastised the brother of Jared for his own slothfulness in not praying to the Lord.  He then said very directly, “Go to work and build” (Ether 2:13, 16).  I think that is a spiritual call for all of us to “not be slothful because of the easiness of the way” and seek to make progress in our own lives spiritually as we try to follow the counsel that the Lord has given us (Alma 37:46).  If we learn one thing from these stories of Lehi’s group and the brother of Jared’s group, it is that the Lord will not force us to progress; He will let us stagnate in our journey if that is what we choose.      

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Trust in God

Alma told his son Helaman, “I do know that whosoever shall put their trust in God shall be supported in their trials, and their troubles, and their afflictions” (Alma 36:3).  It seems that Helaman really held tight to that counsel, for he truly needed it later in life when he was in the midst of the great war between the Nephites and the Lamanites.  His letter to Moroni is a testimony that he saw this promise of his father fulfilled:

·         “They do put their trust in God continually” (Alma 57:27)

·         “We trust in our God who has given victory over those lands” (Alma 58:33)

·         “We trust God will deliver us” (Alma 58:37)

He really saw the fulfillment of this as he led the 2000 stripling warriors and all of them were miraculously saved by their unfailing trust in God.  I think that Helaman must have thought back a lot on that promise given by his father throughout his life and in particular during this war.  He could then proclaim with his father, “I have been supported under trials and troubles of every kind… yea, God has delivered me from… death” (Alma 36:27).

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The Revelations of God

In reading 3 Nephi 29 I noticed that it seemed to be another example of chiasmus in the Book of Mormon, and here’s how I would lay out the main points:

A. v1 “Thecovenant which the Father hath made with the children of Israel… is already beginning to be fulfilled”

B. v3 “The Lord will rememberhis covenant which he hath made unto his people”

C. v4 “For the sword of his justice is in his right hand… it shall soon overtake you”

D. v5 “Wo unto himthat spurneth at the doings of the Lord”

D. v6 “Wo unto himthat shall deny the revelations of the Lord”

C. v7 “Shall become like unto the son of perdition, for whom there was no mercy”

B. v8 “The Lord remembereth the covenant unto them”

A. v9 “Unto the fulfillingof the covenant which he hath made unto the house of Israel”

The high point of the message is really a warning against those who deny the revelations of the Lord and spurn at His doings.  Mormon sees our day and realizes that many will deny and reject the doings and revelations of the Lord.  Moroni would speak to the same topic after his father died: “And again I speak unto you who deny the revelations of God” (Mormon 8:7).  One of the great messages of the Book of Mormon is how critical it is for us to have faith in and live by the revelations of God, and the chiasmus found here is one more evidence that the book came from Hebrew prophets just as it claims.  

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Praying for Success

While teaching them about the Savior’s atonement, Amulek instructed the Zoramites to pray over just about everything.  It’s interesting to me that much of what he listed was temporal.  He told them, “Cry unto him when ye are in your fields, yea over all your flocks” (Alma 34:20).  He repeated the same idea a second time: “Cry unto him over the crops of your fields, that ye may prosper in them.  Cry over the flocks of your fields, that they may increase” (Alma 34:24-25).  Essentially he was telling them that they should pray for success in their temporal affairs.  God does care that we can find success in our careers or by whatever means it is that we earn our livelihood, but it comes with a requirement.  I think version 28 is specifically linked to these previous verses about praying for prosperity: “After ye have done all these things, if ye turn away the needy… your prayer is vain, and availeth you nothing.”  This is essentially the same idea that Jacob taught his people: “After ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry” (Jacob 2:19).  If we pray to find temporal success in our day to day work, then part of that prayer should be the desire to use our success to help those in need.  

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Faith, Diligence, and Patience

I think that the last few verses in Alma 32 give great counsel about raising children.  Replacing “word” and “tree” with “child”, Alma invites us to “nourish the [child] as it beginneth to grow, by your faith with great diligence, and with patience, looking forward to the fruit thereof.”  The next verse repeats those three essential virtues: “Your diligence and your faith and your patience with the [child] in nourishing it, that it may take root” and bring forth fruit.  The last verse again repeats the same three necessary traits and adds one more, “Ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the [child] to bring forth fruit.”  Surely if there is any responsibility that requires faith, diligence, and patience, it is raising children!  Just like nourishing a tree, progress is nearly imperceptible from day to day and we are often left wondering whether our actions are really helping to foster the growth we hope to see.  In the next chapter Alma referred to three ways that the seed should be planted which certainly apply here in the context of raising children.  First, “ye ought to search the scriptures” (Alma 33:2).  Second Alma taught them of “prayer or worship” and quoted Zenos to show how they could pray in just about any circumstance.  Lastly, and most importantly, he taught them the need to “begin to believe in the Son of God… that he shall suffer and die to atone for their sins” (Alma 33:22).  As parents we strive to teach our children to love the scriptures and to pray to their Heavenly Father.  Ultimately what we really want is for them to develop faith in Jesus Christ so that this can guide them throughout their whole life.  But teaching these things is like trying to get the tree to grow—it can only be done with faith, diligence, and a lot of patience.  Our hope and faith is that such teaching will indeed lead them to “everlasting life” (Alma 33:23).    

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An Iron Pillar

When the Lord called the prophet Jeremiah He said, “I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls against the whole land” (Jeremiah 1:18).  In other words, the Lord would protect him and make him resilient against the great persecution that would come to him during his ministry.  And that persecution was indeed great.  The people conspired together at one point saying, “Come let us devise devices against Jeremiah…. Come let us smite him” (Jeremiah 18:18).  On another occasion the chief governor of the temple “smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin” (Jeremiah 20:2).  It was right after this that Jeremiah exclaimed, “I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me” (Jeremiah 20:7).  He was “shut up in the court of the prison” by Zedekiah at one point, put under some kind of confinement later in his ministry, and he also was put in a dungeon and “remained there many days” (Jeremiah 32:2, 36:5, 37:16).  Later the princes begged the king, “We beseech thee, let this man be put to death” and so Zedekiah let them “cast him into the dungeon….  They let down Jeremiah with cords.  And in the dungeon there was no water, but mire; so Jeremiah sunk in the mire” (Jeremiah 38:4-6).  His final fate appears to have been exile to Egypt where he likely died.  With all of this persecution, it’s no wonder that the Lord would need to make Jeremiah “an iron pillar” against the wickedness around him.  The fact that Jeremiah could stay faithful throughout all of this attests to the greatness of the prophet and should inspire us to likewise be resilient against the onslaught of wickedness around us today.  As he testified at one point: “His word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones… and I could not stay” (Jeremiah 20:9).  He knew what he knew, and nothing could stop him from fulfilling the mission the Lord had called him to.      

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The New Jerusalem

“Holy city.” “Holy sanctuary.” “Land of peace.” “City of refuge.” “Place of safety.” “Glory of the Lord.” “Everlasting light.” “Power of heaven.” “Walls [of] Salvation.” “The city of the Lord.” “The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.”  All of these are descriptions of the New Jerusalem to be built up in the last days, coming from D&C 45, Ether 13, 3 Nephi 21, and Isaiah 60.  Putting the combined image painted by these different sections of scriptures, we get a glorious view of what the New Jerusalem, Zion, will be like when built up in the last days.  It is to be a literal city where the Saints will dwell and be protected from the violence of the world all around them.  D&C 45 promises that the wicked will be afraid of it, saying, “Let us not go up to battle against Zion.”  Isaiah tells us that “violence shall no more be heard in thy land” and that the sun and moon will no longer be needed because “the Lord shall be unto thee an everlasting light.”  From Ether we learn that those who are at the New Jerusalem will “no more be confounded” and they will be those “whose garments are white through the blood of the Lamb.”  From him we also learn that part of the city will “come down out of heaven.”  From the Savior in 3 Nephi 21 we read this powerful promise: “I will also be in their midst.”  I think that we really have no idea how grand and glorious the Zion of our God will be when the day comes that the Lord will establish it.  Our duty now is to build Zion where we live, but this is all in preparation for that great day when we will be called to build “The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.”      

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The Light of the Chandelier

As I sat in a temple sealing room yesterday I thought about the meaning and purpose of the chandelier hanging over the altar.  It comes down from above on a chain that ascends upward as if directly from heaven.  To me it seems clear that the chandelier is meant to point us to Christ, and several scriptures come to mind which bear out the symbolism.  Isaiah wrote of the people that walked in darkness and saw a “great light” (Isaiah 9:2).  Matthew later quoted this verse as being fulfilled with the Savior’s coming, and he changed the language slightly: “The people which sat in darkness saw great light” (Matt. 4:16).  As we also sit in the temples and gaze upon the “great light” that descends from heaven, we are pointed to the Great Light that came among men.  Another image that comes to mind is that of the children of Israel being led in the wilderness.  We read in Exodus that “the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to given them light; to go day and night” (Exodus 13:21).  This text gives us an image of a light hovering miraculously above the people, just as a large chandelier hovers above us in the temple without seemingly any connection to the ground.  The Savior also spoke of light when He gave the Sermon on the Mount: “Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matt. 5:15-16).  The Savior expounded on this idea further when He told the Nephites, “Hold up your light that it may shine unto the world.  Behold I am the light which ye shall hold up” (3 Nephi 18:24).  We are to offer light to the world through our deeds, and that light ultimately is the Savior.  So just as the temple holds up its great chandelier to us as it tries to teach us of the Savior, we are to go out into the world and hold up light that points others to Christ.

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Instruments in His Hands

In his epistle to the Romans, Paul wrote that we should not be “instruments of unrighteousness unto sin” but we should rather be “instruments of righteousness unto God” (Romans 6:13).  This is the only place in the New Testamant that speaks of being “instruments” to God, but in the Book of Mormon the idea of being an instrument in God’s hands is repeated in multiple places.  Lehi told his Laman and Lemuel that Nephi had been “an instrument in the hands of God” in brininging their family across the ocean (2 Nephi 1:24).  When Alma’s people wanted to make him king after their escape from King Noah, he admitted that he had been “an instrument in [God’s] hands” in bringing them to the knowledge of the truth, but he still refused to rule over them as a king (Mosiah 23:10).  Mormon described the sons of Mosiah as “instruments in the hands of God in bringing many to the knowledge of the truth, yea, to the knowledge of their Redeemer” (Mosiah 27:36).  The Lord even declared Himself to the sons of Mosiah when they started their mission, “I will make an instrument of thee in my hands unto the salvation of many souls” (Alma 17:11).  Ammon repeated the idea again in his rejoicings with his brothers: “We have been made instruments in the hands of God to bring about this great work….  We have been instruments in his hands in doing this great and marvelous work” (Alma 26:3, 15).  In Alma’s own expressions of joy he similarly declared his hope that he would be “an instrument in the hands of God to bring some soul to repentance” (Alma 29:9).  What’s interesting to me is that this description of being an “instrument” always comes with the qualifier “in the hands of God” in these references in the Book of Mormon.  These faithful Nephite missionaries did not do great works of themselves, but they allowed God to use them to do His purposes.  When a doctor performs a successful surgery, we never credit the operating instruments he used for the success: it was the doctor’s skill and knowledge that brought about the success.  Similarly, Christ is the “author of eternal salvation” (Hebrews 5:9), “the Lord of the harvest” (Alma 26:7), and indeed “the Great Physician” for the human family (President Monson, “Your Personal Influence,” Ensign, May 2004, 23).  He does the work of salvation and we glory in Him.  But we can be instruments in His hands for good as we strive to live the kind of life He has prescribed for us.        

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What We Desire

The scriptures teach that ultimately we will receive according to our true desires.  This is perhaps most succinctly stated by Alma, “I know that [God] granteth unto men according to their desire, whether it be unto death or unto life….  He that knoweth good and evil, to him it is given according to his desires, whether he desireth good or evil, life or death, joy or remorse of conscience” (Alma 29:4-5).  He later taught his son Corianton that each person is “raised to happiness according to his desire of happiness, or good according to his desires of good” (Alma 19:7).  Both of these scriptures refer to our ultimate destination: we will receive salvation and happiness in eternal life if we truly desire it.  But I think this principle of the Lord granting our desires extends to our lives here and now.  Of course we can’t expect that the Lord will grant us something that is against His will, and we may have righteous desires that simply are not in God’s plan for us, but in many cases perhaps we desire too little of the Lord.  In the example of Enos, the Lord granted his desire after he showed it was truly what his soul yearned for.  Wrote Enos, “And it came to pass that after I had prayed and labored with all diligence, the Lord said unto me: I will grant unto thee according to thy desires, because of thy faith” (Enos 1:12).  This was not a flippant request of the Lord: Enos prayed and labored will all his heart before the Lord granted him his desires.  Nephi showed us the same thing as he fervently desired spiritual knowledge: “Having great desires to know the mysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me” (1 Nephi 2:16).  Later on their journey to the promised land and with the same goal for spiritual knowledge he wrote, “I, Nephi, was desirous also that I might see, and hear, and know of these things, by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God unto all those who diligently seek him….  After I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in my heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord” (1 Nephi 10:17, 11:1).  The Lord visited him in a powerful way because of his deep desire to know the things that his father saw.  The Lord will likely not grant all our righteous wishes in mortality, but how much do we fail to receive blessings and spiritual knowledge from the Lord because we do not seek and desire and ask like Nephi and Enos?  Our attitude should be like that of Moses, “I will not cease to call upon God, I have other things to inquire of him” (Moses 1:18).

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Alma and the Anti-Nephi-Lehies

The sons of Mosiah met up with Alma as they traveled into the land of Zarahemla to seek a place of refuge for the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi.  Alma was traveling somewhere else when he found the sons of Mosiah in this unplanned reunion.  Alma turned around and “conducted his brethren back to the land of Zarahemla” and helped them seek approval from the Nephites for bringing these Lamanite converts into Nephite land (Alma 27:20).  After the voice of the people gave them the land of Jershon, Ammon “returned to the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi, and also Alma with him.”  I’m not sure I’d really paid attention to that detail before, but Alma went with Ammon to see the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi for the first time and gave them the news that the Nephites would accept them.  What caught my attention was this line: “And Alma also related unto them his conversion, with Ammon and Aaron, and his brethren” (Alma 27:25).  Here they were in the midst of this very tenuous situation, with thousands of these Lamanite converts fleeing from their Lamanite brethren who sought their death.  They were in the wilderness, in limbo, waiting to see if the Nephites would accept them; if not, they would all be killed.  The Lamanite armies “had followed their brethren into the wilderness” and surely were not far from them, preparing for battle (Alma 28:1).  And yet, in the midst of all of this, Alma took the time to bear his testimony and share his conversion story, and these faithful converts took the time to listen to him.  Hearing his witness “did cause great joy among them” (Alma 27:26).  The gospel was everything to these converts—both Alma and the sons of Mosiah as well as these Lamanites—and temporal affairs were simply not as important to them.  They rejoiced in Jesus Christ and nothing else came close in importance, even the potential loss of their lives.  I think we could learn a lot about priorities from these brethren who forsook the world for the gospel’s sake.    

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The Industrious Gospel

One of the themes of the Book of Mormon is that embracing the gospel motivates us to be hard working and more industrious in our temporal affairs.  When Nephi started his city after leaving Laman and Lemuel, he wrote, “I, Nephi, did cause my people to be industrious, and to labor with their hands” (2 Nephi 5:17).  This was in direct contrast to the Lamanites who were described in the same chapter as “an idle people” (v24).  Later when so many Lamanites converted because of the efforts of the sons of Mosiah, Mormon wrote that “they began to be a very industrious people…. Rather than spend their days in idleness they would labor abundantly with their hands” (Alma 23:18, 24:18).  The gospel had not only made them repent of sins, but also motivated to accomplish more temporally and to work hard.  Similarly, after Alma’s people escaped from King Noah and founded their own city, “They pitched their tents, and began to till the ground, and began to build buildings; yea, they were industrious, and did labor exceedingly” (Mosiah 23:5).  They broke away from the lazy, idolatrous atmosphere that was propagated by King Noah and his priests and became a hardworking and righteous people.  All three of these stories illustrate the fact that as we are truly converted to the Lord and repent of our sins, we will be internally motivated to work harder and make the most out of our lives.  

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Nephites and the Law of Moses

Reading the Book of Mormon it is easy to forget that the Nephites were living the Law of Moses up until the coming of the Savior.  The Nephite writers mentioned keeping the law at various points in the text, but it was clearly not a focus for them as it was for the Jews at the time Jesus came to Palestine.  What we do see is that the Nephite prophets understood that it was the Giver of the law and not the law itself which was of most importance.  In most instances where the law was mentioned, the prophets focused on its meaning as it pertains to the Savior.  Nephi wrote, “My soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given” (2 Nephi 11:4).  He also said, “Notwithstanding we believe in Christ, we keep the law of Moses, and look forward with steadfastness unto Christ, until the law shall be fulfilled” (2 Nephi 25:24).  Nephi’s brother Jacob similarly wrote, “And for this intent we keep the law of Moses, in pointing our souls to [Christ]” (Jacob 4:5).  Jarom wrote of the prophets in his day that taught “the law of Moses, and the intent for which it was given; persuading them to look forward unto the Messiah” (Jarom 1:11).  When the angel visited King Benjamin he said succinctly, “The law of Moses availeth nothing except it were through the atonement of his blood” (Mosiah 3:15).  After so many Lamanites converted with the preaching of the sons of Mosiah, they did “keep the law of Moses” and “did look forward to the coming of Christ, considering that the law of Moses was a type of his coming…. The law of Moses did serve to strengthen their faith in Christ” (Alma 25:15-16).  I think this Nephite focus on the Savior can teach us a lot about how we should view the temporal commandments that we receive today.  The world will typically describe the Church based upon the physical laws that the members abide by, but to us these should be seen only as small sacrifices that point us to the Savior.  Of course we keep the commandments, but we should define ourselves based upon faith in the Savior, not particular commandments that we follow.

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Isaiah 52

Isaiah 52 has to be one of the most oft-quoted chapters in Isaiah by other scripture.  We have many famous phrases from this short chapter such as “Put on thy strength, O Zion,” “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings,” “The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations,” and “Be ye clean, that bear the vessels of the Lord.”  In 3 Nephi 20:32, 34-45 the Savior quoted all of the verses to the Nephites (in a different order) except for 4 and 5.  The first two verses are quoted by Jacob in 2 Nephi 8:24-25, and these are referred to and explained by the Lord in D&C 113:8-10.  Moroni paraphrased these verses in his concluding words of the Book of Mormon in Moroni 10:31.  The priests of Noah tried to accuse Abinadi by quoting verses 7-10 in Mosiah 12:21-24, and Abinadi quoted verse 7 again in Mosiah 15:14-17 as he powerfully responded to the priests.  He likewise quoted verses 8-10 as he finished his testimony in Mosiah 15:29-31.  Nephi quoted some of verse 7 as well in 1 Nephi 13:37 as part of his testimony of the latter-day work, and Joseph Smith quoted verse 7 in D&C 128:19.  The Savior quoted verses 8-10 in 3 Nephi 16:18-20, which he would then recite again as part of the whole chapter in 3 Nephi 20.  The phrase “be ye clean that bear the vessels of the Lord” from verse 11 is used twice in the Doctrine and Covenants (D&C 38:42, 133:5).  All of these references to Isaiah 52 attest to the very important and powerful nature of this short chapter in Isaiah.  

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