Helaman 12:7-15

⁷ O how great is the nothingness of the children of men; yea, even they are less than the dust of the earth. ⁸ For behold, the dust of the earth moveth hither and thither, to the dividing asunder, at the command of our great and everlasting God. ⁹ Yea, behold at his voice do the hills and the mountains tremble and quake. ¹⁰ And by the power of his voice they are broken up, and become smooth, yea, even like unto a valley.

Helaman 12:7 – 10 (Emphasis mine)

Mormon channels his inner King Benjamin in verse 7. 

And now I ask, can ye say aught of yourselves?  I answer you, Nay.  Ye cannot say that ye are even as much as the dust of the earth; yet ye were created of the dust of the earth; but behold, it belongeth to him who created you.

And I, even I, whom ye call your king, am no better than ye yourselves are; for I am also of the dust.  And ye behold that I am old, and am about to yield up this mortal frame to its mother earth.

Mosiah 2:25 - 26

We are nothing, even less than the dust of the Earth.  The dust obeys God’s word.  The mountains and hills tremble and quake at his words. 

Steven Olsen writes:

“In this comparison, Mormon asserts that 'dust' (i.e., the most insignificant component of 'land') is more worthy of God's blessings than 'man' because 'dust' is more obedient to God's commandments. Interestingly, the various ways by which Mormon illustrates the obedience of earth to the commands of God (e.g., earthquakes, convulsions, tsunamis, and landslides) foreshadow the ways that Nephite lands of promise are destroyed by God prior to Christ's appearance, in fulfillment of prophecy and in accordance with the curse for disobedience connected with the covenant of the promised land (compare 1 Nephi 12:1–5 and 3 Nephi 8–9).”[1]

¹¹ Yea, by the power of his voice doth the whole earth shake; ¹² Yea, by the power of his voice, do the foundations rock, even to the very center. ¹³ Yea, and if he say unto the earth—Move—it is moved.

¹⁴ Yea, if he say unto the earth—Thou shalt go back, that it lengthen out the day for many hours—it is done; ¹⁵ And thus, according to his word the earth goeth back, and it appeareth unto man that the sun standeth still; yea, and behold, this is so; for surely it is the earth that moveth and not the sun.

Helaman 12:11 – 15

Everything, except man, obeys the voice of the Lord.  The earth shakes; the foundation rocks shake; if He says to earth, go back and lengthen the day, it happens. 

Hugh Nibley looks at Mormon’s words.

“Verse 10: ‘And by the power of his voice they are broken up, and become smooth.... By the power of his voice doth the whole earth shake ... the foundations rock." Notice, this is all prearranged. It is all timed, so it is by a powerful arrangement. It is on certain principles that have already been set forth, and it does happen. Then there's a very interesting thing. In the wisdom literature a bit of cosmology always comes in, because man has to be fitted into the big picture. Here it comes; he is going to give us some astronomy here [in verse 15]: ‘And thus, according to his word the earth goeth back, and it appeareth unto man that the sun standeth still; yea, and behold, this is so; for surely it is the earth that moveth and not the sun.’

“He puts in these little notes with much behind them—ignored subjects like the elements in the rigid editing of the Book of Mormon. … He's going to treat this [subject] in verse 18 a little later on. ‘And behold, if a man hide up a treasure in the earth, and the Lord shall say—Let it be accursed, because of [his] iniquity ... it shall be accursed.’ This often happens.”[2]  (Emphasis mine)

---

[1] Prospering in the Land of Promise, Steven L. Olsen, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute, accessed August 8, 2012

[2] Lecture 79: Helaman 11-13, Hugh W. Nibley, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute, accessed August 8, 2012.