Mormon 9:11-13

To those who deny the works of God are happening in our day, He will show us He is still a God of miracles. He is the same God which created the heavens, the Earth, and all the other things.

“And now, after the many testimonies which have been given of him, this is the testimony, last of all, which we give of him: That he lives!

“For we saw him, even on the right hand of God; and we heard the voice bearing record that he is the Only Begotten of the Father—

“That by him, and through him, and of him, the worlds are and were created, and the inhabitants thereof are begotten sons and daughters unto God” (D&C 76:22-24).

“For the Gentiles, a purpose of the Book of Mormon is to convince ‘that Jesus is the CHRIST’ (title page). The Book of Mormon would come forth, Moroni declares prophetically, ‘in a day when it shall be said that miracles are done away’ (Mormon 8:26). For Gentiles who profess a belief in Jesus but deny his power (see Mormon 8:28), the Book of Mormon convincingly testifies of a ‘God of miracles’ (Mormon 9:11). In addition to a spiritual witness, various elements of design confirm Christ's divinity and power.”[1]

God created father Adam. Through Adam, the fall occurred. “Therefore, they have drunk out of the cup of the wrath of God, which justice could no more deny unto them than it could deny that Adam should fall because of his partaking of the forbidden fruit; therefore, mercy could have claim on them no more forever” (Mosiah 3:26).

But, through Christ’s atonement and death, redemption cam to man. “Listen to the words of Christ, your Redeemer, your Lord and your God. Behold, I came into the world not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance; the whole need no physician, but they that are sick; wherefore, little children are whole, for they are not capable of committing sin; wherefore the curse of Adam is taken from them in me, that it hath no power over them…” (Moroni 8:8).

Through Christ’s atonement the redemption allow the righteous to be brought back into His presence. “Surely the righteous shall give thanks unto thy name: the upright shall dwell in thy presence” (Psalms 140:13).

“Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord” (Acts 3:19).

Through Christ’s death and resurrection, we will be redeemed from an endless sleep.

“And behold, again, another sign I give unto you, yea, a sign of his death.

“For behold, he surely must die that salvation may come; yea, it behooveth him and becometh expedient that he dieth, to bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, that thereby men may be brought into the presence of the Lord.

“Yea, behold, this death bringeth to pass the resurrection, and redeemeth all mankind from the first death—that spiritual death; for all mankind, by the fall of Adam being cut off from the presence of the Lord, are considered as dead, both as to things temporal and to things spiritual.

“But behold, the resurrection of Christ redeemeth mankind, yea, even all mankind, and bringeth them back into the presence of the Lord.

“Yea, and it bringeth to pass the condition of repentance, that whosoever repenteth the same is not hewn down and cast into the fire; but whosoever repenteth not is hewn down and cast into the fire; and there cometh upon them again a spiritual death, yea, a second death, for they are cut off again as to things pertaining to righteousness” (Helaman 14:14-18).

“And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:2).

“For the day cometh that the Lord shall utter his voice out of heaven; the heavens shall shake and the earth shall tremble, and the trump of God shall sound both long and loud, and shall say to the sleeping nations: Ye saints arise and live; ye sinners stay and sleep until I shall call again” (D&C 47:18).

When the trump sounds, all will come forth and stand before the judgement bar of God. They will have been redeemed from the eternal band of death.

“Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death” (Alma 36:18).

“They were assembled awaiting the advent of the Son of God into the spirit world, to declare their redemption from the bands of death” (D&C 138:16).

In this verse we again see a relationship between Jacob’s words and Moroni’s writing.

Table 4. Relationships between 2 Nephi 9:15–16 and Mormon 9:13–14[2]
2 Nephi 9:15–16	Mormon 9:13–14
And it shall come to pass that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment . . . And then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God. And . . . they who are righteous shall be righteous still, and they who are filthy shall be filthy still.	The death of Christ . . . bringeth to pass a redemption from an endless sleep, from which sleep all men shall be awakened by the power of God when the trump shall sound; and they shall come forth, both small and great, and all shall stand before his bar . . . And then cometh the judgment of the Holy One upon them; and then cometh the time that he that is filthy shall be filthy still; and he that is righteous shall be righteous still.

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[1] The Book of Mormon, Designed for Our Day - Annual FARMS Lecture, 27 February 1990, Richard Dilworth Rust, Maxwell Institute website.

[2] Jacob’s Textual Legacy, John Hilton III, Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 22/2 (2013): 60 (emphasis in original).

Mormon 9:7-10

Moroni continues to address the non-believer in this day. He speaks in words similar to his father’s about those who deny things such as revelations. “Yea, wo unto him that shall deny the revelations of the Lord, and that shall say the Lord no longer worketh by revelation, or by prophecy, or by gifts, or by tongues, or by healings, or by the power of the Holy Ghost” (3 Nephi 29:6).

There are many churches who reject the concept of modern day revelation. The heavens are sealed, they tell us. All we need is the words of the Bible, nothing more.

The also deny gifts of the spirit. Paul listed spiritual gifts.

“Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit.

“And there are differences of administrations, but the same Lord.

“And there are diversities of operations, but it is the same God which worketh all in all.

“But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal.

“For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit;

“To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit;

“To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues” (1 Corinthians 12:4-10).

Joseph Smith made it clear we reject the claim these gifts are in the past. In the 7^th Article of Faith he wrote, “We believe in the gift of tongues, prophecy, revelation, visions, healing, interpretation of tongues, and so forth.”

Those who deny these things knows neither Christ’s gospel and the scriptures. “Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God” (Matthew 22:29).

The scriptures make it clear that God does no change. “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever” (Hebrews 13:8).

“For he is the same yesterday, today, and forever; and the way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world, if it so be that they repent and come unto him” (1 Nephi 10:18),

“I perceive that it has been made known unto you, by the testimony of his word, that he cannot walk in crooked paths; neither doth he vary from that which he hath said; neither hath he a shadow of turning from the right to the left, or from that which is right to that which is wrong; therefore, his course is one eternal round” (Alma 7:20).

“For I know that God is not a partial God, neither a changeable being; but he is unchangeable from all eternity to all eternity” (Moroni 8:18).

“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God” (Psalms 90:2).

“But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end. (Psalms 102:27).

  

“While you can’t avoid alterations in your person—appearance, size, voice, gait, and so forth—as you progress through the infamous seven ages of man as stipulated by the insight of a Solon or a Shakespeare, you would like your better qualities to hang on for a while and defy time. Actually they do: steadiness and durability are the marks of the highest and best qualities of character, as in God himself, who exhibits no ‘variableness neither shadow of changing’ (Mormon 9:9).”[1]

Moroni let us know if anyone has come up with a god who changes or vary his laws, this god is not a God of miracles. He will show us the one true God.

“In God there exists no ‘shadow of changing’ (Mormon 9:9). Unlike man, ‘God doth not walk in crooked paths, neither doth he turn to the right hand nor to the left, neither doth he vary from that which he hath said’ (D&C 3:2). His thoughts do not reflect our thoughts, nor his ways our ways (Isaiah 55:8).”[2]

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[1] Approaching Zion - 14: Change out of Control,. Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship.

[2] Twelve Diatribes of Modern Israel, Avraham Gileadi, Maxwell Institute website.

Mormon 9:5-6

When we stand before the Lord in our filthiness, we will be naked before Him.

“O how great the plan of our God! For on the other hand, the paradise of God must deliver up the spirits of the righteous, and the grave deliver up the body of the righteous; and the spirit and the body is restored to itself again, and all men become incorruptible, and immortal, and they are living souls, having a perfect knowledge like unto us in the flesh, save it be that our knowledge shall be perfect.

“Wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness” (2 Nephi 9:13-14).

At that time, we will know He can see our soul. We can hide nothing from Him. When we feel naked, it will be in the spiritual sense we can hide nothing from Him.

The glory of God will be like a fire to us. We will know the holiness of Christ. “For God is the King of all the earth: sing ye praises with understanding … God sitteth upon the throne of his holiness” (Psalms 47:7-8).

“Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of his holiness” (Psalms 48:1).

“O how great the holiness of our God! For he knoweth all things, and there is not anything save he knows it” (2 Nephi 9:20).

Moroni calls those who do not believe to turn to the Lord. “For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect” (Romans 3:3).

“Therefore he said that he would destroy [the children of Israel], had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath, lest he should destroy them.

“Yea, they despised the pleasant land, they believed not his word” (Psalms 106:23-24).

“Even so have these also now not believed [GR obeyed], that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

“For God hath concluded [GR closed up together] them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all” (Romans 11:31-32).

Pray to the Father in Christ’s name. If they do this, they may, perphaps, be found spotless before the Lord. They will have been cleansed by His blood. “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool” (Isaiah 1:18).

“And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;

“And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith” (Acts 15:8-9).

“I say unto you, ye will know at that day that ye cannot be saved; for there can no man be saved except his garments are washed white; yea, his garments must be purified until they are cleansed from all stain, through the blood of him of whom it has been spoken by our fathers, who should come to redeem his people from their sins” (Alma 5:31).

“Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation [GR erroneous, fruitless conduct] received by tradition from your fathers;

“But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:18-19).

“Both [Jacob and Moroni] testify that because of Christ all men will be resurrected and ‘then cometh the judgment.’ Just prior to this passage, Jacob says, ‘we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness’ (2 Nephi 9:14). Similarly, Moroni states that we ‘shall be brought to see [our] nakedness before God’ (Mormon 9:5). Both Jacob and Moroni teach that the judgment will be a restoration of what we already are. By employing Jacob’s vivid phraseology, Moroni adds a second witness to his own and shifts Jacob’s testimony forward in time, reiterating its relevance to modern readers. Jacob spoke to a hardened people; it may be that Moroni saw in his latter-day readers those who similarly struggled and thus employed Jacob’s words in reaching out to them.”[1]

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[1] Jacob’s Textual Legacy, John Hilton III, Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 22/2 (2013): 60.

Mormon 9:1-4

Chapter 9

Moroni calls upon those who do not believe in Christ to repent—He proclaims a God of miracles, who gives revelations and pours out gifts and signs upon the faithful—Miracles cease because of unbelief—Signs follow those who believe—Men are exhorted to be wise and keep the commandments. About A.D. 401–421.

Moroni speaks to those who do not believe in Christ.

Those who do not believe now will believe when the Lord comes on that great day. “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord” (Malachi 4:5).

“Therefore, great and marvelous works shall be wrought by [the three Nephites], before the great and coming day when all people must surely stand before the judgment-seat of Christ” (3 Nephi 28:31).

The earth will be rolled like a scroll. “Know ye not that ye are in the hands of God? Know ye not that he hath all power, and at his great command the earth shall be rolled together as a scroll” (Mormon 5:23).

“Nevertheless, he that endureth in faith and doeth my will, the same shall overcome, and shall receive an inheritance upon the earth when the day of transfiguration shall come;

“When the earth shall be transfigured, even according to the pattern which was shown unto mine apostles upon the mount; of which account the fulness ye have not yet received” (D&C 63:20-21).

At that day, the elements will melt from the heat on that great day. “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt” (Amos 9:13).

“And he did expound all things, even from the beginning until the time that he should come in his glory—yea, even all things which should come upon the face of the earth, even until the elements should melt with fervent heat, and the earth should be wrapt together as a scroll, and the heavens and the earth should pass away” (3 Nephi 26:3).

Will you, Moroni asks, still say there is no Christ?

At that time, they will no longer be able to deny Christ. Do they think they would dwell with Christ being aware of the guilt? “And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God—he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God” (2 Nephi 28:8).

They would be like those who accused the woman of adultery. The Savior told them that he who had no sin should throw the first stone. “And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst” (John 8:9).

The filthy man, aware of his filthiness, would be miserable to live with a holy and just God.

“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good.

“The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God.

“They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy: there is none that doeth good, no, not one” (Psalms 14:1-3).[1]

“There is a generation that are pure in their own eyes, and yet is not washed from their filthiness” (Proverbs 30:12).

He would rather dwell with the damned in hell

“Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,

“And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation” (John 5:29).[2]

“The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God” (Psalms 9:17).

“Hell [IE The spirit world, the place of the dead, is never filled up] and destruction are never full; so the eyes of man are never satisfied” (Proverbs 27:20).

“Jacob also discussed the dread that would come to those who had to stand before God in their sins.”[3] “O my brethren, I fear that unless ye shall repent of your sins that their skins will be whiter than yours, when ye shall be brought with them before the throne of God” (Jacob 3:8).

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[1] “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no man that hath seen God. Because he showeth himself not unto us, therefore there is no God. Behold, they are corrupt; they have done abominable works, and none of them doeth good.

“For the Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, and by his voice said unto his servant, Seek ye among the children of men, to see if there are any that do understand God. And he opened his mouth unto the Lord, and said, Behold, all these who say they are thine.

“The Lord answered, and said, They are all gone aside, they are together become filthy, thou canst behold none of them that are doing good, no, not one” (JST Psalms 14:1-3).

[2] “Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,

“And shall come forth; they who have done good, unto the resurrection of the just; and they that have done evil, in the resurrection of the unjust” (JST John 5:29). 

[3] Jacob’s Textual Legacy, John Hilton III, Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 22/2 (2013): 59.

Mormon 8:38-41

Moroni continues speaking to the wicked in our day, calling them pollutions and hypocrites. They will sell themselves for evil attempting to pollute the church of God. They are ashamed to take upon them Christ’s name. Lehi saw some of these people in his tree of life vision. “And after they had partaken of the fruit of the tree they did cast their eyes about as if they were ashamed” (1 Nephi 8:25).

“Because a deference to [idols] leads to these abominations, the images themselves are ‘abominations’ (Deuteronomy 27:15). Their substance of silver or gold—now polluted—also constitutes an ‘abomination,’ something that must be burned with fire (Deuteronomy 7:25) or ground to powder (Exodus 32:20; 2 Kings 23:6, 16). By the Lord’s standard, even the idolaters themselves become ‘abominations’ (Isaiah 41:24) and “pollutions” (Mormon 8:38). The end result of their life-style is to ‘perish quickly from off the good land’ the Lord gave them (Joshua 23:16).”[1]

Paul made sure all knew his commitment to Christ. “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek” (Romans 1:16). To Timothy, he wrote, “Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God” (2 Timothy 1:8).

They are more interested in the praise of the world. “And also for the praise of the world do they destroy the saints of God, and bring them down into captivity” (1 Nephi 13:9).

They value misery over endless happiness found in following Christ. “And if they be evil they are consigned to an awful view of their own guilt and abominations, which doth cause them to shrink from the presence of the Lord into a state of misery and endless torment, from whence they can no more return; therefore they have drunk damnation to their own souls” (Mosiah 3:25).

Today, people have fine apparel. Yet, they ignore the hungry, needy, naked, sick, and afflicted, allowing them to “pass by you, and notice them not” (Mormon 8:39). We see this in today’s world. Too many ignore those who are in need of assistance, just passing by them, doing all which can be done to ignore these people.

“Moroni uses Jacob’s words to chastise future readers, asking, ‘Why do ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not?’ (Mormon 8:39). Perhaps Moroni intentionally provides modern-day readers with an allusion to Jacob’s words[2] to illustrate that latterday readers are similar to former-day Nephites. Perhaps Moroni wanted us to see that Jacob’s counsel regarding riches still applies.”[3]

We have our “secret abominations” who are interested only in benefiting and bettering themselves at the expense of those around them. For example, we see this in many of our inner cities. Gangs attempt to control their “territory.” They do not hesitate to use violence against those who oppose them. In the process, many innocent men, women, and children are murdered. To them, it’s just collateral damage. As long as they control their “territory” and profit from their efforts, everything is well with them.

The end result is they “cause that widows should mourn before the Lord, and also orphans to mourn before the Lord, and also the blood of their fathers and their husbands to cry unto the Lord from the ground, for vengeance upon your heads” (Mormon 8:40).

The sword of vengeance hangs over us. The day will soon be upon us when the Lord will avenge the blood of the saints, no longer suffer the cries of the saints for the things done to them.

“And every nation which shall war against thee, O house of Israel, shall be turned one against another, and they shall fall into the pit which they digged to ensnare the people of the Lord. And all that fight against Zion shall be destroyed, and that great whore, who hath perverted the right ways of the Lord, yea, that great and abominable church, shall tumble to the dust and great shall be the fall of it” (1 Nephi 22:14).

“For they killed the prophets, and them that were sent unto them; and they have shed innocent blood, which crieth from the ground against them” (D&C 136:36).

“The time came when the prophets did the only thing left for them to do: They ‘mourned and withdrew’ (Ether 11:13). And Mormon was forbidden to write any more for them, but for us he directs his writings to another people living far in the future (Moroni 1:4): ‘I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But . . . I know your doing, . . . [for] Jesus Christ has shown you unto me’ (Mormon 8:35). Make no mistake about it, as the politicians say, it is our generation being described, when the manipulations of the combinations, far and wide, shed the blood of husbands and cause widows and ‘orphans to mourn, [be assured that] the sword of vengeance hangeth over you’ (Mormon 8:40—41).”[4]

“In reality, [Moroni’s] commentary is an interpretation of the entire Book of Mormon. Clearly his primary narrative goal in his various commentaries is to relate the Book of Mormon as a whole to latterday readers—particularly regarding the spiritual reasons for the destruction of nations. He does this in all three endings in his narrator commentary. In the first ending, after relating the events of the Nephite destruction, he states that “the sword of vengeance hangeth over you” (Mormon 8:41). In other words, the Nephite history is our history and we the readers are on the verge of destruction.”[5]

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[1] Twelve Diatribes of Modern Israel, Avraham Gileadi, Maxwell Institute website.

[2] “And 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, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted” Jacob 2: 19

[3] Jacob’s Textual Legacy, John Hilton III, Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 22/2 (2013): 59.

[4] The Prophetic Book of Mormon, Chapter 22: Last Call: An Apocalyptic Warning from the Book of Mormon, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute website.

[5] Moroni: The Final Voice, Mark D. Thomas, Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 12/1 (2003): 96.

Mormon 8:35-37

Moroni is speaking to us today. He knew we would have this record and we would read his words. He knew because he saw us and our day. He was shown what the world would be like in our day.

“Of course, Mormon and Moroni were writing for a future time. They had to be. Mormon did most of his writing during the long lull before what he knew would be an exterminating battle, and Moroni’s writings are those of the lone wanderer destined to bury his precious work in the earth. From title page to parting words, father and son make clear that what they are inspired to include is first to the latter-day Lamanites and then to latter-day Gentiles and Jews. They speak as though ‘from the dead’ to an audience living many generations hence (Mormon 9:30). In prophetic collapsed time, Moroni speaks to this audience ‘as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing’ (Mormon 8:35).”[1]

He sees we are a proud people, walking with pride in our hearts. This will only lead us to walking in darkness. “They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course” (Psalms 82:5).

“Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (John 8:12).

“Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience” (Ephesians 2:2).

Only a few do not lift themselves up in pride. “And the hand of providence hath smiled upon you most pleasingly, that you have obtained many riches; and because some of you have obtained more abundantly than that of your brethren ye are lifted up in the pride of your hearts, and wear stiff necks and high heads because of the costliness of your apparel, and persecute your brethren because ye suppose that ye are better than they” (Jacob 2:13).

“And thus commandeth the Father that I should say unto you: At that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my gospel, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth, and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and of secret abominations; and if they shall do all those things, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my gospel from among them” (3 Nephi 16:10).

One sign of their pride is the wearing of “fine apparel.” This has always been a sign of Nephite wickedness.

“They rob the poor because of their fine sanctuaries; they rob the poor because of their fine clothing; and they persecute the meek and the poor in heart, because in their pride they are puffed up” (2 Nephi 28:13).

“And now my beloved brethren, I say unto you, can ye withstand these sayings; yea, can ye lay aside these things, and trample the Holy One under your feet; yea, can ye be puffed up in the pride of your hearts; yea, will ye still persist in the wearing of costly apparel and setting your hearts upon the vain things of the world, upon your riches” (Alma 5:53).

This has brought “envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities” upon the people. (Mormon 8:36). This has lead them to sin and “become polluted.”

“He then proceeds to describe a people immensely pleased with themselves: ‘There are none save a few only who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts, unto the wearing of fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities’—the high-living, fiercely competitive, crime-ridden world of the 1980s. And then to the heart of the matter: ‘For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches [Communists do not adorn churches], more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted.’ Why, he asks, do we allow the underprivileged to ‘pass by you, and notice them not,’ while placing high value on ‘that which hath no life’ (Mormon 8:36–37, 39).”[2]

He sees we love money as well as other possessions, such as the “fine apparel.” “And I also saw gold, and silver, and silks, and scarlets, and fine-twined linen, and all manner of precious clothing; and I saw many harlots” (1 Nephi 13:7).

They adorn their churches with all sorts of fine things. They don’t care about the poor, needy, sick, and afflicted. 

“They rob the poor because of their fine sanctuaries; they rob the poor because of their fine clothing; and they persecute the meek and the poor in heart, because in their pride they are puffed up.

“They wear stiff necks and high heads; yea, and because of pride, and wickedness, and abominations, and whoredoms, they have all gone astray save it be a few, who are the humble followers of Christ; nevertheless, they are led, that in many instances they do err because they are taught by the precepts of men.

“O the wise, and the learned, and the rich, that are puffed up in the pride of their hearts, and all those who preach false doctrines, and all those who commit whoredoms, and pervert the right way of the Lord, wo, wo, wo be unto them, saith the Lord God Almighty, for they shall be thrust down to hell!

“Wo unto them that turn aside the just for a thing of naught and revile against that which is good, and say that it is of no worth! For the day shall come that the Lord God will speedily visit the inhabitants of the earth; and in that day that they are fully ripe in iniquity they shall perish” (2 Nephi 28:13-16).”

“When men use hardware to control the world, its resources, and other men, the hardware brings about destruction. Mormon 8 seems appropriate: ‘For behold, ye do love your … substance … more than ye love the poor’ (Mormon 8:37). We love our expensive hardware, as described by Mormon, more than we esteem the inexpensive ‘live software.’ With what result? Again, the old science fiction theme—destruction: ‘Behold, the sword of vengeance hangeth over you; and the time soon cometh’ (Mormon 8:41)—because you love your hardware, your substance, more than you love people.”[3]

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[1] “To Come Forth in Due Time” – Introduction, Maxwell Institute website.

[2] The Prophetic Book of Mormon – Chapter 21: Scriptural Perspectives on How to Survive the Calamities of the Last Days, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute website.

[3] Temple and Cosmos, Science Fiction and the Gospel, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute website.

Mormon 8:33-34

Moroni chastises those who will pervert the Lord’s gospel, calling them a stiffnecked people. “Oh, this unbelieving and stiffnecked generation—mine anger is kindled against them” (D&C 5:8). They have built churches for the purpose of gaining wealth. “The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the Lord, and say, Is not the Lord among us? none evil can come upon us” (Micah 3:11).

“Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight [GR overseeing, guarding, watching] thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind” (1 Peter 5:2).

“For the time speedily shall come that all churches which are built up to get gain, and all those who are built up to get power over the flesh, and those who are built up to become popular in the eyes of the world, and those who seek the lusts of the flesh and the things of the world, and to do all manner of iniquity; yea, in fine, all those who belong to the kingdom of the devil are they who need fear, and tremble, and quake; they are those who must be brought low in the dust; they are those who must be consumed as stubble; and this is according to the words of the prophet” (1 Nephi 22:23).

They have changed the words of God. “And after they go forth by the hand of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, from the Jews unto the Gentiles, thou seest the formation of that great and abominable church, which is most abominable above all other churches; for behold, they have taken away from the gospel of the Lamb many parts which are plain and most precious; and also many covenants of the Lord have they taken away” (1 Nephi 13:26).

“For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock” (Acts 20:29).

“The Book of Mormon gives two reasons that help account for the corruption of the Bible. One is that plain and precious things will be lost from the gospel before the Bible ‘goeth forth unto all the nations of the Gentiles’(1 Nephi 13:29). Another reason, a more interesting one for our purposes, is that after the Bible has gone forth, the ‘holy word of God’ will be ‘transfigured’ by the interpretation of men (Mormon 8:33). This transfiguration of the Bible will take place during the time the Book of Mormon goes forth to Jews and Gentiles (see Mormon 8:23–34).”[1]

We are admonished to look to God’s revelations that will be available when these things are fulfilled. “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils” (1 Timothy 4:1).

 “Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some” (2 Timothy 2:16-17).

By doing this, they will bring damnation to their souls.

“Hold fast the form [GR sketch, model, example] of sound [GR uncorrupted] words, which thou hast heard of me, in faith and love which is in Christ Jesus.

“That good thing which was committed unto thee keep by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us.

“This thou knowest, that all they which are in Asia be turned away from me; of whom are Phygellus and Hermogenes” (2 Timothy 1:13-15).

The day will come when God’s revelations will be fulfilled. “Wherefore, the things which he shall write are just and true; and behold they are written in the book which thou beheld proceeding out of the mouth of the Jew; and at the time they proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew, or, at the time the book proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew, the things which were written were plain and pure, and most precious and easy to the understanding of all men” (1 Nephi 14:23).

“And then shall my revelations which I have caused to be written by my servant John be unfolded in the eyes of all the people. Remember, when ye see these things, ye shall know that the time is at hand that they shall be made manifest in very deed” (Ether 4:16).

34 Behold, the Lord hath shown unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come, at that day when these things shall come forth among you.

Moroni has seen “great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come” (Mormon 8:34).

“Moroni draws out the pure meaning of certain biblical revelations, which refer to the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, and then reaffirms them prophetically, saying ‘the Lord hath shown unto me [these same] great and marvelous things’ (Mormon 8:34). In this way, through the prophet Moroni, the Book of Mormon fulfills its purpose as a second witness to the Bible and in particular to what the Bible says about the Book of Mormon.”[2]

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[1] The Problem of the Sermon on the Mount and 3 Nephi, A. Don Sorensen, FARMS Review 16/2 (2004): 138.

[2] Ibid.,, 140.

Mormon 8:31-32

Moroni continues writing about the day when the Book of Mormon came forth.

In that day, there will be pollutions all over the Earth. The term “pollutions” is used to mean wickedness will be upon the land. This has happened in the past. “Moreover all the chief of the priests, and the people, transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen; and polluted the house of the Lord which he had hallowed in Jerusalem” (2 Chronicles 36:14).

“For when ye offer your gifts, when ye make your sons to pass through the fire, ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, even unto this day: and shall I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the Lord God, I will not be inquired of by you” (Ezekiel 20:31).

“And again, when they thought upon the Lamanites, who were their brethren, of their sinful and polluted state, they were filled with pain and anguish for the welfare of their souls” (Mosiah 25:11).

There will also be all manner of wickedness – murder, thieves, lying and deception; in short, wickedness will be across the land. “And thus commandeth the Father that I should say unto you: At that day when the Gentiles shall sin against my gospel, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, and shall be lifted up in the pride of their hearts above all nations, and above all the people of the whole earth, and shall be filled with all manner of lyings, and of deceits, and of mischiefs, and all manner of hypocrisy, and murders, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms, and of secret abominations; and if they shall do all those things, and shall reject the fulness of my gospel, behold, saith the Father, I will bring the fulness of my gospel from among them” (3 Nephi 16:10).

The people will, unknowingly, become followers of Nehor. “And [Nehor] also testified unto the people that all mankind should be saved at the last day, and that they need not fear nor tremble, but that they might lift up their heads and rejoice; for the Lord had created all men, and had also redeemed all men; and, in the end, all men should have eternal life” (Alma 1:4).

The devil will also “lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell” (2 Nephi 28:21).

“And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God—he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God” (2 Nephi 28:8).

Those who are lulled by these lies, with will enter into “the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity” (Mormon 8:31).

“Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.

“For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity” (Acts 8:22-23).

“And now, my son, all men that are in a state of nature, or I would say, in a carnal state, are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity; they are without God in the world, and they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore, they are in a state contrary to the nature of happiness” (Alma 41:11).

“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1).

“And so the timely reminder to the Church is this: Do not ‘suppose that ye are more righteous than the Gentiles … For . . . ye shall . . . likewise perish; . . . ye need not suppose that the Gentiles are utterly destroyed’ (2 Nephi 30:1). The Church is in the same danger as the Gentiles: ‘Wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion. Wo be unto him the crieth: All is well!’ (2 Nephi 28:24—25). Here we see how the label of Zion has been processed in a smooth soft-sell by broadcasting: ‘All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well . . . the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell’ (2 Nephi 28:21). That’s the business of advertising, to cheat and lead carefully.”[1]

Churches will be established. Instead of teaching Christ’s gospel, they will tell the people “for your money you shall be forgiven of your sins” (Mormon 8:32).

“Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear [JST bear] my word.

“Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

“And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not” (John 8:43-45).

“And now if ye are not the sheep of the good shepherd, of what fold are ye? Behold, I say unto you, that the devil is your shepherd, and ye are of his fold; and now” (Alma 5:39).

“The Book of Mormon gives two reasons that help account for the corruption of the Bible. One is that plain and precious things will be lost from the gospel before the Bible ‘goeth forth unto all the nations of the Gentiles’(1 Nephi 13:29). Another reason, a more interesting one for our purposes, is that after the Bible has gone forth, the ‘holy word of God’ will be ‘transfigured’ by the interpretation of men (Mormon 8:33). This transfiguration of the Bible will take place during the time the Book of Mormon goes forth to Jews and Gentiles (see Mormon 8:23–34).”[2]

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[1] Prophetic Book of Mormon – Chapter 22: Last Call: An Apocalyptic Warning from the Book of Mormon, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute website.

[2] The Problem of the Sermon on the Mount and 3 Nephi, A. Don Sorensen. FARMS Review 16/2 (2004): 117–48.

Mormon 8:27-30

In spite of the wicked’s best efforts, the Book of Mormon will be made available to all. The “blood” of the righteous will cry to the Lord.

The blood of the saints crying to the Lord will most certainly be heard. “And [the Lord] said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother’s blood crieth unto me from the ground” (Genesis 4:10).

“And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:

“And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth” (Revelation 6:9-10).

“Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark.

“And the blood of the saints shall cry from the ground against them” (2 Nephi 28:9-10).

“And whatsoever nation shall uphold such secret combinations, to get power and gain, until they shall spread over the nation, behold, they shall be destroyed; for the Lord will not suffer that the blood of his saints, which shall be shed by them, shall always cry unto him from the ground for vengeance upon them and yet he avenge them not” (Ether 8:22).

The Book of Mormon will come forth in the day God’s power will be denied. The Savior discussed the prophecies of Isaiah.

“And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

“For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them” (Matthew 13:14-15).

“For the Gentiles, a purpose of the Book of Mormon is to convince ‘that Jesus is the CHRIST’ (title page). The Book of Mormon would come forth, Moroni declares prophetically, ‘in a day when it shall be said that miracles are done away’ (Mormon 8:26). For Gentiles who profess a belief in Jesus but deny his power (see Mormon 8:28), the Book of Mormon convincingly testifies of a ‘God of miracles’ (Mormon 9:11). In addition to a spiritual witness, various elements of design confirm Christ's divinity and power.

“The book itself is a miracle, coming, Moroni says, ‘even as if one should speak from the dead’ (Mormon 8:26). Its most prominent parts affirm the miraculous: the repeated exodus theme, including the escape by day of Alma and his people from their taskmasters (Mosiah 24:19-21); the freeing of prophets from prison; angelic visitations to Nephi, Alma, Amulek, and others; and, the most miraculous event of all, the personal visit of the resurrected Christ to the people.”[1]

Churches, as well as their leaders and teaches will be built upon pride.

“And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look, and behold that great and abominable church, which is the mother of abominations, whose founder is the devil.

“And he said unto me: Behold there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth” (1 Nephi 14:9-10).

“For it shall come to pass in that day that the churches which are built up, and not unto the Lord, when the one shall say unto the other: Behold, I, I am the Lord’s; and the others shall say: I, I am the Lord’s; and thus shall every one say that hath built up churches, and not unto the Lord” (2 Nephi 28:3).

“And my vineyard has become corrupted every whit; and there is none which doeth good save it be a few; and they err in many instances because of priestcrafts, all having corrupt minds” (D&C 33:4).

“And the hand of providence hath smiled upon you most pleasingly, that you have obtained many riches; and because some of you have obtained more abundantly than that of your brethren ye are lifted up in the pride of your hearts, and wear stiff necks and high heads because of the costliness of your apparel, and persecute your brethren because ye suppose that ye are better than they” (Jacob 2:13).

“The secondary audiences of the Book of Mormon are the Jews and the Gentiles. To the first of these, the book testifies that ‘Jesus is the very Christ’; to the second, that ‘Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God’ (2 Nephi 26:12). As the Savior said to the Nephites regarding the Jews, ‘The time cometh, when the fulness of my gospel shall be preached unto them; and they shall believe in me, that I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and shall pray unto the Father in my name’ (3 Nephi 20:30–31). For Gentiles who profess a belief in Jesus but deny his power (Mormon 8:28), the Book of Mormon testifies of a “God of miracles” (Mormon 9:11).”[2]

There will also be fires ant tempests. “And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke” (Joel 2:30). Vapor of smoke will be seen in foreign lands. “For thus spake the prophet: The Lord God surely shall visit all the house of Israel at that day, some with his voice, because of their righteousness, unto their great joy and salvation, and others with the thunderings and the lightnings of his power, by tempest, by fire, and by smoke, and vapor of darkness, and by the opening of the earth, and by mountains which shall be carried up” (1 Nephi 19:11).

“And they shall see signs and wonders, for they shall be shown forth in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath.

“And they shall behold blood, and fire, and vapors of smoke” (D&C 45:40-41).

 “So the great takeover is to be followed by the ‘great overburn.’ Now that phenomenon is mentioned more than thirty times in the Book of Mormon, when the wicked are burned as stubble and a vapor of smoke covers the earth (1 Nephi 22:15, 17—18, 23; 3 Nephi 10:13—14; 25:1; Mormon 8:29).”[3]

There will wars, rumors of wars, as well as earthquakes in that day.

“Frye defines apocalypse, the Greek word for revelation, as ‘the vision of staggering marvels placed in a near future and just before the end of time.’ It ‘ends with the restoration of the tree and water of life.’ The last three books of the Book of Mormon—those of Mormon, Ether, and Moroni—contain both of these aspects of the apocalyptic vision. The marvels are the destructions of two great civilizations presented first by Mormon and ended by his son. These destructions are types of the end-time ‘wars, rumors of wars, and earthquakes in divers places’ before ‘that great day when the earth shall be rolled together as a scroll, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat’ (Mormon 8:30; 9:2).”[4]

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[1] The Book of Mormon, Designed for Our Day, Annual FARMS Lecture, Richard Dilworth Rust.

[2] “That Jesus Is the Christ” – Typology, Maxwell Institute website.

[3] Chapter 22:  Last Call: An Apocalyptic Warning from the Book of Mormon, The Prophetic Book of Mormon, Hugh Nibley.

[4] “At the Judgment-Seat of Christ” – Larger Perspectives, Feasting on the Word, Maxwell Institute website.