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]
[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.
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