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3 Nephi 19:9-22 
9 And they did pray for that which they most desired; and they desired that the Holy Ghost should be given unto them.
10 And when they had thus prayed they went down unto the water’s edge, and the multitude followed them.
11 And it came to pass that Nephi went down into the water and was baptized.
12 And he came up out of the water and began to baptize. And he baptized all those whom Jesus had chosen.
13 And it came to pass when they were all baptized and had come up out of the water, the Holy Ghost did fall upon them, and they were filled with the Holy Ghost and with fire (3 Nephi 19:9-13).
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19 And it came to pass that Jesus departed out of the midst of them, and went a little way off from them and bowed himself to the earth, and he said:
20 Father, I thank thee that thou hast given the Holy Ghost unto these whom I have chosen; and it is because of their belief in me that I have chosen them out of the world.
21 Father, I pray thee that thou wilt give the Holy Ghost unto all them that shall believe in their words.
22 Father, thou hast given them the Holy Ghost because they believe in me; and thou seest that they believe in me because thou hearest them, and they pray unto me; and they pray unto me because I am with them (3 Nephi 19:9-22).

For me, a careful discussion of the Holy Ghost must begin with the Beatitudes. (There is an analysis of each in Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord. A click on the search engine of this website will take you there. Use “Savior’s Coronation Sermon” as the search words.)

Briefly, the Beatitudes in the Book of Mormon walk us through the following sequence: (v. 1) Follow the Brethren; (v. 2) first principles and ordinances (visited by the Holy Ghost); (v. 3) endowment for the living; (v. 4) endowment for the dead; (v. 5) keep eternal covenants; (v. 6) hunger for priesthood and temple things and filled with the Holy Ghost; (v. 7) how to be a king and a priest; (v. 8) Zion shall see God; (v. 9) peacemakers called (new name) “children of God”; (v. 10-12) righteous will be persecuted; (v. 13) missionary responsibilities; (v. 14-16) be a light to the Saints. (If you haven’t seen that sequence in them before, please check the documentation in the book—thanks.)

The Beatitudes are important to our discussion of the Holy Ghost because near their beginning one is “visited with the Holy Ghost,” but it is not until after temple work, keeping eternal covenants, and hungering for temple and priesthood things, that one is “filled with the Holy Ghost.” There is a carefully outlined progression between being “visited” and being “filled.”

Some time before the Savior came to the Nephites, Nephi had already established a priesthood organization so that all who repented could “be baptized with water (3 Nephi 7:25).” So it is easy to recognize this baptism in 3 Nephi 19 as a re-baptism. or more correctly as a baptism into the new church and kingdom established by the Savior.

There are also many references to the Holy Ghost throughout the Book of Mormon, just as there are prior references to baptism, so there can be no question that by the time we enter the scene described in 3 Nephi 19, the people who participated in these ceremonies had long since already been baptized and received the gift of the Holy Ghost. Therefore, their desire “that the Holy Ghost should be given unto them,” and the Savior’s response, make it apparent that their request was to receive something in addition to what they already had. When that request is fulfilled, the language describing the event is the same as is in verse 6 of the Beatitudes:

13 And it came to pass when they [the Twelve Disciples] were all baptized and had come up out of the water, the Holy Ghost did fall upon them, and they were filled with the Holy Ghost and with fire (3 Nephi 19:13).

In our own time, after we are baptized, priesthood holders lay their hands upon our heads and give us the command—and therefore the authorization—to receive the Holy Ghost. Thereby, we begin the journey to ultimately become “filled.” Parley P. Pratt penned the most beautiful description of the blessings that come in consequence of our accepting that command and moving toward its fulfillment. He wrote:

.       The gift of the Holy Spirit adapts itself to all these organs or attributes, It quickens all the intellectual faculties, increases, enlarges, expands and purifies all the natural passions and affections, and adapts them, by the gift of wisdom, to their lawful use. It inspires, develops, cultivates and matures all the fine toned sympathies, joys, tastes, kindred feelings and affections of our nature. It inspires virtue, kindness, goodness, tenderness, gentleness and charity. It develops beauty of person, form and features. It tends to health, vigor, animation and social feeling. It develops and invigorates all the faculties of the physical and intellectual man. It strengthens, invigorates and gives tone to the nerves. In short, it is, as it were, marrow to the bone, joy to the heart, light to the eyes, music to the ears, and life to the whole being.
.       In the presence of such persons one feels to enjoy the light of their countenances, as the genial rays of a sunbeam. Their very atmosphere diffuses a thrill, a warm glow of pure gladness and sympathy, to the heart and nerves of others who have kindred feelings, or sympathy of spirit. No matter if the parties are strangers, entirely unknown to each other in person or character; no matter if they have never spoken to each other, each will be apt to remark in his own mind, and perhaps exclaim, when referring to the interview, “O what an atmosphere encircles that stranger! How my heart thrilled with pure and holy feelings in his presence! What confidence and sympathy he inspired! His countenance and spirit gave me more assurance than a thousand written recommendations or introductory letters.” Such is the gift of the Holy Spirit, and such are its operations when received through the lawful channel, the divine, eternal Priesthood.{1}

Mormon’s description is much more succinct, yet even more complete:

25 And the first fruits of repentance is baptism; and baptism cometh by faith unto the fulfilling the commandments; and the fulfilling the commandments bringeth remission of sins;
26 And the remission of sins bringeth meekness, and lowliness of heart; and because of meekness and lowliness of heart cometh the visitation of the Holy Ghost, which Comforter filleth with hope and perfect love, which love endureth by diligence unto prayer, until the end shall come, when all the saints shall dwell with God (Moroni 8:25-26).

Mormon’s reference to the Holy Ghost as the “Comforter” is not only important in this context, but it also helps us understand what that means in other scriptures as well. Mormon says this Comforter “filleth with hope and perfect love.” In his great sermon on faith, hope, and charity (Moroni 7), Mormon uses hope to mean one’s living at thought the covenants were already fulfilled. And that, Mormon says both here and in the sermon, leads to perfect love which is charity.{2} Charity is, as Peter teaches us, the ultimate step toward making one’s “calling and election sure” and receiving entrance “into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Peter 1:1-11).”

It is evident from Mormon’s explanation that to “comfort” means much more than just to give encouragement or good advise. His understanding of “comfort” is perfectly consistent with the way the word in is used in both the Old and New Testaments and by the Savior in the Beatitudes in the Book of Mormon.

There, to give “comfort” means to bestow on another the power to transcend sorrow. A “Comforter” then, is one who gives another that abiding and overriding power. For example, in the Beatitude that reads, “And again, blessed are all they that mourn, for they shall be comforted” the Savior was paraphrasing Isaiah 61. There, the initiate is comforted or empowered by receiving an enthronement ceremony. During that coronation the recipient is washed, anointed, clothed, crowned, and given a new royal king-name. Thus, in Isaiah, to empower means to make one a priest or priestess and a king or queen.{3}

A wonderful example in the Book of Mormon of the meaning of “comfort” as empowerment is this brief account of the beginning of the mission of the sons of Mosiah:

10 And it came to pass that the Lord did visit them with his Spirit, and said unto them: Be comforted. And they were comforted (Alma 17:10). (I take it that “his Spirit” means the same thing here as it does in Ether 3.)

A similar one is this testimony by Alma:

27 Now when our hearts were depressed, and we were about to turn back, behold, the Lord comforted us, and said: Go amongst thy brethren, the Lamanites, and bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto you success (Alma 26:27).

If I read them correctly, in both of those accounts it is not the Holy Ghost, but the Savior who administered the comfort or empowerment. The Prophet Joseph explained how that is so by quoting John to show that there are two Comforters. He said:

The Two Comforters
.        There are two Comforters spoken of. One is the Holy Ghost, the same as given on the day of Pentecost, and that all Saints receive after faith, repentance, and baptism. This first Comforter or Holy Ghost has no other effect than pure intelligence. It is more powerful in expanding the mind, enlightening the understanding, and storing the intellect with present knowledge, of a man who is of the literal seed of Abraham, than one that is a Gentile, though it may not have half as much visible effect upon the body; for as the Holy Ghost falls upon one of the literal seed of Abraham, it is calm and serene; and his whole soul and body are only exercised by the pure spirit of intelligence; while the effect of the Holy Ghost upon a Gentile, is to purge out the old blood, and make him actually of the seed of Abraham. That man that has none of the blood of Abraham (naturally) must have a new creation by the Holy Ghost. In such a case, there may be more of a powerful effect upon the body, and visible to the eye, than upon an Israelite, while the Israelite at first might be far before the Gentile in pure intelligence.
The Second Comforter
.       The other Comforter spoken of is a subject of great interest, and perhaps understood by few of this generation. After a person has faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his sins and receives the Holy Ghost, (by the laying on of hands), which is the first Comforter, then let him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, and living by every word of God, and the Lord will soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted.
.       When the Lord has thoroughly proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards, then the man will find his calling and his election made sure, then it will be his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which the Lord hath promised the Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of St. John, in the 14th chapter, from the 12th to the 27th verses.
.       Note the 16, 17, 18, 21, 23 verses:
.       “16. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever;
.       “17. Even the Spirit of Truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
.       “18. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. * * *
.       “21. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
.       “23. If a man love me, he will keep my word: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”
.       Now what is this other Comforter? It is no more nor less than the Lord Jesus Christ Himself; and this is the sum and substance of the whole matter; that when any man obtains this last Comforter, he will have the personage of Jesus Christ to attend him, or appear unto him from time to time, and even He will manifest the Father unto him, and they will take up their abode with him, and the visions of the heavens will be opened unto him, and the Lord will teach him face to face, and he may have a perfect knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of God; and this is the state and place the ancient Saints arrived at when they had such glorious visions—Isaiah, Ezekiel, John upon the Isle of Patmos, St. Paul in the three heavens, and all the Saints who held communion with the general assembly and Church of the Firstborn.{4}

An Old Testament example where “comforted” is used in this way—and in a context that relates to the ancient Israelite temple drama, and which associates “comfort” with the power of redemption—is this frequently quoted passage from Isaiah. In this passage, “redeem” has the same meaning as it does in the Brother of Jared story in Ether 3:10-13.{5}

7 How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, {6} that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!
8 Thy watchmen shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing: for they shall see eye to eye, when the Lord shall bring again Zion.
9 Break forth into joy, sing together, ye waste places of Jerusalem: for the Lord hath comforted his people, he hath redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The Lord hath made bare his holy arm in the eyes of all the nations; and all the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God (Isaiah 52:7-10).{7}

There is a very important discussion of the Holy Ghost in the Lectures on Faith, Lecture 5. If you do not have convenient access to the book, that lecture can also be found on this website under the “Favorite Quotes” section at the top of the home page. From there go to “Smith, Joseph, Lectures on Faith, lecture 5.”

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FOOTNOTES

{1}Parley P. Pratt, Key to the Science of Theology (Liverpool, F. D. Richards, 1855), 98-99.

{2} For a discussion of faith, hope, and charity in Moroni 7 see Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord , the four chapters called: Moroni 7: Faith, Hope, and Charity; Meaning of “Faith” — pistis; A Meaning of “Hope”; and A Meaning of “Charity”. In the paper back edition (the one that is on this website) those chapters are on pages 696-721.

{3} The word “comfort” as used in that coronation ceremony is discussed in Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord in two chapters. In the paperback version that is avaliable in this website, they are: The Meaning of “Comfort,” on pages 340-43; and the discussion of the Beatitude on pages 656-59.

{4} Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, selected and arranged by Joseph Fielding Smith (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1976), 149.

{5} In Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, see the chapter called: A Meaning of “Redeem”— to “Come Unto Christ” on pages 510-19.

{6} Isaiah”s words “How are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings” can be understood in three different ways. See Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, pages 498-99.

{7} This passage from Isaiah is quoted four times in the Book of Mormon: Mosiah 12:21-25, 15:28-31; 3 Nephi 16:16-20, 20:30-35.

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3 Nephi 19:4
4 And it came to pass that on the morrow, when the multitude was gathered together, behold, Nephi and his brother whom he had raised from the dead, whose name was Timothy, and also his son, w hose name was Jonas, and also Mathoni, and Mathonihah, his brother, and Kumen, and Kumenonhi, and Jeremiah, and Shemnon, and Jonas, and Zedekiah, and Isaiah—now these were the names of the disciples whom Jesus had chosen.

This list of names shows an unexpected Greek influence among the Nephites.

Apart from the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the pseudepigrapha, there are almost no written Israelite records that predate the Babylonian captivity. However, it is becoming increasing apparent to scholars that the ancient cultures of the eastern Mediterranean were not isolated from each other. Recent archaeological evidence suggests a Greek influence in ancient Israel that goes back at least 3,500 years.{1}

Among the twelve disciples whom Jesus chose, there may be five with Hebrew names (Nephi, Jeremiah, Zedekiah, and Isaiah, and probably Shemnon), three with Greek names (Timothy, Jonas, Jonas), and the remaining four probably have Jaredite origins. They are all easy to account for except the three Greek names. For those, there seem to be two possible explanations: (1) There were Greeks who came to America and settled among the Nephites after Lehi’s family arrived. (2) There was a strong Greek influence in Lehi’s family, either found on the brass plates or in their education. The latter seems to be the more likely because Lehi’s reasoning in 2 Nephi 2:5-16 is carefully structured like a Greek logical argument.

It is interesting, and probably relevant to note that two of the men with Greek names were in Nephi’s own immediate family. Timothy was Nephi’s brother and Jonas was that brother’s son. The fact that Jonas, the Greek form of Jonah, was common enough that there were two who shared that name may suggest a stronger Greek influence than we might otherwise have thought.

There is another bit of information about these Twelve that could open up a whole new understanding about our very eternal nature.

Six hundred years before, when Nephi saw them in vision, he described them as “they are righteous forever.” What he tells us has some fascinating implications about the eternal consistency of our use of agency, our personalities and our integrity. “Forever” in both directions is a very long time. Nephi wrote:

7 And I also saw and bear record that the Holy Ghost fell upon twelve others; and they were ordained of God, and chosen.
8 And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the twelve disciples of the Lamb, who are chosen to minister unto thy seed.
9 And he said unto me: Thou rememberest the twelve apostles of the Lamb? Behold they are they who shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel; wherefore, the twelve ministers of thy seed shall be judged of them; for ye are of the house of Israel.
10 And these twelve ministers whom thou beholdest shall judge thy seed. And, behold, they are righteous forever; for because of their faith in the Lamb of God their garments are made white in his blood (1 Nephi 12:7-10).

When one ponders these verses in conjunction with what Paul says about foreordination in Ephesians 1, and with the discussion of priesthood in Alma 13 (highlight the word “order” throughout that chapter), then what Nephi wrote takes on wonderful possibilities.
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FOOTNOTE

{1}See Eric H Cline and Assaf Yasur-Landau, “Aegeans in Israel, Minoan Frescoes at Tel Kabri,” Biblical Archaeology Review, July/August 2013, Vol 39, No 4, 37-44.

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3 Nephi 18:22-35 

22 And behold, ye shall meet together oft; and ye shall not forbid any man from coming unto you when ye shall meet together, but suffer them that they may come unto you and forbid them not;
23 But ye shall pray for them, and shall not cast them out; and if it so be that they come unto you oft ye shall pray for them unto the Father, in my name.
24 Therefore, hold up your light that it may shine unto the world. Behold I am the light which ye shall hold up—that which ye have seen me do. Behold ye see that I have prayed unto the Father, and ye all have witnessed.
25 And ye see that I have commanded that none of you should go away, but rather have commanded that ye should come unto me, that ye might feel and see; even so shall ye do unto the world; and whosoever breaketh this commandment suffereth himself to be led into temptation.
26 And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words, he turned his eyes again upon the disciples whom he had chosen, and said unto them:
27 Behold verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you another commandment, and then I must go unto my Father that I may fulfil other commandments which he hath given me.
28 And now behold, this is the commandment which I give unto you, that ye shall not suffer any one knowingly to partake of my flesh and blood unworthily, when ye shall minister it;
29 For whoso eateth and drinketh my flesh and blood unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to his soul; therefore if ye know that a man is unworthy to eat and drink of my flesh and blood ye shall forbid him.
30 Nevertheless, ye shall not cast him out from among you, but ye shall minister unto him and shall pray for him unto the Father, in my name; and if it so be that he repenteth and is baptized in my name, then shall ye receive him, and shall minister unto him of my flesh and blood.
31 But if he repent not he shall not be numbered among my people, that he may not destroy my people, for behold I know my sheep, and they are numbered.
32 Nevertheless, ye shall not cast him out of your synagogues, or your places of worship, for unto such shall ye continue to minister; for ye know not but what they will return and repent, and come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I shall heal them; and ye shall be the means of bringing salvation unto them.
33 Therefore, keep these sayings which I have commanded you that ye come not under condemnation; for wo unto him whom the Father condemneth.
34 And I give you these commandments because of the disputations which have been among you. And blessed are ye if ye have no disputations among you.
35 And now I go unto the Father, because it is expedient that I should go unto the Father for your sakes.

The message here is about discriminating against people whom we perceive to be sinners and therefore we justify ourselves for shunning them because they are “unsaveable.” The key to the problem is in its conclusion:

34 And I give you these commandments because of the disputations which have been among you. And blessed are ye if ye have no disputations among you.

The disputations seem to have been about whether people who consider themselves to be especially good should have to tolerate the association of sinners— the unworthy “lower sorts.”

Shakespeare focuses on this same issue in a conversation where Hamlet tells Polonius to treat the traveling players with dignity. Polonius replies:
.           My lord, I will use them according to their desert.
.     To which Hamlet exclaimed:
.           God’s bodykins, man, much better: use every man after his desert,
.                     and who should escape whipping?
.           Use them after your own honour and dignity: the less they deserve,
.                     the more merit is in your bounty (Hamlet. Act 2, Scene 2).

There are two kinds of sins: The most important are those that damage a person’s eternal Self. They are the sins that God defines. But those are often the most difficult for other people to see and judge.

The other kind of sins are those that are defined, established, and enforced by culture. They have nothing to do with the soul but everything to do with the social perceptions of “sinfulness. Those are the easiest for others to see and they are also the one’s that divide people between “us” and “others.” It’s like Minnie Pearl once observed,

In spite of everything I’ve just told you, it seems that folks in the Switch are no more perfect than anyone else, they just have a clearer understanding of how other people sin. {1}

Because we don’t know their circumstances, we do not understand and our standard for judging someone else’s sinfulness or their excellence is an illusion at best. For some people the standards they impose upon others may best be described by the long-since worn out: “do as I say, not as I do.” Thus we somehow think it reasonable to put a burden on others that we are not willing or able to carry ourselves.

Perhaps even more frequently the person we fancy we see in our own mirror is the standard of excellence by which one can rightly judge the actions and motives of others. We judge our enemies (real or imagined) according to their response to our needs (whether our needs real or imagined). When we do that, compassion tends not to be a very high priority in the criteria upon which we base our judgments.

In the Church there are minimal standards of worthiness. They are minimal because they are necessarily limited to things that are observable and measurable. Sometimes the rules get in the way of compassion. That presents a dichotomy that is described beautifully by this story. It is told by a dear friend of mine. It is a true story whose punch line illustrates the problem very well. I have heard my friend tell it several times, and always with the same poignant message. I asked him to write it so I could share it with you. He wrote:

A family story handed down to me by my father:

Ninety years ago a bishop could approach the president of the church directly with his concerns.

The bishop approached the president with the intent to resign since he didn’t want to sit in judgment on two of his ward members.

Bishop:
“I know, President, that what they have done really requires that a church court be held. But I really don’t want to sit in judgment on them. They have been so faithful in the past and such a support to me as their bishop. Could someone else handle this affair?”

President:
“Bishop, you don’t need to handle this. There are always plenty of people willing to sit in judgment on others.”

In today’s scripture, the Savior said there had been “disputations” among the people—probably not just about how to enforce the standards, but also about which standards to enforce.

That tends to be true in the Church we belong to as well. For example, when I was a boy caffeine was taught by many to be against the Word of Wisdom. They judged other people accordingly. They were a bit disgruntled that the Church was not explicit about that, because without explicit directions local leaders could not enforce what they believed was “that part of the Word of Wisdom”. (The Church is explicit now; the Handbook of Instructions clearly says caffeine is not against the Word of Wisdom.). Then as now, hot drinks (tea and coffee) were forbidden and that was enforceable because they were easily defined. However, cold soft drinks that contained caffeine was a different matter altogether. There are more things in tea and coffee than just caffeine, but the caffeine was the easiest to talk about so that was what they focused on. It gave credence to this joke that made the rounds: “If you are in Utah, how can you tell a Mormon from a non-Mormon —- By the temperature of their caffeine!”

The point is, it was the people who didn’t drink Coke who defined Coke as a sin. In the small town where I grew up, it was convenient to judge others accordingly because one could easily discover who did and who didn’t buy Coke. Those who watched also judged, but their definition of sin was based only on their personal opinion of what a sin ought to be.

The church is like an egg. It has two distinct parts within its shell. It is not complete without both parts but they function differently. The center is the priesthood whose function is to perform and validate covenants and ordinances. Around that core is an organization whose purpose is to uplift each individual person, and provide both organized and casual opportunities for friends to associate and work together. If the notion of “church” can be discussed separately from priesthood powers and responsibilities, then one could argue that the “church” is—and is intended to be—the core of our personal and community sociality. For those who enjoy that association, church membership satisfies many of their most basic needs. However, personalities also come into play. I suspect that a lot more people leave the church because their social needs are not met than leave because they don’t like the doctrine.

If that is true, then the salvation of both the wayward and active members of the Church is largely contingent upon one’s open willingness to accept other people as friends, and to “judge not that ye be not judged.” To the degree that is true, then the Savior’s instructions in these verses are simply an elaboration on the first two “great commandments”: to love the Lord and to love his children.

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FOOTNOTE

{1} Kevin Kenworthy, The Best Jokes Minnie Pearl Ever Told, p. 63.

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3 Nephi 18:7-11 

In 3 Nephi 18 the resurrected Savior administers the sacrament to the Nephites, and in conjunction with thats he also instituted a formal covenant with them. There are two correspond scriptures in the Book of Mormon that discuss this. One is Mosiah 5 where King Benjamin officiates as the people make a similar covenant. The other is Moroni 4 and 5 where the sacrament prayers are given verbatim. The covenants made by the people of King Benjamin and the ones in 3 Nephi are incorporated as an integral part of those prayers.

The Lord’s instructions to the Nephites includes the terms and objectives of the covenant. He said:

7 And this shall ye do in remembrance of my body, which I have shown unto you. And it shall be a testimony unto the Father that ye do always remember me. And if ye do always remember me ye shall have my Spirit to be with you.
8 And it came to pass that when he said these words, he commanded his disciples that they should take of the wine of the cup and drink of it, and that they should also give unto the multitude that they might drink of it.
9 And it came to pass that they did so, and did drink of it and were filled; and they gave unto the multitude, and they did drink, and they were filled.
10 And when the disciples had done this, Jesus said unto them: Blessed are ye for this thing which ye have done, for this is fulfilling my commandments, and this doth witness unto the Father that ye are willing to do that which I have commanded you.
11 And this shall ye always do to those who repent and are baptized in my name; and ye shall do it in remembrance of my blood, which I have shed for you, that ye may witness unto the Father that ye do always remember me. And if ye do always remember me ye shall have my Spirit to be with you (3 Nephi 18:7-11).

In Mosiah 5 the people spoke in unison and said:

5 And we are willing to enter into a covenant with our God to do his will, and to be obedient to his commandments in all things that he shall command us, all the remainder of our days, that we may not bring upon ourselves a never-ending torment, as has been spoken by the angel, that we may not drink out of the cup of the wrath of God.

To which the king responded:

6 And now, these are the words which king Benjamin desired of them; and therefore he said unto them: Ye have spoken the words that I desired; and the covenant which ye have made is a righteous covenant.
7 And now, because of the covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his sons, and his daughters; for behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you; for ye say that your hearts are changed through faith on his name; therefore, ye are born of him and have become his sons and his daughters.
8 And under this head ye are made free, and there is no other head whereby ye can be made free. There is no other name given whereby salvation cometh; therefore, I would that ye should take upon you the name of Christ, all you that have entered into the covenant with God that ye should be obedient unto the end of your lives.
9 And it shall come to pass that whosoever doeth this shall be found at the right hand of God, for he shall know the name by which he is called; for he shall be called by the name of Christ.
10 And now it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall not take upon him the name of Christ must be called by some other name; therefore, he findeth himself on the left hand of God.
11 And I would that ye should remember also, that this is the name that I said I should give unto you that never should be blotted out, except it be through transgression; therefore, take heed that ye do not transgress, that the name be not blotted out of your hearts.
12 I say unto you, I would that ye should remember to retain the name written always in your hearts, that ye are not found on the left hand of God, but that ye hear and know the voice by which ye shall be called, and also, the name by which he shall call you (Mosiah 5:5-12).

As King Benjamin explains, to take upon oneself the name of Christ is to “become his sons and his daughters.” When we are adopted into a new family we take the family name as our own. But the terms of the adoption covenant mean more than that. An adopted child has the full rights of inheritance. So to take upon us the name of Christ is to lay claim to all the blessings implied by the family relationship.

The blessing on the bread is a reiteration of that covenant. Like all covenants it has two parts: the promises of the first party and the promises of the second.

For our part, we—

witness unto thee, O God, the Eternal Father, that they are willing [that is the operative word] to take upon them the name of thy Son, and [that they are willing to] always remember him, and [that they are willing to] keep his commandments which he hath given them,

For God’s part, his promise is

that they may always have his Spirit to be with them (Moroni 4:3).

The blessing on the water is different from that. It is an assertion and an evidence that we are actually keeping the covenants we just made:

that they may do it in remembrance of the blood of thy Son, which was shed for them; that they may witness … that they do [“do” is the operative word here] always remember him,

Through that assertion we lay claim to the fulfillment of the Father’s part of the covenant:

that they may have his Spirit to be with them (Moroni 5:2).

Notwithstanding the fact that we take the sacrament weekly, and that many, especially the children, do not understand what the words say, there is noting trivial suggested in its frequent repetition. When the words of the covenants in the blessing on the bread are understood to represent a renewing of all of the covenants we have made, including the temple covenants; and the words of the blessing on the water asserts that we are keeping all of those covenants, then we begin to understand power represented in those ordinances.

It is little wonder the Savior warned:

28 And now behold, this is the commandment which I give unto you, that ye shall not suffer any one knowingly to partake of my flesh and blood unworthily, when ye shall minister it;
29 For whoso eateth and drinketh my flesh and blood unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to his soul….(3 Nephi 18:28-29).

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3 Nephi 17:18-22

18 And it came to pass that when Jesus had made an end of praying unto the Father, he arose; but so great was the joy of the multitude that they were overcome.
19 And it came to pass that Jesus spake unto them, and bade them arise.
20 And they arose from the earth, and he said unto them: Blessed are ye because of your faith. And now behold, my joy is full.
21 And when he had said these words, he wept, and the multitude bare record of it, and he took their little children, one by one, and blessed them, and prayed unto the Father for them.
22 And when he had done this he wept again;

Language is everything; but language is much more than words. Words say only what the listener can hear. Sometimes words are intended to convey meaning, sometimes they are used deliberately to obscure meaning. Sometimes words tell facts but entirely distort truth. Sometimes words tell truth, but obscure it by speaking only facts.

Words! Mere words! How terrible they were! How clear, and vivid, and cruel! One could not escape from them. And yet what a subtle magic there was in them! They seemed to be able to give a plastic form to formless things, and to have a music of their own as sweet as that of viol or of lute. Mere words! Was there anything so real as words? (Oscar Wilde, Picture of Dorian Gray, chapter 2)

In Hamlet, King Claudius answers Oscar Wilde’s question. The king mocks his own prayer by lamenting:

My words fly up, my thoughts remain below:
Words without thoughts never to heaven go (Hamlet Act 3 Scene 3).

Sometimes words tell truth only to those who know how to hear them. I have mentioned before that the Book of Mormon is written in two different languages, but both are English. The surface text is truly wonderful and can be read and appreciated by anyone who is literate. The subtext is in code. The code is the temple and anyone who knows the temple knows the code if they will pay attention. But for those who do not know, the encoded text does not exist. {1}

Some words were not originally intended to be code words. They have become code only because our contemporary English does not carry the same meaning as the words did when the author wrote them. In this short essay I wish to explain why the Savior’s words in 3 Nephi 17:20 might be understood as:

Blessed [enjoying the state of the gods] are ye because of your faith [because of the eternal and present covenants we have made together, and because you have kept those covenants]. And now behold, my joy is full. And when he had said these words, he wept.

While the scene portrayed in that verse is very moving, the words that express the Savior’s feelings do not convey to the modern reader what the writer apparently intended them to say. “Blessed” conveys very little meaning to most readers. If we stop to think about it, it asks rather than teaches us what the blessings might be.

When W. F. Albright, and C. S. Mann were translating Matthew for that volume of The Anchor Bible, and were trying to find a suitable synonym for blessed in the Beatitudes, “fortunate” was the best that they could settle upon. So in the Anchor Bible the Beatitudes read:

3 Fortunate are the humble in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Fortunate are those who mourn, for they shall be consoled. 5 Fortunate are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 Fortunate are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall he satisfied. 7 Fortunate are the merciful, [and so on].

Their use of “fortunate” is even more perplexing because they knew what the original Greek word meant, but they did not believe that meaning would be appropriate in their translation. In a footnote, they explain why they chose the word fortunate:

3. Fortunate. The word in Greek was used in classical times [to mean] of the state of the gods in contrast to men. The usual English “blessed” has more and more come to have liturgical or ecclesiastical overtones, and we have chosen “fortunate” as being the best translation available to us. ( W. F. Albright and C. S. Mann, The Anchor Bible, Matthew ]Garden City, New York: Doubleday, 1971], 45.)

When Stephen Ricks and I were writing Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, we cited the footnote when we were discussing the Beatitudes in 3 Nephi. However, Stephen, who is a Greek scholar in his own right, enlarged the phrase to read “enjoying the state of the gods.”

If the Savior used the same Nephite word in 3 Nephi 17:20 where it is translated “blessed,”as he used in the Beatitudes where that is translated “blessed,” then our verse might read, “Enjoying the state of the gods are ye because of your faith.”
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In modern English “faith” is as ambiguous as is “blessed.”

The distinguished Biblical scholar David Noel Freedman, in his article on “faith” in The Anchor Bible Dictionary, points out that the Christian concept of faith “distinguishes faith from fidelity.” He wrote:

Faith is a peculiarly Christian concept. While other religious traditions have aspects of what the churches have come to name “faith,” none has the specific quality of intellectual assent that distinguishes faith from fidelity. The problem of faith and the central discussion of it arises in the context of the medieval attempts to codify and integrate the Christian experience into the emerging philosophical language of the scholastics. (“Faith,” article by David Noel Freedman, The Anchor Bible Dictionary [New York, Doubleday, 1992], 2: 744-745.)

Some Mormons have sought to solve the problem of the lack of fidelity by attaching the necessity of “works” to the meaning of faith in order to give the word a more concrete substance. This avoids the typical Christian dilemma of “faith” meaning “belief without evidence” but it still leaves faith as essentially undefined. In New Testament times that was not a problem. There, as in the Book of Mormon, the Savior’s word “faith” stands alone, having substance in itself.

Once again, the understanding of the scriptures hangs on the meaning of “faith.” So once again, let me quickly say that it was not until the Christian apostasy of about 100 or 150 A.D. that “faith” came to mean unsubstantiated belief— believing without sure evidence. During New Testament times the word translated as faith meant exactly the opposite of that. It meant trust based on adherence to the terms of a contract or covenant The Greek word in the New Testament is pistis and its nearest synonym in modern day English is probably “contract.” It means making and keeping the terms and conditions of the “covenant.”{2}

Code words in the scriptures are intended to instruct the learner and enlighten the initiated. Faith is a code word that was not intended to be such, but because the meaning has changed over time, it now acts like other code words. That is, in the surface text it has one meaning but in the subtext it has the same meaning it had when the New Testament was written.

“Faith” in the Book of Mormon now has the same double meaning as “faith” has in the New Testament.

The congregation that surrounded Jesus described in 1 Nephi 12:10 was extraordinary. The people—even the children and the teenagers— somehow had qualified in the previous life and in this one to be where the Savior was. For example, 600 years before they were born Nephi was told,

10 And these twelve ministers whom thou beholdest shall judge thy seed. And, behold, they are [present tense] righteous forever [very future]; for because of their faith in the Lamb of God their garments are [present tense] made white in his blood (1 Nephi 12:10).

Nephi understood those men as the Savior did in sacred time. There is no question about whether those twelve had their agency, but this clearly says that they had always and would always exercise that agency in righteousness (zedek) —that they had done so before they came to this world, they would while they were here, and would always hereafter— which is the attribute that qualifies one to be in the presence of God. God knew them in sacred time, and gave them earthly assignments accordingly. That may have been true of the others who were present as well.

When our verse is read that way:

Blessed [enjoying the state of the gods] are ye because of your faith [because of the eternal and present covenants we have made together, and because you have kept your part]. And n ow behold, my joy is full. And when he had said these words, he wept.

The testimony of the Savior’s words is that Jesus recognized these people as his friends who had kept their premortal covenants, are keeping their present day covenants, and will always do so. In other words he sees them as his friends in sacred time—knowing them as they were and as they are, and knowing that they will always be true to that friendship—hesed. In that light, it is little wonder that the beauty of the moment evoked his tears of joy

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FOOTNOTE

{1} See “code words” in the index of Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord.

{2} In Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, see the chapter called “Meaning of ‘Faith’ — pistis” (p. 1007 first edition, or p. 697 second edition) The second edition has larger and therefore fewer pages than the first.

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3 Nephi 17:23-25 

23 And he spake unto the multitude, and said unto them: Behold your little ones.
24 And as they looked to behold they cast their eyes towards heaven, and they saw the heavens open, and they saw angels descending out of heaven as it were in the midst of fire; and they came down and encircled those little ones about, and they were encircled about with fire; and the angels did minister unto them.

It is only two verses, yet, for many of us it presents our most vivid and moving image in the entire Book of Mormon. What the parents saw was the light with the angels who surrounded their children. What the child saw was whatever or whomever was within that light—that is, they saw the person or persons who were behind the veil. Many of those children would live and continue to bear testimony to their own children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren—and those testimonies would sustain the Nephite culture of consecration until the end of the forth generation.

For me, that image became even more realistic and consequently took on even greater significance when I was able to identify the source and meaning of the light or fire that surrounded the children. It is the shechinah—the veil of light that separates man from God, and through which man must pass in order to come into the presence of God.

The word is found in the dictionary of the LDS edition of the Bible, with this definition:

Shechinah. The Presence. A word used by the later Jews and borrowed from them by the Christians to denote the cloud of brightness and glory that marked the presence of the Lord, as spoken of in Ex. 3:1-6; 24:16; 1 Kgs. 8:10; lsa. 6:1-3; Matt. 17:5; Acts 7:55. The Prophet Joseph Smith described this phenomenon in connection with his first vision, as a “light.. .above the brightness of the sun,” and said that he saw two Personages whose “brightness and glory defy all description,” standing “in the light” JS-H 1:16-18.

The Shechinah is the first thing one sees, and sometimes the only thing the prophets mention, when they are brought into the presence of God. It is described many ways—sometimes as a fire, but more frequently as a cloud. Examples are Lehi’s report that “there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him” (1 Nephi 1:6); Moses’s experience when “the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.”(Exodus 3:2). In the book of Moses God explains:

2 And he saw God face to face, and he talked with him, and the glory of God was upon Moses; therefore Moses could endure his presence (Moses 1:2).

Moses explains further:

11 But now mine own eyes have beheld God; but not my natural, but my spiritual eyes, for my natural eyes could not have beheld; for I should have withered and died in his presence; but his glory was upon me; and I beheld his face, for I was transfigured before him (Moses 1:11).

There appears to be an equivalency relationship between that transfiguration, entering behind the veil, and seeing God. That may have to do with the Lord’s statement that

19 And this greater priesthood administereth the gospel and holdeth the key of the mysteries of the kingdom, even the key of the knowledge of God.
20 Therefore, in the ordinances thereof, the power of godliness is manifest.
21 And without the ordinances thereof, and the authority of the priesthood, the power of godliness is not manifest unto men in the flesh;
22 For without this no man can see the face of God, even the Father, and live (D&C 84:19-22).

The shechinah is usually believed to have been represented in Moses’s Tabernacle and in Solomon’s Temple by the beautifully embroidered veil that stood before of the Holy of Holies. But perhaps more likely, it was represented by the second veil that Paul mentions but is not described in the Old Testament.{1} Paul wrote:

1 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.
2 For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary.
3 And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;
4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;
5 And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly (Hebrews 9:1-5).

The psalms say God covers himself “with light as with a garment”(Psalms 104:1-2). In the Book of Abraham, Facsimile No. 2 shows us that Figure 3:

Is made to represent God, sitting upon his throne, clothed with power and authority; with a crown of eternal light upon his head; representing also the grand Key-words of the Holy Priesthood, as revealed to Adam in the Garden of Eden, as also to Seth, Noah, Melchizedek, Abraham, and all to whom the Priesthood was revealed (Facsimile No. 2, Fig. 3, from the Book of Abraham).

An ancient Jewish tradition holds that Adam and Eve were clothed in a garment of light before that ate the forbidden fruit, and which Nibley suggests that clothing was the Shechinah. {2}

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FOOTNOTES

{1}  For a discussion of the shechinah as the veil of the temple see, Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, the chapter called “Act 2, Scene 10: The King at the Veil.”

In Alfred Edersheim’s monumental work, he tells us, “The Rabbis speak of two veils, and say that the high-priest went in by the southern edge of the first veil, then walked along till he reached the northern corner of the second veil, by which he entered the Most Holy Place.” (Edersheim, Temple at the Time of Christ Chapter 2, FN 29. Matt. xxvii. 51).

{2}   Hugh Nibley, Abraham in Egypt (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1981, 2000), 373.

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It is fascinating to me to see the various ways that the
SHECHINAH IS REPRESENTED IN THE SCRIPTURES. Below are two groups of scriptures. The first are the ones cited in the bible dictionary. The second group are others that probably also represent the veil of light that separates us from god.

Exodus 3:1-6

2 And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire [shechinah], and the bush was not consumed…..
6 Moreover he said, I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God.

Exodus 24:15-18

15 And Moses went up into the mount, and a cloud [shechinah] covered the mount.
16 And the glory of the Lord abode upon mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days: and the seventh day he called unto Moses out of the midst of the cloud.
17 And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire [shechinah] on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel.
18 And Moses went into the midst of the cloud [shechinah], and gat him up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights.

1 Kings 8:10-15

10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud [shechinah] filled the house of the Lord,
11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud [shechinah]: for the glory of the Lord had filled the house of the Lord.

Isaiah 6:1-4

1 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.
2 Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.
3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.
4 And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke [shechinah].

Matthew 17:1-6

1 And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, ….
5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud [shechinah] overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.

Acts 7:54-56.)

55 But he [Stephen], being full of the Holy Ghost, looked up stedfastly into heaven, and saw the glory [shechinah] of God, and Jesus standing on the right hand of God,
56 And said, Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of man standing on the right hand of God.

OTHERS THAT ARE NOT MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE DICTIONARY ARTICLE:

2 Kings 2:9-11

11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire [shechinah], and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

Acts 2:1-5

1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire [shechinah], and it sat upon each of them.
4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Genesis 3:22-24

22 And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:
23 Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.
24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword [shechinah] which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

Acts 1:9-11

9 And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud [shechinah] received him out of their sight.
10 And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
11 Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

Mark 9:6-8

6 For he wist not what to say; for they were sore afraid.
7 And there was a cloud [shechinah] that overshadowed them: and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.

Luke 9:33-36

34 While he thus spake, there came a cloud [shechinah], and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud [shechinah].
35 And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.

Mosiah 27:10-12

10 And now it came to pass that while he was going about to destroy the church of God, for he did go about secretly with the sons of Mosiah seeking to destroy the church, and to lead astray the people of the Lord, contrary to the commandments of God, or even the king—
11 And as I said unto you, as they were going about rebelling against God, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto them; and he descended as it were in a cloud [shechinah]; and he spake as it were with a voice of thunder, which caused the earth to shake upon which they stood;
12 And so great was their astonishment, that they fell to the earth, and understood not the words which he spake unto them.

3 Nephi 18:37-39

38 And it came to pass that when Jesus had touched them all, there came a cloud [shechinah] and overshadowed the multitude that they could not see Jesus.
39 And while they were overshadowed he departed from them, and ascended into heaven. And the disciples saw and did bear record that he ascended again into heaven.

Ether 2:4-6

4 And it came to pass that when they had come down into the valley of Nimrod the Lord came down and talked with the brother of Jared; and he was in a cloud [shechinah], and the brother of Jared saw him not.
5 And it came to pass that the Lord commanded them that they should go forth into the wilderness, yea, into that quarter where there never had man been. And it came to pass that the Lord did go before them, and did talk with them as he stood in a cloud [shechinah], and gave directions whither they should travel.

Ether 2:14

14 And it came to pass at the end of four years that the Lord came again unto the brother of Jared, and stood in a cloud [shechinah] and talked with him. And for the space of three hours did the Lord talk with the brother of Jared, and chastened him because he remembered not to call upon the name of the Lord.

Ether 3:6-20

6 And it came to pass that when the brother of Jared had said these words, behold, the Lord stretched forth his hand and touched the stones one by one with his finger. And the veil was taken from off the eyes of the brother of Jared, and he saw the finger of the Lord; and it was as the finger of a man, like unto flesh and blood; and the brother of Jared fell down before the Lord, for he was struck with fear…..
19 And because of the knowledge of this man he could not be kept from beholding within the veil [shechinah]; and he saw the finger of Jesus, which, when he saw, he fell with fear; for he knew that it was the finger of the Lord; and he had faith no longer, for he knew, nothing doubting.
20 Wherefore, having this perfect knowledge of God, he could not be kept from within the veil [shechinah]; therefore he saw Jesus; and he did minister unto him.

Doctrine and Covenants 34:7-8

7 For behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, the time is soon at hand that I shall come in a cloud [shechinah] with power and great glory.
8 And it shall be a great day at the time of my coming, for all nations shall tremble.

Doctrine and Covenants 45:44-45

44 And then they shall look for me, and, behold, I will come; and they shall see me in the clouds [shechinah] of heaven, clothed [shechinah: Psalm 104:1-2] with power and great glory; with all the holy angels; and he that watches not for me shall be cut off.

45 But before the arm of the Lord shall fall, an angel shall sound his trump, and the saints that have slept shall come forth to meet me in the cloud [shechinah].

Doctrine and Covenants 84:4-5

4 Verily this is the word of the Lord, that the city New Jerusalem shall be built by the gathering of the saints, beginning at this place, even the place of the temple, which temple shall be reared in this generation.
5 For verily this generation shall not all pass away until an house shall be built unto the Lord, and a cloud [shechinah] shall rest upon it, which cloud [shechinah] shall be even the glory of the Lord, which shall fill the house.

Exodus 13:20-22

21 And 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 [shechinah], to give them light; to go by day and night:
22 He took not away the pillar of the cloud [shechinah] by day, nor the pillar of fire by night, from before the people.

1 Nephi 1:5-6

5 Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people.
6 And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a pillar of fire [shechinah] and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly.

Helaman 5:22-47

22 And after they had been cast into prison many days without food, behold, they went forth into the prison to take them that they might slay them.
23 And it came to pass that Nephi and Lehi were encircled about as if by fire [shechinah], even insomuch that they durst not lay their hands upon them for fear lest they should be burned. Nevertheless, Nephi and Lehi were not burned; and they were as standing in the midst of fire and were not burned.
24 And when they saw that they were encircled about with a pillar of fire [shechinah], and that it burned them not, their hearts did take courage.

3 Nephi 9:20

20 And ye shall offer for a sacrifice unto me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire [shechinah] and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not.

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3 Nephi 17:1-3
1 Behold, now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words he looked round about again on the multitude, and he said unto them: Behold, my time is at hand.
2 I perceive that ye are weak, that ye cannot understand all my words which I am commanded of the Father to speak unto you at this time.
3 Therefore, go ye unto your homes, and ponder upon the things which I have said, and ask of the Father, in my name, that ye may understand, and prepare your minds for the morrow, and I come unto you again.

In the book of Alma, Mormon quotes extensively from what appears to be Alma’s journal. Mormon is following that same pattern here. It was Mormon who gave this portion the title of “Third Nephi,” and he identifies its author as the legitimate heir to the Nephite throne:

The book of Nephi the son of Nephi, who was the son of Helaman. And Helaman was the son of Helaman, who was the son of Alma, who was the son of Alma, being a descendant of Nephi who was the son of Lehi, who came out of Jerusalem in the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, the king of Judah.{1}

Mormon gives Nephi the appropriate credit for his writing:

9 But behold there are records which do contain all the proceedings of this people; and a shorter but true account was given by Nephi.
10 Therefore I have made my record of these things according to the record of Nephi, which was engraven on the plates which were called the plates of Nephi (3 Nephi 5:9-11).

But all of 3 Nephi was not written by Nephi. Mormon carefully leaves his own editorial signature on some very important passages. For example:

18 And I know the record which I make to be a just and a true record; nevertheless there are many things which, according to our language, we are not able to write.
19 And now I make an end of my saying, which is of myself, and proceed to give my account of the things which have been before me.
20 I am Mormon, and a pure descendant of Lehi. I have reason to bless my God and my Savior Jesus Christ, that he brought our fathers out of the land of Jerusalem, (and no one knew it save it were himself and those whom he brought out of that land) and that he hath given me and my people so much knowledge unto the salvation of our souls (3 Nephi 5:18-20).

Mormon is a truly great historian and editor. He does not pretend to be “unbiased” as many modern historians do by presenting “both sides” of the story—but with one just a bit more positive than the other. Mormon has a purpose and he states it clearly and honestly: His intent is to report Nephite history, and to do it in such a way that he teaches the gospel and illuminates the ancient Nephite temple rites.{2} But his primary purpose is to testify that Jesus is the Christ the Eternal God. He tells us:

6 And now there cannot be written in this book even a hundredth part of the things which Jesus did truly teach unto the people;
7 But behold the plates of Nephi do contain the more part of the things which he taught the people.
8 And these things have I written, which are a lesser part of the things which he taught the people; and I have written them to the intent that they may be brought again unto this people, from the Gentiles, according to the words which Jesus hath spoken.
9 And when they shall have received this, which is expedient that they should have first, to try their faith, and if it shall so be that they shall believe these things then shall the greater things be made manifest unto them.
10 And if it so be that they will not believe these things, then shall the greater things be withheld from them, unto their condemnation.
11 Behold, I was about to write them, all which were engraven upon the plates of Nephi, but the Lord forbade it, saying: I will try the faith of my people.
12 Therefore I, Mormon, do write the things which have been commanded me of the Lord. And now I, Mormon, make an end of my sayings, and proceed to write the things which have been commanded me (3 Nephi 26:6-12).

Mormon continually reminds us that his role is to be our teacher and mentor. (It is indicative of Mormon’s foresight that he taught his son Moroni to both keep the record and to continue the role of our teacher and mentor.) Mormon’s style was to combine the doctrinal sermons he quoted with stories that supported those same principles. Sometimes he makes very sure we know what he is doing by adding, “and thus we see” to the story and then reiterating his point.

He does something very like that at the beginning of 3 Nephi 17 by quoting the Savior’s instructions to the congregation about preparing for the nest day’s events. By our following the other examples of the way Mormon writes, we can see that he quotes these instructions both to tell us what the Savior said and also to warn us that we must prepare ourselves to appreciate what many believe to be the most endearing story in the entire Book of Mormon. Significantly, the beauty of this story is in what it suggests rather than what it actually says. That is why we must read it properly. Because, as Mormon tells us, the words of human language can never carry the real meaning of what he is about to describe:

15 And when he had said these words, he himself also knelt upon the earth; and behold he prayed unto the Father, and the things which he prayed cannot be written, and the multitude did bear record who heard him.
16 And after this manner do they bear record: The eye hath never seen, neither hath the ear heard, before, so great and marvelous things as we saw and heard Jesus speak unto the Father;
17 And no tongue can speak, neither can there be written by any man, neither can the hearts of men conceive so great and marvelous things as we both saw and heard Jesus speak; and no one can conceive of the joy which filled our souls at the time we heard him pray for us unto the Father (3 Nephi 17: 15-17).

So it is, with great care, that Mormon bids us to “prepare our minds” so that we may feel—even if we cannot fully understand—the glory of the experience he is about to describe.

1 Behold, now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words he looked round about again on the multitude, and he said unto them: Behold, my time is at hand.
2 I perceive that ye are weak, that ye cannot understand all my words which I am commanded of the Father to speak unto you at this time.
3 Therefore, go ye unto your homes, and ponder upon the things which I have said, and ask of the Father, in my name, that ye may understand, and prepare your minds for the morrow, and I come unto you again (3 Nephi 17:1-3).

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FOOTNOTES

{1} There are two apparent breaks in the Nephite royal line. The first is Alma, but Mormon clarifies that by writing “…Alma, he also being a descendant of Nephi. And he was a young man.(Mosiah 17:2)” Later Alma is given the rule of the Nephites as though it were his by right—as it probably was.

The second apparent break was Mormon himself. But again he clarifies that by tracing his genealogy to the first Nephite king: “I am Mormon, and a pure descendant of Lehi (3 Nephi 5:20).” “I am the son of Mormon, and my father was a descendant of Nephi (Mormon 8:13).” “And I, Mormon, being a descendant of Nephi, (and my father’s name was Mormon)(Mormon 1:5)”

Given the importance of the patriarchal system to the ancients, those statements are sufficient to convince me that Mormon was both prophet and king by right of birth.

{2} The second half of Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord carefully illustrates that the Nephites practiced the same temple rites as were practiced in Solomon’s Temple, and that the subtext of the Book of Mormon is a temple text.

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In 3 Nephi chapter 16 the Savior gave the Nephites an encapsulated view of what would follow in the next 2000+ years. Like most prophecies of such a wide scope, this one is best understood from hindsight. As we read it, the Christian apostasy that followed the Savior’s death is not difficult to recognize. We can also see references to the European conquest and colonization of the Americas and then the restoration of the gospel. We recognize those events because they are in our past but the events he mentioned that are still in our future are much more difficult.

The outline the Savior gave is kind of a catalog that creates a chronological pattern. The pattern is more easily seen from a distance than up close. That is, one can get a better notion of the Savior’s message if it is read as an entire picture rather than in its individual units. That is also true of most prophecies that describe a whole series of events. For example, Nephi’s tree of life vision covers those same 2000+ years, but he includes enough detail that it is relatively easy for us to understand—again from hindsight where we can attach known events to his predictions. The first few verses of Isaiah 2 seem easy enough but after that it doesn’t fit our hindsight so we have to take its story out of chronological order so it will fit our preconceived pattern. Isaiah 49 paints a beautiful picture of the restoration of the gospel and the temple, and then the gathering of Israel. Jacob 5 and Revelation cover those same 2000 years. They paint interesting pictures but it is difficult to attach events to most of their individual parts.

For those who were contemporary with the prophets who made the prophecies, who did not have the advantage of hindsight, interpreting them would have been more difficult than it is for us. For that reason it seems apparent that the prophecies were not intended to be so much descriptions of future chronological events as they were testimonies that everything was already fore-known by God and that nothing will frustrate his designs. Therefore in the end everything will turn out just right.

3 Nephi 16 is very much like that. Its purpose seems to be to paint a beautiful and encouraging picture to demonstrate that there is a God in Heaven who is in charge. And in the end he will make sure that those who are faithful to their covenants will come off triumphantly. But in the meantime, he will also permit all people (both the good and the bad) to be in an environment that gives them the opportunity to choose how they will define their own eternal nature by whether they disdain, appreciate, or love other people. (I think those attitudes pretty much map to the three degrees of glory.)

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3 Nephi 15:11-18

11 And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words, he said unto those twelve whom he had chosen:
12 Ye are my disciples; and ye are a light unto this people, who are a remnant of the house of Joseph.
13 And behold, this is the land of your inheritance; and the Father hath given it unto you.
14 And not at any time hath the Father given me commandment that I should tell it unto your brethren at Jerusalem.
15 Neither at any time hath the Father given me commandment that I should tell unto them concerning the other tribes of the house of Israel, whom the Father hath led away out of the land.
16 This much did the Father command me, that I should tell unto them:
17 That other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
18 And now, because of stiffneckedness and unbelief they understood not my word; therefore I was commanded to say no more of the Father concerning this thing unto them (3 Nephi 15:11-18).

This is a strange statement. Knowing what we do about the apostles of the New Testament, it is difficult to understand how they could be described with the words “stiffneckedness and unbelief.” I do not question the validity of the Savior’s statement, so that leaves me only to question the validity of how I interpret that statement. After carefully re-thinking that interpretation and this is what I came up with:

To suggest that the New Testament Apostle’s was a lack of faith (pistis = trust in and keeping the covenants) makes no sense to me, but to suggest that they did not know about, and therefore could not trust in the covenants the Lord made with other people is not only reasonable, but probably correct.

If the Apostles’ problem was not lack of belief, but a lack of information about the covenants, then there is no problem squaring what the Savior said and what we know about the Apostles in Jerusalem.

Intelligent questions must be based on prior understanding, otherwise even correct answers are unintelligible. If a child hears someone mention “neutron,” and asks “What is a neutron?” A careful explanation would not make any sense if the child does not know even basic science.

In the development of our thought patterns, knowing how to ask the right questions is almost the same as knowing how to get correct answers. The importance of intelligent questions is illustrated by the conversation between young Jesus and the doctors at the temple. The story makes more sense if we use both the King James Bible and the Prophet’s Inspired Version together.

44 But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day’s journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance.
45 And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him.
46 And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.
JST Luke 2:46 And … they were hearing him, and asking him questions.
47 And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.
48 And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing.
49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? (Luke 2:44-49).

Both versions tell the same story, they just tell it from different perspectives. Luke writes that Jesus was “sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions.” The JST says “they were hearing him, and asking him questions.” That sounds to me like a very stimulating conversation. My point, though, is that he was seriously asking questions. “And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.”

When I was a student at BYU, Chauncey C. Riddle, my favorite teacher at that time and subsequently my dear friend, taught me that we must not only ask the right questions, but that we must ask them in the right order, or even the correct answers may make no sense. For example, there is no point in someone asking to be taught how to do long division if he does not know, and will not learn the times tables. “How do I do multiplication?” must come before “How do I do long division?”

Before that we have to learn to add and subtract. And all that doesn’t even begin to introduce us to calculus. Neither would it equip us to intelligently ask a question that could only be answered in terms of higher mathematics.

I think understanding the gospel is like understanding math. The more questions we ask the more we can know—but only if we ask them in the right sequence so we can understand the answers when we find them.

In a similar way, the people of Jerusalem could not even conceive of an intelligent question about the Nephites, never mind appreciated the correct answer.

It would never have occurred to the people in Jerusalem to ask about people in the Americas. They did not know the American continents even existed. For the Savior to have told them about the Nephites, he would have had to first change their entire mindset about the geography of the whole world.

Another thing that would have stood in their way of knowing is that they probably thought they already knew. The ten tribes are lost to us, but at least some were not lost to them. It had only been a few hundred years since the Assyrian and Babylonian wars had dispersed the tribes. James seems to know where they are. His letter begins:

1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting (James 1:1).

Jesus says that they thought he was talking about the gentiles. If so, then perhaps they also thought that they could dismiss the question for now because it didn’t really matter.

The Jerusalem Saints clearly knew something about the location of some of the “lost” tribes. But it probably didn’t occur to them that they did not know about others that were scattered all over the world.

In short, the Christians at Jerusalem did not and could not know about the Nephites because they did not and could not know what questions to ask or even know that there were questions that could be asked. Therefore, they could not know about the covenants the Lord had made with those distant people.

There is a short scene in Hamlet that illustrates this beautifully. Hamlet is in his mother’s rooms when his father’s ghost enters. Hamlet and the ghost speak to each other and his mother asks, “To whom do you speak this?” Hamlet responds, “Do you see nothing there?” Then the queen makes the ultimate academic response, “Nothing at all; yet all that is I see” (Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 4).

Like the queen, there is a tendency among all humans to assert that there is nothing there if they cannot see it and that there is no truth if they perspnally cannot comprehend it.

That is what prevented the Jerusalem apostles from knowing about the Nephites. The sinfulness that the Savior called “stiffneckedness and unbelief” was probably simply their not knowing and not wishing to know, even though they were given the opportunity. The Savior said,

14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father (John 10:14-18).

That might have been enough to stimulate their interest to cause them to ask “Who and were are those other sheep?” but they did not pursue the question. Consequently, the Savior let it drop and told them nothing more.

From this we have another example of a very basic principle: the Savior did not teach things his followers did not seek to know. Similarly, the Holy Ghost will not teach us things we do not diligently seek for. However, in some cases we must first ask for instructions so we will know what to ask. Then we must ask the right questions in the right order. If we assume we already have enough information to ask and understand complex questions, that causes us to ask the wrong questions or in the wrong order.

Then we, like the queen of Denmark, may comfort ourselves with: “I see nothing at all; yet all that is I see.”

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