Category: 3 Nephi

3 Nephi 13:25-34 
25 And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words he looked upon the twelve whom he had chosen, and said unto them: Remember the words which I have spoken. For behold, ye are they whom I have chosen to minister unto this people. Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26 Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, neither do they reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27 Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin;
29 And yet I say unto you, that even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these.
30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, even so will he clothe you, if ye are not of little faith.
31 Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32 For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.
34 Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof.

In 3 Nephi those words are shown to have been spoken directly to the Twelve Disciples. In Matthew, however, even though a similar instruction is given in the same sequence in the Sermon on the Mount, there is no indication that it was not given to the entire congregation (Matthew 6:31-34). That has caused some interesting, and sometimes disturbing questions for Bible readers.

The language is very beautiful and the concept that God will look after us is very reassuring. However, the implications of “take no thought,” if it were carried too far and taken as a universal instruction to all members of the Church, would make it appear that the Savior was recommending a general slothfulness in one’s personal conduct and an irresponsibility in a man’s caring for his wife, children, and property.

Modern revelation solves that problem by teaching us that those words in the New Testament were also directed specifically to the Apostles.

The word “apostle” means “delegate or messenger” (Strong, 652) —which is appropriate to the Twelve Apostles whose responsibilities are to travel, teach, and keep the Church in order. The first Apostles of this dispensation were not ordained until somewhat later, February 15, 1835, but Doctrine and Covenants 84, which contains similar instructions, was given much earlier in September 22 and 23, 1832. Therefore, when Section 84 was given, the Lord used the word “apostle” in its generic sense to mean a traveling missionary. The revelation contains a wonderful commentary on the Savior’s instructions to missionaries as well as to the Twelve. He prefaced those instructions with these words:

62 Therefore, go ye into all the world; and unto whatsoever place ye cannot go ye shall send, that the testimony may go from you into all the world unto every creature.
63 And as I said unto mine apostles, even so I say unto you, for you are mine apostles, even God’s high priests; ye are they whom my Father hath given me; ye are my friends;
64 Therefore, as I said unto mine apostles I say unto you again, that every soul who believeth on your words, and is baptized by water for the remission of sins, shall receive the Holy Ghost (D&C 84:62-64).

Later on in that revelation, the Lord explained why it is not only acceptable but appropriate that one “take no thought of what he will eat or drink.” He said:

78 For I suffered them not to have purse or scrip, neither two coats.
79 Behold, I send you out to prove the world, and the laborer is worthy of his hire.
80 And any man that shall go and preach this gospel of the kingdom, and fail not to continue faithful in all things, shall not be weary in mind, neither darkened, neither in body, limb, nor joint; and a hair of his head shall not fall to the ground unnoticed. And they shall not go hungry, neither athirst.
81 Therefore, take ye no thought for the morrow, for what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, or wherewithal ye shall be clothed.
82 For, consider the lilies of the field, how they grow, they toil not, neither do they spin; and the kingdoms of the world, in all their glory, are not arrayed like one of these.
83 For your Father, who is in heaven, knoweth that you have need of all these things.
84 Therefore, let the morrow take thought for the things of itself.
85 Neither take ye thought beforehand what ye shall say; but treasure up in your minds continually the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour that portion that shall be meted unto every man.
……………………………..
107 Therefore, take with you those who are ordained unto the lesser priesthood, and send them before you to make appointments, and to prepare the way, and to fill appointments that you yourselves are not able to fill.
108 Behold, this is the way that mine apostles, in ancient days, built up my church unto me.
109 Therefore, let every man stand in his own office, and labor in his own calling; and let not the head say unto the feet it hath no need of the feet; for without the feet how shall the body be able to stand? (D&C 84:78-85, 107-109).

Notwithstanding that in 3 Nephi the promises are specific to the Twelve, and in the D&C they are specific to missionaries, the overriding principle that validates the promises is equally applicable to all of God’s children. Whether we read it in the scriptures or sing it in a hymn, the promise resinates with our souls as a reminder of covenants our Father in Heaven made with each of us a very, very long time ago:

28 And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin;
29 And yet I say unto you, that even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these.
30 Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, even so will he clothe you, if ye are not of little faith.

In their general application the promises made here are as comforting as they are beautiful, for God is aware of our individual needs and blesses us according to our faith.

The last verse of 3 Nephi 13 has a sentence that is a perfect conclusion to the Savior’s instructions to the Twelve, but if the words are taken out of that context, they are also very wise advise to all of us. That last sentence reads:

Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof.

In that same context, D&C 84 says the same thing, but says it just a little differently:

83 For your Father, who is in heaven, knoweth that you have need of all these things.
84 Therefore, let the morrow take thought for the things of itself (D&C 84:84-85).

Each day is sufficient to take care of the problems of that day! While it would be absurd to read that to say we should not plan ahead for important things, it is equally absurd to suggest we should be so concerned with the weight of the future that it cripples us in our attempts to deal with the present. For example, in nothing is that more true than in the process of repentance. If we repent each day, then the weeks, months, and years will take care of themselves, and in time those problems will no longer exist—and then, but now from a position of strength, we will just have to focus on some other problem and repent of that one also !!

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There are two versions of the Lord’s Prayer in the New Testament, two more in the Prophet Joseph’s Inspired Version of the New Testament, and still a different version in 3 Nephi. The variations in wording in the New Testament and Inspired Version are easy to see and understand. The version in 3 Nephi is most like the one in Matthew 6, however, between those two the differences are not in the wording but in actual content. What the 3 Nephi version does not say makes it the most interesting of the five.

Below is a short comparison showing the differences between Matthew 6:9-13; JST Matthew 6:10-15; Luke 11:2-4; JST Luke 11:2-4; 3 Nephi 13:9-13.

The Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6:9-16 is the version we were taught as children. So lets use it as the base for the comparison.

Matthew 6: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
. JST Matthew 6: Our Father who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
. Luke 11: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.
. JST Luke 11: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
. 3 Nephi 13: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Matthew 6: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
. JST Matthew 6: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is done in heaven.
. Luke 11: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.
. JST Luke 11: Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done as in heaven, so in earth.
. 3 Nephi 13: ………………………… Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Matthew 6:Give us this day our daily bread.
. JST Matthew 6: Give us this day, our daily bread.
. Luke 11: Give us day by day our daily bread.
. JST Luke 11: Give us day by day our daily bread.
. 3 Nephi 13: …………………………………………………

Matthew 6:And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
. JST Matthew 6: And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.
. Luke 11: And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one that is indebted to us.
. JST Luke 11: And forgive us our sins; for we also forgive every one who is indebted to us.
. 3 Nephi 13: And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

Matthew 6:And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
. JST Matthew 6: And suffer us not to be led into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
. Luke 11: And lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
. JST Luke 11: And let us not be led unto temptation; but deliver us from evil;
. 3 Nephi 13: And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

Matthew 6: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.
. JST Matthew 6: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever, Amen.
. Luke 11: ………………………………………………………………….
. JST Luke 11: for thine is the kingdom and power. Amen.
. 3 Nephi 13: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

The version the Savior taught the Nephites reads:

9 Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
11 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
12 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
13 For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen (3 Nephi 13:14-34).

The omission of the phrase “Thy kingdom come” is easy to account for: The Savior was there with the Nephites; he had just established a new theocracy; so the kingdom had in fact already come.

It is the omission of the other phrase, “Give us this day our daily bread,” that is most intriguing. Because of that omission the focus of the prayer changes from one’s Self to one’s relationship to other people: That is made evident because the ideas that follow the prayer are tied back to it by a series of conjunctions (v.14 “For,” 15 “But,” 16 “Moreover,” 17 “But,” 18 “That”). The conjunctions create a string of ideas that suggest the Savior intended the prayer to be a covenant reiterating or reinforcing the principles of our other individual covenants. That is going to be difficult to explain, but let me try.

The only way we can be “delivered from evil” is if we willingly sacrifice a broken heart and contrite sprit as the Savior instructed the Nephites in 3 Nephi 9:20. Similarly, the only way we can ultimately be a part of his kingdom is if we live the highest laws of that kingdom.

The central theme of the prayer, and the one the Savior immediately focuses on, is the same principle he taught directly following the Beatitudes: “And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” When I discussed that principle in its earlier context I remembered hearing Nibley say that the law of the gospel is “to forgive and repent.” Now, in this context, it was the first of the prayer’s ideas the Savior explained:

14 For, if ye forgive men their trespasses your heavenly Father will also forgive you;
15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
16 Moreover, when ye fast be not as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance, for they disfigure their faces that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.
17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thy head, and wash thy face;
18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father, who is in secret; and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.

As Latter-day Saints we can easily see the need for personal consecration in the phrase “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever,” but other than that, it is difficult to tie the importance of forgiveness with the next statement which begins “moreover, when ye fast.” In our LDS culture, unless there is a personal and present need to seek help to forgive, fasting and forgiveness seem not that obviously connected. However, the Savior was not talking to Latter-day Saints. He was speaking to a people who were just coming out of the religion and culture of the Law of Moses. So if we are to understand the connection between forgiveness and fasting, we must look there. Isaiah has shown us a clear window into that cultural connection:

1 Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.
2 Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.
3 Wherefore have we fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, and exact all your labours.
4 Behold, ye fast for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is it such a fast that I have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the Lord?
6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? (Isaiah 58:1-7).

The principle Isaiah is supporting is the same one that has been formalized by the Latter-day Saints’s “fast Sunday.” It combines a reminder that one must fast with the opportunity to bless other people, and in doing so it also helps one keep one’s own personal covenants.

What the Savior says next to the Nephites continues to suggest the importance of keeping that personal covenant:

19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and thieves break through and steal;
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Having so said, reiterating the importance and power of personal covenants, the Savior issued a severe warning to the entire congregation:

22 The light of the body is the eye; if, therefore, thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
23 But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If, therefore, the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
24 No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will hold to the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon.

A careful reading of the Lord’s Prayer in the context in which the Savior taught it to the Nephites shows that it is not about the physical, or even the emotional needs of the one who recites the prayer. Rather, it reads almost like a covenant—an affirmation that one will keep all his other covenants—and it is also a petition to God that he will give one the strength to do so.

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3 Nephi 13:5-13

5 And when thou prayest thou shalt not do as the hypocrites, for they love to pray, standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.
6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father who is in secret; and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly.
7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen, for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.
8 Be not ye therefore like unto them, for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him.
9 After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
10 Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
11 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
12 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
13 For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

Those instructions were given by the Savior to the entire congregation. Later when Jesus was speaking only to his twelve disciples he told them:

19 Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name;
20 And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you (3 Nephi 18:18-21).

The conditional “which is right” is explained by the words of King Benjamin. Even though the Savior’s promise was directed specifically to the Twelve, King Benjamin’s words were addressed to the entire congregation:

21 And now, if God, who has created you, on whom you are dependent for your lives and for all that ye have and are, doth grant unto you whatsoever ye ask that is right, in faith, believing that ye shall receive, O then, how ye ought to impart of the substance that ye have one to another (Mosiah 4:21).

The operative phrase here is “in faith.” But the word “faith” in our everyday language has a different meaning from the word “faith” in the scriptures. At the beginning of the Christian apostasy “faith” lost its scriptural meaning and came to mean simply “belief” or “belief without evidence.” As the distinguished Bible scholar David Noel Freedman explained:

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. {1}

In the New Testament, the word translated as faith is pistis. Pistis is not about wishing hard or unconditional belief. On the contrary, every time “faith” appears in the New Testament, translated from the Greek word pistis, it denotes an arrangement where both parties to a covenant are bound by a legal contract.{2} It was not until some time around the end of the first century A.D., when the Christians had lost the terms of the covenants (and also the authority to perform the ordinances associated with them) that “faith” came to mean belief without evidence, or sometimes naïvely wishing really, really hard.

The problem is this, as Freedman observed, many Christians (including some preachers behind Mormon pulpits) assume that believing is independently sufficient to get one’s prayers answered exactly the way one wants them to be answered – and thus his phrase, “distinguishes faith from fidelity.” But in the scriptures faith (pistis) and “covenantal fidelity” mean precisely the same thing, and that kind of fidelity evinces pure power.

When we understand “faith” as a contract between God and man, then it is easier to understand how King Benjamin’s words might be actualized. If there is a prior covenant between God and men, and the person offers a prayer in which he feels and then repeats what the Spirit has confirmed to be the terms of the contract, then the words, “God…doth grant unto you whatsoever ye ask that is right, in faith, believing that ye shall receive,” become absolutely true, and the prayer will most assuredly answered in the affirmative.

The Savior’s statement (quoted above) “your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him” affirms that the Father has a full understanding of our needs, but it may also express the covenant relationship that makes the prayers valid. That is the same idea we find in Nephi’s instructions to his “beloved brethren” when he wrote:

9 But behold, I say unto you that ye must pray always, and not faint; that ye must not perform any thing unto the Lord save in the first place ye shall pray unto the Father in the name of Christ, that he will consecrate thy performance unto thee, that thy performance may be for the welfare of thy soul (2 Nephi 32:7-9).

Nephi further expresses the covenantal (pistis) understanding of “faith” when he writes:

3 But I, Nephi, have written what I have written, and I esteem it as of great worth, and especially unto my people. For I pray continually for them by day, and mine eyes water my pillow by night, because of them; and I cry unto my God in faith, and I know that he will hear my cry (2 Nephi 33:3).

In the following brief story about the brother of Jared we see two uses of “faith” meaning the uses of “covenant.” In the second instance “faith” is making the covenant. The words, “wherefore thou workest after men have faith” say that nothing is in place until a covenant with God has been affirmed.

In the first instance of the use of the word “faith” we see the brother of Jared either listening to the directions of the Spirit and repeating what he is told to say, or else he is simply reciting the terms of the covenant as he had already received it. The difference would depend on whether the original covenant included all the specific instructions, or was only the promise that the mountain would be removed and there would be a passable road in its place. Moroni writes

30 For the brother of Jared said unto the mountain Zerin, Remove—and it was removed. And if he had not had faith [evoked the tokens and terms of the covenant] it would not have moved; wherefore thou [God] workest after men have faith [have received the covenant] (Ether 12:30).

The Savior’s instructions to the Apostles included that same promise. While the word pistis is not found in these two passages, the instructions that they must follow the Savior’s directions are very explicit:

12 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.
13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14 If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever (John 14:12-16).

15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you (John 15:15-19).

When Mormon spoke to his “beloved brethren” in Moroni 7, he reiterated the promise the Savior had given while he was with the Nephites. Mormon said:

26 And after that he came men also were saved by faith [pistis] in his name; and by faith [pistis], they become the sons of God. And as surely as Christ liveth he spake these words unto our fathers, saying: Whatsoever thing ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is good, in faith [pistis] believing that ye shall receive, behold, it shall be done unto you (Moroni 7:26).

The seriousness of this charge was made clear by Mormon elsewhere in that same sermon:

9 And likewise also is it counted evil unto a man, if he shall pray and not with real intent of heart; yea, and it profiteth him nothing, for God receiveth none such

48 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, pray unto the Father with all the energy of heart, that ye may be filled with this love, which he hath bestowed upon all who are true followers of his Son, Jesus Christ; that ye may become the sons of God; that when he shall appear we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is; that we may have this hope; that we may be purified even as he is pure. Amen (Moroni 7:48, 9).

Its seriousness was emphasized again by the Lord in a revelation to the Prophet Joseph where he said:

62 And again, verily I say unto you, my friends, I leave these sayings with you to ponder in your hearts, with this commandment which I give unto you, that ye shall call upon me while I am near—
63 Draw near unto me and I will draw near unto you; seek me diligently and ye shall find me; ask, and ye shall receive; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
64 Whatsoever ye ask the Father in my name it shall be given unto you, that is expedient for you;
65 And if ye ask anything that is not expedient for you, it shall turn unto your condemnation.
66 Behold, that which you hear is as the voice of one crying in the wilderness—in the wilderness, because you cannot see him—my voice, because my voice is Spirit; my Spirit is truth; truth abideth and hath no end; and if it be in you it shall abound (D&C 88:62-66).

As I read that warning in v. 65, my mind turns to the woeful lament spoken by King Claudius when he tried, but then found he was not able to pray:

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

The admonition, so often expressed by both the Savior and his prophets, that we must “pray always” takes on a somewhat different meaning when pistis becomes a part of the meaning of prayer and we recall that true prayer as simply repeating what the Spirit instructs us to pray for. It gives a new understanding to the Savior’s command:

36 Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man (Luke 21:35-38).

That sentiment, that one must “pray always,” is echoed throughout the scriptures. The majority of the commands to “pray always” are associated with the promise that such constant prayer is a hedge against temptation (3 Nephi 18:15, 18; D&C 10:5, 20:33, 31:12, 61:39). However, the admonition to “pray always” is also accompanied with the promises of other blessings such as the strength to endure (D&C 88:126, 90:24, 93:49-50); and to understand gospel principles (D&C 32:3-5); and this one:

38 Pray always, and I will pour out my Spirit upon you, and great shall be your blessing—yea, even more than if you should obtain treasures of earth and corruptibleness to the extent thereof (D&C 19:38).

Some time ago I was thinking about Enos words where he wrote,

4 And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens (Enos 1:1-27).

When it occurred to me that Enos did not say he stayed on his knees all the time he was praying, I wondered how such a prayer might be. I do not pretend to know the answer, but during my pondering I wrote the following:

Prayer is like walking in the mountain with a friend. There are times when you see a sunrise so expansive and glorious that it must be shared with your friend to be fully appreciated. There are times you walk with the other in silence, then you stop and your eyes look—alone—as you ponder the perfect beauty of a columbine. Sometimes you talk together—your friend and you—but only briefly—because a smile can say so much more. Sometimes the words flow like the confluence of two great rivers and the ideas reach out to embrace a world as big as the open sea. Sometimes you walk together quietly and say nothing, and the unspoken words are more profound than speech. There is no aloneness in the quiet, just as there was no aloneness when all your conscious world was only the beauty of a single columbine. Friendship is like that. So is prayer.{3}

The understanding that “covenant” and “faith” are virtually synonymous, teaches us a great deal about the meaning and power of the Atonement. This eternal covenant is already in place between the Father and his children, while the Savior’s person and the acts of his Atonement constitute the object, terms, hope, evidence, and fulfillment of that covenant. Moroni explained:

33 And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot (Moroni 10:33).

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ENDNOTES

{1}  Article by David Noel Freedman, “Faith,”The Anchor Bible Dictionary, Doubleday, New York, 1992, vol. 2 p. 744-745.

{2}  For a discussion of pistis in Moroni 7  see the following chapters of Who Ascend into the Hill of the Lord.
.         Moroni 7: Faith, Hope, and Charity, 696
.         Meaning of “Faith”– pistis, 697
.         A Meaning of “Hope,” 710
.         A Meaning of “Charity,” 714
You can download, free, all or any portion of the book from this website. It is located under “Published Books.”

{3}  I later included it in Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, 710-11.

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3 Nephi 13:1-4

1 Verily, verily, I say that I would that ye should do alms unto the poor; but take heed that ye do not your alms before men to be seen of them; otherwise ye have no reward of your Father who is in heaven.
2 Therefore, when ye shall do your alms do not sound a trumpet before you, as will hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, they have their reward.
3 But when thou doest alms let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth;
4 That thine alms may be in secret; and thy Father who seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly.

When the Lord introduced the law of consecration to the Church in Missouri, its object was to enable needy Saints to become part of a prosperous community. Two main factors caused the experiment to fail. The first was that the “old citizens” (the ones that were there before the Mormons arrived) wanted to get possession of the improved lands without paying for the improvements. The second was that there were contentions among the Mormons. Even some of the leaders (like Oliver Cowdery and the Whitmers) were unwilling to share the advantages of property. The combined result was the tragic forced expulsion of the Saints from Missouri.

One of the things the experiment forcefully demonstrated was that we cannot make a Zion community by declaring it to be such, then opening it up to non-Zion type people and expecting them to live the law of consecration. Rather, Zion is a community must be made up of people who are already living the law of consecration.

As I understand it, the Church is now (and probably has always been) made up of three basic types of people: (1) Non-Zion people who are primarily concerned about what they perceive to be their own needs. (2) Those who are seeking to become a Zion people, who recognize what is really important and are personally trying to learn how to live the law of consecration. (3) People who are Zion, who quietly go about doing good because they recognize others’ needs. People in this last group are often the most difficult to identify because they would just as soon no one noticed the good they do.

The Beatitude that brings us to Zion{1} reads, “And blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy,” and that is the way it must be. Everyone has needs and everyone has the ability to help someone.

A good way to understand the law of consecration is to liken it to the ancient temple blessings of priesthood and sacral kingship. Neither are primarily about giving or receiving. In their simplest forms, both are only a functional acknowledgment of truth—of reality. In each, there is nothing about either giving or receiving that implies subservience, superiority, or indebtedness. They are only about acknowledging and filling honest needs. The need may cost the giver his substance, his time, or a simple act of kindness, but what its cost is only partly determined by the generosity of the giver: it is always— sometimes only— determined by the needs of the recipient. Here are some examples:

(1) A family with the means learns that a single mom’s car just died a permanent death. The family conclude in council that they can afford to give her a workable car. The father goes to the bishop, tells him how much he can afford, and asks him to get with a mechanic and the single mom and buy her another car— nothing too expensive, but adequate for her needs.

(2) That mom has a next door neighbor who can’t do yard work any more. The single mom and her teenage children take it upon themselves to mow the widow’s lawn and help her keep down the weeds.

(3) The widow likes to sit in the park and watch the children play. If a child is hurt, or is picked on, she invites the child to come and sit on the bench beside her. Then she listens. A hug may be appropriate, and she always just happens to have some cookies that she can share.

As I understand it, that is what the law of consecration is. It is giving when there is a need and when one has the means to satisfy the need. In the three examples, there is no difference between the car, the lawn mowing, and the hug with cookies. Each answers the legitimate need of the recipient, and each is within the resources of the giver.

There are at least two psalms, that were enacted during the ancient Israelite Feast of Tabernacles temple drama, that represented events that took place in the Council in Heaven. One of those is Psalm 82. Its first verse reads: “God [Elohim] standeth in the congregation of the mighty [Council in Heaven]; he judgeth among the gods.” The rest of the psalm are the words spoken by the Father to the members of the Council. It appears to be instructions about how they are to perform their assignments when they come to this earth and fits perfectly within the text of Abraham 3:23 where God makes assignments to the members of the Council. The instructions he gives in Psalm 82 can easily be recognized as the law of consecration. {2}

If that is correct, then our covenants to keep the law of consecration predates our being born into this world by a very, very long time.
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ENDNOTES

{1} The Beatitudes read:
. 7 And blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.
. 8 And blessed are all the pure in heart, for they shall see God (3 Nephi 12:7-8).
And the definition is:
. 21 Therefore, verily, thus saith the Lord, let Zion rejoice, for this is Zion—THE PURE IN HEART; therefore, let Zion rejoice, while all the wicked shall mourn (D&C 97:21).

{2} For a discussion of Psalm 82 and its connection with the Council in Heaven see Who Ascend into the Hill of the Lord. “Act 1, Scene 1: The Council in Heaven,” p. 159
.       “Pssalm 82, The Father’s Instructions to the Council,” p. 162
.        “Psalm 82: Instruction and Covenant,” p. 165- 74

You can download, free, all or any portion of the book from this website. It is located under “Published Books.”

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3 Nephi 12:46-48
46 Therefore those things which were of old time, which were under the law, in me are all fulfilled.
47 Old things are done away, and all things have become new.
48 Therefore I would that ye should be perfect even as I, or your Father who is in heaven is perfect.

The old law that the Savior fulfilled was based on obedience in performances. That is, the Law was a catalog of things one must do and things one must not do. The new law eliminated almost all of the regulations and focused on personal integrity. Under the new law, is not conforming to cultural norms. Rather, obedience is a natural byproduct of knowing the doctrine.

A quick review of what the Savior had taught, beginning with what he said when he first spoke to the Nephites when they were enshrouded in darkness and continuing to this point in his sermon, leaves us amazed at the simplicity, forthrightness, and clarity of the new law. The Savior had given step by step instructions about how the could begin to fulfill his command that they become perfect: (If the following quick review of the of the principles taught by the Savior seems to ask more questions than it answers, you will find a careful discussion of each verse in my posts of the past weeks.)

The Savior’s words in 3 Nephi began with a lament for the destruction that had come upon those whose had not obeyed (3 Nephi 9:1-13), and he commends those who have obeyed (3 Nephi 9:14-18).

He instructed them about changes in the law of sacrifice (3 Nephi 9:19-22).

He fulfilled the promise that he would come to the earth, fulfill the law of Moses and bring the fullness of the gospel (3 Nephi 11:7-12).

They touched his side, his hands, and his feet as a testimony of the power of his love and the reality of the Atonement (3 Nephi 11:13-18).

He established his church, and gave Twelve authority over it (3 Nephi 11:18-41).

In the Beatitudes, he reviewed all of the principles and ordinances that are requisite to eternal life.

3 Nephi 12:1 — “Give heed to the words of the Twelve”
3 Nephi 12:2 — First principles (be visited by the Holy Ghost)
3 Nephi 12:3 — Endowment for the living
3 Nephi 12:4 — Endowment for the dead
3 Nephi 12:5 — Keep the covenants you made at the Council in Heaven
3 Nephi 12:6 — Hunger and thirst after priesthood and temple things and be filled with the Holy Ghost
3 Nephi 12:7 — How to be a priest and sacral king – merciful shall receive mercy
3 Nephi 12:8 — Zion (pure in heart) shall see God
3 Nephi 12:9 — Peacemakers called “children of God”
3 Nephi 12:10-12 — Persecution follows
3 Nephi 12:13 — Missionary work
3 Nephi 12:14-16 — A light — menorah among the people in the temple

The law of the gospel  (3 Nephi 12:21-24)
Chastity  (3 Nephi 12:27-32)
Truth in keeping covenants  (3 Nephi 12:33-37)

All that is preliminary to the Savior’s next instruction which was how to live the law of consecration.

The perfection the Savior was asking the Nephites to achieve was not about meeting a universal standard of obedience, but rather it was about each individual’s being absolutely true to the eternal law of his own being.

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3 Nephi 12:33-37

33 And again it is written, thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths;
34 But verily, verily, I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne;
35 Nor by the earth, for it is his footstool;
36 Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair black or white;
37 But let your communication be Yea, yea; Nay, nay; for whatsoever cometh of more than these is evil.

As humans, we do not live in a world of absolute truthfulness, and that is not what the Savior was expecting of us. For example, when one’s options are between speaking kindness and frankness, kindness almost always needs the greater weight. When a lady asks if you like her new hairdo, there is only one appropriate answer, and, whatever you might think, that answer should never sound like: “Ouch! It makes you look like an unkept sheep dog!”

But that is not what the Savior was talking about. He is talking about lies whose intent is to deceive, to hurt, or to manipulate. His meaning is made clear in other places in other scriptures. For instance, when speaking of those who belong in the telestial glory, the Prophet Joseph wrote: “These are they who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie (D&C 76:103).” Nephi’s brother Jacob said it more succinctly: “Wo unto the liar, for he shall be thrust down to hell (2 Nephi 9:34).” (There is no problem in the meaning of “hell” there. In the Book of Mormon the prophets see only two eternal options: either that one will be where God is, or one will be where God is not.)

To “forswear” means to swear falsely or to perjure oneself. In some cultures it is the norm for a person to give oneself credibility by evoking the credibility of some greater power. For example, Nephi tells us:

32 And it came to pass that I spake with him [Zoram], that if he would hearken unto my words, as the Lord liveth, and as I live, even so that if he would hearken unto our words, we would spare his life.
33 And I spake unto him, even with an oath, that he need not fear; that he should be a free man like unto us if he would go down in the wilderness with us (1 Nephi 4:32-33).

In our legal system, truthfulness in court is made by an oath. Even the American Constitution acknowledges the validity of this practice. It says of the President of the United States:

Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall take the following Oath or Affirmation: “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States (Article 2, Section 1).”

There was a reason the phrase “or affirm” is included: Quakers took the New Testament admonition very seriously and would not swear a oath, even in court, even though their refusal might be used against them. So in order to not preclude a Quaker from becoming president, the option of not swearing an oath was included in the Constitution.

The Savior’s injunction, “But let your communication be Yea, yea; Nay, nay; for whatsoever cometh of more than these is evil,” probably has little to do with legal forms, but rather is about casual, flippant or perverse oath taking. Shakespeare echoed the Savior’s sentiment in one of his most beautiful loving scenes:

Romeo:        Lady, by yonder blessed moon I swear
.                     That tips with silver all these fruit-tree tops—
Juliet:          O, swear not by the moon , the inconstant moon,
.                    That monthly changes in her circled orb,
.                    Lest that thy love prove likewise variable.
Romeo:       What shall I swear by?
Juliet:          Do not swear at all;
.                    Or, if thou wilt, swear by thy gracious self,
.                    Which is the god of my idolatry,
.                   And I’ll believe thee. (Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2)

A person of integrity does not need to decorate one’s words with meaningless assertions of honesty. The question, always, is not “What does he say?” but rather, “Why does he say it?” That is, “Is there is no gap between what he says, what he does, and the motive for which he does it.” And there’s the rub: unfortunately even the truth may be a lie.

Macbeth, who had believed the deceiving witches, learns too late the meaning of their doublespeak. As he finally confronts his own reality, he laments:

And be these juggling fiends no more believed,
That palter with us in a double sense;
That keep the word of promise to our ear,
And break it to our hope. (Macbeth, Act 5, Scene 8).

We are caught in this world of deceptions. We must not only pay attention to who tells the truth, but we must also be able to discern what kind of truth they tell.

There is a theme that runs as an undercurrent throughout the Savior’s entire sermon. It is that one must be true to the law of one’s eternal self. That theme comes very near the surface in these verses that conclude, “But let your communication be Yea, yea; Nay, nay.” As the revelation says about Hyrum Smith: “for I, the Lord, love him because of the integrity of his heart, and because he loveth that which is right before me (D&C 124:15).

Probably the most quoted lines in any of Shakespeare’s plays are these spoken by Polonius to his son Laertes.

This above all: to thine ownself be true,
And it must follow, as the night the day,
Thou canst not then be false to any man (Hamlet, Act 1, Scene 3).

Hidden within the depth of those words is, for each of us, the greatest mystery of the universe. The mystery is the answer to the question: “Who/what am I?” That mystery will ever be enshrouded in darkness until one can be honest enough with oneself to answer the question: “Who am I just now?” To answer that question we return to the Savior’s command: “But let your communication [with your Self] be Yea, yea; Nay, nay. ” It sounds easy, but in a world that imposes its own identities upon us, sometimes it is the most difficult thing of all. However, until we can do that, the answer to the great mystery will remain enshrouded in the darkness of self-indulgence, self-denial, or self-disdain.

An equally acceptable way of understanding our verses is that the Savior was talking about making and keeping covenants. Covenants are the face of integrity, and are not to be taken lightly. Virtually every facet of the gospel is founded on covenants—on the covenants the Savior and his Father have made with us—and the covenants we make with them and each other.

In the conversation between Jehovah and the brother of Jared, the latter “answered: Yea, Lord, I know that thou speakest the truth, for thou art a God of truth, and canst not lie (Ether 3:12). That is an extraordinary concept. In this world we deal with no one but little children about whom we can say “he cannot lie.” Yet, whether in this world or the spirit world to follow, until we can follow the Savior’s admonition to just speak only the truth, it is doubtful that we could be comfortable in the presence of a God who “cannot lie.”

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3 Nephi 12:27-32

27 Behold, it is written by them of old time, that thou shalt not commit adultery;
28 But I say unto you, that whosoever looketh on a woman, to lust after her, hath committed adultery already in his heart.
29 Behold, I give unto you a commandment, that ye suffer none of these things to enter into your heart;
30 For it is better that ye should deny yourselves of these things, wherein ye will take up your cross, than that ye should be cast into hell.
31 It hath been written, that whosoever shall put away his wife, let him give her a writing of divorcement.
32 Verily, verily, I say unto you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causeth her to commit adultery; and whoso shall marry her who is divorced committeth adultery.

To say the commandment against adultery is not about sex, is like saying that taking someone to dinner is not about food. Each statement is both true and false. Taking someone to dinner is about being with the someone, it is not primarily about eating to avert starvation. Yet, eating the food is what one does, so taking someone to dinner is about food. Similarly, the probation against adultery was not so much about sex as it was about preserving the legal and sacral relationship of the wife and the husband. The covenant of fidelity is fundamental to the covenant of marriage. (For a discussion of Psalm 45 and the eternal nature of the marriage covenant, look in the “scriptures” section and then go to “Mosiah 13:22 — LeGrand Baker – Thou shalt not commit adultery.”)

Leviticus 20 is a catalogue of sexual sins. It lists almost every possible combination of partners except a man and his lawful wife. For each combination the punishment is the same: “they shall surely be put to death.” Apparently the law was not taken any more seriously in ancient Israel or among the ancient Nephites than it is in own culture. In the Bible and the Book of Mormon there many evidences that adultery was almost common place, but there are no accounts of mass executions on account of it.

The definition Leviticus gives of adultery is:

10 And the man that committeth adultery with another man’s wife, even he that committeth adultery with his neighbour’s wife, the adulterer and the adulteress shall surely be put to death (Leviticus 20:10).

Adultery is defined as infidelity in marriage. It is violating the marriage covenant. Premarital sex is different from adultery because there has been no covenant to violate. However, casual premarital sex can inhibit or even negate one’s ability to later experience real emotional intimacy, and therefore might cripple a later marriage relationship.

When the Savior condemned adultery, he did not limit himself to condemning the act, rather he condemned the attitude that precipitated the act. Without the attitude coming first, the act would never happen.

Marriage is both a legal contract and a religious covenant. The legal contract can be broken by the act, but the religious covenant can be broken by the attitude. Just as the act can negate the contract, so can the attitude negate the covenant.

The last page of the Book of Mormon contains a review of the Feast of Tabernacles temple drama. The last verse of that review is a promise of eternal marriage and eternal increase. That verse reads:

31 And awake, and arise from the dust, O Jerusalem; yea, and put on thy beautiful garments, O daughter of Zion; and strengthen thy stakes and enlarge thy borders forever, that thou mayest no more be confounded, that the covenants of the Eternal Father which he hath made unto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled (Moroni 10:28-31).

This is a paraphrase of Isaiah, so it comes from his culture rather than from Moroni’s. In the Near Eastern desert, when a man married, he gave his wife a tent, just large enough for the two of them. It was then hers, and she was responsible for it. As her family grew, she made additional flaps for the tent, and added more stakes to secure it. Thus, Moroni’s statement may be a reference to family homes—eternal families— “forever” —rather than being about future church units of wards and stakes. The Isaiah passage that Moroni paraphrased is also about God’s promise of eternal families. It reads:

2 Enlarge the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations: spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes (Isaiah 54:2).

“Thine habitations” are homes. The tents are the places where families dwell. Moroni continues with the promise that the tent will be expanded “forever”:

and strengthen thy stakes and enlarge thy borders forever, that thou mayest no more be confounded, that the covenants of the Eternal Father which he hath made unto thee, O house of Israel, may be fulfilled (Moroni 10:31b).

As those words are about the ancient Nephite temple experience, so Moroni’s last words are about what one did after one left the ancient temple:

32 Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God.
33 And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot (Moroni 10:32-33).

This is a portion of the discussion of Moroni’s review of the Nephite temple drama in Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, 722-24.

The prophet Jeremiah used the word “adultery” in another way also. He represented the people of Israel as God’s covenant “bride.” and condemned them for “committed adultery with stones and with stocks,” referring to their worshiping pagan gods made of stone and wood. While the Savior does not make specific reference to that kind of adultery, it would certainly apply to anyone who breaks their sacred covenants (Jeremiah 3:6-11, Jeremiah 5:7-9).

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3 Nephi 12:21-24 & 2 Nephi 9:41-42

21 Ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, and it is also written before you, that thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment of God;
22 But I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of his judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
23 Therefore, if ye shall come unto me, or shall desire to come unto me, and rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee—
24 Go thy way unto thy brother, and first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I will receive you.

At least three times, perhaps more, I have heard Hugh Nibley say that the Law of the Gospel is “to forgive and repent.” But I never heard him gave a source for that definition. Then one day when I read these verses spoken by the Savior, I understood. I cannot be sure that these verses where what Nibley was referring to, but I believe Nibley’s words are an adequate summation of what the Savior said.

The rules of behavior with which Moses governed the Israelites whom he led out of Egypt were just that—rules about how one should act. Neither his government nor ours has the power to legislate goodness. But inappropriate behavior is only half the sin, and not always the worst half. There is no sin committed by our hands that is not first committed by our minds. If I hurt you accidently it may be the result of something very foolish, but that is very different from a hurt that I first contrived in my mind then executed with my hand, or by my unbridled tongue. Premeditated bad behavior—no matter how vile—is a secondary sin. The primary sin happened in the mind.

Hamlet’s words (though quoted out of context) make the point very nicely: “there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” (Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2) .

Anger, hatred, the need for revenge, and the inability to forgive are corrosive forces that eat at the soul and form a callous that first rejects then excludes real love. As charity is the healing, sealing, and purifying power that prepares us to be with God, so anger and its attendant feelings disables us from being persons who can enjoy the eternal togetherness which is eternal life. Hatred precludes charity. Hatred destroys.

On the surface it looks to be very ironic. People who hate or feel contempt for others consider that attitude to be their strength. They are like a black hole that seeks to satisfy itself by sucking everything to itself, while in fact it lets nothing out, including its own light. Such a person is his own prison. He cannot reach out to love others because the only “love” he can experience is self-indulgence and self-aggrandizement.

In contrast, one who loves is like the sun who exudes light and warms those around him. When we love as the Savior loves, we become vulnerable. For such a one hides behind no masks, no facades, and has no hidden agenda.

After the Nephites built a temple like the one Solomon had built in Jerusalem (2 Nephi 5:16), Nephi’s brother Jacob delivered his sermon there. He reminded his hearers about who and what they must be as they were to approach the great veil of the temple that led to the Holy of Holies. He said:

41 O then, my beloved brethren, come unto the Lord, the Holy One. Remember that his paths are righteous. Behold, the way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him, and the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name.
42 And whoso knocketh, to him will he open; and the wise, and the learned, and they that are rich, who are puffed up because of their learning, and their wisdom, and their riches—yea, they are they whom he despiseth; and save they shall cast these things away, and consider themselves fools before God, and come down in the depths of humility, he will not open unto them (2 Nephi 9:41-42).

It seems to me that what the Savior said to the Nephites is that if they wish to “come unto him” then they must approach other people in the same way they approach him.

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3 Nephi 12:21-24 & 2 Nephi 9:41-42

21 Ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, and it is also written before you, that thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment of God;
22 But I say unto you, that whosoever is angry with his brother shall be in danger of his judgment. And whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire.
23 Therefore, if ye shall come unto me, or shall desire to come unto me, and rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee—
24 Go thy way unto thy brother, and first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come unto me with full purpose of heart, and I will receive you.

At least three times, perhaps more, I have heard Hugh Nibley say that the Law of the Gospel is “to forgive and repent.” But I never heard him gave a source for that definition. Then one day when I read these verses spoken by the Savior, I understood. I cannot be sure that these verses where what Nibley was referring to, but I believe Nibley’s words are an adequate summation of what the Savior said.

The rules of behavior with which Moses governed the Israelites whom he led out of Egypt were just that—rules about how one should act. Neither his government nor ours has the power to legislate goodness. But inappropriate behavior is only half the sin, and not always the worst half. There is no sin committed by our hands that is not first committed by our minds. If I hurt you accidently it may be the result of something very foolish, but that is very different from a hurt that I first contrived in my mind then executed with my hand, or by my unbridled tongue. Premeditated bad behavior—no matter how vile—is a secondary sin. The primary sin happened in the mind.

Hamlet’s words (though quoted out of context) make the point very nicely: “there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” (Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2) .

Anger, hatred, the need for revenge, and the inability to forgive are corrosive forces that eat at the soul and form a callous that first rejects then excludes real love. As charity is the healing, sealing, and purifying power that prepares us to be with God, so anger and its attendant feelings disables us from being persons who can enjoy the eternal togetherness which is eternal life. Hatred precludes charity. Hatred destroys.

On the surface it looks to be very ironic. People who hate or feel contempt for others consider that attitude to be their strength. They are like a black hole that seeks to satisfy itself by sucking everything to itself, while in fact it lets nothing out, including its own light. Such a person is his own prison. He cannot reach out to love others because the only “love” he can experience is self-indulgence and self-aggrandizement.

In contrast, one who loves is like the sun who exudes light and warms those around him. When we love as the Savior loves, we become vulnerable. For such a one hides behind no masks, no facades, and has no hidden agenda.

After the Nephites built a temple like the one Solomon had built in Jerusalem (2 Nephi 5:16), Nephi’s brother Jacob delivered his sermon there. He reminded his hearers about who and what they must be as they were to approach the great veil of the temple that led to the Holy of Holies. He said:

41 O then, my beloved brethren, come unto the Lord, the Holy One. Remember that his paths are righteous. Behold, the way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him, and the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name.
42 And whoso knocketh, to him will he open; and the wise, and the learned, and they that are rich, who are puffed up because of their learning, and their wisdom, and their riches—yea, they are they whom he despiseth; and save they shall cast these things away, and consider themselves fools before God, and come down in the depths of humility, he will not open unto them (2 Nephi 9:41-42).

It seems to me that what the Savior said to the Nephites is that if they wish to “come unto him” then they must approach other people in the same way they approach him.

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3 Nephi 12:17-20
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law or the prophets. I am not come to destroy but to fulfil;
18 For verily I say unto you, one jot nor one tittle hath not passed away from the law, but in me it hath all been fulfilled.
19 And behold, I have given you the law and the commandments of my Father, that ye shall believe in me, and that ye shall repent of your sins, and come unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Behold, ye have the commandments before you, and the law is fulfilled.
20 Therefore come unto me and be ye saved; for verily I say unto you, that except ye shall keep my commandments, which I have commanded you at this time, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Three times the Savior said he had fulfilled the Law of Moses. To fulfil means to complete, to satisfy, to bring to fruition, to finalize. He later explained:

5 Behold, I am he that gave the law, and I am he who covenanted with my people Israel; therefore, the law in me is fulfilled, for I have come to fulfil the law; therefore it hath an end (3 Nephi 15:5).

The words, “therefore it hath an end” was very explicit. So the Law was no longer operative or relevant in the Nephite religion or in their personal lives.

This may sound strange: but while we can be assured that the Law was fulfilled, we really don’t know what the Nephites or the Savior understood by “the Law of Moses.” In Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, Stephen and I explained:

A point that must not be lost is that the people of the Book of Mormon come out of the religious culture of the pre-exilic Old Testament—the period when Solomon’s Temple was standing and in use. So the religion of Lehi, Nephi, and their descendants was the religion of the Jews before the changes were made in our texts of the Old Testament. What we have in our Old Testament is a severely edited version of the Law of Moses. But the text on the brass plates was written before those editorial changes were made. That means that our most reliable contemporary text that date to pre-exilic times is found in the Book of Mormon (Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, 460-61).

The fact is, we cannot know just what the Nephites understood by “the Law of Moses” because of the way they described it. They wrote repeatedly that the purpose of the Law was to help people understand the Savior and his Atonement. They considered the Law to be a type of the Savior’s coming. As Jacob said,

4 Behold, my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ; for, for this end hath the Law of Moses been given; and all things which have been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying of him (2 Nephi 11:4. See also 2 Nephi 25:24-28, 2 Nephi 26:1, Jacob 4:5, Alma 25:15-16.)

If we look hard in Leviticus, we can find only a few parts of the Law that teach about the atonement, but Jacob’s description of the Law does not fit what is in our Old Testament. It is impossible for us to know what the Nephites understood by “the Law of Moses,” because the only thing we can be sure of is that it was different from the version of the Law that is found in our Bible.

After the Babylonian captivity the Jews had no more king, and the temple was destroyed. By the time they returned from Babylon they had lost the Melchizedek Priesthood also. Sometime during or after the Babylonian captivity the Jewish editors rewrote the Law to conform to their new political and ecclesiastical circumstances. Consequently, our Old Testament version of the Law reflects the post-exilic Jewish religion that was substantially different from the one that had been believed and practiced while Solomon’s Temple was standing and in proper use. These editors left so many fingerprints on their work that most scholars now believe the books of Moses were not written any earlier than 400 BC.

(For a discussion of the Jewish apostasy and its impact on the editorial changes in the Law see Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, pages 47-67, the chapters called “The Ancient Jewish Apostasy that Rearranged the Order of the Psalms and Changed the Festival Drama,” and “Evidences of Ancient Jewish Apostasy.” For an example showing that the purposes of those editors was to remove from the record evidences of the gospel of the Messiah, the priesthood, and the temple, see the comparison between the stories of Noah and the ark as told in Genesis and in the book of Moses in the Pearl of Great Price, shown on the chart on pages 60-61.)

We also know almost nothing about the structure of the early Nephite church or how the Law of Moses was administered. What we do know is there is no evidence of an Aaronic Priesthood in the Book of Mormon, and that Lehi and the prophets had the Melchizedek Priesthood (otherwise he, Jacob, Alma, and others could not have seen God — D&C 84:19-22), and we also know that Lehi and others offered sacrifices and burnt offerings that we normally associate with the duties of the ancient Old Testament Aaronic Priesthood (1 Nephi 5:9, 1 Nephi 7:22, Mosiah 2:3.) Therefore, we cannot rely on the Old Testament to teach us how the Law of Moses would have been administered by Nephites who held the Melchizedek Priesthood.

There is enough discussion of consistent Melchizedek Priesthood temple rites from the beginning to the end of the Book of Mormon to let us know that those rites remained essentially unchanged throughout the full thousand years of Nephite history — both before and after the Savior fulfilled the Law of Moses (encoded examples are in 1 Nephi 1, 2 Nephi 1, Alma 12, and Moroni 10).

In the Sermon at the Temple in 3 Nephi 9 through 14, the Savior gave examples about how far-reaching the effect of his fulfilling the Law would be. There we learn that when put into practice, the new law would not only change the outward form of their religious practices, but would also change some of their most fundamental cultural and legal practices as well. Thereafter, an appeal to Leviticus to establish rules of personal conduct, family relations, moral code, or dietary practices was no longer a valid evidence to support an argument about what was right or wrong (just as it is not for us).

We needn’t wonder if the Nephites then did, as we sometimes tend to do, pick and choose from among the parts of the Law of Moses we wished to use to justify our beliefs and practices. They clearly did not. The description of the righteousness of the society of the next three generations teaches us that the Nephites took the Saviors instructions very seriously. Mormon does not tell us very much about the Fourth Nephi society, but what he does tell us is enough that we may know that the rigidity and bigotry that was justifiable under the Law had given way to acceptance of personal integrity rather than perfect conformity as the standard of individual excellence. I take it that in that society there could not have been found a picked-on teenager who felt the need to pray, “Dear God, make the bad people good and the good people nice.”

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