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In John’s encoded account of Jesus’s conversation with Nicodemus, we have a very brief but accurate description of a sode experience.{1} Jesus said,

13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven (John 3:13).

The Hebrew word for “council” is sode. It means the secret decisions of the council, so sode is frequently translated as “secret” in the Old Testament. For example, Amos says,

7 Surely the Lord God will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret [sode] to his servants the prophets (Amos 3:7).

A “sode experience” is when the prophet returns to the Council in Heaven where he relearns and re-accepts the assignments he originally received there before the earth was created. It is likely that Paul was remembering his own sode experience when he wrote,

2 I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;) such an one caught up to the third heaven.
3 And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth;)
4 How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter (2 Corinthians 12:2-4).

A complete description of a sode experience contains the following elements: The prophet is in a meeting and mentions that other members of the Council are also present. Heavenly Father sits upon his throne and presides. Jehovah conducts and makes the assignments. An ordinance is performed which gives the prophet the authority to speak the words of God. After that, the prophet returns to his own time and place in mortality to fulfill the assignment. A short, but very complete example is 1 Nephi 1:8-14 where Nephi tells about Lehi’s sode experience.

8 And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a vision, even that he saw the heavens open, and he thought he saw God sitting upon his throne [presiding], surrounded with numberless concourses of angels [other members of the Council] in the attitude of singing and praising their God [they are in a meeting].
9 And it came to pass that he saw One [Jehovah] descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his luster was above that of the sun at noon-day.
10 And he also saw twelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament.
11 And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth; and the first [Jehovah] came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book, and bade him that he should read [Then we read Lehi’s response to the assignment] (1 Nephi 1:8-11).

The book Lehi reads contained his premortal assignment and his reading it represented an ordinance giving him the authority to teach the words of the book. (More about that below.)

In the days of Solomon’s Temple, the measure of a true prophet was that he had had a sode experience, and therefore, he could, with authority, speak the words of God.

Reports of sode experiences by the Israelite prophets are quite common in the Old Testament up until the time of the destruction of Solomon’s Temple. When that happened, the Jews not only lost their Temple, but also their king, and they never again performed the Feast of Tabernacles temple drama. Consequently, at the time Jesus spoke with Nicodemus, no Jew had claimed to have had a sode experience in the past 600 years.

However, Jesus words to Nicodemus declared that he had a sode experience, had reaffirmed his premortal covenants in the Council and was, by definition, a true prophet. John tells us all that in one short sentence. Jesus said,

13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven [returned to the Council to reaffirm his covenants], but he that came down from heaven [to teach the words of God], even the Son of man which is in heaven (John 3:13).

Jesus tells Nicodemus that not only did he attend the Council, but that he conducted its affairs is Jehovah, “the Son of man which is in heaven.”

In his writings, John keeps sacred things sacred. He tells the initiated just enough that they can know what this conversation was about—and leaves it to them to fill in the blanks. But to the reader who does not have “ears to hear,” John says almost nothing.

That simple sentence, as John reports it, lets us know that Jesus told Nicodemus a great deal about his own premortal Self. Indeed, he may have told him almost everything.

At the premortal Council in Heaven, the prophets (and probably also each of us) received and accepted assignments to be fulfilled in a specific time and place in mortality. For the ancient Israelites, their temple drama was a generic review of those assignments. During the drama they learned where they came from, how they came to be here, what they were to do while they were here, and how to go home again. For us, as we study that ancient drama, our patriarchal blessings, and what we are taught by the Holy Ghost about what is in the scriptures and what our prophets say, augments the generic drama to make it very personal.

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The following are excerpts from the prophets’ descriptions of their sode experiences. I have chosen to quote the part about their receiving authority to speak God’s words. The ordinances are described differently, but as far as I can tell, they represent the same thing. Lehi read the words of a book. John ate a book. Isaiah had a “hot coal” placed on his lips to make his mouth clean. Ezekiel ate a scroll. The Lord touched Jeremiah’s mouth with his hand and said, “Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.”

About himself, John records,

7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.
8 And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.
9 And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.
10 And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
11 And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings (Revelation 10:7 – 11).

Isaiah chapter 6 is widely recognized as the most complete account of a sode experience in the Old Testament. However, there are places that are difficult to understand. All of those difficulties are cleared up in the brass plates version that is found in 2 Nephi 16.

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 seraphim; 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.
5 Then said I: Wo is unto me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips; and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts.
6 Then flew one of the seraphim unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar;
7 And he laid it upon my mouth, and said: Lo, this has touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged.
8 Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then I said: Here am I; send me.
9 And he said: Go and tell this people—Hear ye indeed, but they understood not; and see ye indeed, but they perceived not.
10 Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes—lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted and be healed.
11 Then said I: Lord, how long? And he said: Until the cities be wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be utterly desolate;
12 And the Lord have removed men far away, for there shall be a great forsaking in the midst of the land.
13 But yet there shall be a tenth, and they shall return, and shall be eaten, as a teil––tree, and as an oak whose substance is in them when they cast their leaves; so the holy seed shall be the substance thereof (2 Nephi 16:1-13. See Isaiah 6:1-13).

In the first several chapters of Ezekiel he recalls his sode experience. This is the part where he received the authority to speak God’s words.

1 Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.
2 So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll.
3 And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.
4 And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them (Ezekiel 3:1 – 4).

Jeremiah also takes several chapters to describe his sode experience. It begins with the Lord telling him,

5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations (Jeremiah 1:5).

Later, God gives him the authority to speak his words.

7 But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
8 Be not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the LORD.
9 Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant (Jeremiah 1:7 – 10).

It was also Jeremiah to whom the Lord explained that false prophets were those who had not had a sode experience and therefore did not have the authority to speak in God’s behalf.

18 For who hath stood in the counsel [sode] of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it?
19 Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly.
21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my counsel [sode], and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings (Jeremiah 23:18-22)

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FOOTNOTE

{1} In Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, Stephen and I discuss that prophet call in the chapter called “Sode Experience—Returning to the Council in Heaven.” In the first edition it is on pages 195-209. In the paperback edition (the one that is in PDF on this website under “published books) it is on pages 139-48.

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Hugh Nibley once said that a translation is really a commentary. The next verse in the Savior’s conversation with Nicodemus is a perfect example of that. As it is translated, it makes no more sense than Nicodemus’s question about how a man can be born again. The translators of the King James Bible did the best they could (and what they did is truly beautiful), but they did not know the ancient Israelite temple code and clearly had no idea what was going on here. They believed Nicodemus was simply dumbfounded by the Savior’s answer, so they have Jesus saying something to him that reflects their attitude.

8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit (John 3:8).

I suspect almost every missionary of the LDS Church has explained to their new investigators the same thing that Jesus is explaining to Nicodemus. “The feeling you are experiencing is the Holy Ghost. If you will learn to listen to it, it will teach you wonderful things.” That is what the Savior is saying to Nicodemus.

8 The wind [Strong # 4151] bloweth [Strong # 4154, to breathe, to blow] where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit [Strong # 4151] (John 3:8).

The word translated as “wind,” and the word translated as “Spirit” is the same Greek word (Strong # 4151). It means,

A current of air, i.e. breath or a breeze;
the spirit, i.e. the vital principal by which the body is animated;
the rational spirit, the power by which the human being feels, thinks, decides
the soul {1}

That same Greek word is translated as “Holy Ghost” in 89 places in the New Testament. There is no good reason why “the Holy Ghost” would not be appropriate in our verse. In which case it might read, “The Holy Ghost bloweth where it listeth.”

The Greek word translated as “blow” (Strong # 4154) might also have been translated as “breath.” In ancient texts we find the belief that giving breath is sycomorus with giving life. Hugh Nibley frequently stressed that throughout his book on the Egyptian endowment. In its first chapter he wrote,

For the Egyptians, the giving of breath is endowment with life in the widest sense. {2}

That idea is also found in the Bible where Elihu reminded Job,

4 The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life (Job 33:4).

The creation stories in the scriptures echo that same principle.

7 And I, the Lord God, formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul (Moses 3:7 & Genesis 2:7)

7 And the Gods formed man from the dust of the ground, and took his spirit (that is, the man’s spirit), and put it into him; and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul (Abraham 5:7).

Perhaps a correct way of understanding what the Savior said to Nicodemus is this: “The Holy Ghost gives the breath of new life to whomever he will.” That would be a nice parallel with what follows, “so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”

Nicodemus was a great scholar, but the Savior’s explanation was likely as foreign to him as that same explanation from our missionaries is foreign to their new investigators. Like them, it seems that Nicodemus was experiencing something he had never felt before, or at least that he had never identified, and Jesus is simply explaining what that feeling is. Nicodemus response is entirely in line with his amazement.

9 Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?
10 Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? (John 3:9-10)

Jesus is not making fun of Nicodemus (as many interpretations suggest), but is acknowledging that he is a renowned teacher. The word “master” here is the same Greek word as “teacher” in verse 2. {3}

If Jesus were chiding, then his words mock Nicodemus’s scholarship. But that does not fit the rest of the situation. If Jesus were smiling (as I believe he was), then his words would have meant: “Lets look into the depth of your knowledge so I can show you the meaning of what you already know.”

That is also consistent with the rest of the conversation, for where he then takes Nicodemus’s mind insists that both were happy.

When John introduced this story to us he wrote,

24 But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men,
25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man (John 2:24 – 25)

Now, John is going to show us how Jesus unreservedly “committed” himself to Nicodemus. He opens his own soul to him. During this conversation we find the most comprehensive single statement (that I am aware of) in all the scriptures about who and what Jesus really is.

However, before Jesus does that, knowing that Nicodemus’s first impulse will be to help others also understand, Jesus explains that it will not do any good to try to teach those who do not want to know. He tells the Jewish scholar that he must not share what he is about to learn. The principle is the same as was taught by Alma.

9 And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, saying: It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him.
10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.
11 And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell (Alma 12:9-11).

Jesus says essentially the same thing to Nicodemus.

11Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.
12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? (John 3:11-12)

In these two sentences, the words “you” and “ye” are plural. They are roughly equivalent to the Southern “y’all.” {4} Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin. When Jesus says “y’all believe not,” he is not talking about Nicodemus personally, but is warning him that most of the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders do not then, and will not ever, believe what he tells them.

11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye [y’all] receive not our witness.
12 If I have told you [y’all] earthly things, and ye [y’all] believe not, how shall ye [y’all] believe, if I tell you [y’all] of heavenly things? (John 3:11-12)

In the Inspired Version of the Bible, Joseph Smith helps us understand that. To the beginning of the next verse he adds the words, “I tell you,” which I take to mean, “I am telling only you, and therefore you are not to tell those Pharisees because they will not believe.”

What he then tells him must have been both amazing and wonderful to Nicodemus. I am convinced that the next lines would never have been spoken by Jesus to anyone whom he did not completely trust.

(Continued)
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FOOTNOTES

{1} This definition uses words from two different editions of Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance off the Bible.

{2} Hugh Nibley, The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri: An Egyptian Endowment (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1975), 8.

{3} “The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher [ # 1320 – teacher] come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him (John 3:1-2).” “Jesus answered and said unto h im, Art thou a master [ # 1320 teacher] of Israel, and knowest not these things? (John 3:9-10).”

{4} Strong’s # 5213 “ irregular dative case of # 5210; to (with or by) you:—ye, you, your(-selves).”
Strong’s # 5210 – “irregular plural of # 4771; you (as subjective of verb):—ye (yourselves), you.”

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(This will make much more sense if you first read part one.)

John’s report of the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus is very succinct and deeply encoded. The code is the ancient Israelite temple drama, so anyone who knows the drama also knows the code. It is to be understood only by those who “have ears to hear.”

The conversation is already in full swing before we become privy to what is being said. Jesus is answering a question, but the question is not given in the text.

3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3).

When this answer is placed within the context of the bits of the conversation that follow, Jesus’s response is arguably a reference to the adoption/kinship rites that were performed near the conclusion of the Feast of Tabernacles temple drama during the time of Solomon’s Temple.

In this drama the king was the chief actor, and his words and actions represented those of every man in the congregation. The multiple parts of the coronation rites are identified in Isaiah 61:3.

The rites begin with a ceremonial washing, where the king was made clean in preparation for his coronation. Then he went into the temple where he was clothed in royal priesthood robes, anointed, crowned, and given a new king-name. {1}

When one made a new covenant there was always a new name associated with it. The new name was a new identity. These rites were a rebirth in that when the king was anointed he became a legitimate son and heir of Jehovah.

At the time the anointing was performed the king announced his new relationship with God.

7 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee (Psalms 2:7).

The anointing was a dual ordinance. “Thou art my son” is the pronouncement of the new royal king-name. “This day have I begotten thee” is a declaration of the formal adoption of the king by Jehovah. {2}

Jehovah is the eternal King of Israel, and now because of this adoption, the earthly king is his legitimate son. He can take his place on the Lord’s throne in the Temple and not be a usurper. {3}

We see something like that at Jesus’s baptism, and coronation on the Mount of Transfiguration. His Father’s words, “This is my beloved Son,” confirmed Jesus’s royal birth and his Kingship (2 Peter 1:16-18).

When Jesus spoke to Nicodemus, those coronation rites had not been performed in a Jewish temple for more than 600 years—not since Solomon’s Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians, and the last Jewish king sat upon its throne. If Jesus had just told Nicodemus that he had the authority to perform those rites again, then Nicodemus’s next question reflects his amazement and his challenge. He asks for clarification, and does it in a silly, somewhat condescending way that is still typical of some scholars. His intent is to see if Jesus really knows what he is talking about.

4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? (John 3:4)

Jesus’s response shows that he respected both the questioner and the question. His answer (as John gives it to us) addresses Nicodemus’ concerns precisely, and in terms Nicodemus, the scholar/teacher of Israel, would have understood.

5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit (John 3:5-6).

There are two ways of our understanding these verses. One, which we use all the time in missionary work, is about baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost.

The other way is that they are references to the washing and anointing that were part of the ancient coronation rites. In that case, “to be born of the Spirit” was a reference to the belief that at the time of one’s anointing one received an abundant gift of the Spirit of the Lord. There is an important example of this in the Old Testament.

When David was only a boy, “Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward” (1 Samuel 16:13). Aubrey Johnson referred to that story, and called the experience an “endowment of the Spirit” whereby the king received extraordinary religious authority, as well as wisdom in government and military matters. Sigmund Mowinckel understood that the “Ideas about the fruits of this endowment with the spirit are, naturally, strongly influenced by older biblical conceptions of the gifts of the spirit in the Messiah.” {4}

That same principle is taught in the New Testament where Peter said,

37 That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judæ a, and began from Galilee, after the ism which John preached;
38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him (Acts 10:37-38).

We do not have complete accounts of the anointing of all of the kings of Israel, but we do of David’s. He was first anointed to become king and later anointed king. Perhaps that is reflected in the difference in Jesus’s statements, “he cannot see the kingdom of God,” and “he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”

Even though those ceremonies were no longer performed after Solomon’s Temple was destroyed, there is sufficient evidence in the New Testament to know that the memory of those rites was not entirely lost by the Jews. After the Savior established his church, the Saints in New Testament times understood that a similar adoption ceremony was necessary to make one a son and heir of God. Thus, Paul wrote,

5 [The Father] Having predestinated [foreordained] us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself [the Father], according to the good pleasure of his [the Father’s] will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his [the Father’s] grace, wherein he [the Father] hath made us accepted in the beloved. (Ephesians 1:5-6)

If this sonship and adoption is what Christ meant when he told Nicodemus that he must be born again, and if Nicodemus understood that, it is little wonder that this learned Jew was amazed. The Savior said,

7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again [from above] (John 3:7).

In the next verses we learn that part of Nicodemus’s amazement had to do with what he was feeling as well as what he was thinking. The Savior also explained that to him.

(To be continued)
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FOOTNOTES

{1} “Act 2, Scene 9: The Coronation Ceremony in Isaiah 61,” Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition 461-99, second (paperback) edition 366-73.

{2} For a more complete discussion of the anointing and Psalm 2 see “Psalm 2, The Ancient Israelite Royal King-name,” Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition 499-517, second (paperback) edition 360-73.

{3} Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition 517-605, second (paperback) edition 373-431.

{4} Quoted from Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition 353-54, second (paperback) edition 254-55.

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I read the conversation between the Savior and Nicodemus as a very intimate, deeply encoded, intensely personal account of how Jesus and Nicodemus became close friends. {1}

John treats this conversation as sacred. For that reason he gives us just barely enough information that we can follow what was being said, but not enough that people who do not know the plan of salvation will be able to plumb its depths. He does that frequently in his writing, usually with the marker, “he who has ears let him hear.” The code he uses is the language of the ancient temple drama. {2}

Because Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord is about the Israelite temple drama, in some ways the book can be read as a key to the ancient temple code. So I am using the ideas in the book to decode the story of Nicodemus. In other words, I am using my opinions to support my opinions, and I leave it to you to decide if that has value.

Of the gospels, only John tells us about Nicodemus. After the account of his first meeting Jesus, John mentions him twice more. The first of those shows that Nicodemus was a man of considerable influence. John tells us that he was “a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.” That is, he was a member of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish senate. This story is about a meeting of the Sanhedrin in which Nicodemus used his knowledge of the law to deflate an attack on Jesus and his followers. He reminded the Jewish leaders that their law said they could not condemn Jesus on hearsay evidence, and they had not heard for themselves what he taught.

32 The Pharisees heard that the people murmured such things concerning him; and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take him
…………
45 Then came the officers to the chief priests and Pharisees; and they said unto them, Why have ye not brought him?
46 The officers answered, Never man spake like this man.
47 Then answered them the Pharisees, Are ye also deceived?
48 Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed on him?
49 But this people who knoweth not the law are cursed.
50 Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,)
51 Doth our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he doeth?
52 They answered and said unto him, Art thou also of Galilee? Search, and look: for out of Galilee ariseth no prophet.
53 And every man went unto his own house (John 7:32-53).

The second shows that Nicodemus was a man of great wealth, and perhaps even greater courage. Pilate was a scoundrel of the first order. He fleeced the people to fill his own pockets. The Jews hated him and eventually got him deposed. Now consider the situation. One does not just go visit the Roman procurator and ask for a favor. To get to Pilate they would have to bribe the under secretary, bribe the secretary, and be prepared to give a huge bribe to Pilate.

The story does not say Nicodemus was there to talk to Pilate, but it does say that at the burial he “brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.” That was a lot, and very expensive.

38 And after this Joseph of Arimathæ a, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus.
39 And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.
40 Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.
41 Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid.
42 There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews’ preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand (John 19:38-42).

Tensions were very high. The Jews knew of the prophecy that Jesus would rise from the dead and wanted to control what happened to his body. It is likely that Joseph of Arimathæ a and Nicodemus both put their lives on the line to approach Pilate, remove Jesus’s body from the cross, and put it in the tomb. Matthew describes that tension.

62 Now the next day, that followed the day of the preparation, the chief priests and Pharisees came together unto Pilate,
63 Saying, Sir, we remember that that deceiver said, while he was yet alive, After three days I will rise again.
64 Command therefore that the sepulchre be made sure until the third day, lest his disciples come by night, and steal him away, and say unto the people, He is risen from the dead: so the last error shall be worse than the first.
65 Pilate said unto them, Ye have a watch: go your way, make it as sure as ye can.
66 So they went, and made the sepulchre sure, sealing the stone, and setting a watch (Matthew 27:62-66).

Nicodemus’s actions were not those of a “secret” follower, but those of a man who knew who he was, and what he believed, and who was not ashamed to support his friend.
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The following story is one of my favorites in the New Testament because it lets us watch as Jesus and Nicodemus become friends.

John lays the background of the story by contrasting the way Jesus responded to people who came to see him only out of curiosity, as opposed to the way Jesus responded to Nicodemus. About the curiosity seekers John says,

23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name, when they saw the miracles which he did.
24 But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men,
25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man (John 2:23-25).

John says that Jesus’s attitude was that he was willing to let the people see what they wished to see. If being entertained by miracles was all they were interested in, then that was all they would see. He would not let them know who he was, or by what authority he did those miracles.

John says Jesus knew in advance how they would respond to him because he knew who they were. He could read their souls, so he “needed not that any should testify of man”

That is the key to this whole story. The footnote in our Bible says that “commit” might have been translated “entrust.” The Greek word for entrust is a form of pistis, so the idea of covenant is at least implicitly part of what John is trying to tell us. President David O. McKay explained why it was impossible for those people to hide from the Savior who they really were.

Every man and every person who lives in this world wields an influence, whether for good or for evil. It is not what he says alone; it is not alone what he does. It is what he is. Every man, every person radiates what he or she really is. Every person is a recipient of radiation. The Savior was conscious of that. Whenever He came into the presence of an individual, He sensed that radiation — whether it was the woman of Samaria with her past life: whether it was the woman who was to be stoned, or the men who were to stone her; whether it was the statesman, Nicodemus, or one of the lepers. He was conscious of the radiation from the individual. And to a degree so are you. and so am I. It is what we are and what we radiate that affects the people around us (President David O. McKay, “Radiation of the Individual,” The Instructor, October, 1964, 373).

With that assurance that the Savior never revealed himself except to those whom he knew he could trust, John tells the story of Nicodemus.

He came “by night.” Most scholars assume that he was afraid of being seen, but he does not show that fear in anything else we know about him. I think it much more likely that it was because he knew he would be able to speak to Jesus privately, after the curiosity seekers had all gone home and gone to bed.

1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him (John 3:1-2).

Nicodemus appears to have introduced himself to Jesus by saying the very thing that would have disqualified him from receiving Jesus testimony. “…for no man can do these miracles that thou doest…” But Jesus knew his heart, so the words were not the things by which he was judged.

After that introduction, John writes, “Jesus answered and said unto him.” Something is missing there. John does not give us the question that evoked that answer, nor, indeed, does he tell us much of what was said thereafter. That leaves us to ask, why did John give us only snippets of the conversation? I’m convinced John carefully gives us just enough of the conversation that we can know what ideas were discussed—but only just enough that we cannot know if we do not already know. To do that, John wrote in the code of the ancient Israelite temple drama.

So the first thing we hear Jesus saying is answering a question that is unspoken in our text.

3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3).

Often, in the scriptures, we have questions without answers, but here we have an answer without a question. The way we almost always read that scripture is that one must be baptized and receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost to see the kingdom of God. Since those principles are absolutely true (and as Nephi suggests, we should “liken all scriptures unto us” – 1 Nephi 19:23), using the scripture that way is perfectly valid and perfectly correct.

Several years ago a missionary from France was serving in the Provo Utah Mission. (His first name is Matthew, but since I have not asked him if I can tell this story, I am not going to tell you his last name.) He is a very dear friend. He let one of his investigators read something I had written and the investigator called and invited me to come to his baptism. I sat in the audience beside Matthew during the service. Matthew gave an excellent talk about the importance of baptism and of listening to the prompting of the Holy Ghost, and he used John 3:3 as his text. He returned to his seat, smiled at me and asked, “How did I do?” “Wonderful!” I replied. We each knew that there is another way to understand what the Savior said to Nicodemus. And we each knew that the way Matthew had used that scripture was exactly the way he should have used it.

The distinguished scholar, Frederick H. Borsch saw that there was something left out, and explained, at least part, what Jesus really said:

Of much more interest to us is the water imagery of the Gospel along with some of its associations. Let us look first at Jesus’ meeting with Nicodemus in John 3:1ff. and the discussion there about entering the Kingdom of God. Here one of the key words is [words written in Greek]. This adverb has two primary meanings, ‘from above’ and ‘anew’, but the former has predominance. This is true in the New Testament as well as in other literature, and, more importantly, in John, where, outside this passage, ‘from above’ is the meaning. The whole force of the culmination of this passage (3:13) along with the use of the word in 3:31 strongly suggest that ‘being born from above: is the primary sense intended in 3:3, 7. Yet it is probably just as obvious that Nicodemus, understands it as ‘anew’ when he asks Jesus, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?’ Almost surely, then, we are dealing with Johannine irony. Not only does Nicodemus misunderstand [words written in Greek], but he fails to understand the mode of the birth which Jesus is describing. (Frederick Houk Borsch, The Son of Man in Myth and History (London, SCM Press, 1967, 270)

That is as far as Borsch could go. He recognizes that there is much more to the conversation than John reported, but like many scholars, he does not know the ancient temple, therefore, cannot know the temple code, and therefore, is left to assume that Nicodemus (like himself) does not understand what Jesus is talking about.

Nicodemus was a scholar. Jesus reminded him of what he already knew when he asked, “Art thou a master [teacher] of Israel, and knowest not these things?” While surprised at what Jesus was saying, he surely would have understood what Jesus said. Still, the sacred drama of Solomon’s temple with its coronation rites had not been performed for 600 years—not since the Temple was destroyed by the Babylonians. Nicodemus’s next question reflects his amazement that the Savior would suggest those ordinances might be performed again. So he asks for clarification, and does it in a silly way (typical of some scholars). His intent seems to be to challenge Jesus to see if he really knew what he is talking about.

4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? (John 3:4)

There are two ways to read that. The usual way is to assume that Nicodemus did not know and thought that Jesus had just said something stupid. The second way – the way I think is a necessary introduction to the rest of the story – is that Nicodemus did understand and wanted to know if Jesus was really saying what he thought he was saying. His question implies the larger questions: what, how, and why. The Savior, who understood Nicodemus’s motives, answered all those questions.

END OF PART ONE

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FOOTNOTES

{1} Most scholars read the story of Nicodemus as Jesus’s chiding an unbelieving Jew. Here is a typical example:

[Nicodemus’s name] appears in the Bible only as the name of a member of the Jewish Sanhedrin who came at night to talk with Jesus (John 3:1 ff). He was not only a “ruler of the Jews,” but a teacher as well (vs. 2). In fact, the presence of the definite article in the Greek text of John’s Gospel-” the teacher” – points to his pre-eminence as a teacher, and therefore as one who should have known the truth about God and his people. But the course of his conversation with Jesus shows that he did not understand the basic truths about the kingdom of God. Nicodemus was a Pharisee, and as such should have had interest in and knowledge about the coming of the kingdom, but Jesus’ answers to his questions are more provocative than explanatory, and make him appear as a symbol of Israel’s spiritual blindness. [The rest of the article continues to assert that John used Nicodemus as an example of the unbelieving Jews.] (Interpreter’’s Dictionary of the Bible, 4 vols. plus a Supplementary Volume. Nashville: Abingdon, 1962, 3:547).

{2} Much of the New Testament is written in a temple code, and its authors tell us so over and over again. The phrase the Savior uses is “He that hath ears to hear, let him hear.” (Matthew 11:15, 13:9-17; Mark 4:9; Mark 7:16; Luke 8:8; Luke 14:35.) The gospel of John does not use that phrase, but it quotes the Savior as saying: “they that hear shall live (John 5:25-31)”; “He that is of God heareth God’s words (John 8:47)”; and “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27).” However, in his letters to the churches in Revelation chapters 2 and 3, John uses a variant of the Savior’s phrase many times. In the surface text, those chapters are seven unrelated letters to seven churches. But in the encoded sub-text they are a colophon in which John identifies himself as one who really knows. If we read only the first half of each of John’s letters, he walks us through an encoded version of the New Testament temple drama. If we read only the second half of each, he tells us why it is important. He alerts us to what he is doing by repeating over and over again, “He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith to the churches.”

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John’s gospel is written after the same pattern as the plan of salvation, which was also the sequence of events portrayed in the ancient Israelite temple drama. The gospel begins by showing that Jesus is Jehovah, the Creator God who came to this mortal world to keep his premortal covenants. As it describes the events of his mortal life, it is study in contrasts between Jesus’s friends and his enemies—their response to him, and his response to them. Then it tells of his resurrection and ultimate triumph over death and hell. John concludes,

31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name (John 20:31).

John dedicated much of his gospel to portraying the Savior’s kindness and compassion. Not only did John identify himself as “the disciple whom Jesus loved,” but he also showed Jesus’s complete devotion to his apostles and to his other friends. People he loved were the most important part of Jesus’s life, just as they are the most important part of ours.

The ending of the first chapter of John is about how he established friendships with some of the people who would be most important to him in this life. John treats these friendships with great reverence, telling us what we need to know while only suggesting the sacred subtexts.

John’s gospel gives us the most information about how the Savior met his apostles. However, it is Luke that tells us that Jesus spent “all night” discussing their selection with his Father, before the apostles were actually called.

12 And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.
13 And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles;
14 Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew,
15 Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphæus, and Simon called Zelotes,
16 And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor. (Luke 6:12-16) {1}

It was John the Baptist who first told the future apostles that Jesus was “the Lamb of God.”

29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.
31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.
32 And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.
33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.
34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.
35 Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples;
36 And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
37 And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.

Scholars have long since assumed that the unnamed disciple mentioned here is John. That is easy to deduce because John never calls himself by name in his own gospel. He identifies himself as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23; 19:26; 20:2; 21:7, 20), and that “other disciple” (John 20:2–8, and probably here also).

38 Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?
39 He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.
40 One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter ‘s brother.
41 He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.
42 And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.
43 The day following Jesus would go forth into Galilee, and findeth Philip, and saith unto him, Follow me ( John 1:29-43).

Matthew and Luke tell the story differently, but their account of Peter, Andrew, James, and John just walking away from their businesses to follow Jesus only make sense in light of the background to their prior commitments as John tells it. They report,

18 And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
19 And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
20 And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.
21 And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.
22 And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him (Matthew 4:18-22).

1 And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret,
2 And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets.
3 And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship.
4 Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught.
5 And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net.
6 And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.
7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.
8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.
9 For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken:
10 And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.
11 And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him (Luke 5:1-11).{2}

The next friend John tells us about is Nathanael. {3} This is one of those wonderful stories where John leaves out the most sacred parts, but gives his initiated readers just enough information that they can fill in some of the blanks. (John does the same thing in chapter 3 where he tells about the Savior’s conversation with Nicodemus.)

44 Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.
45 Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.
46 And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.
47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile!
48 Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, when thou wast under the fig tree, I saw thee.
49 Nathanael answered and saith unto him, Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.
50 Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.
51 And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man ( John 1:44-51).

If there is a subtextual story in this conversation between the Savior and Nathanael. A key to that subtext is probably found in the first meeting of David Whitmer and the Prophet Joseph. At Joseph’s request, Oliver Cowdery had written to his friend David and asked if he and Joseph could come and live with the Whitmers while they continued to translate the Book of Mormon. The family agreed but David was delayed (only slightly) by tasks that had to be finished on the farm before his father could spare the horses and wagon to go fetch Joseph and Oliver. {4}

When David left home, Joseph knew he was coming and told Oliver about David’s progress. Here is the account in David’s own words.

When I arrived at Harmony, Joseph and Oliver were coming toward me, and met me some distance from the house. Oliver told me that Joseph had informed him when I started from home, where I had stopped the first night, how I read the sign at the tavern, where I stopped the next , etc., and that I would be there that day before dinner, and this was why they had come out to meet me; all of which was exactly as Joseph had told Oliver, at which I was greatly astonished. {5}

Like Nathanael, David was surprised at this reception and even more surprised to learn that Joseph had known just when he would arrive. But when Oliver told him how Joseph had described his journey and how he read the sign at the tavern (something that only David would have known), David became convinced that Joseph was a prophet and was more eager than ever to help.

It seems likely to me that there must be a somewhat similar, untold and very sacred event that happened while Nathanael was sitting under the fig tree. The memory of that event caused him to testify “ Rabbi, thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.”

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FOOTNOTES

{1} There are two other lists of the Apostles. However, none of them are exactly the same, Matthew 10:1-6 and Mark 3:13-20)

{2} Matthew tells about his own call in similar terms.

9 And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.
10 And it came to pass, as Jesus sat at meat in the house, behold, many publicans and sinners came and sat down with him and his disciples.
11 And when the Pharisees saw it, they said unto his disciples, Why eateth your Master with publicans and sinners? (Matthew 9:9-11).

Mark and Luke repeat the same story (Mark 2:14-15, Luke 5:27-32), but Matthew is not mentioned by John.

{3} The LDS Bible Dictionary identifies Nathanael as Bartholomew in the lists of the apostles.

Nathanael. God has given. His friendship with Philip and call to be a disciple are found in John 1:45–51; see also 21:2, where we learn that he belonged to Cana in Galilee. He is generally identified with Bartholomew, on the ground that Nathanael is always mentioned along with apostles, as though of apostolic rank, and that whereas the Synoptists (Matt. 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14) mention Bartholomew (associating him with Philip) and never Nathanael, John mentions Nathanael and never Bartholomew. (Bible Dictionary | Nathanael:Entry)

{4} For background of the story see my Joseph and Moroni, pages 75-88.

{5}Andrew Jenson, L. D. S. Biographical Encyclopedia, 4 vols. (Salt Lake City: Andrew Jenson Historical Company, 1901), 1:267.

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John the Baptist is a prophet we hardly know. One reason we do not know him is we do not recognize the magnificence of his language. A reason for that is that his testimony begins the gospel of John the Beloved, and therefore the words are not usually credited to John the Baptist. But we can know they are the Baptist’s words because we are told so in John 1:14-15 and D&C 93:15-17.

Another reason we do not know John is because of an (accidental or deliberate) double error in the Gospel of John. It reads,

29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.
31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.
32 And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.
33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.
34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God (John 1:29-34, Italics added).

The notion that John did not know who Jesus was is absurd. The boys were cousins. They were the same age. Boys talk and share secrets with each other—and these boys had wonderful secrets to share. Fortunately, the Prophet Joseph cleared up the question in the Inspired Version of the Bible.

29. The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and said; Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world!
30. And John bare record of him unto the people, saying, This is he of whom I said; After me cometh a man who is preferred before me; for he was before me, and I knew him, and that he should be made manifest to Israel; therefore am I come baptizing with water.
31. And John bare record, saying; When he was baptized of me, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.
32. And I knew him; for he who sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me; Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he who baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.
33. And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.
34. These things were done in Bethabara, beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing (JST John:29-34. Bold added).

The synoptic gospels tell us very little about John the Baptist. Each quote his testimony of the baptism of Jesus, and they also tell about his conflict with the Pharisees and Sadducees, and with Herod who consented to his murder.

The intent of those gospels is to establish John’s credibility as a forerunner of the Savior, and then to use that credibility to help establish the Savior’s. They tell us that John was a powerful teacher, and that he was very effective in laying the groundwork for the Savior’s mission. Matthew is the best example.

1 In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judæa,
2 And saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
3 For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
4 And the same John had his raiment of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his meat was locusts and wild honey.
5 Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judæa, and all the region round about Jordan,
6 And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins.
7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?
8 Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:
9 And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham.
10 And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.
11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and with fire:
12 Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.
14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?
15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.
16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased (Matthew 3:1-17).

Matthew and Luke also tell us about Jesus’s testimony of John’s mission.

9 … A prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet.
10 For this is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.
11 Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist:
….
14 And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come.
15 He that hath ears to hear, let him hear (Matthew 11:9-15. See Matthew 17:10-13 and Luke 7:19-30)

John tells us that the Savior described his cousin John as “a burning and a shining light”

33 Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth.
34 But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved.
35 He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light. (John 5:31-47)

The gospels were written at a time when there was still memory of John’s teachings, and the gospel writers frequently referred to them, but they gave us few examples. The best exception is the gospel of John who devotes his first chapter, not in telling us about John’s testimony, but in actually quoting it so we can know it for ourselves. From the synoptic gospels we learn that John the Baptist’s power was in his testimony, and from the gospel of John we learn that the power of his testimony was imbedded in the magnificence of this words.

John the Baptist’s testimony is recorded twice. Once in the gospel of John and again in Doctrine and Covenants section 93. I am quoting each in full because not only are they a window into John’s insights, but also because they are our very best source for understanding the power and grandeur of the premortal Christ.

1 I the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7 The same came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe.
8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light.
9 That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not.
11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
15 John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.
16 And of his fulness have all we received, and grace for grace.
17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.
19 And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou?
20 And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ.
21 And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.
22 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? that we may give an answer to them that sent us. What sayest thou of thyself?
23 He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said the prophet Esaias.
24 And they which were sent were of the Pharisees.
25 And they asked him, and said unto him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?
26 John answered them, saying, I baptize with water: but there standeth one among you, whom ye know not;
27 He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me, whose shoe’s latchet I am not worthy to unloose.
28 These things were done in Bethabara beyond Jordan, where John was baptizing.
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.
31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.
32 And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.
33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.
34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God (John 1:1-34)

In the revelation that is Section 93, the Savior himself gives the introduction to John’s words.

1 Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am;
2 And that I am the true light that lighteth every man that cometh into the world;
3 And that I am in the Father, and the Father in me, and the Father and I are one——
4 The Father because he gave me of his fulness, and the Son because I was in the world and made flesh my tabernacle, and dwelt among the sons of men.
5 I was in the world and received of my Father, and the works of him were plainly manifest.
6 And John saw and bore record of the fulness of my glory, and the fulness of John’s record is hereafter to be revealed.
7 And he bore record, saying: I saw his glory, that he was in the beginning, before the world was;
8 Therefore, in the beginning the Word was, for he was the Word, even the messenger of salvation—
9 The light and the Redeemer of the world; the Spirit of truth, who came into the world, because the world was made by him, and in him was the life of men and the light of men.
10 The worlds were made by him; men were made by him; all things were made by him, and through him, and of him.
11 And I, John, bear record that I beheld his glory, as the glory of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth, even the Spirit of truth, which came and dwelt in the flesh, and dwelt among us.
12 And I, John, saw that he received not of the fulness at the first, but received grace for grace;
13 And he received not of the fulness at first, but continued from grace to grace, until he received a fulness;
14 And thus he was called the Son of God, because he received not of the fulness at the first.
15 And I, John, bear record, and lo, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Ghost descended upon him in the form of a dove, and sat upon him, and there came a voice out of heaven saying: This is my beloved Son.
16 And I, John, bear record that he received a fulness of the glory of the Father;
17 And he received all power, both in heaven and on earth, and the glory of the Father was with him, for he dwelt in him.
18 And it shall come to pass, that if you are faithful you shall receive the fulness of the record of John.
19 I give unto you these sayings that you may understand and know how to worship, and know what you worship, that you may come unto the Father in my name, and in due time receive of his fulness.
20 For if you keep my commandments you shall receive of his fulness, and be glorified in me as I am in the Father; therefore, I say unto you, you shall receive grace for grace (D&C 93:1-39)

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The events of Jesus’s baptism lend themselves to be interpreted as his coronation to become king. In which case, the events on the Mount of Transfiguration can be read to as his coronation to BE king. After his resurrection, Paul describes a third coronation that took place in his Father’s heavenly throne room.

The kings of ancient Israel were anointed twice. The first time was a preparatory anointing to become king. The second was a formal anointing when they were actually made king. The best example is the story of David. His first anointing took place when the Prophet Samuel visited David’s father.

11 And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither.
12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of a beautiful countenance, and goodly to look to. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him: for this is he.
13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah (1 Samuel 16:11 – 13).

Thereafter, David was anointed king of Judah by “the men of Judah,” (2 Samuel 2:4), and sometime after that, he was anointed king over all of Israel.

3 So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the Lord: and they anointed David king over Israel.
4 David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years.
5 In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months: and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah (2 Samuel 5:3-5).

The great biblical scholar, Geo Widengren, saw that story of David as the prototype of the Savior’s baptism. He wrote,

Jesus used to teach in the synagogue. The passage in Luke iv.16 ff. calls for notice in this connexion. In perfect agreement with the regular order of the worship of the synagogue, [he then quotes Luke].

16 And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears (Luke 4:16-21).

Most of what the Savior read was a paraphrase of Isaiah 61:1; and the rest was from Isaiah 42.

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound (Isaiah 61:1).

6 I the Lord have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;
7 To open the blind eyes, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house.
8 I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images (Isaiah 42:6 – 8)

Widengren, reasons that Isaiah 61:1 “is obviously an auto-proclamation originally belonging with exclusive right to the sacral king of Israel.” He then quotes, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me,” and concludes:

This saying alludes to the royal anointing, which gave to the Israelite ruler the spirit of Yahweh, as has been often stressed. [the parallelism between 1 Samuel 16:13 and Isaiah 61:1 is noted.] And here it is all important to note that Luke transmits to us this tradition of Jesus as the teacher in the synagogue immediately after his baptism and temptation. His appearance in the synagogue is thus his first public appearance. In the baptism Jesus had received the royal anointing with the Holy Spirit and been proclaimed the Son of God, thus elevated to the position of the Anointed of Yahweh, in accordance with his (alleged) Davidic lineage inheriting the old rights accorded by Yahweh to David and his descendants— in perfect agreement with the covenant concluded by God with David. {1}

Widengren’s ideas are also consistent with a larger view of the events of Jesus’s baptism. John the Beloved’s account of Jesus’s baptism as is read in the Prophet’s Inspired Version is slightly different from the one in the King James version (the italics show changes in JST). It reads,

29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

JST —- The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and said; Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world!

30 This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is preferred before me: for he was before me.

JST —- And John bare record of him unto the people, saying, This is he of whom I said; After me cometh a man who is preferred before me; for he was before me,

31 And I knew him not: but that he should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come baptizing with water.

JST —- and I knew him, and that he should be made manifest to Israel; therefore am I come baptizing with water.

32 And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.

JST —- And John bare record, saying; When he was baptized of me, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him.

33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.

JST —- And I knew him; for he who sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me; Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he who baptizeth with the Holy Ghost.

34 And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.

JST —- And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.

 (JST, John 1:29-34) {2}

Matthew gives the most complete account of Jesus’s baptism.

16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased (Matthew 3:16-17).

Mark and Luke are similar.

9 And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan.
10 And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him:
11 And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased (Mark 1:9 – 11)

21 Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened,
22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased (Luke 3:21 – 22).

John the apostle quotes John the Baptist’s testimony as, “And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.” The other three give a similar account. Matthew reports, “a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Those were the same words the Father used when he introduced the Savior to the Nephites (3 Nephi 11:7), and to the Prophet Joseph (JS-History 1:17). Mark and Luke each say the voice from heaven spoke to Jesus and said, “Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.”

Each account affirms that the Father proclaimed Jesus’s royal Sonship. That also would have been a necessary part of the Savior’s coronation. The new king-name of the Israelite king was “son” of Jehovah, for Jehovah was the King of Israel, and no human could set upon his throne as king unless he were adopted by Jehovah as his son and heir. Otherwise the king would only be a usurper. {3}

The other necessary event to take place in a royal coronation was his anointing. Widengren observed that “In the baptism Jesus had received the royal anointing with the Holy Spirit and been proclaimed the Son of God, thus elevated to the position of the Anointed of Yahweh.”

Peter’s testimony was probably the source of Widengren’s assertion that the Savior was anointed “with the Holy Spirit.” Peter wrote,

37 That word, I say, ye know, which was published throughout all Judaea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
38 How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil; for God was with him (Acts 10:34-42).

The New Testament does not elaborate on Peter’s statement that “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Ghost and with power,” but we get a sense of what that means by John’s testimony in D&C 93:

15 And I, John, bear record, and lo, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Ghost descended upon him in the form of a , and sat upon him, and there came a voice out of heaven saying: This is my beloved Son.
16 And I, John, bear record that he received a fulness of the glory of the Father;
17 And he received all power, both in heaven and on earth, and the glory of the Father was with him, for he dwelt in him (D&C 93:15-17).

There John said the “Spirit” “abode upon him,” and “remaining on him.” What John saw was clearly not a bird but something whose form resembled a descending white object with outstretched wings.

Ancient Jewish tradition says that before they ate the forbidden fruit, Adam and Eve were dressed in a garments of light. Psalm 104:1-2 says God also has a garment of light. If the white object seen at Jesus’s baptism had sleeves rather than wings, and was the royal garment of light that came down and remained upon the Savior, then that would have been one more characteristic of a royal coronation.

In which case the events were these: the Savior was washed, anointed, clothed, and given the royal king-name by his Father.

The Savior’s experience on the Mount of Transfiguration seems to have been an ordinance very much like his baptism. We have five accounts of the events on the Mount of Transfiguration: Matthew, Mark, Luke, Peter, and Joseph Smith’s inspired version. Each adds details the others do not. The following is a composite of those accounts using only the unique parts of each:

28 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray (Luke 9:28).

2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light (Matthew 17:2).

9:3And his raiment became shining, exceeding white, as snow; so white as no fuller on earth could whiten them.
9:4 And there appeared unto them Elias with Moses, or in other words, John the Baptist and Moses; and they were talking with Jesus. (JST Mark 9:3-4).

32 But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him (Luke 9:31-32).

5 And Peter answered and said to Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee [Melchizedek Priesthood], and one for Moses [Aaronic Priesthood], and one for Elias [Elijah: sealing power] (Mark 9:4-5).

34 While he thus spake, there came a cloud [shechinah], and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud (Luke 9:34).

5 While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud 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.
6 And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid.
7 And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid.
8 And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only (Matthew 17:5-8).

34 While he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud.
35 And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.
36 And when the voice was past, Jesus was found alone. And they kept it close, and told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen.(Luke 9:34-36).

9 And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead (Mark 9:9).

Peter’s personal account, which he wrote as his final testimony in anticipation of his own death, seems to confirm that the events were a coronation. Peter reports, we “were eyewitnesses of his majesty [kingship]. For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Elsewhere in the scriptures the royal clothing is described as having two parts. The undergarment which represented his priesthood (often identified as “glory”), and outer robes representing his kingship (usually called “majesty”). {4}

Peter’s very powerful and personal testimony reads,

16 For we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty [kingship].
17 For he received from God the Father honour and glory, [royal and priesthood clothing] when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
18 And this voice which came from heaven we heard, when we were with him in the holy mount.
19 We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts (2 Peter 1:12-19).

After the Savior’s resurrection there appears to have been another very formal coronation ceremony which took place in the “heavenly places” (the throne room, Holy of Holies, of the temple in Kolob). Paul described that in his epistle to the Ephesians. {5} Paul wrote,

19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his [the Father’s] power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
20 Which he [the Father] wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his [the Father’s] own right hand in the heavenly places,
21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all (Ephesians 1:19 – 23).

Nephi’s final testimony at the conclusion 2 Nephi says we must be baptized as the Savior was. I wonder if he had more in mind than we often associate with those words.

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FOOTNOTES

{1} Geo Widengren, “King and Covenant,” Journal of Semitic Studies 2: 1. (Jan. 1957): 1-32. Quotes are from pages 29-31

{2} John the Baptist’s mission was foretold by Isaiah. See elsewhere in this website, Isaiah 40:3-5 — John the Baptist

{3} See Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord for a discussion of the royal coronation and a of the royal new name in Psalm 2. First edition, 461-517; second (paperback) edition 336-78.

{4} For a discussion of the royal clothing and of “honor and glory” representing names of the garments of priesthood and kingship see Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord , first edition, 486-92; second (paperback), 349-58.

{5} The first chapter of Ephesians is discussed in each edition of Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord. However the more complete one is in the second (paperback) edition pages 550-55. That is the edition found in this website under “published books.” It is also available in print if you, like me, like to actually hold a real book in your hands.

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Power is priesthood: and all priesthood power must be given in the proper manner and by one holding the proper authority. In this instance, the scriptures assure us that the only person who has that authority is the Savior himself. John testified,

11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.

The Prophet’s Inspired Version reads more explicitly:

12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God; only to them who believe on his name.

The Savior taught the same thing when he introduced himself to the Nephites.

15 Behold, I am Jesus Christ the Son of God. I created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are. I was with the Father from the beginning. I am in the Father, and the Father in me; and in me hath the Father glorified his name.
16 I came unto my own, and my own received me not. And the scriptures concerning my coming are fulfilled.
17 And as many as have received me, to them have I given to become the sons of God; and even so will I to as many as shall believe on my name, for behold, by me redemption cometh, and in me is the law of Moses fulfilled (3 Nephi 9:15-17).

The Savior explained it further in the colophon of Section 45 of the Doctrine and Covenants.

7 For verily I say unto you that I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the light and the life of the world—a light that shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not.
8 I came unto mine own, and mine own received me not; but unto as many as received me gave I power to do many miracles, and to become the sons of God; and even unto them that believed on my name gave I power to obtain eternal life (D&C 45:7-8).

As there is always a new name with a new priesthood covenant, the word “name” here may be understood that way. In which case it might be read as, “only to them who believe on my covenant gave I power to obtain eternal life.”

We see the same sort of bestowal of power in the Savior’s Sermon at the Temple in 3 Nephi. Where Matthew reads, “Ye are the salt of the earth” and “Ye are the light of the world (Matthew 5:13-15),” in the Book of Mormon it is a conferral of the Savior’s of power.

13 Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the salt of the earth ….
14 Verily, verily, I say unto you, I give unto you to be the light of this people (3 Nephi 12:13-14).

In the coronation ceremony at the conclusion of the ancient Israelite Feast of Tabernacles temple drama, the king was anointed and given the authority to reign on earth as a representative of Jehovah who is in fact King of Israel. The anointing was a dual ordinance where the king was adopted as the legitimate son of Jehovah and anointed king. The adoption was necessary. Otherwise, if the king presumed to sit upon the throne in the Temple, he would be a usurper rather than a legal heir.

Psalm 2 was sung during that part of the coronation ceremony. It is sung in part by the congregation, and in part by the king himself. The king says,

7. I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my son; this day have I begotten thee (Psalm 2:7). {1}

This anointing represented a new birth, and the new royal covenant name was “son.” That is, the adopted son who could become the rightful heir of Jehovah.

Like the rest of the temple drama, the coronation was a participatory ceremony. Not only was the king adopted at that time, but symbolically, each man in the congregation was also adopted as a son and anointed as a king— not as a political ruler but as a sacral (priesthood) king.

This concept that one must be born again and adopted into the family of God in a fundamental teaching in the scriptures. The phrase itself is found only three times in the New Testament. Two are during the conversation between the Savior and Nickademous, and the third is in 1 Peter.

3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.(John 3:3,7).

22 Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently:
23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever (1 Peter 1:22-23)

Alma defines the order of his priesthood as the authority to teach that principle. To the people in Zarahemla he declared, “the order after which I am called, … [is] to cry unto them that they must repent and be born again. (Alma 5:49).” To the people in Gideon he was even more explicit.

14 Now I say unto you that ye must repent, and be born again; for the Spirit saith if ye are not born again ye cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven; therefore come and be baptized unto repentance, that ye may be washed from your sins, that ye may have faith on the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, who is mighty to save and to cleanse from all unrighteousness (Alma 7:14).

Alma understood the importance of his burden to teach the people that they must be born again, because he had learned it from the Savior.

23 And it came to pass after they had fasted and prayed for the space of two days and two nights, the limbs of Alma received their strength, and he stood up and began to speak unto them, bidding them to be of good comfort:
24 For, said he, I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.
25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be born again; yea, born of God, changed from their carnal and fallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his sons and daughters;
26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God. (Mosiah 27:23-29).

There are two different but similar concepts taught in the scriptures, and they can best be understood as a sequence. The first is that we must become sons and daughters of Christ. The second is that he will enable us to become children of his Father. He said that very succinctly in the Beatitudes.

8 And blessed are all the pure in heart, for they shall see God.
9 And blessed are all the peacemakers, for they shall be called [new name] the children of God (3 Nephi 12:8-9).

The Savior had already taught the first part of that sequence to the brother of Jared.

10 And he answered: Nay; Lord, show thyself unto me.
11 And the Lord said unto him: Believest thou the words which I shall speak?
12 And he answered: Yea, Lord, I know that thou speakest the truth, for thou art a God of truth, and canst not lie.
13 And when he had said these words, behold, the Lord showed himself unto him, and said: Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall; therefore ye are brought back into my presence; therefore I show myself unto you.
14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall become my sons and my daughters. (Ether 3:10 – 14)

John the Beloved also testified,

5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
6 And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son (Revelation 21:5-7).

As with the king and people in Psalm 2, King Benjamin concluded his Feast of Tabernacles drama with,

14 … I say unto you, that even so shall it be among you if ye know not the name by which ye are called.
15 Therefore, I would that ye should be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in good works, that Christ, the Lord God Omnipotent, may seal you his, that you may be brought to heaven, that ye may have everlasting salvation and eternal life, through the wisdom, and power, and justice, and mercy of him who created all things, in heaven and in earth, who is God above all. Amen. (Mosiah 5:14-15)

He had already explained,

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.
13 For how knoweth a man the master whom he has not served, and who is a stranger unto him, and is far from the thoughts and intents of his heart? (Mosiah 5:6-13)

The first part of the sequence is to become adopted as a child of the Savior. The key to understanding the second part is found in his words to Orson Pratt.

1 My son Orson, hearken and hear and behold what I, the Lord God, shall say unto you, even Jesus Christ your Redeemer;
2 The light and the life of the world, a light which shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehendeth it not;
3 Who so loved the world that he gave his own life, that as many as would believe might become the sons of God. Wherefore you are my son (D&C 34:1-4).

The sequence is explicit: because Orson is the Savior’s son, he might also become a son of Heavenly Father. Shortly thereafter, in a revelation addressed to Sidney Rigdon, the Savior explained how being his own son enabled one to also become an adopted son of his Father.

1 Listen to the voice of the Lord your God, even Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, whose course is one eternal round, the same today as yesterday, and forever.
2 I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who was crucified for the sins of the world, even as many as will believe on my name, that they may become the sons of God, even one in me as I am one in the Father, as the Father is one in me, that we may be one (D&C 35:1-2).

Paul explained how it is done in his letter to the Ephesians.

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself [the Father], according to the good pleasure of his [the Father’s] will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his [the Father] grace, wherein he [the Father] hath made us accepted in the beloved [the Savior].
7 In whom [the Savior] we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace (Ephesians 1:3-7). {2}

I understand it this way. We are spirit children of our Heavenly Father, but like the prodigal son, we lost the rights to that heritage when we left home and came to this world and experienced the sin and contradictions that are here. {3}

If we are to regain our heritage, also like the prodigal son, it must be through the generosity and authority of the faithful Son. As Paul explained, we must be adopted through Christ to the Father. Then, as adopted children of the Father, we may also be his legal heirs.

That promise is the conclusion of Mormon’s great priesthood sermon.

47 But charity is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.
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 7:47-48).

John the Beloved explained more fully the relationships that Mormon described.

1 Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.
2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
3 And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure.
….
9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.
11 For this is the message that ye heard from the beginning, that we should love one another (1 John 3:1-3, 9-11).

Verse 9 is difficult to understand as it is written in the King James Bible, but in the Prophet’s Inspired Version not only is it easier to understand but it ties John’s words directly to other scriptures that mention the Holy Spirit of Promise.{4}

9. Whosoever is born of God doth not continue in sin; for the Spirit of God remaineth in him; and he cannot continue in sin, because he is born of God, having received that holy Spirit of promise (JST, 1 John 3:9)

That promise reaches into the eternities, and remains a defining characteristic of those in the Celestial kingdom. Section 76 affirms,

53 And who overcome by faith, and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, which the Father sheds forth upon all those who are just and true.
54 They are they who are the church of the Firstborn.
55 They are they into whose hands the Father has given all things—
56 They are they who are priests and kings, who have received of his fulness, and of his glory;
57 And are priests of the Most High, after the order of Melchizedek, which was after the order of Enoch, which was after the order of the Only Begotten Son.
58 Wherefore, as it is written, they are gods, even the sons of God—
59 Wherefore, all things are theirs, whether life or death, or things present, or things to come, all are theirs and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.
60 And they shall overcome all things.
61 Wherefore, let no man glory in man, but rather let him glory in God, who shall subdue all enemies under his feet.
62 These shall dwell in the presence of God and his Christ forever and ever.
63 These are they whom he shall bring with him, when he shall come in the clouds of heaven to reign on the earth over his people (D&C 76:50 – 70).

In his poem, A Vision, the Prophet Joseph explained that the relationship was not only binding for the people in our world, but also to the inhabitants of all the worlds “that careen in the heavens.” He wrote,

And now after all of the proofs made of him,
By witnesses truly, by whom he was known,
This is mine, last of all, that he lives; yea, he lives!
And sits at the right hand of God on his throne.

And I heard a great voice bearing record from heav’n,
He’s the Saviour and only begotten of God;
By him, of him, and through him, the worlds were all made,
Even all that careen in the heavens so broad.

Whose inhabitants, too, from the first to the last,
Are sav’d by the very same Saviour of ours;
And, of course, are begotten God’s daughters and sons
By the very same truths and the very same powers. {5}

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FOOTNOTES

{1} For a discussion of the king’s name in the coronation ceremony, see Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, “Psalm 2, The Ancient Israelite Royal King-name,” first edition 499-517, second (paperback) edition,361-73.

{2} The relationship of the Savior’’s Atonemtent and his Father’’s grace is explained by Moroni.

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)

{3} If the Savior also experienced such a fall, his heritage was restored again during coronation ceremonies of his baptism and on the Mount of Transfiguration when the Father himself declared “thou art my beloved Son.” (Mark 1:11, 1 Peter 1:17-18)

{4} The Holy Spirit of Promise is also mentioned in Ephesians 1:13, D&C 76:53, 88:3, 124:124, 132:7, 18-19, 26.

{5} A Vision by the Prophet Joseph Smith, Times and Seasons, February 1, 1843.

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