Ether 12

Ether 12

Ether Prophesies to the People

Ether 12:1

1 And it came to pass that the days of Ether were in the days of Coriantumr; and Coriantumr was king over all the land.

Comments

Our current chapter 12 of the book of Ether was a single chapter in the 1830 edition of the Book of Mormon as well. The break between chapters is therefore original at least to the way Moroni recorded it and it cannot be known if it follows a similar division on Ether’s record.

The difference between the chapters up to this point and this one is that we leave the very terse description of only the outlines of events and begin to see the more complex history that occurred during Ether’s life. He was a witness both in that he saw it, and that he wrote it.

We learn that while Ether follows a lineage that traces through kings, the most recent royalty had been held in captivity. Even while in captivity, however, it appears that some of the sons of a king might not remain captive. That appears to be the case with Ether. We might therefore suggest that he was not the last-born, and therefore not a designated heir to the throne.

We learn in verse 1 that Ether’s lineage is still out of power. Coriantumr is king. However, Coriantumr does not appear in the genealogy list in Ether chapter 1.

Ether 12:2–5

2 And Ether was a prophet of the Lord; wherefore Ether came forth in the days of Coriantumr, and began to prophesy unto the people, for he could not be restrained because of the Spirit of the Lord which was in him.

3 For he did cry from the morning, even until the going down of the sun, exhorting the people to believe in God unto repentance lest they should be destroyed, saying unto them that by faith all things are fulfilled—

4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.

5 And it came to pass that Ether did prophesy great and marvelous things unto the people, which they did not believe, because they saw them not.

Comments

Even though this is Ether’s record, and we are now in the part of his record to which he was an eyewitness, we still see the text in the third person. Therefore, we are seeing either the text that Mosiah₂ translated, or that Moroni is editing. The use of the third person suggests that we are seeing Moroni’s summary here.

Ether was a prophet sent to give the people yet one last chance to repent and turn to God. Where the previous descriptions of prophets among the people typically told only of their rejection, Ether’s record more explicitly states that in his day (as was probable in earlier times as well), there were some who did believe. Not all were turned from God (see verse 4).

The Trial of Faith

Ether 12:6–9

6 And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.

7 For it was by faith that Christ showed himself unto our fathers, after he had risen from the dead; and he showed not himself unto them until after they had faith in him; wherefore, it must needs be that some had faith in him, for he showed himself not unto the world.

8 But because of the faith of men he has shown himself unto the world, and glorified the name of the Father, and prepared a way that thereby others might be partakers of the heavenly gift, that they might hope for those things which they have not seen.

9 Wherefore, ye may also have hope, and be partakers of the gift, if ye will but have faith.

Comments

As did his father, Mormon, Moroni makes a temporary end to telling the history, and tells the moral of the history. With the backdrop of the relentless stories of rebellions and walking wickedly before God, it seems unusual that Moroni would insert a discourse on the nature of faith. It is plausible that these thoughts were triggered by his summary of Ether’s preaching in the previous verses (2–5). In those verses, Moroni described Ether faithfully teaching, with only a few who believing him. Moroni personally understood that the destruction of a people did not mean that every person in that destroyed nation had abandoned faith.

Moroni saw in Ether the example of faith in adversity. When we see the language echoing Hebrews 11:1, the important part isn’t the whole of the verse, but the wording of the verse’s ending: “hoped for and not seen.” Moroni is placing a definition of faith in the context of adversity, a faith that can remain strong even when the results, or the justification for that faith, are not seen.

Thinking on Ether’s personal mission, Moroni sees the problem of a faithful prophet, who is preaching to a nation that rejects him. Still, the reception of the message does not mean that the message wasn’t true. Ether was in a trial of his faith, but “ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.” That statement parallels the admonition against looking for signs. Looking for signs reverses the process, suggesting that the witness might come first. It is rather that we must be prepared and be faithful so that we might be worthy of the witness.

Because it is Moroni speaking, he is not exclusively speaking of the brother of Jared when he says that “Christ showed himself unto our fathers,” though that is appropriate in this record. Moroni would include any time that God was present, even if only in a cloud, or in a fire on a rock (as witnessed by Lehi₁). Moroni also included the time that Christ literally showed himself in Bountiful. All of those occasions were made possible through faith and were not given to create faith.

The purpose of Christ is to be the foundation upon which our hopes can be built. Having declared himself among men, Christ is the anchor to which we may tie our hopes, and therefore be “partakers of the gift” of eternal life.

Ether 12:10–12

10 Behold it was by faith that they of old were called after the holy order of God.

11 Wherefore, by faith was the law of Moses given. But in the gift of his Son hath God prepared a more excellent way; and it is by faith that it hath been fulfilled.

12 For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; wherefore, he showed not himself until after their faith.

Comments

Ether 12:10 reflects the teaching Moroni knew from Alma 13:10: “Now, as I said concerning the holy order, or this high priesthood, there were many who were ordained and became high priests of God; and it was on account of their exceeding faith and repentance, and their righteousness before God, they choosing to repent and work righteousness rather than to perish.”

Verse 11 declares that it was the faith of the Israelites that allowed them to enter into the covenant known as the law of Moses. Jesus Christ fulfilled that law, and it was done by faith. How might that have happened? Christ entered his final days on earth understanding what would befall him. The earthly consequences were absolutely clear. The heavenly benefits had been declared, but required faith so that he could act with an eye to the heavenly benefit rather than the earthly distress and pain.

The language of Ether 12 is unique, but the principle that links faith and miracles was taught from the beginning, and throughout, Nephite history. See 2 Nephi 26:13; 27:23; Mosiah 8:18; Alma 37:40; 3 Nephi 19:35.

Ether 12:13–18

13 Behold, it was the faith of Alma and Amulek that caused the prison to tumble to the earth.

14 Behold, it was the faith of Nephi and Lehi that wrought the change upon the Lamanites, that they were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost.

15 Behold, it was the faith of Ammon and his brethren which wrought so great a miracle among the Lamanites.

16 Yea, and even all they who wrought miracles wrought them by faith, even those who were before Christ and also those who were after.

17 And it was by faith that the three disciples obtained a promise that they should not taste of death; and they obtained not the promise until after their faith.

18 And neither at any time hath any wrought miracles until after their faith; wherefore they first believed in the Son of God.

Comments

Moroni did not have an apparatus for quoting scripture as we do. He couldn’t refer to chapter and verse in the stories that his father had written, but he could recall them by the names of those involved and the associated incident. Those who have read the Book of Mormon are familiar with these names and stories. Moroni assumes that his readers would know them, and therefore agree that they had faith prior to the time the miracle was performed.

The interim conclusion echoes the premise: “And neither at any time hath any wrought miracles until after their faith; wherefore they first believed in the Son of God” (verse 18).

Ether 12:19–21

19 And there were many whose faith was so exceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from within the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith, and they were glad.

20 And behold, we have seen in this record that one of these was the brother of Jared; for so great was his faith in God, that when God put forth his finger he could not hide it from the sight of the brother of Jared, because of his word which he had spoken unto him, which word he had obtained by faith.

21 And after the brother of Jared had beheld the finger of the Lord, because of the promise which the brother of Jared had obtained by faith, the Lord could not withhold anything from his sight; wherefore he showed him all things, for he could no longer be kept without the veil.

Comments

Moroni is explicit that he is including the brother of Jared among those who have seen “with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith.” In addition to the brother of Jared, there were equally important visions of the future, such as Nephi₁ had received in his Tree of Life vision. The emphasis on the brother of Jared is appropriate since Moroni is writing in the book of Ether, where we learn of that story.

Weak Things Will Be Made Strong

Ether 12:22–25

22 And it is by faith that my fathers have obtained the promise that these things should come unto their brethren through the Gentiles; therefore the Lord hath commanded me, yea, even Jesus Christ.

23 And I said unto him: Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, because of our weakness in writing; for Lord thou hast made us mighty in word by faith, but thou hast not made us mighty in writing; for thou hast made all this people that they could speak much, because of the Holy Ghost which thou hast given them;

24 And thou hast made us that we could write but little, because of the awkwardness of our hands. Behold, thou hast not made us mighty in writing like unto the brother of Jared, for thou madest him that the things which he wrote were mighty even as thou art, unto the overpowering of man to read them.

25 Thou hast also made our words powerful and great, even that we cannot write them; wherefore, when we write we behold our weakness, and stumble because of the placing of our words; and I fear lest the Gentiles shall mock at our words.

Comments

Moroni shifts his focus. He has been speaking of faith, but a faith that looked to Jesus Christ. Now, he speaks of those who have had faith, and have been able to see the future. One of the things that they have seen is the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. Moroni now focuses on that project on which he is working.

Looking forward to that time, Moroni is concerned that what he and his father have written might not effectively communicate the message. The message is that the Gentiles should take these words to those who would be called Lamanites. Moroni addresses his lament to God and worries that “the Gentiles will mock at these things, because of our weakness in writing.” He declares that he and the other prophets have sufficient faith, but that their faith might not be communicated in the more impersonal medium of writing.

Moroni has read the vision of the future that the brother of Jared wrote, but which he sealed up. We do not have it to be able to verify that the brother of Jared was so much better at writing about faith than were Mormon or Moroni. We now have what Mormon and Moroni wrote, and even though they feared that their writings might not be sufficient, millions now have faith in them, and use them to spiritually guide their lives.

Ether 12:26–27

26 And when I had said this, the Lord spake unto me, saying: Fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness;

27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

Comments

The Lord responds that some of what Moroni fears will be part of the process: “Fools mock.” It will happen. It has happened. When the final accounting comes, however, “they shall mourn.” These things are true, and truth will be attested at the last day.

The next lesson is one that easily expands far beyond the context of writing the Book of Mormon, or even its reception. God teaches us a lesson about our humanity. We have weaknesses, and God “will show unto [us our] weakness.” Those weaknesses can be explicit. We might hide them. We might not even realize we have them.

Nevertheless, God “give[s] unto men weakness that they may be humble.” We must understand that we rely upon God and turn to him in faith. Of course, we also have strengths, and all humankind understands that we can do for ourselves in those things where we are strong. It is in our weakness that we most often realize that we should turn to God.

The miracle that comes after that exercise of faith is that God will then “make weak things become strong unto [us].” Sometimes that does mean that someone weak in writing or speaking might become strong in writing and speaking. Sometimes it means that even if that particular thing never becomes significantly better, we do. We become stronger by founding ourselves in faith, particularly faith in Jesus Christ.

Ether 12:28–29

28 Behold, I will show unto the Gentiles their weakness, and I will show unto them that faith, hope and charity bringeth unto me—the fountain of all righteousness.

29 And I, Moroni, having heard these words, was comforted, and said: O Lord, thy righteous will be done, for I know that thou workest unto the children of men according to their faith;

Comments

Verse 27 records that the Lord told Moroni: “If men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble.” The context for the Comments on weakness began with Moroni worrying that his own weakness in writing would hinder the acceptance of the Book of Mormon. God responds that weaknesses will be made into strength, and then specifically notes that the Gentiles can be shown their weakness. If some might desire to mock, there would be others who would be humble, and that humility would bring them to God in “faith, hope and charity.” By implication, they would accept the Book of Mormon. It is for that reason that Moroni, upon hearing those words, “was comforted.” He understood that his weakness would not result in the failure of the book to do what it was intended to do.

Ether 12:30–31

30 For the brother of Jared said unto the mountain Zerin, Remove—and it was removed. And if he had not had faith it would not have moved; wherefore thou workest after men have faith.

31 For thus didst thou manifest thyself unto thy disciples; for after they had faith, and did speak in thy name, thou didst show thyself unto them in great power.

Comments

These comments follow immediately upon Moroni’s understanding his personal weakness in writing would not be a hindrance. The reason is that faith can overcome his weakness. Thus, in verse 29 he had said: “For I know that thou workest unto the children of men according to their faith.” Having declared that God works according to faith, Moroni provides examples of great things that had been done through faith. If the brother of Jared might remove a mountain, God could find a way to make the Book of Mormon a strength rather than an example of weakness in writing.

Verse 28 of this chapter introduced the Pauline formula of faith, hope, and charity. Moroni has taken that trilogy and expanded upon its principles.

These two verses conclude his explication of the requirement of faith. For Moroni, faith is a force that marshals action. Few will ever have the power of the disciples, even less will have the power to move a mountain. Nevertheless, in each individual life, faith provides the power to do and to progress. Faith is usually seen in the small miracles, not the large ones. Faith is often a quiet force that commits us to continue to follow the path to God, even though the way becomes difficult at times.

Ether 12:32–34

32 And I also remember that thou hast said that thou hast prepared a house for man, yea, even among the mansions of thy Father, in which man might have a more excellent hope; wherefore man must hope, or he cannot receive an inheritance in the place which thou hast prepared.

33 And again, I remember that thou hast said that thou hast loved the world, even unto the laying down of thy life for the world, that thou mightest take it again to prepare a place for the children of men.

34 And now I know that this love which thou hast had for the children of men is charity; wherefore, except men shall have charity they cannot inherit that place which thou hast prepared in the mansions of thy Father.

Comments

Having concluded his exposition about faith, Moroni turns to hope. He defines hope as a looking forward to a goal. In verse 32, the final goal is a house prepared for man among God’s mansions. It is our hoped-for inheritance. Hope, in the context of faith, hope, and charity, is not simply a wish, but a desire fixed on a goal. Faith may be “the principle of action in all intelligent beings” (Lectures on Faith, Lecture First: 9), but hope defines the goal upon which we focus our actions.

Moroni moves to the topic of charity, and the ultimate charity is the love of God for the world, and love that provided a savior. While that is the ultimate charity, it is one that permits us to develop our own charity, our own love for others. We begin with those who are already able to love others, but who are expected to progress to a more Godlike love (where God could love the whole world, even the world that would crucify his Son). That attribute of godhood is an essential lesson of our life on earth, for “except men shall have charity they cannot inherit that place which thou hast prepared in the mansions of [God].”

Verse 33 says that Moroni remembers that the Lord had said: “[T]hou hast loved the world, even unto the laying down of thy life for the world, that thou mightest take it again.” Moroni may have been referring to Christ’s appearance at Bountiful, as seen in 3 Nephi 9:22. However, the language in both cases is very close to John 10:17: “Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.” Verse 33 probably modeled the wording of John 10:17, but the visit of the Savior provided the meaning and context to it.

Ether 12:35–36

35 Wherefore, I know by this thing which thou hast said, that if the Gentiles have not charity, because of our weakness, that thou wilt prove them, and take away their talent, yea, even that which they have received, and give unto them who shall have more abundantly.

36 And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord that he would give unto the Gentiles grace, that they might have charity.

Comments

Moroni concludes his explanation of his understanding, and with the explanation of faith, hope and charity, he returns to the reason that it became a question in the first place: “I know by this thing which thou has said, that if the Gentiles have not charity, because of our weakness, that thou wilt prove them.” Moroni began this inserted plea with the fear that his weakness in writing might harm the purpose of the Book of Mormon. He declares to the Lord that he understands that God will assist, and he prays that future recipients of the Book of Mormon might have the faith, hope and charity, and will accept the Book of Mormon. For those of us who have faith, hope and charity, we also require those attributes in order to live according to the book’s precepts.

In verse 35, the use of the word talent very clearly follows the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:14–29.

Moroni Bids Farewell

Ether 12:37–41

37 And it came to pass that the Lord said unto me: If they have not charity it mattereth not unto thee, thou hast been faithful; wherefore, thy garments shall be made clean. And because thou hast seen thy weakness thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father.

38 And now I, Moroni, bid farewell unto the Gentiles, yea, and also unto my brethren whom I love, until we shall meet before the judgment-seat of Christ, where all men shall know that my garments are not spotted with your blood.

39 And then shall ye know that I have seen Jesus, and that he hath talked with me face to face, and that he told me in plain humility, even as a man telleth another in mine own language, concerning these things;

40 And only a few have I written, because of my weakness in writing.

41 And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen.

Comments

Moroni had been pouring his heart out to the Lord, concerned for his role in an important event, and worried that he was insufficient in his efforts. God replied: “If they have not charity it mattereth not unto thee, thou hast been faithful.” What God requires of us is that we are faithful. God does not require of us that other people have the reactions to our efforts that we desire. It is sufficient that we be faithful.

With that encouragement, Moroni is ready to return to his task. He bids “farewell unto the Gentiles, yea, and also unto my brethren whom I love.” He is nearing the conclusion of his writing, and appears to believe that after he has finished, he will write no more. In Moroni 1:1 he stated: “Now I, Moroni, after having made an end of abridging the account of the people of Jared, I had supposed not to have written more, but I have not as yet perished.”

As he bids is own farewell, he returns yet again to his fear of his weakness in writing (verse 40). His final statement of his own, before concluding Ether’s record, is “I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written.” That is Moroni’s message, and that was his father’s message. That was also the Nephite message. However, it is not the message of the book of Ether. We are seeing Moroni in this chapter, quite apart from the text that he is editing.

This is the end of the chapter in the 1830 edition of the Book of Mormon.