Mormon 9
Message to Unbelievers
Mormon 9:1–5
1 And now, I speak also concerning those who do not believe in Christ.
2 Behold, will ye believe in the day of your visitation—behold, when the Lord shall come, yea, even that great day when the earth shall be rolled together as a scroll, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, yea, in that great day when ye shall be brought to stand before the Lamb of God—then will ye say that there is no God?
3 Then will ye longer deny the Christ, or can ye behold the Lamb of God? Do ye suppose that ye shall dwell with him under a consciousness of your guilt? Do ye suppose that ye could be happy to dwell with that holy Being, when your souls are racked with a consciousness of guilt that ye have ever abused his laws?
4 Behold, I say unto you that ye would be more miserable to dwell with a holy and just God, under a consciousness of your filthiness before him, than ye would to dwell with the damned souls in hell.
5 For behold, when ye shall be brought to see your nakedness before God, and also the glory of God, and the holiness of Jesus Christ, it will kindle a flame of unquenchable fire upon you.
Comments
This chapter is the second part of the original Mormon chapter IV, which consisted of our current chapters 8 and 9. These are Moroni’s closing words on his father’s record. At the end of our chapter 8, Moroni was describing the conditions of the wicked at the last days.
In this part, he turns to a specific set of people, “those who do not believe in Christ.” His hope, of course, is to get them to open their minds and hearts to believe in Him. Therefore, he asks those who do not believe in Christ if they do not think that they might change their minds when the last days come, “in that great day when ye shall be brought to stand before the Lamb of God [Jesus Christ].”
When they are in that situation, they will no longer be able to deny the Christ. The important question is “do ye suppose that ye could be happy to dwell with that holy being, when your souls are racked with a consciousness of guilt that ye have ever abused his laws?” This concept that our own hearts and souls will determine our final judgment (seen in verses 3–5) is more strongly stated in Doctrine and Covenants 88: 22–24:
For he who is not able to abide the law of a celestial kingdom cannot abide a celestial glory. And he who cannot abide the law of a terrestrial kingdom cannot abide a terrestrial glory. And he who cannot abide the law of a telestial kingdom cannot abide a telestial glory; therefore he is not meet for a kingdom of glory. Therefore he must abide a kingdom which is not a kingdom of glory.
Message to Those Who Reject God’s Revelations
Mormon 9:6–8
6 O then ye unbelieving, turn ye unto the Lord; cry mightily unto the Father in the name of Jesus, that perhaps ye may be found spotless, pure, fair, and white, having been cleansed by the blood of the Lamb, at that great and last day.
7 And again I speak unto you who deny the revelations of God, and say that they are done away, that there are no revelations, nor prophecies, nor gifts, nor healing, nor speaking with tongues, and the interpretation of tongues;
8 Behold I say unto you, he that denieth these things knoweth not the gospel of Christ; yea, he has not read the scriptures; if so, he does not understand them.
Comments
To avoid the problem Moroni discussed in verses 3–5 of this chapter, that we would not be able to be happy in the presence of a God we had denied, Moroni declares that: “O then ye unbelieving, turn ye unto God.” Repentance is the important first step. It is also the beginning of the gospel of Christ as taught in the Book of Mormon, that one must repent, and be baptized and receive the Holy Ghost.
Speaking to those who deny Christ, they also deny revelations, prophecies and other spiritual gifts. They deny them not because they do not exist, but because they also deny the scriptures in which the evidence of those gifts is recorded.
Mormon 9:9–11
9 For do we not read that God is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and in him there is no variableness neither shadow of changing?
10 And now, if ye have imagined up unto yourselves a god who doth vary, and in whom there is shadow of changing, then have ye imagined up unto yourselves a god who is not a God of miracles.
11 But behold, I will show unto you a God of miracles, even the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and it is that same God who created the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are.
Comments
The argument begins in the previous verses by noting that those who deny Christ also deny the record of the gifts of the Spirit as recorded in the scriptures. A reason they might do so is that they might believe that although perhaps in ancient days such things might have happened, they do not happen in the current day.
That is the proposition against which he argues that they must continue, for “God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.” A definition of God is his trustworthiness and stability. Without that, he would not be God.
In contrast to the God that the unbelievers have imaged, Moroni proposes to “show unto you a God of miracles, even the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” The repetition of the “God of” the different patriarchs is meant to demonstrate that they all believed in the same God, and even though they lived at different times, God was to them, and for them, the same God.
Mormon 9:12–14
12 Behold, he created Adam, and by Adam came the fall of man. And because of the fall of man came Jesus Christ, even the Father and the Son; and because of Jesus Christ came the redemption of man.
13 And because of the redemption of man, which came by Jesus Christ, they are brought back into the presence of the Lord; yea, this is wherein all men are redeemed, because the death of Christ bringeth to pass the resurrection, which bringeth to pass a redemption from an endless sleep, from which sleep all men shall be awakened by the power of God when the trump shall sound; and they shall come forth, both small and great, and all shall stand before his bar, being redeemed and loosed from this eternal band of death, which death is a temporal death.
14 And then cometh the judgment of the Holy One upon them; and then cometh the time that he that is filthy shall be filthy still; and he that is righteous shall be righteous still; he that is happy shall be happy still; and he that is unhappy shall be unhappy still.
Comments
Following the declaration in the previous verses that the God of the different patriarchs is the same God, he had declared that it was that same God who created the heavens and earth. That leads to the discussion of the purpose for the creation of this earth by that consistent God. Moroni begins with Adam, and quickly explains the fall, and therefore the necessity of Christ’s atoning sacrifice.
Because Christ has provided the infinite sacrifice and reversed the conditions that required temporal and spiritual death, he is qualified to judge those who have lived on this earth. There will come a time when “he that is filthy shall be filthy still,” and “he that is righteous shall be righteous still.” This life matters to the formation of our eternal character.
Message to Those Who Reject Miracles
Mormon 9:15–18
15 And now, O all ye that have imagined up unto yourselves a god who can do no miracles, I would ask of you, have all these things passed, of which I have spoken? Has the end come yet? Behold I say unto you, Nay; and God has not ceased to be a God of miracles.
16 Behold, are not the things that God hath wrought marvelous in our eyes? Yea, and who can comprehend the marvelous works of God?
17 Who shall say that it was not a miracle that by his word the heaven and the earth should be; and by the power of his word man was created of the dust of the earth; and by the power of his word have miracles been wrought?
18 And who shall say that Jesus Christ did not do many mighty miracles? And there were many mighty miracles wrought by the hands of the apostles.
Comments
Moroni returns to those who deny that miracles continue (see verse 7 in this chapter). Moroni declares that God has not ceased to be a God of miracles. He turns to the scriptures to note that God has certainly been a God of miracles, and that his power was given to Jesus Christ while on earth to do miracles. Since God is constant, he was—and therefore is a God of miracles.
Mormon 9:19–20
19 And if there were miracles wrought then, why has God ceased to be a God of miracles and yet be an unchangeable Being? And behold, I say unto you he changeth not; if so he would cease to be God; and he ceaseth not to be God, and is a God of miracles.
20 And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust.
Comments
What Moroni does admit is that it appears that “God ceased to be a God of miracles.” As an unchanging being, how is it that this appears to have changed.
Moroni is clear. It is our fault, not God’s. “And the reason why he ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief, and depart from the right way, and know not the God in whom they should trust.”
Admonition to Believe in Christ
Mormon 9:21–23
21 Behold, I say unto you that whoso believeth in Christ, doubting nothing, whatsoever he shall ask the Father in the name of Christ it shall be granted him; and this promise is unto all, even unto the ends of the earth.
22 For behold, thus said Jesus Christ, the Son of God, unto his disciples who should tarry, yea, and also to all his disciples, in the hearing of the multitude: Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature;
23 And he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned;
Comments
In contrast to those who do not believe in Christ, the fate of those who believe in Christ “shall not be damned.” Moroni began in verse 1 of this chapter discussing the problem of those who do not believe in Christ. Clearly, they should. To help them do so, the gospel is to be preached, and for that reason God gave the disciples the responsibility to go into the world and preach the gospel to all.
Mormon 9:24–26
24 And these signs shall follow them that believe—in my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; they shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover;
25 And whosoever shall believe in my name, doubting nothing, unto him will I confirm all my words, even unto the ends of the earth.
26 And now, behold, who can stand against the works of the Lord? Who can deny his sayings? Who will rise up against the almighty power of the Lord? Who will despise the works of the Lord? Who will despise the children of Christ? Behold, all ye who are despisers of the works of the Lord, for ye shall wonder and perish.
Comments
Moroni had declared in verse 20 of this chapter that “the reason why [God] ceaseth to do miracles among the children of men is because that they dwindle in unbelief.” What happens when that condition is reversed, and the children of men repent and believe? Miracles return. God is constant, and when we are worthy of the miracles through our faith in Jesus Christ, the miracles can return. Thus, those miracles can become a sign of the righteous.
The language of verse 24 follows Mark 16:17–18: “And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.”
Mormon 9:27–29
27 O then despise not, and wonder not, but hearken unto the words of the Lord, and ask the Father in the name of Jesus for what things soever ye shall stand in need. Doubt not, but be believing, and begin as in times of old, and come unto the Lord with all your heart, and work out your own salvation with fear and trembling before him.
28 Be wise in the days of your probation; strip yourselves of all uncleanness; ask not, that ye may consume it on your lusts, but ask with a firmness unshaken, that ye will yield to no temptation, but that ye will serve the true and living God.
29 See that ye are not baptized unworthily; see that ye partake not of the sacrament of Christ unworthily; but see that ye do all things in worthiness, and do it in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God; and if ye do this, and endure to the end, ye will in nowise be cast out.
Comments
Moroni is wrapping up his argument. He spoke of the fate of those who do not believe in Christ, and of God’s faithfulness to provide both the Savior and miracles. The reversal of the doom of unbelief is faith, and Moroni now admonishes his readers to be among the believers: “Despise not, and wonder not, but hearken unto the words of the Lord.”
The key to gaining faith is to open communication between God and our hearts. We must ask of the Father, and “doubt not, but be believing.”
Moroni also reiterates the importance of this life as a time to learn to know Christ. Thus, he admonishes us to “be wise in the days of [our] probation.”
Finally, we are to be baptized to follow the gospel of Jesus Christ. However, it isn’t the simple act of immersion, but the worthy immersion that allows it to cleanse us and put us on the correct path to God. From that point, we still are required to live according to the commandments. Thus, we are admonished to “endure to the end.”
Mormon 9:30–31
30 Behold, I speak unto you as though I spake from the dead; for I know that ye shall have my words.
31 Condemn me not because of mine imperfection, neither my father, because of his imperfection, neither them who have written before him; but rather give thanks unto God that he hath made manifest unto you our imperfections, that ye may learn to be more wise than we have been.
Comments
Moroni has been discharging his responsibility to teach the gospel of Christ. Now, he comes to the end of his words, and of his father’s record and masterwork. He turns to what he has written.
It is easy to assume that when Moroni speaks of the imperfections in what he and others have written that me must be referring to mistakes in recording, or words, or grammar, or maybe in missing some historical event. That is not the message. The imperfections Moroni is interested in here are those of the human condition. They are the times when we deviate from the straight course of God’s way. That is the reason that Moroni commends to us that we learn from their imperfections, that “[we] may learn to be wiser than [they] were.”
Mormon 9:32–33
32 And now, behold, we have written this record according to our knowledge, in the characters which are called among us the reformed Egyptian, being handed down and altered by us, according to our manner of speech.
33 And if our plates had been sufficiently large we should have written in Hebrew; but the Hebrew hath been altered by us also; and if we could have written in Hebrew, behold, ye would have had no imperfection in our record.
Comments
These two verses are well-known, and perhaps well-misunderstood. Beginning with verse 33, we have Moroni telling us that neither he, nor his father, wrote in Hebrew. What that clearly means is that there were no Hebrew characters on the plates. What is ambiguous about this is whether some other writing system was used to represent Hebrew words. That has long been an interpretive assumption, but one which finds little solid evidence outside of many of the names in the text which do appear to have not only Hebrew etymologies, but also appropriate meanings in the context of the stories in which they are found.
Verse 32 declares that both Mormon and Moroni wrote “in the characters which are called among us the reformed Egyptian.” That statement is also ambiguous in that it describes the writing system, but not the language encoded by that writing system. Important also, is the note that Moroni never says that there was a language that was reformed Egyptian. The characters were called reformed Egyptian. Since they were not Egyptian, the importance of the meaning of reformed is paramount, yet unknown.
Moroni only appears to tell us what we dearly would love to know. Except he doesn’t. The little information leaves the debate open, and the years since the translation into English has not provided conclusive evidence of what he meant by these two verses.
Mormon 9:34–37
34 But the Lord knoweth the things which we have written, and also that none other people knoweth our language; and because that none other people knoweth our language, therefore he hath prepared means for the interpretation thereof.
35 And these things are written that we may rid our garments of the blood of our brethren, who have dwindled in unbelief.
36 And behold, these things which we have desired concerning our brethren, yea, even their restoration to the knowledge of Christ, are according to the prayers of all the saints who have dwelt in the land.
37 And may the Lord Jesus Christ grant that their prayers may be answered according to their faith; and may God the Father remember the covenant which he hath made with the house of Israel; and may he bless them forever, through faith on the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
Comments
Moroni understands, and declares, that “none other people knoweth our language.” Moroni understands that it would come forth in translation. The only hint that he understood that process was his statement that “the Lord knoweth the things which we have written.” Moroni trusted that God’s knowledge would support the translation of that unknown language.
The Book of Mormon was written with a purpose, and by inspiration. The positive message was that future generations would believe in the Lord, Jesus Christ. However, one of the responsibilities that Mormon and Moroni shared was to preach the gospel. They did that in the Book of Mormon. Thus were “these things . . . written that we may rid our garments of the blood of our brethren.” They have fulfilled their responsibility to do what they could do to assist in the final gathering of the New World house of Israel.
