Moses 7
“The Lord Called His People Zion”
February 2 - February 8
scripture
quote
Faith in the Savior
<p>Brothers and sisters, the scriptures are filled with examples of the Savior’s majestic power and His compassionate mercy and grace. During His earthly ministry, His blessings of healing came to those who trusted Him and acted in faith. For example, the infirm man at the pool of Bethesda walked when, with faith, he followed the Savior’s command to “rise, take up thy bed, and walk” (John 5:8). Those who were sick or afflicted in any manner in the land of Bountiful were healed when “with one accord” they “did go forth” (3 Nephi 17:9).</p> <p>Similarly, to receive the marvelous blessings promised to those who come into the fold of God requires us to do just that—we need to choose to come. Alma the Younger taught, “And now I say unto you that the good shepherd doth call after you; and if you will hearken unto his voice he will bring you into his fold.”</p> <p>Several years ago a dear friend passed away from cancer. When his wife, Sharon, first wrote about his diagnosis, she said: “We Choose Faith. Faith in our Savior, Jesus Christ. Faith in our Heavenly Father’s plan, and faith that He knows our needs and fulfills His promises.”</p> <p>I have met many Latter-day Saints like Sharon who feel the inward peace of being securely within the fold of God, especially when temptation, opposition, or adversity comes. They have chosen to have faith in Jesus Christ and to follow His prophet. Our dear prophet, President Russell M. Nelson, has taught, “Everything good in life—every potential blessing of eternal significance—begins with faith.”</p>
Randy D. Funk, “Come into the Fold of God,” April 2022 General Conference
commentary
Enoch’s Grand Vision: The Crucifixion and Resurrection of the Son of Man
<p><strong>7:56. “the earth groaned; and the rocks were rent." </strong>Compare <a class="ref_link">Matthew 27:51</a>: “And the earth did quake, and the rocks rent.”</p> <p><strong>7:56. “the saints arose.” </strong>Compare <a class="ref_link">Matthew 27:52</a>; <a class="ref_link">Helaman 14:25</a>.</p> <p><strong>7:57. “as many of the spirits as were in prison came forth, and stood on the right hand of God.”</strong> See <a class="ref_link">Moses 7:38</a>.</p> <p><strong>7:59. “the Son of Man ascend up unto the Father.” </strong>Compare <a class="ref_link">John 20:17</a>; <a class="ref_link">Acts 1:9–11</a>; <a class="ref_link">Moses 7:47, 55</a>. See <a class="ref_link">Moses 7:24</a>.</p> <p><strong>7:59. “I know thee.”</strong> The kind of knowledge referred to here is the result of Enoch’s personal encounter with the Lord (6:34). At that time, Enoch had also received the blessing of “a right to [God’s] throne” (7:59). In His high priestly prayer, Jesus said, “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (<a class="ref_link">John 17:3</a>). Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained, “This doctrine is that mortal man, while in the flesh, has it in his power to see the Lord, to stand in His presence, to feel the nail marks in His hands and feet, and to receive from Him such blessings as are reserved for those only who keep all His commandments and who are qualified for that eternal life which includes being in His presence forever.”<a href="#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1">[1]</a></p> <p><strong>7:59. “given unto me a right to thy throne.”</strong> Note that Enoch was not given the divine throne but rather was granted a promissory right to receive it at some future time. Moreover, it was “not of [him]self” but “through [the Lord’s] own grace” that the throne was given (<a class="ref_link">Moses 7:59</a>). Compare <em>Book of Parables</em> 45:3, which tells of how God’s Chosen One “will sit on the throne of glory.”<a href="#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2">[2]</a> In <em>3 Enoch</em> 10:1, Enoch declared, “He [God] made me a throne like the throne of glory.”<a href="#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3">[3]</a> Hugh Nibley showed these resemblances to Matthew Black, a prominent Enoch scholar, and afterward said that they “really knocked Professor Black over. . . . It really staggered him.”<a href="#_ftn4" name="_ftnref4">[4]</a></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1">[1]</a> Bruce R. McConkie, <em>A New Witness for the Articles of Faith</em> (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1985), 492.</p> <p><a href="#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2">[2]</a> George W. E. Nickelsburg and James C. VanderKam, <em>1 Enoch 2: A Commentary on the Book of 1 Enoch, Chapters 37–82</em>, ed. Klaus Baltzer (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2012), 148.</p> <p><a href="#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3">[3]</a> Philip S. Alexander, “3 (Hebrew Apocalypse of) Enoch,” in<em> The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha</em>, ed. James H. Charlesworth, 2 vols. (New York, NY: Doubleday, 1983), 1:263.</p> <p><a href="#_ftnref4" name="_ftn4">[4]</a> Hugh W. Nibley, <em>Teachings of the Pearl of Great Price</em> (Provo, UT: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies [FARMS], 2004), 285.</p> <p> </p> <p><strong>Author</strong>: Jeffrey M. Bradshaw<br /><strong>General Editor:</strong> Taylor Halverson<br /><strong>Associate Editor:</strong> Morgan Tanner<br /><strong>Senior Editor:</strong> Sarah Whitney Johnson<br /><strong>Assistant Editor:</strong> Verlanne Johnson</p>
Old Testament Minute: Genesis by BMC
video
Comfort in the Cross (Moses 7:55)
<p>John Hilton III, “Comfort in the Cross (Come Follow Me: Moses 7) Week 4, Part 6/7,” Book of Mormon Central Video, 2022.</p>
John Hilton III
