December 28, 2024
Scripture Central Come, Follow Me: Book of Mormon – Ether 1
Dear Elder Yu,
Ether 1 - Ether’s genealogy
In chapter one, Moroni begins telling us that he's going to tell us about the ancient inhabitants, he says, of this northern country, which is where the main Jaredite geopolitical center was. So, he's somewhere up north as he's writing this story, and he's abridging the 24 Jaredite plates. And, he describes how he got those. He sees an account of the creation of Adam. He sees all of the things that have happened from Adam down to that great tower, he says. And then, from the tower down until they were destroyed.
And then, he gives you a long list of 30 generations, 30 individual names. And, they're listed in order, starting in verse 6 with Ether and ending in verse 32 with Orihah, who was the son of Jared, number 29 and 30 in that list. What you have is 30 names starting with Ether, listed in order down to Jared.
So, some of you are thinking, "Well, this is boring. It's just a list. It's a long list of names." This isn't just a list. You're seeing the fingerprints of God through the history of time. You're seeing the importance of family. You're seeing God's plan moving forward, generation by generation. You're seeing intergenerational connections that span, in this case, well over a thousand-year period.
So, you have the Tower of Babel, just to put us in the context of the timeline for the Old Testament. You have Adam and Eve, and then you have Enoch, and then you have Noah, the major dispensation heads, and then we have Abraham, and then Moses, and eventually you'll get Jesus Christ and Joseph Smith. So, the timeline is the Tower of Babel comes in Noah's dispensation. So, we're going way back in time before Abraham, way before Moses. And, this is where we get the departure to the new world of this group, the Jaredites.
In contrast to Lehi and his group that left the Old World with Ishmael and Zoram, they left in 600 BC in the dispensation of Moses. So, there's a huge difference in space and time when these two major migrations occurred coming into the Americas. So, we have these 30 30 different people carrying forth to one degree or another this legacy of the Jaredites.
Three Needs for Revelation
Three things happen here in the beginning part of the story. Three needs for revelation. So, one of the principles for you and me, as we're striving to have our prayers go further than the ceiling in our room or in our chapel, wherever we are.
Principle No. 1: Don't wait for revelation to descend upon you or to hit you blindside. There will be times when that happens, but don't expect that that's the main form of revelation or where, as Elder Bednar says, we're simply making ourselves objects waiting to be acted upon.
There's a beautiful reminder to us that connects here that the Lord gave to the Prophet Joseph Smith in Jackson County, Missouri, clear back in 1831. He says this in section 58: 26 – 29,
26 For behold, it is not meet that I should command in all things; for he that is compelled in all things, the same is a slothful and not a wise servant; wherefore he receiveth no reward.
This principle is easy to understand if you translate it into normal life, either in a home setting or in a work setting. Do you want the employee who sits on a chair and waits for the supervisor or the manager to tell them what to do, when to do it, how to do it, where to do it, and why to do it?
And, only then they get up and go do it. And, the moment they're finished with that task, they come and sit back down and wait for the next job. Or do you want an employee who you can teach the principle of what you're trying to accomplish, and then that employee is going to be self-motivated and think, "What could I do to help move the purpose of this company forward or to accomplish the mission of this organization or of this war or this family, whatever it may be?"
He clarifies in verse 27,
27 Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;
So, it's very important to note that if we do sit and wait, the Lord is still capable of giving us revelation, and he probably will.
But, we multiply our opportunities to receive revelation when we anxiously engage in living the gospel, in doing the things that we think the Lord would have us do, and as we seek to follow his example, as we learn of him and do the things that we have seen him do.
28 For the power is in them, wherein they are agents unto themselves. And inasmuch as men do good they shall in nowise lose their reward.
29 But he that doeth not anything until he is commanded, and receiveth a commandment with doubtful heart, and keepeth it with slothfulness, the same is damned.
It's back to President Nielson's invitation. "I plead with you to increase your spiritual capacity to receive revelation ..."
We're going to have to do the spiritual work. So, what is that?
It starts with keeping the Commandments so that we're capable of prospering in that revelatory process. But, we also seek and work towards getting more of those answers by going to the Lord with specifics.
The Language of Ours with God – Vertical Communication
One of my favorite things that President Thomas S. Monson taught when he was the prophet was that we rarely succeed when we speak in general. But, when we speak in specifics, we rarely experience failure.
The idea is that if we go to God in our prayers and say, "Heavenly Father, I'm thankful for all my blessings, and please bless me with what I need." That's general. And, we're probably going to get more of a general answer.
But according to President Monson, if we can be a little more specific, if we can counsel with the Lord in all of our doings, to quote earlier prophets in the Book of Mormon, then we're more likely to get those specific answers and specific responses.
In this case, watch what happens. With the very first request in verse 34, Jared says to his brother,
34 And the brother of Jared being a large and mighty man, and a man highly favored of the Lord, Jared, his brother, said unto him: Cry unto the Lord, that he will not confound us that we may not understand our words.
So, at the Tower of Babel, where the languages were confounded, Jared is saying, "Go and ask the Lord if He will allow us to still maintain our language, our ability to communicate."
35 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had compassion upon Jared; therefore he did not confound the language of Jared; and Jared and his brother were not confounded.
Isn't that an amazing principle for revelation? Our ability to talk to God and recognize God speaking to us – translates into, I want to be heard and understood, and I want to understand those around me as well. So, we have horizontal communication and vertical communication education.
The Language of Our Friends – Horizontal Communication
In this case, Jared asks his brother to go vertically to the Lord to preserve these horizontal connections of language. And, the Lord had compassion upon Jared. "... therefore he did not confound the language of Jared;" Then, you get the second one, verse 36.
36 Then Jared said unto his brother: Cry again unto the Lord, and it may be that he will turn away his anger from them who are our friends, that he confound not their language.
He says, go, "Cry again unto the Lord, ... that he will turn away his anger from them who are our friends, that he confound not their language." It began with our language, and now it has become the language of our friends and those in our circle of influence around us.
We begin at the core and principle of revelation, begin, get our soul in the right place, and cleanse the inner vessel before we start trying to fix other people's problems is a beautiful principle of revelation here.
We focus not selfishly on our problems, but actually with an eye to becoming a better instrument in the hands of the Lord. "More fit for the kingdom, More used would I be, More blessed and holy— More, Savior, like thee."
That's the intent of asking for blessings for us. Then, we turn outward and ask for those around us to receive some of those blessings.
Place of Refuge
That leads to question number 3 in verse 38. He says,
38 And it came to pass that Jared spake again unto his brother, saying: Go and inquire of the Lord whether he will drive us out of the land, and if he will drive us out of the land, cry unto him whither we shall go. And who knoweth but the Lord will carry us forth into a land which is choice above all the earth? And if it so be, let us be faithful unto the Lord, that we may receive it for our inheritance.
Notice this add-on, because that's a pretty general question. "And who knoweth but the Lord will carry us forth into a land which is choice above all the earth? And if it so be, let us be faithful unto the Lord that we may receive it for our inheritance." So, a place of safety, a refuge.
It's hard to receive revelation when you're surrounded by too much noise, too much commotion, too much chaos, too much misunderstanding. It's a little harder to have those open channels of communication.
And, so, it's this beautiful principle of, is there a place, a choice place, a place of safety, of refuge for us where we can go to live our life, and raise our families and build our culture.
And, the Lord, it says in verse 40,
40 And it came to pass that the Lord did hear the brother of Jared, and had compassion upon him, and said unto him:
41 Go to and gather together thy flocks, both male and female, of every kind; and also of the seed of the earth of every kind; and thy families; and also Jared thy brother and his family; and also thy friends and their families, and the friends of Jared and their families.
There's this long-term plan being put in place. We're not just going on a camping trip. This is a permanent change God going to make with these people. And, He tells them to gather the families. And verse 42,
42 And when thou hast done this thou shalt go at the head of them down into the valley which is northward. And there will I meet thee, and I will go before thee into a land which is choice above all the lands of the earth.
This is more than revelation.
This is a covenant connection. This is a relationship that is being built, a connection with the Lord, and He gives them step one. And, it's a gathering set of instructions. Gather people, gather flocks, gather food and provisions, gather everything you're going to need, and then begin the journey and take the first leg of the journey up to the valley northward, and I'll meet you there and go before your face.
So, God didn't tell them, "Here you are at point A, and I'm going to now give you every step, point B, C, D, and on and on and on." God didn't do that. He said, "Here you are at point A, and I will give you point B. Gather all these people and things and go northward, and I'll meet you there, and I'll continue to guide you," which leaves all of this future travel, all of these future events in the realm of the unknown.
Pulling Out Principles from Our Study
So, we're building our faith in Christ to take those first steps of a journey. So now, watch the contrast that I started with. You can bring questions, situations, and concerns into the scriptures, find principles and look for ways to approach them. Or you read the scriptures and see what they teach and then pull principles out.
So, let's give some examples of what that might look like, here. You could say, you've got people who are in an environment or in a setting or in a state of being where chaos is raining, where things seem to be getting worse, and they want more peace in their lives.
So, they're seeking direction from the Lord, and the Lord gives them inspiration of how to get out of that and move towards a promised land. All of a sudden, this starts to feel and sound an awful lot like the plan of salvation.
It starts to sound like more than just a story of a group of people clear back in the ancient world thousands of years ago on the other side of the planet who are on a physical journey. And, it starts to sound like, wow, this is our story.
And, the tower, the Tower of Babel part, could symbolize we could be a symbol of, rather, this Earth and mortality and the struggles of mortality and our efforts to come under Christ and follow His path, His covenant path, as He leads us to the ultimate promised land, which is exaltation and eternal life as a joint heir with Christ in heaven. And, that's a big-picture application that can come out of the story or off of the page.
And then, there are a whole bunch of little microcosm pictures that could come off. When you embark to serve a mission, whether you're an 18 or 19-year-old young man or young woman, or whether you're an older couple embarking on that mission, all of a sudden, Ether Chapter 1 becomes very applicable, very relevant as you say, "Wow, I'm embarking on this mission and God gives instruction of what to do in phase one, how to prepare for that mission and go to the MTC." But, we don't know all of the adventures that await. But, we move forward in faith, faith in Christ, that He will guide us.
It could apply to marriage, going into an engagement, and we're all excited and it's a thrill, and we have no idea what's going to come down the road. But, we move forward because we trust. We trust in Christ, and we trust in those around us to move forward together on the covenant path. So, these stories can come to life off of the page, and they can be motivating factors for us to give us more hope to not be governed by fear and to not be governed by what we don't know in the future. But, rather, make our decisions based on what we do know. And, the Lord gave them instructions, and I love this phrase,
42 And when thou hast done this thou shalt go at the head of them down into the valley which is northward. And there will I meet thee, and I will go before thee into a land which is choice above all the lands of the earth.
"... [And] there will I meet thee..." And, [there] might be a mission filled, it might be marriage, it might be parenthood, it might It might be a career, it might be an educational opportunity. It might be day one in a calling, a new calling that you've received in the church. It can be all these things.
But suddenly, when we take these kinds of approaches, the scriptures are never boring. They are never black words on a white page that are meaningless. They become a handbook for revelation, a handbook for hearing the voice of God.
We've had general authorities tell If you want to talk to God, you pray. And, if you want God to talk to you, read your scriptures. And, I would add, Listen to the living prophets. It's this beautiful principle that we don't try to make up some new way to connect with heaven. It's pretty simple. Pray specifically and then go into scriptures as we ponder and record our thoughts, specifically looking for those answers.
We're far more likely to receive them than if we just generically sit back on the lawn chair on the side of the path and wait for the Lord to come and get us up and tell us what to do and when to do it and how to do it. So, verse 43, he gives another promise,
43 And there will I bless thee and thy seed, and raise up unto me of thy seed, and of the seed of thy brother, and they who shall go with thee, a great nation. And there shall be none greater than the nation which I will raise up unto me of thy seed, upon all the face of the earth. And thus I will do unto thee because this long time ye have cried unto me.
I'm going to raise up a great nation because of your footsteps of faith. I'm going to bless millions in the process. It's a beautiful reminder to us to not think just of ourselves and our own situation, but to pause and step back and take a broader view of life. Think celestial, if you will, and think of the effect your decisions of faith to move forward today will have on generations yet unborn.
Share and Love,
Mommy
