History before
Jeremiah
September 14, 2006
Joshua’s
mission from the Lord for
(Joshua 24:14-26.)
14 ¶ Now therefore fear
the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which
your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye
the LORD.
15 And if it seem evil
unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the
gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood,
or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my
house, we will serve the LORD.
16 And the people answered
and said, God forbid that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods;
17 For the LORD our God,
he it is that brought us up and our fathers out of the land of Egypt,
from the house of bondage, and which did those great signs in our sight, and
preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the people through
whom we passed:
18 And the LORD drave out
from before us all the people, even the Amorites which dwelt in the land: therefore
will we also serve the LORD; for he is our God.
19 And Joshua said unto
the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD: for he is an holy God; he is
a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins.
20 If ye forsake the LORD,
and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you,
after that he hath done you good.
21 And the people said
unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve the LORD.
22 And Joshua said unto
the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you
the LORD, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.
23 Now therefore put away,
said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your
heart unto the LORD God of Israel.
24 And the people said
unto Joshua, The LORD our God will we serve, and his voice will we obey.
25 So Joshua made a
covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in
Shechem.
26 ¶ And Joshua wrote
these words in the book of the law of God, and took a great stone, and set it
up there under an oak, that was by the sanctuary of the LORD.
The rest of
the story is found in the book of Judges.
Theocratic government, no mortal king, God is the king; it didn’t go
very well, the people liked the Canaanite way better.
In this section the dates are ascertained with
more accuracy, help being derived from synchronisms with profane history, which
become more numerous with every succeeding century.
|
B.C. |
THE UNDIVIDED KINGDOM |
PERSONS AND EVENTS OF
EXTERNAL HISTORY |
|
1095
|
Commencement
of Saul's reign. Samuel lives for a great part of Saul's reign. |
Nahash,
king of Ammon. Tiglath-pilesar I, king of |
|
1063
|
David
anointed by Samuel. |
|
|
1055
|
David
king in |
|
|
1047
|
David
king in |
Hiram,
king of |
|
1015
|
Solomon
made king. Death of David. |
|
|
1012
|
Solomon
begins to build the temple. |
Hiram,
king of |
|
1004
|
Solomon
begins to build his own house. |
|
|
991
|
The
whole buildings finished. |
Hada
the Edomite is protected in |
|
975
|
Death
of Solomon. The ten tribes revolt from Rehoboam. |
|
In the
following table the first column of dates follows the books of Kings and
Chronicles; the third column contains a revised chronology derived from
inscriptions on Assyrian and other monuments. The kings of
|
B.C. |
KINGS OF |
Rev. Chr. |
INTERNAL HISTORY |
EXTERNAL HISTORY |
SYNCHRONISMS |
|
975
|
Rehoboam
Jeroboam I |
953
|
Ahijah
the Shilomite prophesies, also Shemaiah. Penuel build (1 Kgs. 12: 25). |
|
Shishak,
king of |
|
|
|
949
|
Shishak
plun- ders |
|
|
|
957
|
Abijam
|
932
|
|
|
|
|
955
|
Asa
|
929
|
|
|
|
|
954
|
Nadab
|
927
|
Oden
and Aza- riah prophesy. |
Asa's
war with Zerah the Ethiopian. |
|
|
953
|
Baasha
|
925
|
War
of |
|
|
|
930
|
Elah
|
901
|
|
Asa's
alliance with Benhadad I. |
|
|
929
|
Zimri
|
899
|
|
|
|
|
929
|
Omri
(at war with Tibni) |
897
|
|
|
|
|
925
|
Omri
(victorious) |
|
Benhadad
I conquers Omri (1 Kgs.
20: 34). |
|
|
|
918
|
Ahab
|
875
|
|
|
Ethbaal
(Eitho- balus), king of Zidon |
|
914
|
Jehoshaphat
|
873
|
Elijah
the Tishbite. |
Syrian
invasion of |
Mesha,
king of |
|
898
|
Ahaziah
|
853
|
Jahaziel
prophesies (2 Chr. 20:
14). Eliezer of Mareshah prophesies (2 Chr. 20: 27). |
|
|
|
897
|
Jehoram
|
851
|
Elisha
prophesies. Obadiah prophesies |
|
Hazael,
king of |
|
893
|
Joram
|
848
|
|
|
|
|
885
|
Ahaziah
|
844
|
|
|
|
|
884
|
Athaliah
Jehu |
843
|
|
|
|
|
878
|
Joash
|
837
|
Joash
buys off Hazaels invasion (2 Kgs. 12: 18). |
Syrian
victories over |
Sardanapalus
dies |
|
856
|
Jehoahaz
|
|
Joel
prophesies. |
|
|
|
842
|
Jehoash
|
798
|
|
|
|
|
841
|
Amaziah
|
797
|
|
|
Shalmaneser
II. |
|
826
|
Jeroboam
II |
790
|
Hosea
prophesies. Jonah prophesies (2 Kgs. 14: 25). |
Amaziah
subdues |
Shalmaneser
III. |
|
811
|
Azariah
or Uzziah |
792
|
Amos
prophesies. |
|
|
|
773
|
Zechariah
|
749
|
|
|
First
Olympiad. |
|
772
|
Shallum
|
748
|
|
|
|
|
772
|
Menahem
|
748
|
|
There is much uncertainty about the chronology of the reigns
of Uzziah, Jotham, and Pekah, and from 2 Kgs. 15: 1-2, and 2 Kgs. 15: 30-32,
it is clear that there is some confusion in the biblical numbers. Uzziah's
name is now thought to have to have been discovered in an Assyrian
inscription 740 B.C. If that prove correct, the commencement of Isaiah's
prophecy cannot date before that year, and the time of Jotham's regency may
have been counted as regnal years. In these tables the biblical numbers have
been adhered to, as far as possible but they require further elucidation,
which we may hope for as the Assyrian chronology becomes more assured. |
Pul,
king of |
|
761
|
Pekahiah
|
|
|
|
|
|
759
|
Pekah
|
|
|
Rezin,
king of |
|
|
758
|
Jotham
|
740
|
Isaiah
begins to prophesy. |
|
|
|
|
Pekahiah
(R.C.) |
737
|
|
Era
of Nabonassar, 747. |
|
|
|
Pekah
(R.C.) |
735
|
|
|
|
|
742
|
Ahaz
|
734
|
|
Tiglath-pileser
II, king of |
|
|
730
|
Hoshea
|
733
|
|
|
|
|
726
|
Hezekiah
|
728
|
|
Shalmaneser
IV, king of |
|
|
721
|
End
of the |
722
|
Micah
prophesies. |
Sargon.
Merodach- Baladan, king of |
|
|
697
|
Manasseh
|
697
|
|
Psammetichus,
king of |
|
|
642
|
Amon
|
642
|
Nahum
prophesies. |
Assurbanipal
(667-626). |
|
|
640
|
Josiah
|
640
|
Huldah
the prophetess. Jeremiah begins to prophesy, 628. Zephaniah prophesies. |
Pharaoh-necho,
king of |
|
|
609
|
Jehoahaz
|
609
|
Obadiah
prophesies. |
Fall
of Ninevah, 606. |
|
|
609
|
Jehoiakim
|
609
|
Daniel
carried captive, 606. |
Nebuchadnezzar
king of |
|
|
598
|
Jehoiachin
|
598
|
Habakkuk
prophesies. |
|
|
|
598
|
Zedekiah
|
598
|
Ezekiel
prophesies. |
|
|
|
587
|
Capture
of |
587
|
|
|
The Book of Jeremiah
From the narrative itself we learn
something about the process through which the book of Jeremiah came into
existence. Many, if not all, of the words of Jeremiah that have survived were
copied and collected by his friend and scribe, Baruch. In 605 B.C. Jeremiah
commissioned Baruch to record his prophecies from the days of Josiah until the
present on "a roll of a book" (Jer. 36:2). He then instructed the
scribe to take the scroll and read it in the temple, where the words were
received with a clamor that reached the king. When Jehoiakim heard about it, he
ordered one of his servants to bring the scroll and read it to him and his
court. Baruch was advised to escape and hide himself and Jeremiah (Jer. 36:19).
As the servant read three or four columns of the scroll, Jehoiakim derisively
cut them off and cast them into the fire. Such a rejection of the word of the
Lord is noted, "Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither
the king, nor any of his servants that heard all these words" (Jer.
36:24). fn
Jeremiah then took another roll and
had Baruch rewrite the words, "and there were added besides unto them many
like words" (Jer. 36:32). That such a collection of Jeremiah's words was
distributed, at least to some, is demonstrated by the note in 1 Nephi 5:13 that
the plates of brass contained "many prophecies which have been spoken by
the mouth of Jeremiah."
In Hebrew, the book of Jeremiah
contains almost 22,000 words and is the longest book of the Prophets. fn The
material collected in it appears to be rather loosely organized with attempts
to arrange the material first topically and within each topic chronologically.
fn Some of the prophecies are dated to a specific year in the reign of one of
the kings of
Jeremiah 1 through 25 Prophecies of
Judgment against
A. Jeremiah 1 through 6 Time of
Josiah
B. Jeremiah 7 through 20 Time of
Jehoiakim
C. Jeremiah 21 through 25 Time of
Zedekiah
Jeremiah 26 through 35 The
Restoration of
Jeremiah 36 through 45 Baruch's
Biography of Jeremiah
Jeremiah 46 through 51 Oracles
against Foreign Nations
Jeremiah 52 Historical Appendix: The
Fall of
For convenience of discussion in this
and the following two chapters, I have organized the material in the book of
Jeremiah into three groupings: biographical material, prophecies against
We have a significant amount of
biographical material concerning Jeremiah, but only a small portion of it can
be examined here. Although biographical material is scattered throughout the
book, some have suggested that chapters 36 through 45, because of their common
theme, cohesiveness, and style, may represent Baruch's biography of the prophet
he served. Certainly the location of the touching personal note to Baruch in
chapter 45 would support such an observation. I will attempt to note the major
historical events and correlate them with the biographical material about
Jeremiah in chronological sequence as they relate to the three kings mentioned
in the superscription: Josiah, Jehoiakim, Zedekiah, and the aftermath of the
destruction of
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 196.)
1st
and 2nd Samuel – Covenant history
1st
and 2nd Kings – What went wrong with
1st
and 2nd Chronicles – History of the Southern (
There is
another book of Chronicles which has been lost.
Like the Book of Mormon, these books were written after the events took
place; each writer had their own agenda for their words. These were written post-destruction of
Saul is the
united king for all of
The divided
kingdoms hated each other and fought frequently against each other. It’s like our Civil War.
2 Kings 25
– Part of the remnant goes to
(2 Kings 25:27-30.)
27 ¶ And it came to pass
in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in
the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that
Evil-merodach king of Babylon in the year that he began to reign did lift up
the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison;
28 And he spake kindly to
him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him
in
29 And changed his prison
garments: and he did eat bread continually before him all the days of his life.
30 And his allowance was
a continual allowance given him of the king, a daily rate for every day, all
the days of his life.
The account
ends with
(2 Chronicles 36:22-23.)
22 ¶ Now in the first year
of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD spoken by the mouth
of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king
of Persia, that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom, and put
it also in writing, saying,
23 Thus saith Cyrus king
of
Focus is on
721 BC –
Northern kingdom is gone,
Events Leading to the Fall of
A glance at Bible Map 10, which shows
the extent of the mighty Assyrian Empire and the tiny tributary
Hezekiah's Preparations for War
Hezekiah began refortifying the city
walls to prepare
Hezekiah cut an underground tunnel to
ensure a constant supply of water from the Gihon Spring into the city. Second
Chronicles 32:30 says, "This same Hezekiah also stopped the upper
watercourse of Gihon, and brought it straight down to the west side of the city
of
With fortifications in place,
Hezekiah and Judah awaited the Assyrian onslaught. fn Sennacherib, King of
"Now in the fourteenth year of
king Hezekiah did Sennacherib king of Assyria come up against all the fenced
cities of
Another archaeological discovery that
helps corroborate the Bible is King Sennacherib's record of the invasion called
the Sennacherib Prism. fn It confirms that Hezekiah did try to buy off the
Assyrians, but the tribute imposed was eight hundred talents of silver and
thirty of gold. According to 2 Kings 18:15-16, Hezekiah gathered together all
the silver and gold in the
A contingent of Assyrian officials
was sent to
Sennacherib sent officers to
Let not Hezekiah deceive you: for he
shall not be able to deliver you out of [the king of
Neither let Hezekiah make you trust
in the Lord, saying, The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city shall not
be delivered into the hand of the king of
Hath any of the gods of the nations
delivered at all his land out of the hand of the king of
Who are they among all the gods of
the countries, that have delivered their country out of mine hand, that the
Lord should deliver
Sennacherib planned to remove
systematically all opposition at
King Hezekiah took a written message
from Sennacherib up to the House of the Lord, and there, in the holy sanctuary,
he spread the threatening letter before the Lord and prayed fervently (see 2
Kgs. 19:14-15; Isa. 37:14-15). In that very hour the voice of a lone man
speaking for God was heard in the city, and word was sent to King Hezekiah,
assuring him and his subjects that the place God had chosen to put His Name was
still in His hands. The Assyrian blasphemers, Isaiah prophesied, would find
only death and destruction for themselves if they came to
Thus saith the Lord, Be not afraid of
the words which thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of
Behold, I will send a blast upon him,
and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land; and I will cause
him to fall by the sword in his own land. . . .
Therefore thus saith the Lord
concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an
arrow [here], nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it.
By the way that he came, by the same
shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the Lord. (2 Kgs.
19:6-7, 32-33)
Miraculous Deliverance of
In 701 B.C. Sennacherib was poised to
strike
As to Hezekiah, the Jew, he did not
submit to my yoke. I laid siege to forty-six of his strong cities, walled forts
and to the countless small villages in their vicinity, and conquered [them] by
means of well-stamped [earth-]ramps, and battering-rams brought [thus] near [to
the walls] [combined with] the attack by foot soldiers, [using] mines, breeches
as well as sapper work. I drove out [of them] 200,150 people, young and old,
male and female, horses, mules, donkeys, camels, big and small cattle beyond
counting, and considered [them] booty. Himself I made a prisoner in
Sennacherib's final statement is a
boast that is historically untrue, as we learn from the biblical account.
Isaiah had prophesied that the king would "not come into this city, nor
shoot an arrow [here], nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank [a siege
ramp] against it" (2 Kgs. 19:32).
Following is what actually did happen
to Sennacherib and his hosts:
It came to pass that night, that the
angel of the Lord went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred
fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning [those
who were still alive], behold, they were all dead corpses.
So Sennacherib king of Assyria
departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at
And it came to pass, as he was
worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that . . . his sons smote him with
the sword. (2 Kgs. 19:35-37)
The Greek historian Herodotus, in the
fifth century before Christ, suggested in his writings that mice caused the
Assyrians to withdraw as some kind of plague swept through their camp. fn That
Sennacherib did return and dwell at
The confrontation between Hezekiah
and Sennacherib and the miraculous deliverance of
The Assyrian came down like the wolf
on the fold,
And his cohorts were gleaming in
purple and gold,
And the sheen of their spears was like
stars on the sea,
When the blue wave rolls nightly on
deep
Like the leaves of the forest when
summer is green,
That host with their banners at
sunset were seen:
Like the leaves of the forest when
autumn hath blown,
That host on the morrow lay withered
and strown.
For the Angel of Death spread his
wings on the blast,
And breathed in the face of the foe
as he pass'd
And the eyes of the sleepers wax'd
deadly and chill,
And their hearts but once heaved, and
forever grew still!
And there lay the steed with his
nostril all wide,
But through it there roll'd not the
breath of his pride;
And the foam of his gasping lay white
on the turf,
And cold as the spray of the
rock-beating surf.
And there lay the rider distorted and
pale,
With the dew on his brow, and the
rust on his mail:
And the tents were all silent, the
banners alone,
The lances unlifted, the trumpet
unblown.
And the widows of Ashur are loud in
their wail,
And the idols are broke in the
And the might of the Gentile, unsmote
by the sword,
Hath melted like snow in the glance
of the Lord!
When Hezekiah was found to be deathly
ill, he learned that the Lord intervenes not only in national crises but also
in personal crises. The Lord granted good king Hezekiah another fifteen years
to live (see 2 Kgs. 20; Isa. 39).
Another episode during this period
should not go unmentioned. Hezekiah openly showed the treasures of the kingdom
to a Babylonian delegation, which had undoubtedly come to
During the reigns of the Assyrian
kings Esarhaddon (681-669 B.C.) and his successor, Ashurbanipal, the empire was
at its height, extending from
Because of rivalry between the rulers
of Assyria and
Ironically, good King Hezekiah's son Manasseh (687-642) and his grandson
Amon (642-640) were two of the worst kings
(David B.
Galbraith, D. Kelly Ogden, and Andrew C. Skinner, Jerusalem: The Eternal
City [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1996], 94.)
We know
more about Jeremiah then practically any other prophet in the OT.
(Jeremiah 1:1-3.)
1 The words of Jeremiah
the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the
2 To whom the word of the
LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon king of
3 It came also in the days
of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year
of Zedekiah the son of Josiah king of Judah, unto the carrying away of
Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.
Reforms of King Josiah
In the later part of the seventh
century before Christ, the Assyrian Empire weakened rapidly because of internal
agitation and pressures in its widespread conquered lands. With Assyrian
disintegration
Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will
bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the
words of the book which the king of
Because they have forsaken me, and
have burned incense unto other gods, that they might provoke me to anger with
all the works of their hands; therefore my wrath shall be kindled against this
place, and shall not be quenched.
But to the king of
Because thine heart was tender, and
thou hast humbled thyself before the Lord, when thou heardest what I spake
against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should
become a desolation and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me;
I also have heard thee, saith the Lord.
Behold therefore, I will gather thee
unto thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered into thy grave in peace; and thine
eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place. (2 Kgs.
22:16-20)
Josiah called a solemn assembly with
priesthood leaders, prophets, and all the inhabitants of
Josiah's enlightened reign ended with
his early death at
The history of the Holy Land is
essentially an account of the struggles between Mesopotamia and
The Babylonian Empire
The southern part of Mesopotamia was
known in antiquity as
The Babylonian Empire was mighty, but
it was short-lived. Compared to its predecessor, Assyria, and its successor,
The Voice of Warning: Jeremiah, Lehi, and Others
Jeremiah had begun his ministry in
On one occasion Jeremiah stood in the
court of the Temple warning that the Lord was going to make his House like
Shiloh, and the city of Jerusalem desolate without an inhabitant (see Jer.
26:9). fn "All the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of
the Lord," intending to kill him (just as when Jesus later prophesied the
destruction of the next Temple at the same place; the people tried to kill
Jesus; see Matt. 24:1-2; John 8:20, 37-59). Certain elders of the people
reminded the crowd to be careful what they did with Jeremiah—other prophets had
also spoken in the name of the Lord and prophesied the destruction of
Jerusalem; for example, Micah of Moresheth-gath in the days of Hezekiah, and a
contemporary of Jeremiah, one Urijah of Kiriath-jearim (see Jer. 26:17-20).
Yet another prophet was in the city
at the time, teaching the same things. Lehi warned of the impending destruction
of
The Book of Mormon says, "There
came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the
great city
Lehi's sons Laman and Lemuel did not
believe that
(David B.
Galbraith, D. Kelly Ogden, and Andrew C. Skinner, Jerusalem: The Eternal
City [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1996], 102.)
(2 Kings 18:1-8.) –
Hezekiah rebels against Assyrians, he destroys idolatry in Israel
1 Now it came to pass in
the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of
2 Twenty and five years
old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and nine years in
3 And he did that which
was right in the sight of the LORD, according to all that David his father
did.
4 ¶ He removed the high
places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake in pieces the
brasen serpent that Moses had made: for unto those days the children of
5 He trusted in the LORD
God of
6 For he clave to the
LORD, and departed not from following him, but kept his commandments,
which the LORD commanded Moses.
7 And the LORD was with
him; and he prospered whithersoever he went forth: and he rebelled
against the king of
8 He smote the
Philistines, even unto
Isaiah said
to break the alliance with
Bruce
described what the Assyrians did to those who rebelled against them. The
Hezekiah
had to clean house, and exercise great faith in Jehovah. He did it and the Lord fought the battle and
won, 185,000 killed in one night.
The people
repented and reformed, they cut the covenant, and the Lord blessed them
accordingly.
Wicked
Manasseh, what happened to his counselors while he was young?
(2 Kings 21:1-9.)
1 Manasseh was
twelve years old when he began to reign, and reigned fifty and five years in
2 And he did that which
was evil in the sight of the LORD, after the abominations of the heathen,
whom the LORD cast out before the children of
3 For he built up again
the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he reared up
altars for Baal, and made a grove, as did Ahab king of Israel; and worshipped
all the host of heaven, and served them.
4 And he built altars in
the house of the LORD, of which the LORD said, In
5 And he built altars for
all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD.
6 And he made his son pass
through the fire, and observed times, and used enchantments, and dealt with
familiar spirits and wizards: he wrought much wickedness in the sight of the
LORD, to provoke him to anger.
7 And he set a graven
image of the grove that he had made in the house, of which the LORD said to
David, and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in
8 Neither will I make the
feet of
9 But they hearkened not: and Manasseh seduced them to do
more evil than did the nations whom the LORD destroyed before the children of
He ruled
for 55 years, whole generations did not know the ways of Jehovah they totally
forgot the covenant. There is no hope!
(Doctrine and Covenants
82:7.)
7
And now, verily I say unto you, I, the Lord, will not lay any sin to your charge;
go your ways and sin no more; but unto that soul who sinneth shall the former
sins return, saith the Lord your God.
The former
sins return, your repentance has become null and void, you are worse off. The groove of sin is very deep with Manasseh,
the people suffer greatly during his reign.
(2 Kings 21:10-16.)
10 ¶ And the LORD spake by
his servants the prophets, saying,
11 Because Manasseh king
of
12 Therefore thus saith
the LORD God of
13 And I will stretch over
14 And I will forsake the
remnant of mine inheritance, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies;
and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies;
15 Because they have done that
which was evil in my sight, and have provoked me to anger, since the day
their fathers came forth out of
16 Moreover Manasseh shed
innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another;
beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was
evil in the sight of the LORD.
Josiah’s
reforms were more complete then Hezekiah, yet they didn’t work, the people were
too deep in sin.
Josiah is eight
years old when he begins his reign, 640-609 BC
(2 Kings 22:8-14.)
8 ¶ And Hilkiah the high
priest said unto Shaphan the scribe, I have found the book of the law in the
house of the LORD. And Hilkiah gave the book to Shaphan, and he read it.
9 And Shaphan the scribe
came to the king, and brought the king word again, and said, Thy servants have
gathered the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the
hand of them that do the work, that have the oversight of the house of the
LORD.
10 And Shaphan the scribe
shewed the king, saying, Hilkiah the priest hath delivered me a book. And
Shaphan read it before the king.
11 And it came to pass,
when the king had heard the words of the book of the law, that he rent his
clothes.
12 And the king commanded
Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of
Michaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asahiah a servant of the king's, saying,
13 Go ye, enquire of the
LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of
this book that is found: for great is the wrath of the LORD that is
kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of
this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us.
14 So Hilkiah the priest,
and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asahiah, went unto Huldah the
prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of
the wardrobe; (now she dwelt in
2
Chronicles 34 – 3 events take place
- He cleans house
- Finds and reads the law in the
temple
- Makes a covenant with all with
Jehovah
What gets
this young boy to turn to God? Nothing
is said about this, an interesting question.
(2 Chronicles 34:29-33.)
29 ¶ Then the king sent and gathered together all the elders
of
30 And the king went up into the house of the LORD, and all
the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and the priests, and the
Levites, and all the people, great and small: and he read in their ears all the
words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of the LORD.
31 And the king stood in
his place, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to
keep his commandments, and his testimonies, and his statutes, with all his
heart, and with all his soul, to perform the words of the covenant which are
written in this book.
32 And he caused all that
were present in
33 And Josiah took away
all the abominations out of all the countries that pertained to the
children of
Who
attended this meeting? Jeremiah, Lehi,
Sariah, Laban, the kids, first time they heard the scriptures. This gives you a sense of what is happening
in
(Ezekiel 1:1-3.)
1 Now it came to pass in
the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the
month, as I was among the captives by the
2 In the fifth day
of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,
3 The word of the LORD
came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the
Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.
This king
was the true king; Zedekiah was a puppet king, not liked by the people, not
mentioned in some chronologies in the scriptures. Lehi and the family were gone at this point.
Jeremiah
and Ezekiel are priests in the temple and witnesses of the events in and around
Jeremiah
mentions this ceremony
(Jeremiah 34:18-20.)
18 And I will give the men
that have transgressed my covenant, which have not performed the words of the
covenant which they had made before me, when they cut the calf in twain, and
passed between the parts thereof,
19 The princes of
20 I will even give them
into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life:
and their dead bodies shall be for meat unto the fowls of the heaven, and to
the beasts of the earth.
This has
temple implications for us, may this happen to me if I break the covenant.
2
Chronicles 34:30 = Jeremiah 34:12-20
(2 Kings 23:1-27.)
1 And the king sent, and
they gathered unto him all the elders of
2 And the king went up
into the house of the LORD, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of
Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both
small and great: and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the
covenant which was found in the house of the LORD.
3 ¶ And the king stood by
a pillar, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to
keep his commandments and his testimonies and his statutes with all their
heart and all their soul, to perform the words of this covenant that
were written in this book. And all the people stood to the covenant.
4 And the king commanded
Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers
of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that
were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he
burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of
them unto Beth-el.
5 And he put down the
idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the
high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem;
them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to
the planets, and to all the host of heaven.
6 And he brought out the
grove from the house of the LORD, without
7 And he brake down the
houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the
women wove hangings for the grove.
8 And he brought all the
priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the
priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beer-sheba, and brake down the high
places of the gates that were in the entering in of the gate of Joshua
the governor of the city, which were on a man's left hand at the gate of
the city.
9 Nevertheless the priests
of the high places came not up to the altar of the LORD in
10 And he defiled Topheth,
which is in the valley of the children of Hinnom, that no man might make
his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech.
11 And he took away the
horses that the kings of
12 And the altars that were
on the top of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and
the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD,
did the king beat down, and brake them down from thence, and cast the
dust of them into the brook Kidron.
13 And the high places
that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the
mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth
the abomination of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of the
Moabites, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king
defile.
14 And he brake in pieces
the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of
men.
15 ¶ Moreover the altar
that was at Beth-el, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of
Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, both that altar and the high place he
brake down, and burned the high place, and stamped it small to
powder, and burned the grove.
16 And as Josiah turned
himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount, and sent,
and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the
altar, and polluted it, according to the word of the LORD which the man of God
proclaimed, who proclaimed these words.
17 Then he said, What
title is that that I see? And the men of the city told him, It is
the sepulchre of the man of God, which came from
18 And he said, Let him
alone; let no man move his bones. So they let his bones alone, with the bones
of the prophet that came out of
19 And all the houses also
of the high places that were in the cities of
20 And he slew all the
priests of the high places that were there upon the altars, and burned
men's bones upon them, and returned to
21 ¶ And the king
commanded all the people, saying, Keep the passover unto the LORD your God, as it
is written in the book of this covenant.
22 Surely there was not
holden such a passover from the days of the judges that judged
23 But in the eighteenth
year of king Josiah, wherein this passover was holden to the LORD in
24 ¶ Moreover the workers
with familiar spirits, and the wizards, and the images, and the idols, and
all the abominations that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did
Josiah put away, that he might perform the words of the law which were written
in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD.
25 And like unto him was
there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with
all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses;
neither after him arose there any like him.
26 ¶ Notwithstanding the
LORD turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was
kindled against
27 And the LORD said, I
will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast
off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My
name shall be there.
For all of
his efforts Josiah’s reforms didn’t work, their hearts did not change yet it
did help individuals but not the whole community. Lehi is a classic example of this.
Baruch is
his scribe, faithful and true. He wrote
a biography about Jeremiah.
The people
of
Margaret Barker
What Did King Josiah Reform?
Presented 6 May 2003 at
King Josiah changed the religion of
Twenty five years after the work of Josiah,
They had worshiped the Queen of Heaven by offering incense, libations and
special loaves to represent her. [6] Now the Queen of Heaven is not mentioned
in the account of Josiah’s purge, but the major item removed from the
temple was the Asherah which was dragged out and burned. Later Jewish
texts (m.‘Aboda Zarah 3) described the Asherah as a
stylized tree, and Deuteronomy had forbidden any such tree or any pillar beside
an altar for the Lord (Deuteronomy 16.21). It was these spiritual
heirs of Josiah who returned from
These texts do not tell the whole story.
The refugees who fled to
In 1897 a text was discovered in an old
The Book of Enoch, known as 1 Enoch, gives a similar account. [9] Preserved within the fifth section of
this text is an ancient and cryptic account of the history of
On one of his heavenly journeys, Enoch also saw the fragrant tree of life which
would one day be planted again in the temple, and its fruit given to the
righteous. He also saw dismembered branches from the tree, flourishing in
a blessed place (1 Enoch 24-26). In another vision,
Enoch saw the fragrant tree as a fiery form, the place where the Lord came when
he was in
The work of Josiah was not forgotten. Even mainstream Jewish texts from well
into the Christian era record that great changes took place at that time, and
that the second temple was inferior to the first. The great commentary on
the book of Numbers, known as the Numbers Rabbah, said that in the
time of the Messiah, five things would be restored which had been in the first
temple but not in the second: the fire, the ark, the menorah, the spirit and
the cherubim (Numbers Rabbah XV.10). In other words, the
true temple which the Messiah would restore was the first temple, the one
Josiah had purged. The mystery here is the menorah: there had been a
menorah in the second temple, but it cannot have been the true menorah if this
was deemed to be missing from the second temple. The Babylonian Talmud
records that Josiah had hidden away the ark, the holy anointing oil, the jar of
manna and Aaron’s rod (b.Horayoth 12a). Most of these
items – the ark, the cherubim, the oil, the manna and Aaron’s
rod – had been kept in the holy of holies to which only the high priests
had access. In other words, Josiah’s changes concerned the high
priests, and were thus changes at the very heart of the temple.
Josiah had not been the first king who attempted to change the religion of
Almost everything that Josiah swept away can be matched in the religion of
the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They had built shrines all
over the land, wherever the Lord had appeared to them, and they had offered
sacrifices under great trees (Genesis 12.6-7) and set up pillars to mark
holy places (Genesis 28.18). In the Old Testament as we know it, the
Patriarchs before the time of Moses and the kings after him followed the
religion that Deuteronomy condemned and Josiah purged. The custom of
child sacrifice, which Josiah abolished, had been required in the oldest of the
Hebrew law codes (Exodus 22.29), and only the later modifications
permitted a substitute offering of five silver shekels or a Levite for temple
service (Exodus 13.15; Numbers 3.40-48).
This change is reflected in the way the story of Abraham and Isaac is told in
our Old Testament. Abraham had thought that the sacrifice of his son was
necessary, but the Lord told him that a substitute should be offered
(Genesis 22.12-13). Another version of this story survived for
centuries; that Isaac had actually been sacrificed and then resurrected. [17] This version of the story appears both
Jewish and Christian sources: in the Pseudo-Jonathan Targum, in the
early Christian writings of Barnabas and Clement of Rome (Barnabas 7;
1 Clement 10 and 31), and is probably implied in the
New Testament in the letters to the Hebrews (Hebrews 11.17-19; also
James 2.21). The sacrifice of the Son lies at the heart of
Christianity, and the emphasis of the Letter to the Hebrews is that in the case
of Jesus, no substitute was offered (Hebrews 9.12). This shows that
memories of the older religion and its stories survived for centuries, even
though they do not appear in the biblical texts.
Abraham too had paid his tithe to Melchizedek, the priest king of
One way to reconstruct the religion of
Deuteronomy condemns regard for the host of heaven (Deuteronomy 4.19), the
angels who were represented by the stars, even though an ancient title for the
Lord was the Lord of Hosts. The heavenly host of angels must have been
part of the older faith. [21]
Deuteronomy also taught that the Law was to be Wisdom of the chosen people,
that the Law would make them wise (Deuteronomy 4.6). The book of
Proverbs says that it is Wisdom herself who makes her disciples wise (Proverbs 9.1-6).
Wisdom must have been part of the older faith. [22]
All these three – visions of the Lord, the host of heaven, and Wisdom –
feature in the accounts of Josiah’s purge: Enoch says that the priests
in the temple lost their vision because they abandoned Wisdom, and the account
in 2 Kings 23
describes how the certain houses in the temple were destroyed which had
belonged to ‘cult prostitutes’. Exactly the same Hebrew
letters can be read as ‘holy ones,’ angels. [23] What Josiah probably destroyed were the
places for the angels, just as he destroyed the Asherah which was the symbol of
Wisdom, the Queen of Heaven. Isaiah saw the Lord among the angels, and he
said he had seen the Lord of Hosts in the temple (Isaiah 6.1-5).
Deuteronomy does not mention angels.
Another way to reconstruct the older faith is to compare certain Old Testament
texts with the parallel accounts elsewhere. To take just one example, let
us compare the account of the creation in Genesis 1 with other accounts in
ancient texts. According to Genesis, on Day One, God said ‘Let
there be light’ and then separated light from darkness. Now in the
pattern of temple symbolism, the six days of creation corresponded to the six
stages by which Moses erected the tabernacle: thus Day One corresponded to the
holy of holies, the second day to the veil of the tabernacle, the third day to
the table for the shewbread and so forth. Whatever we read about Day One
will have been a secret of the holy of holies, accessible only to the high
priests. [24] In Genesis we are told nothing except
that God created light and separated it from darkness. The Book of Jubilees,
however, another text found among the Dead Sea Scrolls and preserved by the
ancient church in Ethiopia, gives a fuller account of Day One, and thus of the
holy of holies. On Day One the Lord created the angel spirits who serve
before him, and the ranks of the angels are listed (Jubilees 2.2).
A similar list appears in the Song of the Three Young Men in the fiery furnace,
which is found in the Greek version of Daniel 3, but not in the
Hebrew. The young men call on all creation to praise the Lord, beginning
with a detailed account of the angels described in Jubilees as the works
of Day One. It is not until almost half way through their song that they
call on the works of the visible creation to offer praise. The readers of
the Book of Jubilees and the readers of the Greek Daniel knew that the angels
had been the work of Day One – but we do not learn this from
Genesis. It comes as no surprise, though, that the angels were located in
the holy of holies, which is where Isaiah saw the heavenly host.
Presumably, knowledge of the angels had been a part of what Josiah sought to
eliminate. Deuteronomy does not mention angels.
Deuteronomy does, however, warn against the secret things, presumably the
knowledge of the holy of holies. ‘The secret things belong to the
Lord our God’ (Deuteronomy 29.29). Deuteronomy does not deny
that such secret things exist, but all that was necessary was to obey the Law
and keep the revealed commandments [25]. The affairs of the holy of holies were
the exclusive preserve of the high priests. They alone had charge of the
affairs of the altar and the holy of holies (Numbers 18.3) and they alone
were permitted to look at the tabernacle furnishings (Numbers 4). [26]
The great angels had been known as the sons of God. It is ironical that
in the first of the two great poems appended to the Book of Deuteronomy, we are
given the clearest picture of these sons of God. ‘When the Most High
gave to the nations their inheritance, he fixed the bounds of the peoples
according to the number of the sons of God.’
(Deuteronomy 32.8). There was one guardian angel for each
nation. [27] The poem goes on to say that Jacob was
allotted to the Lord, in other words, that the Lord, the God of Israel, was the
Son of God Most High. The older religion had not been monotheism in the way
that that word is usually understood today. The Lord, the Son of God, had
been the angel of
Once we know that the sons of God were an important part of the first temple
religion, other Old Testament texts begin to appear in their original
setting. The holy of holies was the place of the angels, and so the
rituals of the holy of holies must have been associated with the world of the
angels. [30] According the Books of Chronicles, there
was in the holy of holies a golden throne in the form of a chariot of cherubim
(1 Chronicles 28.18). It was concealed behind the veil of the
temple (2 Chronicles 3.14). The account in 1 Kings,
influenced by the Deuteronomists, mentions neither the chariot throne nor the veil,
so these must have been important items in the older religion. You will
recall that the cherubim had been in the first temple but not the second, and
were to be restored in the time of the time of the Messiah
(Numbers Rabbah XV.10). The Book of Chronicles also reveals
that when Solomon was made king, he sat on this chariot throne, described as
the throne of the Lord, and when he was enthroned, the people worshipped him
(1 Chronicles 29.20-23). ‘The people worshipped the
Lord, the king’ is the literal translation of
1 Chronicles 29.20. The king ‘was’ the
Lord. [31] He was enthroned in the holy of holies,
and he was the Lord. One of his titles, according to Isaiah, was Immanuel,
‘God with us’. A human being had entered the holy of holies
and become an angel. Isaiah records the song of the angels in the holy of
holies as the new angel is born as a son of God ‘Unto us a child is
born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
and his name shall be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting
Father, Prince of Peace’ (Isaiah 9.6). [32]
The most complete picture of the first temple religion has been preserved in
the Enoch texts. [33] Ancient leaders such as Noah and Moses
became angels whilst they still lived on earth (1 Enoch 89.1; 36).
Enoch was himself a high priest figure who entered the holy of holies and was
transformed into an angel when he stood before the throne and was anointed and
clothed by Michael. ‘He anointed me and he clothed me, and the
appearance of that oil is greater than the greatest light, and it is like sweet
dew and its fragrance is myrrh, and it is like the rays of the glittering
sun. And I looked at myself and I had become like one of the glorious
ones…’ (2 Enoch 22). You will recall that
the anointing oil had disappeared in the time of Josiah, [34]and that there is almost nothing about Enoch in
the Hebrew Bible even though he was a major figure among the Dead Sea Scrolls.
All the Enochic visions of the holy of holies must have been memories of the
ancient rituals: the high priest taking petitions into the presence of God, the
high priest looking out from the holy of holies and seeing all history spread
before him so that he knew the future, the blood of the Righteous One being
offered before the judgement could begin (1 Enoch 47).
This latter must have been a memory of the ancient rite of atonement, when the
blood of the royal high priest was offered in the holy of holies, presumably
using an animal substitute. [35] Daniel’s vision of the Man
ascending with clouds to the Ancient of Days says, literally, ‘He was
offered before him’ and then he was given dominion
(Daniel 7). Atonement is missing from Deuteronomy; the festival
calendar in Deuteronomy 16 describes Passover, Pentecost and
Tabernacles – but no Day of Atonement. [36] The final form of the Pentateuch,
compiled under the influence of Josiah’s party, denies that atonement is
even possible. After
The older faith did not disappear. The people who preserved the Enoch
traditions kept the older faith, the community of the Damascus Covenant seem to
have kept the older faith, those who wrote the Qumran Melchizedek text knew the
date at which the older faith would be restored, and it emerged as the
framework of early Christianity. [37] Jesus was proclaimed in the Letter to
the Hebrews as Melchizedek, [38] and John in his vision recorded in the Book of
Revelation saw the ark restored to the temple (Revelation 11.19). [39]
Remnants of the older faith survived in many places, preserved by the
descendants of those who fled from Josiah’s purge. There were the
mysterious sons of Rechab whose story was told in the History of the
Rechabites. Beneath the layers of fantasy and folk tale in this
widely known ancient text, we glimpse a group who described themselves as
angels, and who had fled from
Aramaic papyri found at Yeb in the south of
To the south of Yeb in
In Western China, on the border with
The religion of Abraham was long remembered as distinct from that of the Jews
who also had teachings of Moses. The Koran asked: ‘Do you claim
that Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob and the tribes were all Jews or Christians?’
(2.140). This ‘religion of Abraham’ must have been the
older faith, before Josiah and the Deuteronomists made Moses the more important
figure. The earliest account of the life of Muhammed was written by Ibn
Ishaq in the middle of the eighth century AD, and so only about one hundred
years after the time of Muhammed. Before the prophet appeared, he wrote,
four good men set out to seek the religion of their father Abraham, which they
believed their people had corrupted. They accepted neither Judaism nor
Christianity, but sought the Hanifiya, who had kept the faith of Abraham.
One of them went as far as
On the south west coast of
Perhaps the most compelling evidence for large numbers of people leaving
We can never know for certain what it was that Josiah purged or why he did
it. No actual texts or records survive from that period, but even the
stories as they have come down to us in various sources show that this was a
time of major upheaval which was not forgotten. A thousand years after
the events themselves, even mainstream Jewish texts remembered that the temple
had been drastically changed, that large numbers of people had left the land,
and that the true temple would be only be restored in the time of the Messiah.
|
2 Kings 22:8-13 and 2 Chronicles 34:14-20, with
Chronicles reporting the timing of the book’s discovery differently,
six years into the reform. See Margaret Barker, The Great Angel: A Study
of Israel’s Second God (London: SPCK, 1992), 12. Also Margaret
Barker, The Older Testament: The Survival of Themes from the Ancient Royal
Cult in Sectarian Judaism and Early Christianity (London: SPCK, 1987),
142-3. |
|
|
Deuteronomy 12:1-5. |
|
|
2 Kings 24:10-16, and 2 Kings 25:1-9. |
|
|
See Margaret Barker, The Great High Priest: The |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 246-47. |
|
|
Barker, The Great Angel, 12-14. Barker,The Older Testament,
142-148. |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 79, 82. |
|
|
See Barker, The Older Testament, 8-80, and Margaret Barker, The
Lost Prophet: The Book of Enoch and Its Influence on Christianity
(London: SPCK, 1988). |
|
|
Barker, The Older Testament, 59-61. |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 244. |
|
|
Daniel C. Peterson, “Nephi and His Asherah: A Note on
1 Nephi 11:8-23,” in Mormons, Scripture and the Ancient
World: Studies in Honor of John L. Sorenson, ed. by |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 244. |
|
|
Margaret Barker, The Revelation of Jesus Christ: Which God Gave to
Him to Show to His Servants What Must Soon |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 239-243. |
|
|
Ibid. 244. |
|
|
For further discussion of these accounts, see Hugh Nibley, Abraham
in Egypt 2nd ed. Collected Works of Hugh Nibley, vol 14 ( |
|
|
Barker, The Older Testament, 257. |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 37-39. Also, Barker, The
Revelation of Jesus Christ, 4-7. |
|
|
Margaret Barker, On Earth as It Is In Heaven: |
|
|
Barker, The Great Angel, 13-15. Barker, The Older
Testament, 127. |
|
|
Barker, The Great Angel 13-15. Barker, The Older Testament,
81-99, 147. Also Barker, The Great High Priest, 228-261. |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 149. |
|
|
Ibid., 135. |
|
|
Ibid., 224-225. |
|
|
For details of the Holy of Holies, Barker, The Great High Priest,
146-187. |
|
|
Barker, The Great Angel, 5-6. |
|
|
Ibid. |
|
|
Ibid., 190-5 |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 108-9. |
|
|
Margaret Barker, The Gate of Heaven: The History and Symbolism of
the |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 242. |
|
|
Barker, The Older Testament, 12-15, 69. Barker, The Lost
Prophet, 105-6. |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 78. |
|
|
Ibid., 51-55. |
|
|
Barker, The Great High Priest, 106. |
|
|
Ibid., 34-41. |
|
|
Barker, The Risen Lord, 67. |
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Ibid., 52. |
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Nathan Katz, Who Are the Jews of |
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For example, http://www.xlweb.com/heritage/asian/christianity-conference.htm
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Jeremiah 2-6
September 21, 2006
(Jeremiah 1:4-19.) –
Jeremiah’s call as a Prophet
4 Then the word of the
LORD came unto me, saying,
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.
6 Then said I, Ah, Lord
GOD! behold, I cannot speak: for I am a child.
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.
11 ¶ Moreover the word of
the LORD came unto me, saying, Jeremiah, what seest thou? And I said, I see a
rod of an almond tree.
12 Then said the LORD unto
me, Thou hast well seen: for I will hasten my word to perform it.
13 And the word of the
LORD came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see a
seething pot; and the face thereof is toward the north.
14 Then the LORD said unto
me, Out of the north an evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the
land.
15 For, lo, I will call
all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall
come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entering of the gates of
Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the
cities of Judah.
16 And I will utter my
judgments against them touching all their wickedness, who have forsaken me, and
have burned incense unto other gods, and worshipped the works of their own
hands.
17 ¶ Thou therefore gird
up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not
dismayed at their faces, lest I confound thee before them.
18 For, behold, I have
made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls
against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes
thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land.
19 And they shall fight
against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with
thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.
There were, of course, people living
on the earth after this time who held the Melchizedek Priesthood—including the
sons of Aaron, the seventy elders of Israel, and the prophets who were called
thereafter—but the keys, the right of presidency, including the right to confer
the higher priesthood, were taken from the generality of the people. "All
Priesthood is Melchizedek," Joseph Smith taught, "but there are
different portions or degrees of it. That portion which brought Moses to speak
with God face to face was taken away; but that which brought the ministry of
angels remained. All the prophets had the Melchizedek Priesthood and were
ordained by God himself."21 That
is, prophets after Moses like Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Lehi were
called by God and received the Melchizedek Priesthood and its keys by special
dispensation. We are instructed in a modern revelation that Nathan and
"others of the prophets who had the keys of this [sealing] power"
officiated in sacred saving ordinances (D&C 132:39) in Old Testament
times after the Melchizedek Priesthood was taken from the body of ancient
(Robert L.
Millet, Selected Writings of Robert L. Millet: Gospel Scholars Series [
The almond
tree was the 1st tree in the spring to bud and blossom in the
spring; it was considered the “watcher”.
BIBLE
DICTIONARY
Almond tree
In
full blossom in
They
can’t kill Jeremiah, but he suffers greatly, verses 17-19.
Pot =
The book is
set up by topics.
Chapters
2-6 – written in the time of Josiah
Chapters
7-20 – written in the time of Jehoiakim
Chapters
21-26 – written in the time of Zedekiah
The temple
sermon in chapter 7 may have been the same talk found in chapter 26.
The
marriage theme of chapter 2 is popular with Jeremiah; change the word kindness
to loyalty.
I AM WITH THEE, TO DELIVER THEE
(JEREMIAH 1-20)
DAVID ROLPH SEELY
When Jeremiah received his call, the
Lord delivered to him his word, both symbolically when he touched his young mouth,
and also literally when he spoke with Jeremiah and revealed to him his will.
From then on Jeremiah could deliver with authority the phrase "Thus saith
the Lord" with the attendant message.
Along with the word, the Lord gave Jeremiah two symbolic visions when he
called him. fn In the first vision (Jer. 1:11-12) the Lord asked Jeremiah to
look at the rod of an almond tree—in Hebrew, saqed—and delivered his
message to Jeremiah through a pun: "I will hasten—soqed—my word to
perform it" (Jer. 1:11-12). This symbol would remind Jeremiah that the
words he would be asked to deliver would indeed come to pass. The second vision
contained the essence of the Lord's warning to
Needless to say such a message would
not be a popular one. The Lord informed Jeremiah that he would set him up to
"root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down" (Jer.
1:10). What the Lord demanded he tell the inhabitants of the land would be
difficult; thus he exhorted, "Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise,
and speak unto them all that I command thee: be not dismayed at their faces,
lest I confound thee before them" (Jer. 1:17). He told Jeremiah he would
find himself pitted "against the kings of
Throughout Jeremiah's forty-year
ministry, his task would require of him almost more than he could bear. His
ministry would require courage, humility, perseverance, patience, charity, and
an uncompromising intolerance of sin, all of which would result in a spiritual
maturity that he eloquently and poetically expressed in his writings. Jeremiah
would suffer rejection, persecution, loneliness, isolation, and injustice. He
would be arrested, threatened, beaten, and imprisoned. Yet in the face of all
adversity, he maintained a dynamic and meaningful relationship with the Lord to
whom he freely expressed the depths of his emotions—his grief, anger, and
despair—as well as his spiritual triumphs. At times the Lord responded,
sometimes sharply and sometimes gently; at other times he listened. But as he
promised, he was always there.
In the collection of prophecies in
Jeremiah 1 through 19 are only two chronological points of reference. The first
is found in Jeremiah 3:6, "in the days of Josiah," and the other can be
deduced for the
Prophecies from the Time of Josiah (Jer. 2-6)
In chapters 2 and 3 the Lord revealed
to Jeremiah the covenantal lawsuit he was bringing against his people on
account of their disobedience. The legal imagery of the Lord charging his
people—a covenantal lawsuit—is a common feature in biblical prophecy, and good
examples can be found in Deuteronomy 25, Hosea 4, Isaiah 1, Micah 6, and Psalm
50.
The stipulations of the Mosaic
covenant—the Law—were from the beginning inseparably connected with specific
promises of blessings and curses, depending on obedience to the commandments.
These blessings and curses were specified in Deuteronomy 27 and 28. This
connection between obedience and blessing is well known to Latter-day Saint
readers, as it is repeated throughout the Book of Mormon in regard to the
promised land: "Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall
prosper" (1 Ne. 2:20; 4:14). The corresponding curse is likewise
expressed, "But inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be
cut off from my presence" (2 Ne. 1:20). The eternal nature of this
principle is reiterated in modern revelation: "There is a law, irrevocably
decreed in heaven before the foundations of this world, upon which all
blessings are predicated—And when we obtain any blessing from God, it is by
obedience to that law upon which it is predicated" (D&C 130:20-21).
The specific punishments pronounced
on
In Jeremiah 2 and 3 the covenant
lawsuit, like much of the biblical imagery of covenant, is based on one of the
most tender and moving of biblical images—the covenant between God and his
people as a marriage. The Lord portrays
The Lord led his young bride
"out of the
In addition to portraying the Lord as
husband, Jeremiah portrayed him as father. He referred to
Not only has
Jeremiah's assignment was to plead
for the Lord: "Return, thou backsliding
In Jeremiah 4 through 6 the Lord
continued the lawsuit, after offering
The threat of destruction was
tempered by the promise that the destruction would not be total:
"Nevertheless in those days, saith the Lord, I will not make a full end
with you," but a remnant would be sent into exile where, just as they had
forsaken the Lord and worshiped strange gods in their own land, they would
"serve strangers in a land that is not yours" (Jer. 5:18-19).
Once again the blame was placed not
just on the corrupt political and religious authorities but on everyone:
"A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land; the prophets
prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love
to have it so" (Jer. 5:30-31).
Prophecies from the Time of Jehoiakim
(Jer. 4-20)
Because only a few of the diverse
themes and images of the many prophecies recorded in Jeremiah 7 through 20 can
be discussed here, I will concentrate on four of them: first, Jeremiah's Temple
Sermon in chapter 7, which contains a comprehensive overview of what the Lord
perceived to be the problems in Judah and the proposed solutions; second, three
symbolic acts in which the word of the Lord was dramatized; third, a prophecy
of the scattering and the gathering; and fourth, Jeremiah's laments, which are
interspersed throughout these chapters and reveal the depths of Jeremiah's
personal struggles and suffering as he went about the work of the Lord.
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 214.)
The Lord –
“I don’t understand the evil you find in me?”
God is the
husband and
(Jeremiah 2:2-9.)
2 Go and cry in the ears
of
3
4 Hear ye the word of the
LORD, O house of Jacob, and all the families of the house of
5 ¶ Thus saith the LORD, What
iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and
have walked after vanity, and are become vain?
6 Neither said they, Where
is the LORD that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, that led us
through the wilderness, through a land of deserts and of pits, through a land
of drought, and of the shadow of death, through a land that no man passed
through, and where no man dwelt?
7 And I brought you into a
plentiful country, to eat the fruit thereof and the goodness thereof; but when
ye entered, ye defiled my land, and made mine heritage an abomination.
8 The priests said not,
Where is the LORD? and they that handle the law knew me not: the pastors
also transgressed against me, and the prophets prophesied by Baal, and walked
after things that do not profit.
9 ¶ Wherefore I will yet
plead with you, saith the LORD, and with your children's children will I plead.
Verse 5 -
What was wicked in me as your husband that you went to others?
Verse 9 –
plead = conflict, bring a charge between 2.people
(Jeremiah 2:10-13.)
10 For pass over the isles
of Chittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see if
there be such a thing.
11 Hath a nation changed their
gods, which are yet no gods? but my people have changed their glory for that
which doth not profit.
12 Be astonished, O ye
heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the LORD.
13 For my people have
committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and
hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.
What other
neighbor nation changes Gods like you do?
They are all faithful to those false gods even if those gods give them
nothing! I got you out of bondage, and
gave you a plentiful land, I am your protector.
2
Evils: 1. Jehovah – Fountain of Living
Water,
2.
False gods – Broken cisterns that don’t hold water and stink.
You get a
sense that the Lord is dumbfounded by their choices.
Verse 14 - Servant = slaves. The people in
Something
that doesn’t profit, He brings this up several times.
I have been
a very good husband to you, why do you switch.
You have an
outward appearance of Jehovah worship, yet you still worship other gods. There isn’t an inward change in your heart
toward Jehovah. Why are you behaving
this way? What evil do you find in me?
(Jeremiah 2:14-23.)
14 ¶ Is
15 The young lions roared
upon him, and yelled, and they made his land waste: his cities are
burned without inhabitant.
16 Also the children of
Noph and Tahapanes have broken the crown of thy head.
17 Hast thou not procured
this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, when he led
thee by the way?
18 And now what hast thou
to do in the way of
19 Thine own wickedness
shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and
see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken
the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of
hosts.
20 ¶ For of old time I
have broken thy yoke, and burst thy bands; and thou saidst, I will not
transgress; when upon every high hill and under every green tree thou
wanderest, playing the harlot.
21 Yet I had planted thee
a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate
plant of a strange vine unto me?
22 For though thou wash
thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity is marked
before me, saith the Lord GOD.
23 How canst thou say, I
am not polluted, I have not gone after Baalim? see thy way in the valley, know
what thou hast done: thou art a swift dromedary traversing her ways;
Verse 19-23
- Josiah’s reforms aren’t going to work;
Verse 22 -
(1 Nephi 17:20-22.)
20 And thou art like unto
our father, led away by the foolish imaginations of his heart; yea, he hath led
us out of the land of Jerusalem, and we have wandered in the wilderness for
these many years; and our women have toiled, being big with child; and they
have borne children in the wilderness and suffered all things, save it were
death; and it would have been better that they had died before they came out of
Jerusalem than to have suffered these afflictions.
21 Behold, these many
years we have suffered in the wilderness, which time we might have enjoyed our
possessions and the land of our inheritance; yea, and we might have been happy.
22 And we know that the
people who were in the land of Jerusalem were a righteous people; for they kept
the statutes and judgments of the Lord, and all his commandments, according to
the law of Moses; wherefore, we know that they are a righteous people; and our
father hath judged them, and hath led us away because we would hearken unto his
words; yea, and our brother is like unto him. And after this manner of language
did my brethren murmur and complain against us.
Righteous =
Right with the law. Obedience to the law
gets you to do actions which are right in the Lords eyes. Laman thinks just by doing that it will be
enough it’s an outward show of obedience (I am righteous). The purpose of the law pointing to Jehovah
doesn’t cross their mind. If Jehovah is
pacified towards us then that is enough, then we can go about our business as
usual. There isn’t an inner holiness or
spirituality found in such a person.
(1 Nephi 17:45.)
45
Ye are swift to do iniquity but slow to remember the Lord your God. Ye have
seen an angel, and he spake unto you; yea, ye have heard his voice from time to
time; and he hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his words; wherefore,
he has spoken unto you like unto the voice of thunder, which did cause the
earth to shake as if it were to divide asunder.
They are
not a product of Josiah but of Jehoiakim who 10 years later turned back to the ways
of Manasseh. They think they are OK;
Jeremiah tries to show they aren’t.
Today, we
go to the temple, church, do our home teaching, read our scriptures etc, but
our hearts aren’t turned to Christ. We
don’t like being reminded of our short comings during Conference. It’s an outward show without an inward change
of heart.
(Jeremiah 3:22-25.)
22 Return, ye backsliding
children, and I will heal your backslidings. Behold, we come unto thee;
for thou art the LORD our God.
23 Truly in vain is
salvation hoped for from the hills, and from the multitude of
mountains: truly in the LORD our God is the salvation of
24 For shame hath devoured
the labour of our fathers from our youth; their flocks and their herds, their
sons and their daughters.
25 We lie down in our
shame, and our confusion covereth us: for we have sinned against the LORD our
God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day, and have not obeyed
the voice of the LORD our God.
There isn’t
any hope for them, they are so caught up in their sins that they can’t escape, and
they won’t stop sinning, even when they know better.
(Jeremiah 2:24-30.)
24 A wild ass used to the
wilderness, that snuffeth up the wind at her pleasure; in her occasion
who can turn her away? all they that seek her will not weary themselves; in her
month they shall find her.
25 Withhold thy foot from
being unshod, and thy throat from thirst: but thou saidst, There is no hope:
no; for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.
26 As the thief is ashamed
when he is found, so is the house of
27 Saying to a stock, Thou
art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth: for they have
turned their back unto me, and not their face: but in the time of
their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us.
28 But where are
thy gods that thou hast made thee? let them arise, if they can save thee in the
time of thy trouble: for according to the number of thy cities are thy
gods, O Judah.
29 Wherefore will ye plead
with me? ye all have transgressed against me, saith the LORD.
30 In vain have I smitten
your children; they received no correction: your own sword hath devoured your
prophets, like a destroying lion.
Verse 25 -
Hebrew = “We are free to roam and will come no more unto thee”
Going
through the rituals is enough – I can’t change, there is no hope for me.
Why Josiah’s
Reforms did not work
- They think they are righteous,
performing outward rituals without an inward change (the Mormon game) No
change in their heart.
- They lost hope they can change
- They have no desire to repent,
past feeling, Josiah wants his people to change
- It’s not wrong what I’m doing
- They don’t fear the Lord, they
don’t think of the consequences of their actions
What are
the shows or movies you watch? Are you
culturally bound to the world? See Elder
Ballard’s talk on media.
The Effects of
Television
M. Russell Ballard
Ensign, May 1989, 79
I am sure we all appreciate
the inspired and timely messages we have heard. They have been translated
simultaneously into twenty-nine languages, many of which have been broadcast
via satellite and television to millions of people.
The wonder of television
causes me to believe that Philo T. Farnsworth, back in 1927, must surely have
been inspired of the Lord to develop this remarkable medium of communication.
As you know, Brother Farnsworth was a member of the Church. Applying his
scientific skills, he brought to the world this marvelous invention, which I
believe is to be used for the primary purpose of furthering the work of the
Lord.
In the past sixty years,
television has become a major industry in the world. It is estimated that more
than 750 million television sets are owned by people living in 160 countries.
Approximately 2.5 billion people view television broadcasting every day.
Most of us recognize both
the many benefits and the many challenges that come from television in our
modern, fast-paced world. Some of the benefits, besides listening to the
teaching of the gospel, we can receive by merely touching a button include
receiving instant reports of local and world events and updates on weather;
watching fantasy; exploring geography; living history; enjoying good theater,
dance, and music; and experiencing culture from almost every country in the
world.
For these kinds of programs
we praise the industry. Unfortunately, however, far too much programming is not
wholesome and uplifting but is violent, degrading, and destructive to moral values.
This kind of television offends the Spirit of the Lord; therefore, I express a
word of warning and caution about such programming.
Good families face very
significant challenges in controlling the use of television and videotapes in
their homes. I agree with Dr. Victor B. Cline when he said, "I am
convinced by a vast amount of research that the images, fantasies, and models
which we are repeatedly exposed to in advertisements, entertainment, novels,
motion pictures, and other works of art can and do . . . affect the self-image
and, later, the behavior of nearly all young people and adults too"
(address at Tidewater Assembly on Family Life, Norfolk, Virginia).
On another occasion, Dr.
Cline said that the mental diet is as important as the nutritional diet.
"The amount of violence a child sees at 7 predicts how violent he will be
at 17, 27 and 37. . . . Children's minds are like banks--whatever you put in,
you get back 10 years later with interest." He said that violent
television teaches children, step-by-step, "how to commit violent acts,
and it desensitizes them to the horror of such behavior and to the feelings of
victims." Dr. Cline said that
Some may be surprised to
know that in the average American home, the television set is on just under
seven hours each day, and more than sixty-six million Americans who are under
age nineteen live in these homes. A recent magazine article included this
statement: "Once, television's 'window on the world' mirrored solid family
ties, heroes drawn in bright primary colors, and a society of permanence and
belonging. Now . . . it's clear that our TV shows are showing quite a different
picture. In fact, it's arguable that television is no longer a mere window on
our world but the value-setter itself" (Another View of the Window [Triangle
Publications, n.d.], p. 3).
Allow me to share highlights
of some alarming findings from research studies conducted over the past eight
to ten years on the effects of television when watched more than two hours a day
without the careful selection of programs.
1. Before television,
children played together more often, played outdoors more, spent more time
being creative and inventive, and read more. Parents and children spent more
time together, talked together more, shared more joint projects and chores, and
ate more meals together. (See Ellen B. De Franco, TV On-Off: Better
Family Use of Television [Santa Monica, Calif., Goodyear Publishing Co.,
1980], pp. 5-6.)
2. Television is
psychologically addictive (see TV On-Off, p. 4).
3. Television is a
physically passive activity and generally discourages creative play. It can
encourage a certain kind of passivity which leads to a "show me or
entertain me" orientation by children. (See Television and
Behavior [Rockville, Md.: National Institute of Mental Health, 1987], pp.
45-46.)
4. Television tends to
overpower and desensitize a child's sense of sympathy for suffering (see Kate
Moody, Growing Up on Television: The TV Effect--A Report to Parents [
5. Some children lose the
ability to learn from reality because life's experiences are more complicated
than those seen on the screen. Teachers and parents, therefore, suffer by
comparison when they cannot solve problems in thirty to sixty minutes. (See Ben
Logan and Kate Moody, eds.,Television Awareness Training: The Viewer's Guide
for Family and Community [Nashville: Abingdon, 1979], p. 43.)
Volumes of research data
show the detrimental effects of television, but I just say that television and
videocassette viewing by youngsters has a significant impact on their behavior.
We must not take lightly the confession of a recently executed killer on the
impact pornography and violence in media had on his life. The Apostle Paul
warned that men can become "past feeling . . . [giving] themselves over
unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness" (Ephesians
4:19). In Proverbs we read, "As [a man] thinketh . . . , so is he"
(23:7). A mind exposed to violence and immorality cannot escape the negative
impact of such exposure.
President Gordon B. Hinckley
said:
"'A survey of
influential television writers and executives in
"'This group has had a
major role in shaping the shows whose themes and stars have become staples in
our popular culture' (Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 1983, part 2, page
5).
"These are the people
[TV script writers and executives] who, through the medium of entertainment,
are educating us in the direction of their own standards, which in many cases
are diametrically opposed to the standards of the gospel" [in Conference
Report, Oct. 1983, p. 67; or Ensign, Nov. 1983, pp. 45-46].
A Time magazine article
states:
"This upsurge in
openness has been linked by some critics to cutbacks in the network departments
of standards and practices--the censors who review shows and commercials for
offensive . . . material. . . . The ranks of these watchdogs were drastically
reduced: from a peak of 75 to 80 per network during the 1970s to 35 to 40 today
at ABC and fewer than 30 each at CBS and NBC" ("Where Are the
Censors?" 12 Dec. 1988, p. 95). Televised violence has become so pervasive
that the average high school student by graduation has seen eighteen thousand
murders and many other acts of violence and sin. This being the case today,
more parental review and monitoring is needed to protect our families from the
current flood of TV violence and the effect it has on us.
Randal A. Wright in his
book Families in Danger wrote:
"It is possible to
trace the decline in American television from its original programs. As an
example, a prime-time (7:00 to 10:00 P.M.) schedule check going back thirty
years found that in 1955, no violent, crime-oriented programs were offered. . .
. By 1986, twenty-nine hours of violent programs were being offered" ([
I believe that the number of
violent programs has increased substantially since 1986.
Mr. Wright continued:
"Not only is violence increasing on TV, but every form of immorality,
vice, and corruption is also being paraded before our family's eyes in
ever-increasing amounts. Ask yourself if the same kinds of sexually related
scenes and messages of all too many programs of today were found in the
programs of twenty years ago. We are being exposed to growing amounts of
inappropriate material if we choose to watch TV without being selective" (Families
in Danger, p. 46).
In the Church, we often
state the couplet, "Be in the world but not of the world." As we
observe television shows that make profanity, violence, and infidelity
commonplace and even glamorous, we often wish we could lock out the world in
some way and isolate our families from it all.
Perhaps the proper response
to outrageous behavior is outrage, or, more to the point, the proper response
to outrageous television is outrage. I express my own and this church's
disappointment, disagreement, and even outrage with television that turns our
attention and sometimes our inclinations toward violence, self-serving greed,
profanity, disrespect for traditional values, sexual promiscuity, and deviance.
Nephi predicted that in our
day Satan would "rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them
up to anger against that which is good" (2 Nephi 28:20). Satan's evil use
of television contributes to the increased wickedness in our society.
Perhaps we should state the
couplet previously mentioned as two separate admonitions. First, "Be in
the world." Be involved; be informed. Try to be understanding and tolerant
and to appreciate diversity. Make meaningful contributions to society through
service and involvement. Second, "Be not of the world." Do not follow
wrong paths or bend to accommodate or accept what is not right.
We should strive to change
the corrupt and immoral tendencies in television and in society by keeping
things that offend and debase out of our homes. In spite of all of the
wickedness in the world, and in spite of all the opposition to good that we
find on every hand, we should not try to take ourselves or our children out of
the world. Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven,"
or yeast (Matthew 13:33). We are to lift the world and help all to rise above
the wickedness that surrounds us. The Savior prayed to the Father:
"I pray not that thou
shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from
the evil" (John 17:15).
Members of the Church need
to influence more than we are influenced. We should work to stem the tide of
sin and evil instead of passively being swept along by it. We each need to help
solve the problem rather than avoid or ignore it. I like this simple little
poem:
All the water in the
world
No matter how it tried
Could never sink the
smallest ship
Unless it got inside.
All the evil of the world
And every kind of sin
Could never damn a human
soul
Unless we let it in.
We can live in the world,
brothers and sisters, without letting the world into us. We have the gospel
message that can carry men and women buoyantly through the "mist of
darkness" (1 Nephi 8:23) to the source of all light. We can raise children
who have been taught to discern and to make personal righteous decisions.
The Lord does not need a
society that hides and isolates itself from the world. Rather, he needs
stalwart individuals and families who live exemplary lives in the world and
demonstrate that joy and fulfillment come not of the world but through the
spirit and the doctrine of Jesus Christ.
Now, what can we as
individuals and families do to reverse the negative trends of television? Let
me review with you some suggestions.
Research data indicates that
families that limit television viewing to a maximum of two hours a day of
carefully selected programs may see the following significant changes in family
relationships:
1. Value setting will be
taught and reinforced by the family. Families will learn how to establish
values and how to reason together.
2. Relationships between
parents and youth will increase in families.
3. Homework will be
completed with less pressure of time.
4. Personal conversations
will increase substantially.
5. Children's imaginations
will come back to life.
6. Each family member will
become a discriminating selector and evaluator of programs.
7. Parents can become family
leaders again.
8. Good reading habits may
be substituted for television viewing.
Brothers and sisters, we can
write to local radio and television stations and to cable and national networks
to express our concerns. The sponsors and advertisers who pay for programs and
advertising that are offensive would most likely appreciate hearing from us
also.
In my opinion, we must make
our influence felt by joining with other concerned people who oppose television
programming that tears down and destroys the values that have made our families
and our countries strong. Latter-day Saints are not alone in this concern. Many
individuals, churches, and other organizations are raising their voices. Let us
join with them, brothers and sisters, to persuade TV script writers,
executives, and sponsors to use their talents and resources to help build a
better and safer world.
President George Bush, in
his inaugural address, called for a kinder face of the nation and a gentler
face of the world (see Investor's Daily, 23 Jan. 1989, p. 11). Let
it begin by a kinder and gentler television throughout the world.
The prophet Mormon said that
each of us is given the Spirit of Christ to know good from evil; everything
that invites us to do good is of God. On the other hand, anything that
persuades us to do evil is of the devil, for he and those who follow him
persuade no one to do good. (See
May the Lord bless us and help
us protect ourselves, our families, and the spirit of our homes, and help us
improve our world through working for improved television programming.
I leave you my testimony
that we have only one sure way to secure our homes and our families, and that
is through learning and living the principles of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
May the Lord bless you and help you prevent anything of an evil nature from
entering your homes, I pray humbly, in the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
(Jeremiah 3:1-2.)
1 They say, If a man put
away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man's, shall he return
unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played
the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD.
2 Lift up thine eyes unto
the high places, and see where thou hast not been lien with. In the ways hast
thou sat for them, as the Arabian in the wilderness; and thou hast polluted the
land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness.
Where is
the harshness of God in these verses? He
is kind, gentle and full of love.
Examples like these are found throughout the OT. Even in all your sins come unto me, come home.
Jeremiah
loves the Hebrew word turn, return, it is found throughout his writings, shube.
(Jeremiah 3:3-15.)
3 Therefore the showers
have been withholden, and there hath been no latter rain; and thou hadst a
whore's forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed.
4 Wilt thou not from this
time cry unto me, My father, thou art the guide of my youth?
5 Will he reserve his
anger for ever? will he keep it to the end? Behold, thou hast spoken
and done evil things as thou couldest.
6 ¶ The LORD said also
unto me in the days of Josiah the king, Hast thou seen that which
backsliding
7 And I said after she had
done all these things, Turn thou unto me. But she returned not. And her
treacherous sister Judah saw it.
8 And I saw, when for all
the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away,
and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not,
but went and played the harlot also.
9 And it came to pass
through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed
adultery with stones and with stocks.
10 And yet for all this
her treacherous sister
11 And the LORD said unto
me, The backsliding
12 ¶ Go and proclaim these
words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding
13 Only acknowledge thine
iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast
scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not
obeyed my voice, saith the LORD.
14 Turn, O backsliding
children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of
a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to
15 And I will give you
pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and
understanding.
Verse 4 –
This is an example of pure, perfect and divine love, but not unconditional
love, if you don’t come back I can’t help you.
God cannot override justice.
2 symbols –
Husband – Wife and Father – Child
(Joshua 24:14.)
14
¶ Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put
away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in
Fear =
Fear, we soften fear today.
The story
of Achan – he was circumcised, so he made the covenant at Shechem. He broke that covenant, so he was destroyed
and all that he possessed his wife and family, he lost everything because he
broke the covenant they had to share in his fate. Joshua 7.
He lost
everything, but his family did not in the spirit world, it isn’t a curse for
them in the eternities, only for him.
We have commandments to love the Lord. If we reject Him then his love cannot save
us. Look at the great and spacious
building, the flood,
Don’t be
troubled by the concept of fearing the Lord, the consequences are painful. Fear isn’t the same as honor or respect. If I don’t fear I may not repent.
Who determines
the consequences of sin, both sides!
(2 Nephi 2:7-10.)
7 Behold, he offereth
himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who
have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto none else can the ends of
the law be answered.
8 Wherefore, how great the
importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that
they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God,
save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who
layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power
of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being
the first that should rise.
9 Wherefore, he is the
firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make intercession for all the
children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved.
10 And because of the
intercession for all, all men come unto God; wherefore, they stand in the
presence of him, to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which
is in him. Wherefore, the ends of the law which the Holy One hath given, unto
the inflicting of the punishment which is affixed, which punishment that is
affixed is in opposition to that of the happiness which is affixed, to answer the
ends of the atonement—
Happiness
Mercy Law Justice
Truth, Grace
Atonement
Punishment
(Doctrine and Covenants
19:15-20.)
15 Therefore I command you
to repent—repent, lest I smite you by the rod of my mouth, and by my wrath, and
by my anger, and your sufferings be sore—how sore you know not, how exquisite
you know not, yea, how hard to bear you know not.
16 For behold, I, God,
have suffered these things for all, that they might not suffer if they would
repent;
17 But if they would not
repent they must suffer even as I;
18 Which suffering caused
myself, even God, the greatest of all, to tremble because of pain, and to bleed
at every pore, and to suffer both body and spirit—and would that I might not
drink the bitter cup, and shrink—
19 Nevertheless, glory be
to the Father, and I partook and finished my preparations unto the children of
men.
20 Wherefore, I command
you again to repent, lest I humble you with my almighty power; and that you
confess your sins, lest you suffer these punishments of which I have spoken, of
which in the smallest, yea, even in the least degree you have tasted at the
time I withdrew my Spirit.
We don’t
suffer eternal consequences for our sins, but if we don’t repent we will feel
that weight later on in the spirit world, the punishment here is merely
postponed if we don’t repent. They lost the fear of punishment.
The
Northern kingdom never had a righteous king, they are more justified then the
Southern kingdom,
Jeremiah 3:12-17 – Jeremiah is looking to the
future, he is talking to the 10 tribes, to repent and return home. Acknowledge your sins and repent I will marry
you again, and you will be brought to
Verses
17-18 - He quotes Isaiah 2 – The House of Israel will again be one. Ephraim will seek out both kingdoms; the
North will find the Southern kingdom.
Here we are! Ephraim (North) is
searching for both today. There is no
hope for them in Jeremiah’s time; the hope was in the future, our day.
Read the
chapter summaries for chapters 4-6.
(Jeremiah 4:19.)
19
¶ My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise
in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of
the trumpet, the alarm of war.
They don’t
believe the destruction prophesied will happen, Jeremiah sees it and is pained
throughout his body.
The Jerusalem of Lehi's time, for
example, was seen differently by different eyes. Laman and Lemuel, reluctant to
leave, resented their exodus, saying later, "we have suffered in the
wilderness, which time. . . we might have been happy" back in the
And we know that the people who were
in the land of Jerusalem were a righteous people; for they kept the statutes
and judgments of the Lord, and all his commandments, according to the law of
Moses; wherefore, we know that they are a righteous people; and our father hath
judged them, and hath led us away because we would hearken unto his words; yea,
and our brother is like unto him. And after this manner of language did my
brethren murmur and complain against us. (1 Nephi 17:22.)
Thus can people come to have errant
pride in the status quo; hence the importance of listening to the Lord's
prophets without being offended.
Despite all their warnings and
pleadings the prophets recognize and honor human agency as given by the God
they serve. They are well aware of how dangerous the sensual human appetites
are, but also are conscious that these celebrated appetites of the "here
and now" will not survive after the resurrection, for "the world
passeth away, and the lust thereof" (1 John 2:17). The worldly appetites
are, in a sense, like secularism's manna, a day-to-day thing, seldom preserved
overnight. Instead, prophets urge the long view of the individual's eternal
self-interest.
(Neal A.
Maxwell, Not My Will, But Thine [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1998], 60.)
The First Siege of
In a little more than twenty years
Jehoiakim's eighteen-year-old son,
Jehoiachin, also denounced as an evil ruler, was placed on the throne in 598
B.C. (2 Kgs. 24:9). The first Babylonian siege of Jerusalem occurred three
months later, with the city surrendering to Nebuchadnezzar on 16 March 597 B.C.
fn At this time, Jehoiachin, his mother, and the entire royal household were
taken hostage and transported to Babylon (2 Kgs. 24:12). Along with the royal
family, thousands of Judah's leaders, craftsmen, soldiers, and people of
influence were carried away (2 Kgs. 24:14-16). This was the beginning of what
is called "the Exile," the period in which the Jews were exiled from
their homeland to
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 173.)
(Jeremiah 5:7-12, 14) –
The wickedness of the people of Jerusalem in Lehi’s time
7 ¶ How shall I pardon
thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are
no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and
assembled themselves by troops in the harlots' houses.
8 They were as fed
horses in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbour's wife.
9 Shall I not visit for
these things? saith the LORD: and shall not my soul be avenged on such a
nation as this?
10 ¶ Go ye up upon her
walls, and destroy; but make not a full end: take away her battlements; for
they are not the LORD's.
11 For the house of
12 They have belied the
LORD, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us; neither
shall we see sword nor famine:
14
Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold,
I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall
devour them.
By denying
this you are blowing fire on the wood,
It’s no
sacrifice to live the gospel, it’s a sacrifice not living it, you withhold
blessing from yourselves.
We will live in a time of great lust
not unlike another when it was said to an evil people, "How shall I pardon
thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no
gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and
assembled themselves by troops in the harlots' houses. They were as fed horses
in the morning: every one neighed after his neighbour's wife." (Jeremiah
5:7-8.)
The very crassness of worldly ways,
once the hardening has reached a certain point, is such that shame is no longer
possible. Such a time had apparently been reached in the days of Jeremiah when,
speaking of the evils among the people, he asked, "Were they ashamed when
they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither
could they blush: therefore they shall fall among them that fall: . . . Thus
saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where
is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. . .
." (Jeremiah 6:15-16.) The phrasing of Jeremiah is significant in our
time. He speaks of the people who had lost their capacity to walk in old paths
and to blush. Sound familiar? Indeed this description sounds like a people who
had not only departed from the ways of the Lord, but who also "loved to
have it so."
If in these times there seem to be
more warnings than in other ages, it is because this is not a time when there
can be many words. When someone is about to step into the path of an oncoming
truck, the individual giving the warning does not take time to explain the
make, model, and color of the truck that is coming or indeed to mention the
velocity. He simply shouts! There is often no time to do more regarding some of
the trends in our society.
This is an age, too, when it may
again be necessary for leaders to do what leaders did once before in Book of
Mormon times, to bear down in "pure testimony" so people will know
clearly what their choices are. In a time around eighty-four years before
Christ, there were among the people of the Church "envyings, and strife,
and malice, and persecutions, and pride, even to exceed the pride of those who
did not belong to the
The Church did not progress. Indeed
the wickedness in some of the members of the Church was "a great
stumbling-block to those who did not belong to the church." (
That society was sufficiently far
gone that it was too late to turn it around by debates in a Parliament and by
this or that judicial decision. The people had to be told, and told plainly, of
the peril they faced.
Of course, this does not mean that
warnings cannot be given in love or that the testimonies cannot be born in
genuine love and affection. Even the warnings that must be delivered abruptly
can be given, indeed should be given, with the truth being spoken, as Paul
counseled us, in love. People can often respond at first to our love and to our
concern more than to the content of our message. The quality of our lives can
make it so much easier for people to believe on our words. When they have heard
the gospel from us, they may say as a queenly woman said, "I have had no
witness save thy word . . . nevertheless I believe." (
Given the kind of high adventure that
we know is coming to us such as is contained in the prophecy of Heber C.
Kimball, we must be prepared to speak plainly. President Kimball said that
prior to the rebuilding of the Church in
Difficulties of this degree will be
experienced before traumatic deliverance comes. In such circumstances, what we
say must be said plainly though lovingly. There is no time for sophistry or
games or cleverness. Somehow in such circumstances, the proper balance will be
struck by the prophets who will see that the gospel is carried to all nations
"for a witness" in which we focus on preaching "Christ and him
crucified," so that other less important things do not get in the way of
that grand message. At the same time there will apparently be, according to
President Brigham Young, a very special effort made. President Young said,
"I expect to see the day when the Elders of Israel will protect and
sustain civil and religious liberty and every constitutional right bequeathed
to us by our fathers, and spread those rights abroad in connection with the
Gospel for the salvation of all nations." (Journal of Discourses
11:262-63.) But such an added emphasis would come only by prophetic direction.
These prophetic comments were made in
an address in the Bowery in
We should not be dismayed if our
words are reacted to as the words of earlier leaders were reacted to in Old
Testament times. We read this searing indictment with regard to the
insensitivity of earlier inhabitants: "But they mocked the messengers of
God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, . . . till there was
no remedy." (2 Chronicles 36:16. Italics added.)
But enduring, as already indicated,
consists of much more than just coping with the passage of time or putting up
with things we cannot change, though these are a part of enduring. We must, for
instance, endure in doing good without becoming weary in well-doing—a special
challenge in declining times when we may be tempted to think the good done is
of no consequence.
(Neal A.
Maxwell, Wherefore, Ye Must Press Forward [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book
Co., 1977], 112.)
(Jeremiah 6:14-15.)
14 They have healed also
the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace;
when there is no peace.
15 Were they ashamed when
they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither
could they blush: therefore they shall fall among them that fall: at the time that
I visit them they shall be cast down, saith the LORD.
Like Laman,
what’s wrong? No guilt they lost the
light of Christ. The children will not
be raised in a society with agency; they need to be destroyed so the children
can have a chance.
2:1-37
The "fathers" mentioned in
this prophecy may have been those of the long, idolatrous reign of Hezekiah's
son Manasseh and grandson Amon (ca. 697-640 B.C.; 2 Kgs. 21; cf. Jer. 15:4).
Many of the evils Jeremiah condemned and fought against throughout his mission
were the religious and social sins made common in that fifty-seven year period.
The reforms of King Josiah no doubt had some good effects; but just as good
character grows like a tree and evil multiplies like weeds, so did
In his opening charge, the prophet
Jeremiah reprimanded
Jeremiah ridiculed idolatry and
chided
He ridiculed
He ridiculed the Israelites'
considering wood or stone as fathers or creators and challenged the people to
turn to those wooden or stone "gods" for help. He pleaded with them
to repent, turn to the Lord, and not contend with Him. Yet, though they
suffered, they would not return.
With a metaphor likening idolatry to
adultery, Jeremiah ended this discourse by calling attention to
3:1-11 thou hast played the harlot
with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the Lord
Although a husband seldom returns to
a divorced wife, yet if
3:12-25 Go and proclaim these words
toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding
The Lord turned the prophet's
attention from his failing nation to the future
In the future Zion, the Lord's
shepherds ("pastors") will do what Israel's leaders anciently should
have done, but the ark of the covenant and worship procedures associated with
it will not be revived. All nations will be gathered unto the Lord, and thus
the mission of Abraham will be fulfilled. Judah and the ten tribes of
4:1-18 If thou wilt return, O Israel,
saith the Lord, return unto me
The prophet's appeal for repentance
and renewal of covenants continued. People must recultivate their minds and
cease sowing "among thorns"; using another metaphor, Jeremiah urged
them to circumcise their hearts, symbolizing a cleansing and recommitment. The
alternative was to assemble defenses, for the destroyer was on his way and
defenders would faint before him. Under that option the prophet spoke with
irony about the Lord's promises of peace to earlier
4:19-31 I am pained at my very heart;
. . . Destruction upon destruction is cried; . . . I beheld the earth, and, lo,
it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light
Jeremiah saw the decline and fall of
5:1-31 Run ye to and fro through the
streets of
The Lord's challenge to Jeremiah to
find a righteous person in Jerusalem resembles the impossibility faced by
Abraham over Sodom thirteen centuries before, when he hoped to save Lot's
family, pleading with the Lord to save that city if even ten righteous people
could be found in it (Jer. 5:1a). The Lord, in mercy, did save Lot and
some of his family; and in Jerusalem of the time of Jeremiah and Lehi, He
guided a few righteous souls to safety, but because too few could be found to
preserve the city, Jerusalem would be destroyed (Jer. 5:1, Jer. 5:77, 10-11,
19-21, 25-27; cf. 1 Ne. 1:4-7, 18-20). In Jerusalem of Jeremiah's day,
negligent judges ignored injustices, false prophets mollified the people, and
priests took authority by their own hand—and the people liked it so.
6:1-30 this is the city to be
visited; she is wholly oppression in the midst of her. As a fountain casteth
out her waters, so she casteth out her wickedness: violence and spoil is heard
in her
The theme of chapter 6, stated in
verses 6 and 7, introduces a multifaceted condemnation of
In the face of the great destroyer
coming from the north,
The people were also blamed for
refusing to stand in the old ways and to seek good ways; they rejected the
watchmen who did arise to warn them. So unto all was the punishment of
Finally, the Lord urged His errant
people to lament, for though the prophet had been set as a tower to warn and a
fortress to defend them, the fire of the smelter of His chastisement had not
purified them; they were as rejected silver, and so the Lord must reject them.
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 542.)
Jeremiah 7-12, 26
The
September 28, 2006
Jeremiah 7 and 26 seem to be the same sermon given at the
temple gate by Jeremiah. Chapter 26 is
one of the biographical chapters about Jeremiah’s life written by his scribe
Baruch.
7:1-16 Thus saith the Lord . . .
Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place
The variety of appeals and
declamations following one upon another in Jeremiah's book make it evident that
it is a collection of his speeches from time to time and place to place during
the years of his ministry. There was no one time and place when he could once
and for all present the charges against his decadent people, call them to
repentance, and proffer them God's merciful desires to take them back. He had
to warn them of the terrible alternatives, and he tried again and again.
This time, the prophet was asked to
"stand in the gate of the Lord's house" and proclaim his message to
temple worshippers to amend their ways and doings and become just. They could
not assume that by going to the temple and making perfunctory sacrifices in it,
they could be excused from repenting. They must learn to do good and cease to
do evil. They must not make the temple "a den of robbers" and hope to
hide in it, thinking it would not be destroyed. They should remember that the
tabernacle at Shiloh had not saved
7:17-28 Seest thou not what they do
in the cities of
The Lord called the prophet's
attention to the people's worship of the "queen of heaven" and to
their continuing failure to perform the proper sacrificial ordinances. Hence
they must feel the outpouring of His anger.
7:29-34 O Jerusalem . . . take up a
lamentation . . . for the children of
Jeremiah urgently appealed for
repentance from
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 547.)
26:1-24 In the beginning of the reign
of Jehoiakim . . . came this word from the Lord, saying . . . Stand in the
court of the Lord's house, and speak unto all the cities of
The first of twenty historical
chapters that relate many of the prophet's experiences and the persecution he
suffered as he continued his mission, chapter 26 dates to five years before the
previous chapter, being "in the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim,"
or 609 B.C. Jeremiah delivered this message from the Lord on the temple
grounds, so that the worshippers might repent and be saved. If they would not
do so, they might know that they would be overcome and the temple itself
destroyed, as was the tabernacle at Shiloh in Eli's time (Jer. 26:6a;
BD, "
The king had put one prophet to death
for such prophesying (see Jer. 26:20a, on the similar danger to Lehi,
another prophet of this same time); however, Ahikam, son of Shaphan the scribe
of the days of good King Josiah, successfully defended and saved Jeremiah (Jer.
26:20-23a, 24a).
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 560.)
(Jeremiah 26:1.)
1
In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of
Josiah was
killed in 609 BC in a battle with
(Jeremiah 26:2.)
2 Thus saith the LORD;
Stand in the court of the LORD's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah,
which come to worship in the LORD's house, all the words that I command thee to
speak unto them; diminish not a word:
Host =
Heavenly army, turn from your wicked ways and you can stay in this place. There were other prophets in the king’s court
who worshipped other gods and idols; they held sway in the court. The Lord calls them liars; trust in Me and
this building will stand. They go back
to what they were before Josiah.
The events
at Shiloh were brought up, the Philistines destroyed the tabernacle because of
(Jeremiah 7:1-20.) –
Jeremiah’s Temple Sermon given to him by the Lord.
1 The word that came to
Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
2 Stand in the gate of the
LORD's house, and proclaim there this word, and say, Hear the word of the LORD,
all ye of
3 Thus saith the LORD of
hosts, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you
to dwell in this place.
4 Trust ye not in lying
words, saying, The temple of the LORD, The temple of the LORD, The temple of
the LORD, are these.
5 For if ye throughly
amend your ways and your doings; if ye throughly execute judgment between a man
and his neighbour;
6 If ye oppress not
the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in
this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt:
7 Then will I cause you to
dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and
ever.
8 ¶ Behold, ye trust in
lying words, that cannot profit.
9 Will ye steal, murder,
and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk
after other gods whom ye know not;
10 And come and stand
before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered
to do all these abominations?
11 Is this house, which is
called by my name, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, even I have
seen it, saith the LORD.
12 But go ye now unto my
place which was in Shiloh, where I set my name at the first, and see
what I did to it for the wickedness of my people
13 And now, because ye
have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spake unto you, rising up
early and speaking, but ye heard not; and I called you, but ye answered not;
14 Therefore will I do
unto this house, which is called by my name, wherein ye trust, and unto
the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to
15 And I will cast you out
of my sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed
of Ephraim.
16 Therefore pray not thou
for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make
intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.
17 ¶ Seest thou not what
they do in the cities of
18 The children gather
wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough,
to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto
other gods, that they may provoke me to anger.
19 Do they provoke me to
anger? saith the LORD: do they not provoke themselves to the
confusion of their own faces?
20 Therefore thus saith
the Lord GOD; Behold, mine anger and my fury shall be poured out upon this
place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the trees of the field, and upon the
fruit of the ground; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched.
BIBLE
DICTIONARY
Shiloh1
A
sacred city of
Bruce
described a retaining wall that was the same dimensions of Moses tabernacle;
they made it a more permanent structure.
1 Samuel 4-6, at the gate of the tabernacle Eli’s sons practiced the rites
of Baal and Ashtoreth, Eli was warned to stop his sons, he did not and the sons
were destroyed, the priesthood was taken away from that family.
Now, speaking of tools, God did not
hesitate to use simple tools wherever he had to. We are the tools of God and
God has had to use men wherever he found them and as he found them. But the
question comes to one's mind Why didn't God, for instance, speak to Eli, for
Eli was at that time the prophet and high priest in ancient
Thus, the Lord had to choose someone
else. He chose a small lad, and as God called, "Samuel," Samuel
answered: "Speak, for thy servant heareth." (1 Sam. 3:10.) And soon,
all
(Elder
Theodore M. Burton, Conference Report, April 1961, Afternoon Meeting
127.)
Moses was
given the covenant for
Exodus
20-23 gives details from Moses of the covenant process. A prophet never talked about the details of
the law that was the priest’s job.
Jeremiah goes back to the covenant several times.
Exodus 20 –
Giving of the Law, the Ten Commandments
Exodus 21 –
Case studies, examples, how to act appropriately
Exodus 22 –
Details of keeping the law
Exodus 23 –
Integrity, Godly conduct, particulars from God verse 20. The feasts, times of rest
What happens if the covenant is broken
and if it is kept and obeyed?
Interesting
Prophet –
Preach, declare and announce the truth (Hear), a Prophet is to get your attention.
Priest –
Teach, the details of the Law of Moses (Learn)
In Matthew
11:1 - the Lord does both roles.
A
missionary declares the truth at the door to get your attention, he teaches
inside the home, a big difference.
(Alma 1:26.)
26
And when the priests left their labor to impart the word of God unto the
people, the people also left their labors to hear the word of God. And when the
priest had imparted unto them the word of God they all returned again
diligently unto their labors; and the priest, not esteeming himself above his
hearers, for the preacher was no better than the hearer, neither was the
teacher any better than the learner; and thus they were all equal, and they did
all labor, every man according to his strength.
The
covenant teaches our relationship with God, our relationship with family and
neighbors, and our relationship with our enemies.
The Lord is supposed to be everything to them.
Jeremiah
7:3 – Do your part (amend your ways) and I am bound to bless you (as you keep
the terms of the covenant), D&C 82:10.
Jeremiah
7:6-8 – Other gods, a modern example would be the worlds view on finance,
family relations, getting ahead in the world, etc. . . . Lying words that cannot profit
College
students using credit cards to pay for their education, Bruce told the story of
a young man who had big debts and had to postpone his mission until the debts
were paid. The ways of the world
Jeremiah
7:9-12 – I pacified Jehovah then I can do these other things. They thought they could get away with
it. He won’t destroy the temple, how
could he? You break all of the covenants
then come back here and offer your offerings!
You don’t
think the Lord would allow the temple to be destroyed, look at
Jeremiah
7:13 – Rise up early = He has had prophets warning the people for
centuries! Don’t fall into Canaanite
ways, they didn’t listen as a whole, although many individuals were obedient.
Listen to
Conference about our modern cultural norms that are against the gospel, debt,
mothers working outside the home. Things
that inhibit us living the gospel fully, the cultures are against the gospel. When were we taught about debt, mothers
working etc?
Their
calling and destruction were made sure.
Jeremiah
7:15 – The Northern kingdom has been scattered, and you are next.
Jeremiah
7:16-20 – Jehovah is speaking to Jeremiah alone. Don’t pray for this people, I won’t hear your
prayer for them. It seems harsh until
you think how long the Lord has tried to get their attention. How long are you going to pay your kids
debts? What lesson do they learn if you
keep bailing them out? Amos and Hosea
told the
The whole
family is involved in their wickedness.
It’s like going to sacrament meeting on Sunday and do as I wish during
the week. Look how they are on the
Sabbath then watch their behavior in their homes and in the streets, who does
the family really worship? The full
heart is not toward Jehovah, their minds and hearts are serving something else.
The Queen
of Heaven = Ashtoreth. They made cakes
to her. See footnote in the scripture
(Jeremiah 7:21-34.)
21 ¶ Thus saith the LORD
of hosts, the God of Israel; Put your burnt offerings unto your sacrifices, and
eat flesh.
22 For I spake not unto
your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the
23 But this thing
commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall
be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it
may be well unto you.
24 But they hearkened not,
nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the
imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.
25 Since the day that your
fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt unto this day I have even sent unto
you all my servants the prophets, daily rising up early and sending them:
26 Yet they hearkened not
unto me, nor inclined their ear, but hardened their neck: they did worse than
their fathers.
27 Therefore thou shalt
speak all these words unto them; but they will not hearken to thee: thou shalt
also call unto them; but they will not answer thee.
28 But thou shalt say unto
them, This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of the LORD their God,
nor receiveth correction: truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth.
29 ¶ Cut off thine hair, O
Jerusalem, and cast it away, and take up a lamentation on high
places; for the LORD hath rejected and forsaken the generation of his wrath.
30 For the children of
31 And they have built the
high places of Tophet, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to
burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded them
not, neither came it into my heart.
32 ¶ Therefore, behold,
the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be called Tophet, nor the
valley of the son of Hinnom, but the valley of slaughter: for they shall bury
in Tophet, till there be no place.
33 And the carcases of
this people shall be meat for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of
the earth; and none shall fray them away.
34 Then will I cause to
cease from the cities of
Jeremiah
7:23-24 – A beautiful way to describe disobedience, walking backward and not
forward. Incline your ear = Incline your
obedience, verse 26
Worship =
to prostrate yourself onto the ground with your neck bent downward. To be meek means to submit to a higher
authority, verse 26
Jehovah in
Exodus 20-23 He never describes burnt offerings, today we are told to be
obedient, the purpose of the sacrament.
Prophets
announce to
Jeremiah 7:29-34 – You aren’t my people so cut
off your hair, cut off the vow you made to me.
If you obey my voice you would be my people, but you choose not to do
that, so get out of here. Your partying
will soon end. All of this could have
been avoided.
How did the crowd take this sermon?
Jeremiah 26
(Jeremiah 26:2-19.)
2 Thus saith the LORD;
Stand in the court of the LORD's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah,
which come to worship in the LORD's house, all the words that I command thee to
speak unto them; diminish not a word:
3 If so be they will
hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the
evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.
4 And thou shalt say unto
them, Thus saith the LORD; If ye will not hearken to me, to walk in my law,
which I have set before you,
5 To hearken to the words
of my servants the prophets, whom I sent unto you, both rising up early, and
sending them, but ye have not hearkened;
6 Then will I make this
house like
7 So the priests and the
prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of
the LORD.
8 ¶ Now it came to pass,
when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the LORD had commanded him
to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the
people took him, saying, Thou shalt surely die.
9 Why hast thou prophesied
in the name of the LORD, saying, This house shall be like
10 ¶ When the princes of
11 Then spake the priests
and the prophets unto the princes and to all the people, saying, This man is
worthy to die; for he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with
your ears.
12 ¶ Then spake Jeremiah
unto all the princes and to all the people, saying, The LORD sent me to
prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have
heard.
13 Therefore now amend
your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the LORD your God; and the
LORD will repent him of the evil that he hath pronounced against you.
14 As for me, behold, I am
in your hand: do with me as seemeth good and meet unto you.
15 But know ye for
certain, that if ye put me to death, ye shall surely bring innocent blood upon
yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof: for of a
truth the LORD hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears.
16 ¶ Then said the princes
and all the people unto the priests and to the prophets; This man is not
worthy to die: for he hath spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God.
17 Then rose up certain of
the elders of the land, and spake to all the assembly of the people, saying,
18 Micah the Morasthite
prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of
19 Did Hezekiah king of
Judah and all Judah put him at all to death? did he not fear the LORD, and
besought the LORD, and the LORD repented him of the evil which he had
pronounced against them? Thus might we procure great evil against our souls.
Remember
these verses are just the highlights of the sermon, Jeremiah 7 and 26 are the
same sermon recorded twice.
The people,
priests and princes didn’t like what they heard. They wanted to kill Jeremiah, but they would
shed innocent blood, which they needed to be reminded of. The prophet Micah said the same thing 100
years earlier, so you have two testimonies and two witnesses against the
people. They still had a portion of the
light of Christ in them because they knew the truth of the words spoken against
them. Jeremiah was bold in his
testimony, he wasn’t going to hide, the preaching must continue, he needed to
get the attention of the people so they can have the opportunity to repent.
The
The description of the
Jeremiah responded to the first of
these false notions with the warning, "Trust ye not in the lying words,
saying, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the Lord, The temple of the
Lord" (Jer. 7:4). To the second false notion, perhaps revealing that he
considered the net result of Josiah's reforms to be superficial at best,
Jeremiah cited compliance with the moral injunctions of the Mosaic covenant as
the only safety, not an outward adherence to the laws of sacrifice alone:
"If ye throughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye throughly execute
judgment between a man and his neighbour; If ye oppress not the stranger, the
fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither
walk after other gods to your hurt: then will I cause you to dwell in this
place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever" (Jer.
7:5-7).
This language was certainly familiar
to those at the temple that day, because this same injunction to the people to
care for the defenseless among them — widows, orphans, and foreigners — is found
in Exodus 22:21-22, where it is followed by the stern warning: "If thou
afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their
cry; and my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your
wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless" (vv. 23-24).
Jeremiah's message reminds us of the
message of the Savior in his ministry and the self-righteous hypocrisy of the
outwardly religious, which should serve as a solemn reminder to all of the
covenant children who are favored in having the temple in their midst. We are
reminded of such statements as "Woe unto you . . . hypocrites! for ye pay
tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of
the law, judgment, mercy, and faith" (Matt. 23:23) and of the comparison
to "whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are
within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness" (Matt. 23:27).
The Savior outlined the criterion for final judgment: "For I was an hungred,
and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and
ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was
in prison, and ye came unto me" (Matt. 25:35-36).
In addition, Jeremiah cited the sins
of the people as stealing, murder, adultery, false swearing, burning incense
unto Baal, and walking after other gods — six of the Ten Commandments (Ex.
20:3-17). A similar list is found in the lawsuit in Hosea 4:2. Indeed, the
temple had "become a den of robbers" (Jer. 7:11).
As an object lesson, Jeremiah
reminded them of what happened to the house of the Lord at
The Lord in his wrath ordered
Jeremiah not even to attempt to intercede for such a people as they had become
(Jer. 7:16; see also 14:11-12). Apparently idolatry was still rampant in the
land, and while the children collected the wood, the fathers made the fire and
the mothers baked the cakes to the queen of heaven (Jer. 7:18). fn The Lord,
probably as hyperbole, stated that he had never ordered sacrifice in the first
place but rather would have obedience. Such a sentiment, also found in Amos
(5:21-25), Hosea (6:6), Isaiah (1:10-17), and Micah (6:1-8), is probably meant
not as a polemic against all sacrifice but rather as a way of emphasizing the
importance of obedience to the moral injunctions as opposed to only the strict
adherence to ritual. fn The importance of obedience over sacrifice was
dramatically taught by Samuel to Saul in the incident of Agag the Amalekite in
1 Samuel 15.
Throughout
In chapter 26 we learn that after
this sermon the people, in conjunction with the priests and prophets, took
Jeremiah before the rulers of Judah, saying, "Thou shalt surely die"
(Jer. 26:8-10). They charged him before the rulers as prophesying against the
holy city. Jeremiah's defense was simple: "The Lord sent me to prophesy
against this house and against this city all the words that ye have heard.
Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the Lord
your God, and repent, and the Lord will turn away the evil that he hath
pronounced against you" (JST Jer. 26:12-13). In the ensuing debate
"certain of the elders" argued that Jeremiah should be spared, citing
the example of Micah, who also had prophesied against the city and had been
spared by King Hezekiah. It was probably only the intervention of Ahikam, the
son of Shaphan, fn a high court official, that saved Jeremiah's life. The
danger of being killed for delivering such a message was real, as evidenced by
a note at the end of chapter 26 about an otherwise unknown prophet Urijah of
Kirjath-jearim, who, like Jeremiah, prophesied against Jerusalem during the
reign of King Jehoiakim. The king sought to put him to death, but he fled to
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 220.)
(1 Nephi 7:13-14.)
13 And if it so be that we
are faithful to him, we shall obtain the land of promise; and ye shall know at
some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled concerning the
destruction of Jerusalem; for all things which the Lord hath spoken concerning
the destruction of Jerusalem must be fulfilled.
14 For behold, the Spirit of the Lord ceaseth soon to strive with them;
for behold, they have rejected the prophets, and Jeremiah have they cast into
prison. And they have sought to take away the life of my father, insomuch that
they have driven him out of the land.
Nephi knew
the people of
Jeremiah
26:20-21 – Uriah an unknown prophet was killed saying the same things as Micah
and Jeremiah. Jehoiakim sent servants to
Remember
the Hebrew word for repent is TURN. The
Lord will TURN from the evil He will do to this people if they TURN back to
worship and obey HIM.
Lord of
Hosts = Do you want me to be your war God; OK I will war against you!
Jeremiah 8
is a chapter of great lamentation, there is no hope for this people, and they
are lost.
(Jeremiah 8:1-21.)
1 At that time, saith the
LORD, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of
his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and
the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves:
2 And they shall spread
them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have
loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom
they have sought, and whom they have worshipped: they shall not be gathered,
nor be buried; they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth.
3 And death shall be
chosen rather than life by all the residue of them that remain of this evil
family, which remain in all the places whither I have driven them, saith the
LORD of hosts.
4 ¶ Moreover thou shalt
say unto them, Thus saith the LORD; Shall they fall, and not arise? shall he
turn away, and not return?
5 Why then is this
people of
6 I hearkened and heard, but
they spake not aright: no man repented him of his wickedness, saying, What have
I done? every one turned to his course, as the horse rusheth into the battle.
7 Yea, the stork in the
heaven knoweth her appointed times; and the turtle and the crane and the
swallow observe the time of their coming; but my people know not the judgment
of the LORD.
8 How do ye say, We are
wise, and the law of the LORD is with us? Lo, certainly in vain made he it;
the pen of the scribes is in vain.
9 The wise men are
ashamed, they are dismayed and taken: lo, they have rejected the word of the
LORD; and what wisdom is in them?
10 Therefore will I give
their wives unto others, and their fields to them that shall inherit them:
for every one from the least even unto the greatest is given to covetousness,
from the prophet even unto the priest every one dealeth falsely.
11 For they have healed
the hurt of the daughter of my people slightly, saying, Peace, peace; when there
is no peace.
12 Were they ashamed when
they had committed abomination? nay, they were not at all ashamed, neither
could they blush: therefore shall they fall among them that fall: in the time
of their visitation they shall be cast down, saith the LORD.
13 ¶ I will surely consume
them, saith the LORD: there shall be no grapes on the vine, nor figs on
the fig tree, and the leaf shall fade; and the things that I have given
them shall pass away from them.
14 Why do we sit still?
assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the defenced cities, and let us be
silent there: for the LORD our God hath put us to silence, and given us water
of gall to drink, because we have sinned against the LORD.
15 We looked for peace,
but no good came; and for a time of health, and behold trouble!
16 The snorting of his
horses was heard from Dan: the whole land trembled at the sound of the neighing
of his strong ones; for they are come, and have devoured the land, and all that
is in it; the city, and those that dwell therein.
17 For, behold, I will
send serpents, cockatrices, among you, which will not be charmed,
and they shall bite you, saith the LORD.
18 ¶ When I would
comfort myself against sorrow, my heart is faint in me.
19 Behold the voice of the
cry of the daughter of my people because of them that dwell in a far country: Is
not the LORD in
20 The harvest is past,
the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
21 For the hurt of the
daughter of my people am I hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken hold on
me.
The gods
you worship can’t save you; they can’t do anything for you. You hear false words of comfort, but there
will be no peace or comfort for you.
Verse 20, rituals alone produces nothing. It’s the same today; simply going through the
motions does not produce happiness.
Jeremiah gets after the priests who should be teaching truth but teach
the ways of the world, they deceive the people and will be held accountable for
their actions. Going through the rituals
(motions) without the true teachings behind them.
Who do we
worship today? CEO’s,
The
Dangers of
Superficial Church Membership
____________________________
President Ezra Taft
Benson
Heed
the Lord’s counsel to the Saints of this dispensation: “Prepare yourselves for
the great day of the Lord” (D&C 133:10). This preparation must
consist of more than just casual membership in the Church. You must learn to be
guided by personal revelation and the counsel of the living prophet so you will
not be deceived. (“Prepare Yourself for the Great Day of the Lord,” New
Era, May 1982, p. 50)
Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin
Many
years ago, large packs of wolves roamed the countryside in
We
do not have to protect ourselves from wolf packs as we travel the road of life
today, but, in a spiritual sense, we do face the devious wolves of Satan in the
forms of temptation, evil, and sin. We live in dangerous times when these
ravenous wolves roam the spiritual countryside in search of those who may be
weak in faith or feeble in their conviction. In his first epistle, Peter
described our "adversary the devil, as a roaring lion [that] walketh
about, seeking whom he may devour." (1 Pet. 5:8.) The Lord told the
Prophet Joseph Smith that "enemies prowl around thee like wolves for the
blood of the lamb." (D&C 122:6.) We are all vulnerable to attack.
However, we can fortify ourselves with the protection provided by a burning
testimony that, like a bonfire, has been built adequately and maintained
carefully.
Unfortunately, some in the Church may believe sincerely that their
testimony is a raging bonfire when it really is little more than the faint
flickering of a candle. Their faithfulness has more to do with habit than holiness, and
their pursuit of personal righteousness almost always takes a back seat to
their pursuit of personal interests and pleasure. With such a feeble light of
testimony for protection, these travelers on life's highways are easy prey for
the wolves of the adversary. ("Spiritual Bonfires of Testimony," Ensign,
Nov. 1992, p. 34)
Elder Neal A. Maxwell
From Men and Women of Christ:
If
we enlist and take the Savior's yoke upon us we "shall find rest unto
[our] souls" (Matthew 11:29). If we are only part-time soldiers, though,
partially yoked, we experience quite the opposite: frustration, irritation, and
the absence of His full grace and spiritual rest. In that case weaknesses
persist and satisfactions are intermittent. . . Actually the partially yoked
experience little spiritual satisfaction, because they are burdened by carrying
the awful weight of the natural man -- without any of the joys that come from
progressing toward becoming "the man of Christ." They have scarcely
"[begun] to be enlightened" (
Strange
as it seems, a few of the partially yoked, undeservedly wearing the colors of
the kingdom, are just close enough to the prescribed path and process to be
able to observe in others some of the visible costs of discipleship. Sobered by
that observation, they want victory without battle and expect campaign ribbons
merely for watching; but there is no witness until after the trial of their
faith (see Ether 12:6).
These same Church members know just enough about the doctrines to
converse superficially on them, but their scant knowledge about the deep
doctrines is inadequate for deep discipleship (see 1 Corinthians 2:10). Thus
uninformed about the deep doctrines, they make no deep change in their lives.
They lack the faith to "give place" (
From "Overcome ... Even As I Also Overcame":
Events
and circumstances in the last days make it imperative for us as members of the
Church to become more grounded, rooted, established, and settled (see Col.
1:23; Col. 2:7; 2 Pet. 1:12). Jesus said to His disciples, "settle this in
your hearts, that ye will do the things which I shall teach, and command
you" (JST Luke 14:28). If not so settled, the turbulence will be severe.
If settled, we will not be "tossed to and fro," whether by rumors,
false doctrines, or by the behavioral and intellectual fashions of the world.
Nor will we get caught up in the "talk show" mentality, spending our
time like ancient Athenians "in nothing else, but either to tell, or to
hear some new thing" (Acts 17:21). Why be concerned with the passing
preferences of the world anyway? "For the fashion of this world passeth
away" (1 Cor. 7:31). . . .
Some
Church members, alas, are neither reconciled to the will of God nor are they
sufficiently settled as to their covenants. . . .
Some give of their time yet withhold themselves, being present
without giving of their presence and going through the superficial motions of
membership instead of the deep emotions of consecrated discipleship.
Some try to get by with knowing only the headlines of the gospel, not really talking much
of Christ or rejoicing in Christ and esteeming lightly His books of scripture
which contain and explain His covenants (see 2 Ne. 25:26).
Some
are so proud they never learn of obedience and spiritual submissiveness. They
will have very arthritic knees on the day when every knee shall bend. There
will be no gallery then to play to; all will be participants!
Maintaining
Church membership on our own terms, therefore, is not true discipleship.
Real
disciples absorb the fiery darts of the adversary by holding aloft the
quenching shield of faith with one hand, while holding to the iron rod with the
other (see Eph. 6:16; 1 Ne. 15:24; D&C 27:17). There should be no
mistaking; it will take both hands! ("Overcome ... Even As I Also
Overcame," Ensign, May 1987, p. 70)
Joseph Smith
The
things of God are of deep import; and time, and experience, and careful and
ponderous and solemn thoughts can only find them out. Thy mind, O man! if thou
wilt lead a soul unto salvation, must stretch as high as the utmost heavens,
and search into and contemplate the darkest abyss, and the broad expanse of
eternity--thou must commune with God. How much more dignified and noble are the
thoughts of God, than the vain imaginations of the human heart! (History of
the Church 3:295)
Jeremiah 9 – Scattering is going to
happen
Jeremiah's Laments
"When I would comfort myself
against sorrow, my heart is faint in me. . . . The harvest is past, the summer
is ended, and we are not saved. For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I
hurt; I am black; astonishment hath taken hold on me. . . . Oh that my head
were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night
for the slain of the daughter of my people" (Jer. 8:18-9:1). With these
words Jeremiah revealed to us that he was a man with much emotion and
compassion about the events that he witnessed in the past, present, and through
his prophetic gift, the future. We are reminded of the prophet Mormon, who also
spent his life's work crying repentance to his unrepentant people, only to
witness their destruction: "My soul was rent with anguish, because of the
slain of my people, and I cried: O ye fair ones, how could ye have departed
from the ways of the Lord! O ye fair ones, how could ye have rejected that
Jesus, who stood with open arms to receive you! Behold, if ye had not done
this, ye would not have fallen. But behold, ye are fallen, and I mourn your
loss" (Morm. 6:16-18).
Jeremiah the prophet saw life from
the human perspective and at the same time was compelled to view it from God's
perspective through the message that he bore. On the one hand, he viewed the
coming disaster with compassion and sorrow; on the other hand, he felt
righteous indignation as he considered the unfaithfulness of his people, which
he longed to escape: "Oh that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of
wayfaring men; that I might leave my people, and go from them! for they be all
adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men. And they bend their tongues like
their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for
they proceed from evil to evil" (Jer. 9:2-3). In short, he understood that
they deserved the impending judgment. Such laments reveal his mixed feelings
about his people.
At the same time, we are presented
throughout the book of Jeremiah with a series of personal laments — termed by
many the "confessions," which are quite unlike anything else in the
biblical prophecies — in which Jeremiah revealed the personal struggles and
suffering that he as servant of the Lord was called to endure. Through these
laments Jeremiah sought for an understanding of many of life's most difficult
questions. They remind us of the probing of Job in his trials and of Joseph
Smith in Liberty Jail. For some of the laments we are presented with a
historical context; for others, we can only imagine. To some of these
complaints the Lord responded; to others, he was silent. A look at these
haunting poetic passages helps us to appreciate better the great human drama of
prophets, the burden of the uncompromising call of the Lord, and most of all,
the importance of a dynamic relationship with our Maker which can help us all
to "endure to the end." There are at least six examples of personal
laments, each of which we will examine, identifying the issues that Jeremiah
discussed and the divine answers to such questions.
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies in
Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1993], 228.)
(Jeremiah 10:1-5.)
1 Hear ye the word which
the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of
2 Thus saith the LORD,
Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven;
for the heathen are dismayed at them.
3 For the customs of the
people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the
work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.
4 They deck it with silver
and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.
5 They are upright
as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot
go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it
in them to do good.
These verses have nothing to do with
Christmas. This is about idol
worship. They chopped down a living tree
and decorated it with gold and silver, this was about the worshipping of
Ashtoreth, the female deity. The Hebrew
words for palm tree and scarecrow are separated by their vowels; this is a
mistake in translation,
(Jeremiah 10:6-13.)
6 Forasmuch as there is
none like unto thee, O LORD; thou art great, and thy name is
great in might.
7 Who would not fear thee,
O King of nations? for to thee doth it appertain: forasmuch as among all the
wise men of the nations, and in all their kingdoms, there is none
like unto thee.
8 But they are altogether
brutish and foolish: the stock is a doctrine of vanities.
9 Silver spread into
plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman,
and of the hands of the founder: blue and purple is their clothing: they
are all the work of cunning men.
10 But the LORD is
the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his
wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his
indignation.
11 Thus shall ye say unto
them, The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, even they
shall perish from the earth, and from under these heavens.
12 He hath made the earth
by his power, he hath established the world by his wisdom, and hath stretched
out the heavens by his discretion.
13 When he uttereth his
voice, there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, and he causeth the
vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth; he maketh lightnings with rain,
and bringeth forth the wind out of his treasures.
and
it’s really a scarecrow.
The difference between idol worship and Jehovah worship!
Verse 21 –
How wicked the priests were.
(Jeremiah 11:1-15.)
1 The word that came to
Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
2 Hear ye the words of
this covenant, and speak unto the men of
3 And say thou unto them,
Thus saith the LORD God of
4 Which I commanded your
fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt,
from the iron furnace, saying, Obey my voice, and do them, according to all
which I command you: so shall ye be my people, and I will be your God:
5 That I may perform the oath
which I have sworn unto your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and
honey, as it is this day. Then answered I, and said, So be it, O LORD.
6 Then the LORD said unto
me, Proclaim all these words in the cities of
7 For I earnestly
protested unto your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the
land of Egypt, even unto this day, rising early and protesting, saying,
Obey my voice.
8 Yet they obeyed not, nor
inclined their ear, but walked every one in the imagination of their evil
heart: therefore I will bring upon them all the words of this covenant, which I
commanded them to do; but they did them not.
9 And the LORD said unto
me, A conspiracy is found among the men of
10 They are turned back to
the iniquities of their forefathers, which refused to hear my words; and they
went after other gods to serve them: the house of
11 ¶ Therefore thus saith
the LORD, Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to
escape; and though they shall cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them.
12 Then shall the cities
of
13 For according to
the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah; and according to the
number of the streets of
14 Therefore pray not thou
for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear them
in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble.
15 What hath my beloved to
do in mine house, seeing she hath wrought lewdness with many, and the
holy flesh is passed from thee? when thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest.
The iron
furnace is
The people
are cursed for breaking their covenants; there are consequences for our
actions.
Jeremiah prophesied from about 627-580
B.C. (Jeremiah 1:1-3). fn One of the themes of Jeremiah, as he was commissioned
in his prophetic call, was to "root out, and to pull down, and to destroy,
and to throw down, to build, and to plant" (Jeremiah 1:10). Jeremiah was
to prophesy destruction and restoration and the corresponding horticultural
imagery of "rooting out" and "planting" pervade his book.
fn While Hosea used only the positive images of the basic allegory and Isaiah
featured both the positive and negative, Jeremiah utilized only the negative in
his use of the olive tree. But he does prophesy of the restoration of the
gospel and the gathering of Israel in the latter days in terms of "sowing"
and "planting" (Jeremiah 31:5; 31:27-29; 32:41). Because Jeremiah was
a prophet in times of lamentation and judgment, it is not surprising that he
used the allegory of the olive tree to heighten his message of catastrophic
suffering for breaking the covenant with the Lord. The main text in this regard
from Jeremiah is as follows:
14 Therefore pray not thou
for this people, neither lift up a cry or prayer for them: for I will not hear
them in the time that they cry unto me for their trouble.
15 What hath my beloved to
do in mine house, seeing she hath wrought lewdness with many, and the holy
flesh is passed from thee? when thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest.
16 The Lord called thy
name, A green olive tree, fair, and of goodly fruit: with the noise of a great
tumult he hath kindled fire upon it, and the branches of it are broken.
17 For the Lord of hosts,
that planted thee, hath pronounced evil against thee, for the evil of the house
of
(Jeremiah 11:14-17.)
The general image projected here is
that of a tree struck by lightning. Although the Hebrew text is quite corrupt
and therefore difficult to interpret, it begins with a reference to the fact
that the Lord in the past had "called thy name a green olive tree, fair and
of goodly fruit." Clearly Jeremiah reminds his audience of a known
metaphor, which could have been known to them from Psalm 52 or a text such as
that of Zenos.
Jeremiah then moves directly to the
judgment motif: "With the noise of a great tumult he hath kindled fire
upon it, and the branches of it are broken" (11:16). The Septuagint
version reads, "The branches are become good for nothing [echreiothesan],"
which is a reading close to Zenos, "And now all the trees of my vineyard
are good for nothing" (Jacob 5:42). Behind the Hebrew and Greek versions
of this text, there were evidently two traditions in ancient
Next, Jeremiah reminds his audience
that the Lord had planted his people (Jeremiah 11:17), clearly in the tradition
of Exodus 15:17 (cf. Jacob 5:3). And Jeremiah is able to accuse the people of
the "evil which they have done against themselves," an accusation
that receives no further explanation and thus assumes everyone understands the
responsibility for the corruption of the olive tree lies within the house of
Israel itself, or as Zenos says, "Taking strength unto themselves, . . .
is not this the cause that the trees of thy vineyard have become
corrupted?" (Jacob 5:48).
In the end, the people plotted
against Jeremiah by throwing his allegory back at him. They said, "Let us
destroy the tree with the fruit thereof and let us cut him off from the land of
the living" (Jeremiah 11:19). Obviously two can play the allegory game,
and one way to eliminate the problems caused by Jeremiah was to eliminate
Jeremiah himself. The spontaneous use of the tree and fruit imagery by the
people themselves in response to Jeremiah shows once again the great extent to
which this imagery had become common parlance in pre-exilic
(Stephen D.
Ricks and John W. Welch, eds., The Allegory of the Olive Tree: The Olive,
the Bible, and Jacob 5 [Salt Lake City and Provo: Deseret Book Co.,
Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1994], .)
(Jeremiah 12:1.)
1
Righteous art thou, O LORD, when I plead with thee: yet let me talk with
thee of thy judgments: Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore
are all they happy that deal very treacherously?
Like a Lamb to the Slaughter (Jer.
11:18-12:6)
The Lord revealed to Jeremiah the
sins of his people as well as the judgment that was to come. Jeremiah recorded:
"And the Lord hath given me knowledge of it, and I know it: then thou
shewedst me their doings" (Jer. 11:18). Because Jeremiah had faithfully
delivered this message, it was he who would suffer, and in fact, there were
those who sought his life. He pleaded his innocence: "But I was like a
lamb or an ox that is brought to the slaughter" (Jer. 8:19) — words that
remind us of the image of Christ as the Suffering Servant (Isa. 53:7) and that
were quoted by the Prophet Joseph Smith as he went to Carthage (D&C 135:4).
fn It was Jeremiah's own community that was most indignant. He cried to the
Lord for "vengeance on them: for unto thee have I revealed my cause"
(Jer. 11:20). The Lord assured him that divine justice would prevail, and in
this case it would be in the not-too-distant future: "The men of Anathoth,
that seek thy life, saying, Prophesy not in the name of the Lord, that thou die
not by our hand: . . . Behold, I will punish them: the young men shall die by
the sword; their sons and their daughters shall die by famine: And there shall
be no remnant of them: for I will bring evil upon the men of Anathoth, even the
year of their visitation" (Jer. 11:21-23).
But Jeremiah's complaint did not end
there, and he asked the Lord, just as did Job and the psalmist (Job 21; Ps.
73), the age-old question: "Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper?
wherefore are all they happy that deal very treacherously?" (Jer. 12:1).
The Lord responded, much as he did to Job, with questions, two enigmatic
proverbs: "If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee,
then how canst thou contend with horses? And if in the land of peace, wherein
thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou do in the swelling of
The answer is clear, though the
implications not comforting: for Jeremiah the challenges and trials had just
begun.
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 230.)
Why do the
wicked prosper?
Materialism
The Book of Mormon tells of a time
when the
In descending order of intensity,
materialism may be an obsession, a preoccupation, or merely a strong interest.
Whatever its degree, an interest becomes materialism when it is intense enough
to override priorities that should be paramount.
From the emphasis given to this
subject in the scriptures, it appears that materialism has been one of the
greatest challenges to the children of God in all ages of time. Greed, the ugly
face of materialism in action, has been one of Satan's most effective weapons
in corrupting men and turning their hearts from God.
In the first of the Ten Commandments,
accepted as fundamental religious law by Christians and Jews alike, God
commands: "Thou shalt have no other gods before me" (Exodus 20:3).
This is obviously much more than a prohibition against the overt worship of
images like the god Baal. (Idol worship is the subject of the second
commandment, "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image" [Exodus
20:4].) The first commandment is a comprehensive prohibition against the
pursuit of any goal or priority ahead of God. The first commandment prohibits
materialism.
The Savior and his Apostles gave many
warnings against setting our hearts upon the treasures of this world.
Jesus taught that we should not lay
up for ourselves "treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt,
and where thieves break through and steal: . . . For where your treasure is,
there will your heart be also." (Matthew 6:19,21.) In other words, the
treasures of our hearts—our priorities—should not be the destructible and
temporary things of this world.
In elaborating the parable of the
sower, the Savior explained that the seed that fell "among the
thorns" signified the circumstance of one who heard the message of the
gospel, but "the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches,
choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful" (Matthew 13:22). We have all seen
examples of this pattern of stunted growth. After the precious seed (the
message of the gospel) has begun to grow in the lives of some persons, they are
diverted by their attention to the things of the world, and their spiritual
fruits are choked out by "the deceitfulness of riches."
The deceitfulness of riches can choke
out the fruits of the gospel in many ways. A person who covets the wealth of
another will suffer spiritually. A person who has wealth and then loses it and
becomes embittered and hateful is also a victim of the deceitfulness of riches.
Another victim is the person who becomes resentful of the wealth of the
wicked. The prophet Jeremiah gave voice to the old question, "Wherefore
doth the way of the wicked prosper? wherefore are all they happy that deal very
treacherously?" (Jeremiah 12:1.) Those who brood over the prosperity or
seeming happiness of the wicked put too much emphasis on material things. They
can be deceived because their priorities are too concentrated on worldly
wealth.
Another victim of the deceitfulness
of riches is the person who consciously or unconsciously feels guilt at having
failed to acquire the property or prominence the world credits as the indicia
of success.
Those who preach the gospel of
success and the theology of prosperity are suffering from "the
deceitfulness of riches" and from supposing that "gain is
godliness" (1 Timothy 6:5). The possession of wealth or the acquisition of
significant income is not a mark of heavenly favor, and their absence is not
evidence of heavenly disfavor. Riches can be among the blessings that follow
right behavior—such as the payment of tithing (Malachi 3:9-12)—but riches can
also be acquired through the luck of a prospector or as the fruits of
dishonesty.
Elder Neal A. Maxwell reminds us that
those who trust in riches fail to see the real purpose of life :
Jesus counseled us, too, concerning
materialism and "the deceitfulness of riches" (Matthew 13:22), and of
how hard it is for those who trust in riches and materialism to enter into the
Another lesson on materialism is
taught in the example of the follower who asked the Savior what he should do to
"inherit eternal life." After this questioner represented that he had
kept all the commandments from his youth, the Savior said: "One thing thou
lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou
shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow
me." When the follower heard this, "he was sad at that saying, and
went away grieved: for he had great possessions." Seeing this, Jesus said,
"How hard it is for them that trust in riches to enter into the
This man's failing was not his
possession of riches but his attitude toward them. As was demonstrated by his
apparent failure to follow the Savior's challenge, he still lacked the attitude
toward the things of this world that is required to "inherit eternal
life." As the Prophet Joseph Smith taught in our own day, "A religion
that does not require the sacrifice of all things never has power sufficient to
produce the faith necessary unto life and salvation" (Lectures on Faith
6:7).
In the midst of prophetic utterances
about his Second Coming, the Savior warned that we should not be so
pre-occupied with the cares of this life that we are unprepared for that great
day: "And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be
overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so
that day come upon you unawares" (Luke 21:34).
The Savior taught the multitude to
seek treasures in heaven rather than treasures on earth and cautioned them that
they "cannot serve God and Mammon" (3 Nephi 13:24; Matthew 6:24).
After teaching this general principle, he applied it specifically to the
leaders he had called as full-time ministers. Jesus "looked upon the
twelve whom he had chosen" and told them how far they must go in putting
aside the priorities of the world:
Remember the words which I have
spoken. For behold, ye are they whom I have chosen to minister unto this
people. Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what ye shall
eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is
not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? (3 Nephi 13:25; see
also Matthew 6:25).
(Dallin H.
Oaks, Pure in Heart [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1988], 73.)
Jeremiah 13-20
October 5, 2006
Bruce told
us his uncle and father-in-law died this week and he will be speaking at the
funerals. Class will be short tonight. The
righteous are called to the spirit world by the Lord to do work there. He reminded us of a story by Wilford
Woodruff.
Now, having said so much on that
subject, I want to say to my brethren and sisters, that we are placed upon the
earth to build up
Now, my brethren and sisters, those
of us who are left here have a great work to do. We have been raised up of the
Lord to take this kingdom and bear it off. This is our duty; but if we neglect
our duty and set our hearts upon the things of this world, we will be sorry for
it. We ought to understand the responsibility that rests upon us. We should
gird up our loins and put on the whole armor of God. We should rear temples to
the name of the Most High God, that we may redeem the dead.. It is the work of
God. Joseph Smith was appointed by the Lord before he was born as much as
Jeremiah was. The Lord told Jeremiah—"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." He was commanded to warn the
inhabitants of
(Journal
of Discourses, 26 vols. [London: Latter-day Saints' Book Depot, 1854-1886],
22: 334.)
(Jeremiah 13:1-27.)
1 Thus saith the LORD unto
me, Go and get thee a linen girdle, and put it upon thy loins, and put it not
in water.
2 So I got a girdle
according to the word of the LORD, and put it on my loins.
3 And the word of the LORD
came unto me the second time, saying,
4 Take the girdle that
thou hast got, which is upon thy loins, and arise, go to
5 So I went, and hid it by
6 And it came to pass
after many days, that the LORD said unto me, Arise, go to
7 Then I went to
8 Then the word of the
LORD came unto me, saying,
9 Thus saith the LORD,
After this manner will I mar the pride of
10 This evil people, which
refuse to hear my words, which walk in the imagination of their heart, and walk
after other gods, to serve them, and to worship them, shall even be as this
girdle, which is good for nothing.
11 For as the girdle
cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto me the whole
house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the LORD; that they might
be unto me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory: but
they would not hear.
12 ¶ Therefore thou shalt
speak unto them this word; Thus saith the LORD God of
13 Then shalt thou say
unto them, Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this
land, even the kings that sit upon David's throne, and the priests, and the
prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with drunkenness.
14 And I will dash them
one against another, even the fathers and the sons together, saith the LORD: I
will not pity, nor spare, nor have mercy, but destroy them.
15 ¶ Hear ye, and give
ear; be not proud: for the LORD hath spoken.
16 Give glory to the LORD
your God, before he cause darkness, and before your feet stumble upon the dark
mountains, and, while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and
make it gross darkness.
17 But if ye will not hear
it, my soul shall weep in secret places for your pride; and mine eye
shall weep sore, and run down with tears, because the LORD's flock is carried
away captive.
18 Say unto the king and
to the queen, Humble yourselves, sit down: for your principalities shall come
down, even the crown of your glory.
19 The cities of the south
shall be shut up, and none shall open them:
20 Lift up your eyes, and
behold them that come from the north: where is the flock that was
given thee, thy beautiful flock?
21 What wilt thou say when
he shall punish thee? for thou hast taught them to be captains, and
as chief over thee: shall not sorrows take thee, as a woman in travail?
22 ¶ And if thou say in
thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? For the greatness of thine
iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare.
23 Can the Ethiopian
change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good,
that are accustomed to do evil.
24 Therefore will I
scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness.
25 This is thy lot,
the portion of thy measures from me, saith the LORD; because thou hast
forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood.
26 Therefore will I
discover thy skirts upon thy face, that thy shame may appear.
27 I have seen thine adulteries, and thy neighings, the
lewdness of thy whoredom, and thine abominations on the hills in the
fields. Woe unto thee, O
This
chapter consists of 5 warnings to the people, and object lessons.
Exactly
where did Jeremiah go to perform the 1st act? If it was all the way to the
Verses 1-12 – 1st Warning
Source: Jeremiah 13:1-10 Prophet:
Jeremiah
Messenger/Revelation Formula:
"Thus saith the Lord unto me . . . And the word of the Lord came unto me
the second time, saying" (Jeremiah 13:1, 3)
Object or Person Used as a Symbol:
Linen girdle
Symbolic Action: Jeremiah clothes
himself with a linen girdle, removes the girdle, and then hides it in the hole
of a rock
Prophecy: Just as the people of
(Thy
People Shall Be My People and Thy God My God: The 22d Annual Sidney B. Sperry
Symposium [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1994], 93.)
The linen
garment was like our present day underwear.
The girdle was useless after he retrieved it from the rock;
Isaiah 7:1
– Isaiah talked with Ahaz about his alliance with
Jeremiah's Symbolic Acts
Many important oracles of judgment
are recorded in memorable imagery throughout the book of Jeremiah. I will
concentrate on three prophecies that were accompanied by symbolic acts or
allegories. The symbolic act, a dramatization of a prophetic message, was
already a well-known phenomenon associated with the prophets, as, for example,
the prophet Zedekiah's donning a set of iron horns (1 Kgs. 22:11), Hosea's
marriage with Gomer (Hosea 1-3), Isaiah's naming his sons (Isa. 7-8), and
Isaiah's walking around Jerusalem naked and barefoot (Isa. 20). Likewise the
ministry of Ezekiel was characterized by several significant symbolic acts:
lying on his side for a prescribed period (Ezek. 4), digging a hole through a
wall (Ezek. 12), and refraining from mourning for his wife (Ezek. 24:15-27).
Jeremiah participated in three such symbolic acts, one involving a linen girdle
(Jer. 13:2Jer. 13:1-11), another potter at his wheel (Jer. 18), and still another
potter's earthen bottle (Jer. 19-20), which the Lord interpreted for him
allegorically. fn A brief look at these incidents can give us a further taste
of the nature of Jeremiah's prophecies.
The Linen Girdle (Jer. 13:1-11)
The Lord commanded Jeremiah to put a
linen girdle on his loins and journey to the
There is no record that anyone
witnessed this event other than Jeremiah, and we can only speculate what kind
of an impact this had on his prophetic understanding. Certainly it would have
illustrated the close relationship between the Lord and his people and the need
for them to remain pure in order to be of any use or value to the Lord.
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 234.)
Verses 12-14 – 2nd
Warning
54:16 I have created the smith/I have
created the waster.
The Lord has created both the man who creates and the man who destroys. All are
subject to God's power (for God as a destroyer, see Jer. 13:7-14; 18:4).
(Donald W.
Parry, Jay A. Parry, and Tina M. Peterson, Understanding Isaiah [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1998], 487.)
John the
Baptist didn’t drink because of his vow, but Jesus drank and the people didn’t
listen to Him either. Matthew 11. Modern members have a hard time thinking of
Jesus drinking wine. The practice of
using wine stopped with President Grant.
Verses 15-17 – 3rd
Warning – Enmity and Pride
(Doctrine and Covenants
1:33.)
33
And he that repents not, from him shall be taken even the light which he has
received; for my Spirit shall not always strive with man, saith the Lord of
Hosts.
Better
listen to God before there is total darkness.
Verse 18 – 4th Warning
King and
Queen were Jehoiakim and his wife who were taken captive to
Verses 20-22 – 5th Warning
The perfect
question of verse 27
(Jeremiah 14:1-22.)
1 The word of the LORD
that came to Jeremiah concerning the dearth.
2
3 And their nobles have
sent their little ones to the waters: they came to the pits, and found
no water; they returned with their vessels empty; they were ashamed and
confounded, and covered their heads.
4 Because the ground is
chapt, for there was no rain in the earth, the plowmen were ashamed, they
covered their heads.
5 Yea, the hind also
calved in the field, and forsook it, because there was no grass.
6 And the wild asses did
stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did
fail, because there was no grass.
7 ¶ O LORD, though our
iniquities testify against us, do thou it for thy name's sake: for our
backslidings are many; we have sinned against thee.
8 O the hope of
9 Why shouldest thou be as
a man astonied, as a mighty man that cannot save? yet thou, O LORD, art
in the midst of us, and we are called by thy name; leave us not.
10 ¶ Thus saith the LORD
unto this people, Thus have they loved to wander, they have not refrained their
feet, therefore the LORD doth not accept them; he will now remember their
iniquity, and visit their sins.
11 Then said the LORD unto
me, Pray not for this people for their good.
12 When they fast, I will
not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt offering and an oblation, I will
not accept them: but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and
by the pestilence.
13 ¶ Then said I, Ah, Lord
GOD! behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither
shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place.
14 Then the LORD said unto
me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I
commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision
and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
15 Therefore thus saith
the LORD concerning the prophets that prophesy in my name, and I sent them not,
yet they say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land; By sword and famine
shall those prophets be consumed.
16 And the people to whom
they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of
17 ¶ Therefore thou shalt
say this word unto them; Let mine eyes run down with tears night and day, and
let them not cease: for the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great
breach, with a very grievous blow.
18 If I go forth into the
field, then behold the slain with the sword! and if I enter into the city, then
behold them that are sick with famine! yea, both the prophet and the priest go
about into a land that they know not.
19 Hast thou utterly
rejected
20 We acknowledge, O LORD,
our wickedness, and the iniquity of our fathers: for we have sinned against
thee.
21 Do not abhor us,
for thy name's sake, do not disgrace the throne of thy glory: remember, break
not thy covenant with us.
22 Are there any
among the vanities of the Gentiles that can cause rain? or can the heavens give
showers? art not thou he, O LORD our God? therefore we will wait upon
thee: for thou hast made all these things.
There was a
famine in the land; and Jeremiah is suffering with the people the Lord intended
to humble the people to come to Him. The
people were not sorry for their sins; they were disappointed and upset living
with the drought.
The Prophet Jeremiah, who lived in
Jerusalem at the same time as did the Prophet Lehi, the scholarly ancestor of
both the Nephites and the Lamanites, exclaimed, "How long shall the land
mourn . . . for the wickedness of them that dwell therein?" (Jer. 12:4)
Also, he said, "
When the Lord said, "I am weary
with repenting," He meant just this: Often He had stayed His hand in
punishing His Chosen People because they promised to turn from their wicked
ways and seek Him. Just as often their promises were vain. They continued in
the wicked course they pursued. Now the Lord had proved their perfidy and now
He refused longer to withhold His anger. His patience with them was exhausted.
(George
Reynolds and Janne M. Sjodahl, Commentary on the Book of Mormon, edited
and arranged by Philip C. Reynolds, 7 vols. [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1955-1961], 4: 214.)
Verse 6 –
Snuffed up the wind = panting
From all of the foregoing it is
apparent that whenever Jehovah says, "Thou art my people" (Isa.
51:16); or whenever the people say of Jehovah, "We are his people, and the
sheep of his pasture" (Ps. 100:3); or when they say, "Thou, O Lord,
art in the midst of us, and we are called by thy name; leave us not" (Jer.
14:9Jer. 14:9); or "Our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary. We
are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy
name" (Isa. 63:18-19); or when Jehovah promises (of gathered Israel),
"They shall know that my name is The Lord" (Jer. 16:21)—whenever
these or any equivalent utterances are made, they mean that the name of the
Lord Jehovah (who is Christ) has been placed upon his people, and they, knowing
the name by which they are called, are heirs of salvation.
(Bruce R.
McConkie, The Promised Messiah: The First Coming of Christ [Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book Co., 1978], 369.)
Verses
10-12 –
The Lord
tells Jeremiah not to pray any more for the benefit of this people, nothing
will stop His hand in destroying this people, He won’t budge from His stance
against them, and they are not accepted by Him.
Jeremiah is
suffering right along with the people during the drought, his human side shows
in verses 19-22, I just want a drink!
In chapter
15 the Lord answers his plea. Even if Moses stood before me I won’t change my
mind. Where is the Lord’s mercy? Yet the
people refuse to repent, what else can the Lord do?
(Jeremiah 15:1-21.)
1 Then said the LORD unto me, Though Moses and Samuel stood
before me, yet my mind could not be toward this people:
cast them out of my sight, and let them go forth.
2 And it shall come to
pass, if they say unto thee, Whither shall we go forth? then thou shalt tell
them, Thus saith the LORD; Such as are for death, to death; and such as are
for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the
famine; and such as are for the captivity, to the captivity.
3 And I will appoint over
them four kinds, saith the LORD: the sword to slay, and the dogs to tear, and
the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and destroy.
4 And I will cause them to
be removed into all kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of
Hezekiah king of
5 For who shall have pity
upon thee, O Jerusalem? or who shall bemoan thee? or who shall go aside to ask
how thou doest?
6 Thou hast forsaken me,
saith the LORD, thou art gone backward: therefore will I stretch out my hand
against thee, and destroy thee; I am weary with repenting.
7 And I will fan them with
a fan in the gates of the land; I will bereave them of children, I will
destroy my people, since they return not from their ways.
8 Their widows are
increased to me above the sand of the seas: I have brought upon them against
the mother of the young men a spoiler at noonday: I have caused him to
fall upon it suddenly, and terrors upon the city.
9 She that hath borne
seven languisheth: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone down while it
was yet day: she hath been ashamed and confounded: and the residue of them
will I deliver to the sword before their enemies, saith the LORD.
10 ¶ Woe is me, my mother,
that thou hast borne me a man of strife and a man of contention to the whole
earth! I have neither lent on usury, nor men have lent to me on usury; yet
every one of them doth curse me.
11 The LORD said, Verily
it shall be well with thy remnant; verily I will cause the enemy to entreat
thee well in the time of evil and in the time of affliction.
12 Shall iron break the
northern iron and the steel?
13 Thy substance and thy
treasures will I give to the spoil without price, and that for all thy
sins, even in all thy borders.
14 And I will make thee
to pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not: for a
fire is kindled in mine anger, which shall burn upon you.
15 ¶ O LORD, thou knowest:
remember me, and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away
in thy longsuffering: know that for thy sake I have suffered rebuke.
16 Thy words were found,
and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine
heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.
17 I sat not in the
assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of thy hand: for
thou hast filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my pain perpetual,
and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? wilt thou be
altogether unto me as a liar, and as waters that fail?
19 ¶ Therefore thus saith
the LORD, If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt
stand before me: and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt
be as my mouth: let them return unto thee; but return not thou unto them.
20 And I will make thee
unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall fight against thee, but
they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee to save thee and
to deliver thee, saith the LORD.
21 And I will deliver thee
out of the hand of the wicked, and I will redeem thee out of the hand of the
terrible
Called by Thy Name (Jer. 15:10-21)
Jeremiah recounted his reception of
the words of the Lord in much the same image as did Ezekiel (Ezek. 3:1-3) and
John the Revelator (Rev. 10:9-10): an act of eating. "Thy words were
found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of
mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts" (Jer.
15:16). And yet the results were persecution, rebuke (Jer. 15:15), isolation,
and loneliness: "I sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I
sat alone because of thy hand: for thou hast filled me with indignation. Why is
my pain perpetual, and my wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? wilt
thou be altogether unto me as a liar, and as waters that fail?" (Jer.
15:17-18).
The Lord responded sharply to the
accusation, reminding Jeremiah of the privilege of his station and of his need
to repent and be converted to his calling: "Therefore thus saith the Lord,
If thou return, then will I bring thee again, and thou shalt stand before me:
and if thou take forth the precious from the vile, thou shalt be as my
mouth" (Jer. 15:19). Repeating the promise he gave to Jeremiah from the
beginning at his call, the Lord reminded him of whom he was serving: "I
will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall: and they shall fight
against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for I am with thee to
save thee and to deliver thee, saith the Lord" (Jer. 15:20). Indeed,
without the help of the Lord such a calling would be unthinkable.
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [
Think about
Elder Holland giving an apostolic blessing to us in this valley last year for
rain. Have we changed in our behavior?
(Jeremiah 16:9-17.)
9 For thus saith the LORD
of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place in
your eyes, and in your days, the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the
voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride.
10 ¶ And it shall come to
pass, when thou shalt shew this people all these words, and they shall say unto
thee, Wherefore hath the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? or
what is our iniquity? or what is our sin that we have committed
against the LORD our God?
11 Then shalt thou say
unto them, Because your fathers have forsaken me, saith the LORD, and have
walked after other gods, and have served them, and have worshipped them, and
have forsaken me, and have not kept my law;
12 And ye have done worse
than your fathers; for, behold, ye walk every one after the imagination of his
evil heart, that they may not hearken unto me:
13 Therefore will I cast
you out of this land into a land that ye know not, neither ye nor your
fathers; and there shall ye serve other gods day and night; where I will not
shew you favour.
14 ¶ Therefore, behold,
the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be said, The LORD liveth,
that brought up the children of
15 But, The LORD liveth,
that brought up the children of
16 ¶ Behold, I will send
for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and after will I
send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from
every hill, and out of the holes of the rocks.
17 For mine eyes are
upon all their ways: they are not hid from my face, neither is their iniquity
hid from mine eyes.
Verses
10-13 – the word imagination actually means stubbornness or rebellion, the
people are not ignorant of what they are doing, they are worshipping other gods
on purpose. The Lord tells them they
will be removed from this choice land and taken to a strange land where they
can worship whatever they want, but they will no longer worship here in this
land.
Verse 16 –
the gathering of
The Gathering of Scattered Israel
Elder Russell M. Nelson
Of the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
We help to gather the
elect of the Lord on both sides of the veil.
My beloved brothers and
sisters, thank you for your faith, your devotion, and your love. We share an
enormous responsibility to be who the Lord wants us to be and to do what He
wants us to do. We are part of a great movement—the gathering of scattered
Abrahamic Covenant
Anciently, the Lord blessed
Father Abraham with a promise to make his posterity a chosen people.1 References to this covenant occur
throughout the scriptures. Included were promises that the Son of God would
come through Abraham's lineage, that certain lands would be inherited, that
nations and kindreds of the earth would be blessed through his seed, and more.2 While some aspects of that covenant
have already been fulfilled, the Book of Mormon teaches that this Abrahamic
covenant will be fulfilled only in these latter days!3 It also emphasizes that we are among
the covenant people of the Lord.4 Ours is the privilege to participate
personally in the fulfillment of these promises. What an exciting time to live!
As descendants of Abraham,
the tribes of ancient
God's promise for the
gathering of scattered
This promise of the
gathering, woven all through the fabric of the scriptures, will be fulfilled
just as surely as were the prophecies of the scattering of
The
Prior to His Crucifixion,
the Lord Jesus Christ had established His Church. It included apostles,
prophets, seventies, teachers, and so forth.10 And the Master sent His disciples
into the world to preach His gospel.11
After a time the Church as
established by the Lord fell into spiritual decay. His teachings were altered;
His ordinances were changed. The Great Apostasy came as had been foretold by
Paul, who knew that the Lord would not come again "except there come a
falling away first."12
This Great Apostasy followed
the pattern that had ended each previous dispensation. The very first was in
the time of Adam. Then came dispensations of Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and
others. Each prophet had a divine commission to teach of the divinity and the
doctrine of the Lord Jesus Christ. In each age these teachings were meant to
help the people. But their disobedience resulted in apostasy. Thus, all
previous dispensations were limited in time and location. They were limited in
time because each ended in apostasy. They were limited in location to a
relatively small segment of planet earth.
The Restoration of
All Things
Thus a complete restoration
was required. God the Father and Jesus Christ called upon the Prophet Joseph
Smith to be the prophet of this dispensation. All divine powers of previous
dispensations were to be restored through him.13 This dispensation of the fulness of
times would not be limited in time or in location. It would not end in
apostasy, and it would fill the world.14
The Gathering of
As prophesied by Peter and
Paul, all things were to be
restored in this dispensation. Therefore, there must come, as part of that
restoration, the long-awaited gathering of scattered
This doctrine of the
gathering is one of the important teachings of The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints. The Lord has declared: "I give unto you a sign . . . that
I shall gather in, from their long dispersion, my people, O house of
The Book of Mormon is
central to this work. It declares the doctrine of the gathering.19 It causes people to learn about Jesus
Christ, to believe His gospel, and to join His Church. In fact, if there were
no Book of Mormon, the promised gathering of
To us the honored name of Abraham is important. It is mentioned in
more verses of scriptures of the Restoration than in all verses of the Bible.21 Abraham is linked to all members of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.22 The Lord reaffirmed the Abrahamic
covenant in our day through the Prophet Joseph Smith.23 In the temple we receive our ultimate
blessings, as the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.24
The Dispensation of
the Fulness of Times
This dispensation of the
fulness of times was foreseen by God as the time to gather, both in heaven and
on earth. Peter knew that after a period of apostasy, a restoration would come.
He, who had been with the Lord on the Mount of Transfiguration, declared:
"Repent ye therefore,
and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of
refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; . . .
"Whom the heaven must
receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by
the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."25
In modern times the Apostles
Peter, James, and John were sent by the Lord with "the keys of [His]
kingdom, and a dispensation of the gospel for the last times; and for the fulness
of times," in which He would "gather together in one all things, both
which are in heaven, and which are on earth."26
In the year 1830 the Prophet
Joseph Smith learned of a heavenly messenger named Elias, who possessed keys to
bring to pass "the restoration of all things."27
Six years later the
"After this, Elias
appeared, and committed the dispensation of the gospel of Abraham, saying that
in us and our seed all generations after us should be blessed."29
Then Elijah the prophet came
and proclaimed, "Behold, the time has fully come, which was spoken of by
the mouth of Malachi— testifying that he [Elijah] should be sent, before the
great and dreadful day of the Lord come—to turn the hearts of the fathers to
the children, and the children to the fathers, lest the whole earth be smitten
with a curse."30
These events occurred on
April 3, 1836,31 and thus fulfilled Malachi's
prophecy.32 Sacred keys of this dispensation were
restored.33
Gathering of Souls
on the Other Side of the Veil
Mercifully, the invitation
to "come unto Christ"34 can also be extended to those who
died without a knowledge of the gospel.35 Part of their preparation requires
earthly efforts of others. We gather pedigree charts, create family group
sheets, and do temple work vicariously to gather individuals unto the Lord and
into their families.36
To Participate in
the Gathering: A Commitment by Covenant
Here on earth, missionary
work is crucial to the gathering of
The choice to come unto
Christ is not a matter of physical location; it is a matter of individual
commitment. People can be "brought to the knowledge of the Lord"39 without leaving their homelands.
True, in the early days of the Church, conversion often meant emigration as
well. But now the gathering takes place in each nation. The Lord has decreed
the establishment of
Spiritual security will
always depend upon how one
lives, not where one lives.
Saints in every land have equal claim upon the blessings of the Lord.
This work of Almighty God is
true. He lives. Jesus is the Christ. This is His Church, restored to accomplish
its divine destiny, including the promised gathering of
NOTES
1. See Genesis 12:1–2; D&C 132:29–32; Abraham 2:6–11.
2. See Genesis 26:1–4, 24, 28; 35:9–13; 48:3–4; John 8:33, 39; Acts 3:25; 1 Nephi 17:40; 2 Nephi 29:14; Jacob 5; Ether 13:7–8; D&C 52:2.
3. See, for example, 1 Nephi 15:12–18.
4. See 1 Nephi 14:14; 15:14; 2 Nephi 30:2; Mosiah 24:13; 3 Nephi 29:3; Mormon 8:15; D&C 133:26–34.
5. The tribe of Levi provided priests among the people and was
not to be numbered as a tribe or to receive tribal inheritance. Two sons of
Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, were given land inheritances. They were numbered
among the tribes, in the stead of their father, Joseph. The number of twelve
tribes was thus maintained.
6. Leviticus 26:33; see
also Jeremiah 9:16.
7. See Genesis 22:16–18; 3 Nephi 20–22; Abraham 2:10–11.
8. Isaiah 18:2, 7.
9. See Leviticus 26:44; Deuteronomy 4:27–31; 28; 29; 30:2–5; Nehemiah 1:9; Isaiah 11:11–12; Jeremiah 31:7–8, 10–12; Ezekiel 37:21–22; Amos 9:14–15; Matthew 24:31; Jacob 6:2; see also Russell M. Nelson, "The Exodus Repeated,"
Liahona, Apr. 2002, 30–39; Ensign, July 1999, 6–13.
10. See Luke 10:1, 17; Ephesians 4:11; Articles of Faith 1:6.
11. See Matthew 28:19–20; Mark 16:15.
12. 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
"Falling away" is translated from the Greek apostasia, meaning "apostasy."
13. See D&C 128:18; 132:45.
14. See Isaiah 27:6.
15. See 1 Nephi 15:18; see also Book of Mormon title page, paragraph 2.
16. See D&C 133:17.
17. 3 Nephi 21:1.
18. See Genesis 12:2–3; 26:3–4; 35:11–12; and chapter headings for 3 Nephi 21; 29.
19. Doctrines relating to the scattering and gathering of the
house of Israel are among the earliest lessons taught in the Book of Mormon:
"After the house of Israel should be scattered they should be gathered
together again; . . . the natural branches of the
olive-tree, or the remnants of the house of Israel, should be grafted in, or
come to the knowledge of the true Messiah, their Lord and their Redeemer"
(1 Nephi 10:14).
20. See Bruce R. McConkie, A
New Witness for the Articles of Faith (1985), 554.
21. Abraham is mentioned in 506 verses of scripture: 216 are in
the Bible; 290 are in the scriptures of the Restoration.
22. The covenant may also be received by adoption (see Matthew 3:9; Luke 3:8; Galatians 3:26–29; 4:5–7; Abraham 2:9–10).
23. See D&C 124:58; 132:31–32.
24. See D&C 84:33–40; 132:19; Abraham 2:11.
25. Acts 3:19, 21.
26. D&C 27:13. Paul also
prophesied of our day "that in the dispensation of the fulness of times
[the Lord] might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in
heaven, and which are on earth" (Ephesians 1:10).
27. D&C 27:6.
28. It is appropriate that Moses, who first led God's children
to the land of their inheritance, would be the one to commit the keys of the
gathering of
29. D&C 110:11–12.
30. D&C 110:14–15.
31. Significant is the fact that Moses, Elias, and Elijah came
on Easter Sunday, at the beginning of Passover.
32. See Malachi 4:5–6.
33. See D&C 110:16.
34. Jacob 1:7; Omni 1:26; Moroni 10:30, 32; D&C 20:59.
35. See D&C 137:6–8.
36. See 1 Corinthians 15:29; 1 Peter 4:6.
37. Matthew 10:6; 15:24.
38. See Jeremiah 16:16.
39. 3 Nephi 20:13.
40. See D&C 6:6; 11:6; 12:6; 14:6.
41. 2 Nephi 9:2.
42. Bruce R. McConkie, in Conference Report,
43. D&C 97:21.
44. See 2 Nephi 9:2; 10:7–9; 25:16–17, 20; 3 Nephi 21:22–28; D&C 29:7–8.
Heal Me (Jer. 17:14-18)
"Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be
healed; save me, and I shall be saved: for thou art my praise" (Jer.
17:14). When it is read in sequence with the previous lament, this passage
reveals a more humble Jeremiah praying in faith for the continued protection
and inspiration promised by the Lord. At the same time he prayed for divine
justice — a double does: "Let them be confounded that persecute me, but
let not me be confounded: let them be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed:
bring upon them the day of evil, and destroy them with double destruction"
(Jer. 17:18). To this plea there was no divine response.
Forgive Not Their Iniquity (Jer. 18:18-23)
In Jeremiah 18 we learn more about
those who were persecuting Jeremiah. Their statement that in spite of what they
did to him, "the law shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from
the wise, nor the word from the prophet" (18:18), reveals that they
considered the official religion of the land to be in good hands. Jeremiah
again pleaded for judgment against his enemies. He reminded the Lord that at
one time he had acted as mediator for his people: "Remember that I stood
before thee to speak good for them, and to turn away thy wrath from them"
(Jer. 18:20). No longer would he plead for those who sought his life:
"Yet, Lord, thou knowest all their counsel against me to slay me: forgive
not their iniquity, neither blot out their sin from thy sight, but let them be
overthrown before thee; deal thus with them in the time of thine anger"
(Jer. 18:23). To this plea also came no divine response.
As a Burning Fire (Jer. 20:7-13)
In a lament recorded in Jeremiah 20,
we learn of the unwilling human nature of the prophet in submitting himself to
the will of the Lord in delivering an unpopular message. At the same time we
find a marvelous image of a man of God who could not contain the word of the
Lord in his heart: "O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived:
thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one
mocketh me. For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because
the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. Then I
said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his
word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with
forbearing, and I could not stay" (Jer. 20:7-9).
Jeremiah, perhaps comforted by his
own admission of weakness, went on to reaffirm his faith and to praise the
Lord, who is "with me as a mighty terrible one . . . that triest the
righteous . . . [and] delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of
evildoers" (Jer. 20:11-13).
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 231.)
(Jeremiah 18:2-10.)
2 Arise, and go down to
the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.
3 Then I went down to the
potter's house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.
4 And the vessel that he
made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another
vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.
5 Then the word of the
LORD came to me, saying,
6 O house of
7 At what instant I
shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to
pull down, and to destroy it;
8 If that nation, against
whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I
thought to do unto them.
9 And at what
instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build
and to plant it;
10 If it do evil in my
sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I
said I would benefit them.
Another
object lesson one of the most famous – the trip by Jeremiah to the potter’s
wheel, God is the potter and will make
The Potter's Wheel (Jer. 18)
In another of the most well-known
images in Jeremiah, the Lord commanded him to go to the house of a potter and
watch him work. The image of the work of the potter as an act of creation is
well known throughout the Bible. In the statement in Genesis 2:7, "the
Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground," the verb used is ysr, the
same verb used to mean forming a pot. This same image of the Lord
"forming" individuals is used elsewhere, as in Jeremiah's call
"before I formed thee in the belly" (Jer. 1:5), and "shall the
clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou?" (Isa. 45:9; see
also 44:21, 24), and as a reference to the Lord's "forming" his
people
As Jeremiah watched the potter, who
was probably molding a pot on a potter's wheel, the pot "was marred in the
hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the
potter to make it" (Jer. 18:4). The Lord explained: "O house of
Apart from being a memorable image of
the omnipotence of God, this image of the potter reinforces the covenantal
relationship of the Lord with his people. He has the power to form them as
individuals and as a nation and to then destroy them and start over again. In
history, when the pot has become marred, the Lord has destroyed it and started
over again. He has done this on several occasions throughout scriptural
history, such as the Flood, the destruction of the Nephites, and the Apostasy
and the Restoration. Once again, we have no account that this revelation was
witnessed or experienced by any other than Jeremiah, suggesting that it may
have been for his own spiritual understanding.
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 225.)
An element of interest in Jeremiah's
prophetic work is the manner in which he taught object lessons (see Teacher;
Teacher Development). For instance, Jeremiah called attention to the impending
fall of
(Encyclopedia
of Mormonism, 1-4 vols., edited by Daniel H. Ludlow (New York: Macmillan,
1992), 722.)
(Jeremiah 19:2-15.)
Thus saith the LORD, Go and get a potter's
earthen bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of the
ancients of the priests;
2 And go forth unto the
valley of the son of Hinnom, which is by the entry of the east gate, and
proclaim there the words that I shall tell thee,
3 And say, Hear ye the
word of the LORD, O kings of
4 Because they have
forsaken me, and have estranged this place, and have burned incense in it unto
other gods, whom neither they nor their fathers have known, nor the kings of
5 They have built also the
high places of Baal, to burn their sons with fire for burnt offerings
unto Baal, which I commanded not, nor spake it, neither came it
into my mind:
6 Therefore, behold, the
days come, saith the LORD, that this place shall no more be called Tophet, nor
The valley of the son of Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter.
7 And I will make void the
counsel of
8 And I will make this
city desolate, and an hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be
astonished and hiss because of all the plagues thereof.
9 And I will cause them to
eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall
eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith
their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them.
10 Then shalt thou break
the bottle in the sight of the men that go with thee,
11 And shalt say unto
them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Even so will I break this people and this
city, as one breaketh a potter's vessel, that cannot be made whole
again: and they shall bury them in Tophet, till there be no place
to bury.
12 Thus will I do unto
this place, saith the LORD, and to the inhabitants thereof, and even
make this city as Tophet:
13 And the houses of
14 Then came Jeremiah from
Tophet, whither the LORD had sent him to prophesy; and he stood in the court of
the LORD's house; and said to all the people,
15 Thus saith the LORD of
hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her
towns all the evil that I have pronounced against it, because they have
hardened their necks, that they might not hear my words.
The Potter's Earthen Bottle (Jer.
19-20)
The third symbolic act is related to
the imagery of the potter at his wheel, but the vessel destroyed is the
finished product. Of these three incidents, this is the only one that was
apparently done for the public; their reaction is most interesting. Jeremiah
was instructed to take an earthen bottle and go with some of the elders and
priests to the
This symbolic act was a public event,
and the implications were immediately understood by those present. Jeremiah 20
recounts the persecution that Jeremiah endured for delivering the word of the
Lord to those who found the truth offensive. Pashur, the chief governor in the
house of the Lord — a temple official who undoubtedly had heard about the
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies in
Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1993], 226.)
19:1-15 Thus saith the Lord, Go and
get a potter's earthen bottle, and take of the ancients of the people, and of
the ancients of the priests; And go forth unto the valley of the son of Hinnom
The pottery jug is breakable, for it
is no longer pliable clay. The
Jeremiah took with him certain elders
to hear his condemnation of human sacrifice, a horror never to be resorted to,
much less used in worship of the Lord (Jer. 19:5Jer. 19:1-7, Jer. 19:55a).
The prophet made dire predictions of parallel horrors to develop under siege
and broke the pottery jug as a sign that neither it nor the idolater could be
reshaped, hence they would be broken and cast away. Grim predictions of
starvation, death, and conflagration followed; and history shows that all those
horrors came with the Babylonian invasion. Why did the Lord not prevent it? He
could not do so and preserve principles of agency and law in His world. With
their agency, the people had "hardened their necks, that they might not
hear [his] words" (Jer. 19:8-15).
20:1-18 Then Pashur smote Jeremiah
the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the high gate of Benjamin,
which was by the house of the Lord
A senior officer at the temple was
brazen enough to "smite" the prophet, confine him in a device that
holds the body in a distorted position, and keep him there overnight in a
public place—all because of his prophecies. Undaunted, Jeremiah renamed him
"terror all around"; the name Pashur appears to have meant
something like "prosperity all around"—quite the opposite of his new
name (Jer. 20:3a). He prophesied Pashur would suffer terror with the
exiles and die in
Jeremiah's integrity held throughout
the rejection and physical abuse he suffered, but he was not happy in his
lonely and stressful calling. He had been reluctant to undertake it but had
been persuaded by the Lord to do so (Jer. 20:7a; cf. 1:17-19). He felt
that he had aroused only reproach and derision, yet his convictions were so
strong that he could not forbear preaching repentance. In response he heard
plotting and "fear on every side" (the same words in Hebrew as the
new name he gave Pashur); and people watched for a reason to take revenge on
him (Jer. 20:8-10). On the other hand, he was confident that the Lord would defend
him and avenge his suffering; therefore, he praised and thanked the Lord, even
though he lamented at times as Job had (Jer. 20:11-18; cf. Job 3:3-4).
This masterpiece in the biblical
prophetic literature displays pressures and afflictions experienced by a
prophet.
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 577.)
M E R I D I
A N M A G A Z I N E
Lesson 41
"I
Have Made Thee This Day… an Iron Pillar"
Jeremiah 16; 23; 39; 31
By Philip Allred
Calling of a Prophet
The prophet Jeremiah
provides us with a remarkable study in steadfastness in the Lord. From his
premortal performance to his mortal ministry we are given an often painful
portrait of what a prophet goes through to serve God in correcting his own
people.
Called in his youth (Jer.
1:6), and somewhat reminiscent of Enoch, Moses, and at least two Josephs
(Jacob’s son, and Joseph Smith), the young man was concerned that he lacked the
verbal skills and social respect required for
Then Jehovah bestowed upon
the boy a blessing (Jer. 1:9) with the prophetic charge to “root out, and to
pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down” that which is evil in
Jeremiah’s Background
LDS Scholars David Rolph and
Jo Ann Seely have cogently collected the following background materials on this
Old Testament prophet in their analysis of Jeremiah and Lehi—his Book of Mormon
counterpart and contemporary.
- “Jeremiah was from the tribe of Levi through
Aaron (see Jeremiah 1:1) and was descended from the priestly family of
Abiathar. Abiathar, one of the two high priests that served under David,
had supported the rebellion of David’s son Adonijah; consequently, Solomon
exiled Abiathar to the little town of Anathoth, two and a half miles to
the northeast of Jerusalem (see 1 Kings 2:26-27). Centuries later Jeremiah
was born and lived in Anathoth but spent much of his ministry in
- “Jeremiah’s life was a symbol of the justice of God and
the impending destruction of
- “We do not know exactly the dates of the births of
Jeremiah or Lehi, but it is very likely that they were born either during
or immediately after the reign of the wicked king Manasseh (687-642 B.C.)
and that they were very close to the same age. Jeremiah was called to be a
prophet as a young man in 627 B.C. (see Jeremiah 1:6)…. Some scholars
believe this date represents the birth of Jeremiah, who was called from
the womb [Jeremiah 1:5] — in which case he would be almost 30 when the
Book of Mormon opens, younger than Lehi” (Ibid., 27-28, 85).
- “Jeremiah … lived [his] early years in the reign of
King Josiah, known as one of the most righteous of
- “Lehi and Jeremiah may have known each other, and it
may well have been through the priesthood that they shared association. We
may assume that those commissioned by the Lord to prophesy in
This excellent analysis
provides helpful insights into the world of the Jews during Jeremiah’s
tumultuous ministry. I am personally humbled as I study this 40-year mission of
Jeremiah — he labored with such a wicked people, in such precarious times, and
without the hope that captivity and exile could be avoided. Yet, he persevered
and stayed the course the Lord laid out for him.
No wonder Lehi rejoiced,
while still in
We, too, in these latter-day
times rife with wars and rumors of wars, take comfort and know of the mercy of
God. Nephi taught, “For the time soon cometh that the fulness of the wrath of
God shall be poured out upon all the children of men; for he will not suffer
that the wicked shall destroy the righteous. Wherefore, he will preserve the
righteous by this power, even if it so be that the fulness of his wrath must
come, and the righteous be preserved, even unto the destruction of their
enemies by fire. Wherefore the righteous need not fear; for thus saith the
prophet, they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire” (1 Nephi 22:16-17).
Indifference to the Savior or failure to keep the
commandments of God brings about insecurity, inner turmoil, and contention.
These are the opposite of peace. Peace can come to an individual only by an
unconditional surrender — surrender to him who is the Prince of peace, who has
the power to confer peace.
One may live in beautiful and peaceful surroundings but,
because of inner dissension and discord, be in a state of constant turmoil. On
the other hand, one may be in the midst of utter destruction and the bloodshed
of war and yet have the serenity of unspeakable peace.
If we look
to man and the ways of the world, we will find turmoil and confusion. If we
will but turn to God, we will find peace for the restless soul. This was made
clear by the words of the Savior: "In the world ye shall have
tribulation" (John 16:33); and in his bequest to the Twelve and to all
mankind, he said, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not
as the world giveth..." (John 14:27; Elder Howard W. Hunter, Conference
Report, October 1966, 16).
Taking It Well
Jeremiah’s lament in
Jeremiah 20 is certainly understandable (see vv. 14-18). As all prophets of the
Lord are, he was subjected to all manner of indignities and injustices simply
for telling the truth. Yet, his inspiring words ring down through the ages,
resonating with those in whom the Spirit of God is kindled: “But his word was
in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with
forbearing, and I could not stay” (Jer. 20:9).
What makes such a man? Is it
not the receipt of and resolution to be true to the revelations of the
Almighty?
In this way the words of
Ammon, the great Book of Mormon missionary who went through much affliction
during his multi-year ministry among the Lamanites, are instructive. “For this
is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from
everlasting wo” (
Peter, who knew somewhat of
suffering himself, reasoned, “For what glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for
your faults, ye shall take it patiently? But if, when ye do well, and suffer
for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God. For even hereunto
were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example,
that ye should follow his steps: Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his
mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he
threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously” (1 Peter
2:20-23).
Jeremiah exhibited that rare
kind of resignation that people who are at peace with God and all that their
covenants might require feel. Like Abinadi, Jeremiah resigned himself into the
hands of the people, saying, “As for me, behold, I am in your hand: do with me
as seemeth good and meet unto you. But know ye for certain, that if ye put me
to death, ye shall surely bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this
city, and upon the inhabitants thereof: for of a truth the Lord hath sent me
unto you to speak all these words in your ears” (Jer. 26:14-15; see also Mosiah
17:9-10).
Modern Idolatry
In the final analysis we
must see that this life and all that the world has to offer is at best
temporary. In this way, Jeremiah’s fairly shocking attitude toward his own
birth, including his wish that he had been killed from the womb (Jer. 20:14-18)
can be seen as a hyperbole on the value we should place on our lives in this
world. This is not to say that we should think less of the probationary purpose
of mortality, of course; rather it is to see just how simple the proposition is
here for us — will we be for God and his gospel and all that “the Lord seeth
fit to inflict upon” us (Mosiah 3:19), or will we instead forsake him, “the
fountain of living waters, and [hew ourselves] out cisterns, broken cisterns,
that can hold no water”? (Jer. 2:13).
The Israelites of Jeremiah’s
day were trying to find life’s satisfaction without the Lord’s guidance for how
that satiation comes. Nephi, making plain the words of Isaiah’s prophecies and
preachings to an earlier generation of
And all the
nations [and individuals] that fight against Zion, and that distress her, shall
be as a dream of a night vision; yea, it shall be unto them, even as unto a
hungry man which dreameth, and behold he eateth [in his dream] but he awaketh
and his soul is empty; or like unto a thirsty man which dreameth, and behold he
drinketh but he awaketh and behold he is faith, and his soul hath appetite (2
Nephi 27:3; compare Isaiah. 29:7-8).
Samuel the Lamanite
demystified this phenomenon by simply stating: “Ye have sought all the days of
your lives for that which ye could not obtain; and ye have sought for happiness
in doing iniquity, which thing is contrary to the nature of that righteousness
which is in our great and Eternal Head” (Helaman 13:38). Elder Costa of the
Seventy taught:
Many people
in this world do not understand the difference between fun and happiness. Many
try to find happiness having fun, but the two words have different meanings. I
looked them up in the dictionary to find out what each of them meant. Fun is
play, pleasure, gaiety, merriment, source of enjoyment, amusement, to behave
playfully, playful, often a noisy activity, and teasing. Happiness is
contentedness, joy, delight, and satisfaction.
I was taught, after becoming
a member of the Church, that there is indeed a big difference between fun and
happiness. I learned, even before my baptism, that the Lord has a plan of
salvation for all His children (see 2 Nephi 2:29). Through this plan, depending
upon what we accomplish here on earth, we shall return to our Heavenly Father's
presence and live with Him forever in a state of eternal happiness.
All who seek
full happiness can find it in the gospel of Jesus Christ, taught in His Church.
Through Christ's doctrine, we are taught that we can be part of the great plan
of happiness that He has prepared for all of us, His sons and daughters. As we
keep His commandments, we are blessed and come to know true happiness (Elder
Claudio R. M. Costa, “Fun and Happiness,” Oct. 2002 General Conference, Sunday
Afternoon Session).
It has been said that
idolatry in its most rudimentary form is simply the placing of anyone (or
anything) above God in our worship, affections, and devotion (see Jer. 2:27).
As the Master himself taught, “Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth,
where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven… For where your treasure is,
there will your heart be also… No man can serve two maters: for either he will
hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise
the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon. Therefore I say unto you, take no thought
for your life” (Matt. 6:24-26; and also Matt. 6:19-20, 24-25).
President Kimball renewed
Jeremiah and other Old Testament prophet’s charge against idolatry in his
unforgettable talk “The False Gods We Worship.” His words are ever more
relevant a quarter of a century later:
Sadly, however, we find that
to be shown the way is not necessarily to walk in it, and many have not been
able to continue in faith. These have submitted themselves in one degree or
another to the enticings of Satan and his servants and joined with those of
‘the world’ in lives of ever-deepening idolatry.
I use the word idolatry intentionally. As I study ancient scripture, I am more
and more convinced that there is significance in the fact that the commandment
“Thou shalt have no other gods before me” is the first of the Ten Commandments.
Few men have ever knowingly
and deliberately chosen to reject God and his blessings. Rather, we learn from
the scriptures that because the exercise of faith has always appeared to be
more difficult than relying on things more immediately at hand, carnal man has
tended to transfer his trust in God to material things. Therefore, in all ages
when men have fallen under the power of Satan and lost the faith, they have put
in its place a hope in the “arm of flesh” and in “gods of silver, and gold, of
brass, iron, wood, and stone, which see not, nor hear, nor know” (Dan 5:23) —
that is, in idols.
This I find to be a dominant
theme in the Old Testament. Whatever thing a man sets his heart and his trust
in most is his god; and if his god doesn’t also happen to be the true and
living God of Israel, that man is laboring in idolatry.”
And so it
often seems to be with people, having such a firm grasp on things of the world
— that which is telestial — that no amount of urging and no degree of emergency
can persuade them to let go in favor of that which is celestial. Satan gets
them in his grip easily. If we insist on spending all our time and resources
building up for ourselves a worldly kingdom, that is exactly what we will
inherit.”
In spite of
our delight in defining ourselves as modern, and our tendency to think we
possess a sophistication that no people in the past ever had — in spite of
these things, we are, on the whole, an idolatrous people — a condition most repugnant
to the Lord” (Pres. Spencer W. Kimball, “The False Gods We Worship,” Ensign,
June 1976, 4-5).
History and Jeremiah's Crisis of Faith
S. Kent Brown
Before we begin our review of the
parts of Jeremiah's early ministry, let us first set out the usual and
customary picture of it. fn The prophet received his call while still a young
man, during the thirteenth year of King Josiah's reign, about 627 or 626 B.C.
In his early prophecies, he spoke of an unidentified peril which was to come
upon
Every detail of this brief
traditional outline of Jeremiah's early ministry has been challenged. fn For
instance, concerning the relationship between the Scythian incursion and the
prophet's despair—the major items which will hold our attention here—no less a
scholar than Professor John Bright wrote in 1959 that Herodotus's assertion
that "the Scythians ... ran wild over western Asia, ranging as far as the
Egyptian frontier, is to be received with greatest caution; though some scholars
accept it and explain the oracles of Zephaniah and young Jeremiah in light of
it, it is quite without objective support." fn Bright here dismisses
Herodotus's account without discussion. Bearing in mind the need to consider
later the validity of Herodotus's witness, let us first turn to the problem of
the identification of the foe from the north, the solution to which will have
to take into account the Greek historian.
At the time of his call, Jeremiah saw
two visions (see Jeremiah 1:11, 13), fn the second of which included a view of
"a seething pot" boiling in the north. Its contents were to be poured
out on
We noted earlier that something had
occurred during the early years of the prophet's career which drove him to
complain bitterly about unfulfilled prophecies. Among other things, the
situation had resulted in Jeremiah's being totally and publicly discredited. In
fact, even his family had joined in a plot to take his life, apparently because
whatever had happened had created an enormous public outcry against him. What
had occurred that caused the prophet to complain so and motivated his family
and friends to seek his life? It does not seem possible that Jeremiah's open
support of Josiah's religious reforms would have generated such a furor—even if
those revisions eventually lost popular support, as some scholars maintain. fn
After all, Josiah was still living at the time. fn We must seek a better
explanation. And the only other possible and feasible solution is the Scythian
hypothesis.
Herodotus says that the Scythians,
after becoming masters of Asia, marched south intending to invade
Scholars have raised major objections
against this narration by Herodotus. The first concerns its historicity. The
protests range from outright denials of the incidents mentioned to an
insistence that Herodotus's information is questionable. fn But no real
foundation exists for rejecting his narrative out of hand. To be sure,
Herodotus's major interest centered on the possible relation of Aphrodite to
the goddess of
The second major problem facing the
Scythian hypothesis consists in dating their incursion. If they came at a time
removed from Jeremiah's early ministry, the hypothesis does not hold. Let us
state what is securely known. First of all, the Scythians came during the reign
of Pharaoh Psammeticus (who died 610 B.C.). Secondly, the invasion occurred
before the destruction of
Having now established the high
probability, not only that Herodotus's record of the Scythian invasion is
historically reliable, but also that this invasion came within the first years
of Jeremiah's ministry, we turn to the confessions themselves. Taken together,
fn the confessions clearly demonstrate both that the prophet was deeply disappointed
because of unfulfilled prophecies and that, consequently, he felt God had
abandoned him. In these solemn dirges one plainly sees that Jeremiah passed
through a crisis which shook his faith in the Lord. Let us first discuss the
confessions in order (see Jeremiah 11:18-12:6; 15:10-21; 17:9f., 14-18;
18:18-23; 20:7-12, 14-18), fn and then suggest a reconstruction of events which
led to his difficulties.
The first passage brings chapter 11
to a close and opens chapter 12 (see Jeremiah 11:18-12:6). Jeremiah recorded
here that the Lord had revealed to him a plot against his life hatched by
"the men of Anathoth" (Jeremiah 11:21), his hometown (see Jeremiah
1:1). In this connection, Jeremiah noted that the instigators of the plot went
so far as to speak in riddles when discussing his planned murder in his
presence (see Jeremiah 11:19). His narrow escape from death seemingly led him
to ask, "Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? Wherefore are all
they happy that deal very treacherously? Thou hast planted them, yea, they have
taken root: they grow, yea, they bring forth fruit; thou art near in their
mouth and far from their reins." (Jeremiah 12:If.) fn What the prophet
said next forms and important key to understanding his own tortured frustrations
and disappointments. "Thou, O Lord, knowest me: thou hast seen me, and
tried mine heart toward thee" (Jeremiah 12:3). Note the theme of trial, a
concept which we shall stress again. The prophet has here claimed for the first
time that the Lord had "tried" his loyalty. He continued by pleading
that the Lord avenge him against his enemies. Then the Lord gently reprimanded
him (see Jeremiah 12:5f.): "If thou hast run with the footmen, and they
have wearied thee, then how canst thou contend with horses? And if in the land
of peace, wherein thou trustedst, they wearied thee, then how wilt thou do in
the swelling of
The second of the six confessions
occurs in chapter 15. The prophet began it by saying, "Woe is me, my
mother, that thou hast borne me a man of strife and a man of contention to the
whole earth!" (Jeremiah 15:10.) He then sorrowed that, although he had
neither lent nor borrowed, everyone hated him. After he next quoted the Lord's
words concerning the fate of himself and of a remnant of
O Lord, thou knowest: remember me,
and visit me, and revenge me of my persecutors; take me not away in thy
long-suffering: know that for thy sake I have suffered rebuke. (Jeremiah
15:15.)
It is absolutely clear both from this
and from earlier passages that he had suffered severe persecution. And we know
that some of it came from his family and old associates in Anathoth. Listen now
to his following words as he reflected on his call:
Thy words were found, and I did eat
them, thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called
by thy name, O Lord, God of hosts. (Jeremiah 15:16.)
One can imagine Jeremiah remembering the
joy and happiness which came to him when he was first called to be a spokesman
to God's people. But after mentioning that this event effectively set him apart
from others (see Jeremiah 15:17), he wrote a gloomy confession of his
frustrations since his call:
Why is my pain perpetual, and my
wound incurable, which refuseth to be healed? Wilt thou be altogether unto me
as a liar, and as waters that fail? (Jeremiah 15:18.)
Here, mentioning his injury which
seemingly could not be healed, Jeremiah dared to refer to God as "failing
waters." fn In a word, the prophet was distressed. What had gone wrong?
Significantly, this outburst led the Lord generously to reconfirm Jeremiah's
prophetic calling, almost—as we noted earlier—in the very words of his original
commission (see Jeremiah 15:20-21; cf. 1:17-19).
In his third confession, appearing in
chapter 17, Jeremiah again stated that the Lord had been trying him severely.
He quoted the Lord as saying, "I the Lord search the heart, I try the
reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit
of his doings" (Jeremiah 17:10). But even though he had been severely
tested, the prophet acknowledged that only the Lord finally could help him (see
Jeremiah 17:14).
Verse 15 may hold a clue as to what
had happened. We read: "Behold, they say unto me, where is the word of the
Lord? Let it come now." Plainly, Jeremiah was being teased and ridiculed
because what he had prophesied had not come about. Something had obviously gone
amiss—at least in the view of his hearers—and he was being baited to say more
and thus compound his apparent errors. In this connection, we observe that in
his fourth confession (see Jeremiah 18:18-23) he noted how his persecutors
devised ways to trap him in his words so that they might refute him and not
feel obliged to listen seriously to his message. Again, it is worth while to
point out the prophet's reference here to constant harassment and persecution.
Jeremiah's fifth confession (Jeremiah
20:7-12) contains what is perhaps his most poignant statement:
O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I
was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision
daily, everyone mocketh me. (Jeremiah 20:7.)
He went on to say that his trust in
the word of the Lord had fallen so low that he had decided to quit, fn not to
"speak any more in his name, But his word was in my heart as a burning
fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not
stay" from uttering the words of the Lord. (Jeremiah 20:9.) The feeling
that he was deceived finds close links with the theme of trial when, almost
immediately afterward, he mentioned the "Lord of hosts, that triest the
righteous" (Jeremiah 20:12). So intense had persecution of him become that
Jeremiah, who once had prayed for his people, now demanded that the Lord take
vengeance on those who treated him despitefully.
The last confession (Jeremiah
20:14-18) was written in the depths of despair. I know of only one other
mournful passage in all of scripture that can match its majestic blackness and
sorrow. fn Indeed, the prophet had been brought to the end of his strength and
wit. His faith had run out. What made him feel that he had been deceived by God
himself, that somehow the Lord had made sport of him and finally had abandoned
him?
The answer, as I have suggested, is
to be connected with the sudden appearance and then abrupt disappearance of the
Scythians—tiny events when viewed against the massive events of the fall of the
Assyrian Empire. But before I offer my final solution to the problem, I must
briefly return to an issue discussed earlier in another context. It concerns
the series of statements about an "evil from the north" (see Jeremiah
4:6), the instrument of God's wrath against the unrepentant
From our vantage point, we know the
identity of that peril who the Lord said would come to destroy
In 721 B.C.
We now must review the events that,
although seemingly insignificant on the larger Near Eastern stage, affected the
early ministry of Jeremiah so deeply. From all we can learn, the Lord did not
reveal the identity of the foe from the north either to Jeremiah, the young
prophet from Anathoth, or to Zephaniah, who had prophesied of a similar peril.
Bearing this in mind, we note that before Jeremiah had prophesied for a decade,
regularly warning that such a foe would appear bringing death and destruction
to the people of
But the expected attack never came,
The Scythians passed southward, doing no appreciable damage to Jewish
settlements. Even on their return they made the city and
It is to Jeremiah's everlasting
credit that he remained faithful as he passed through an extraordinarily severe
test of his trust in the Lord. But pass it he did. The most tragic of prophets,
he emerged from this crucible of trial more deeply committed than ever. And he
had to be so committed, for it was at least another thirty years before he saw
the fulfillment of his woeful prophecies of destruction, the message which he
had borne since the first of his career. Prophesying for more than four
decades, he remained to the last of his ministry a lonely man speaking with a
lonely voice in a sea of distrust, lack of faith, and sin. But in the end, God
vindicated his servant's prophecies and thus his servant. This observation
alone constitutes a message for our own day: God honors and supports his
servants who are faithful.
Notes
Footnotes
1. A good summary of the range of
problems concerning Jeremiah's early ministry is that by H. H. Rowley,
"The Early Prophecies of Jeremiah in Their Setting," Bulletin of
the John Rylands Library 45 (1962-63): 198-234 (reprinted in Rowley's
Men of God [1963], pp. 133-68). I am indebted to this insightful synopsis
for much of my own understanding of this critical period in the prophet's
career.
2. Rowley, pp. 206f. F. Wilke was
among the first to reject the Scythian hypothesis: see Alttestament-liche
Studien, Rudolf Kittel zum 60. geburtstag dargebracht, Beitrage zur
Wissenschaft vom Alten Testament, vol. 13 (Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs, 1913), pp.
222ff.
3. The Histories, I.104-6.
4. Almost without exception, scholars
identify this Book of the Law as an early version of Deuteronomy. See Rowley's
summarizing observation about this on pp. 226ff. A very extensive literature
exists on this subject. Latter-day Saints, incidentally, should not be
surprised at the assertion that Deuteronomy may have been known in varying
versions, since, for example, what we read about Moses' end in Deuteronomy
chapter 34 differs substantially from what must have been written on the brass
plates, a notion based on the very different account of Moses' late in Alma
45:19.
5. This is the usual reading of
Jeremiah chapter 11, which, being full of Deuteronomic terminology and
phraseology, apparently illustrates that Jeremiah was here advocating support
of Josiah's reform. See Rowley, pp. 226f. for bibliography.
6. The notion that Jeremiah was an
Aaronite priest descended from the high priest Abiathar, who was exiled by
Solomon to Anathoth (1 Kings 2:26f.) has been challenged. To be sure, the
phrase "of the priests" (Jeremiah 1:1) is omitted by the Septuagint.
But there is no textual evidence against these words among Hebrew manuscripts
(see Rowley, pp. 200, 203-6). One is always faced with the question of how to
explain the opposition of the prophet's family. One logical answer, of course,
is that the (Deuteronomic) reform somehow threatened their livelihood as
priests of a local shrine. One notes that the name Anathoth derives from Anath,
the name of a Canaanite goddess, possibly indicating that the town in
pre-Israelite times housed a shrine dedicated to her. It would not be unusual
for the Israelite priests to have taken over such a holy place and merely used
it for their own worship. See the article on "Anathoth" in The
Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, vol. 1 (Nashville: Abingdon, 1962),
p. 125b.
7. This is the usual interpretation.
But see the cautioning remarks of John Bright, Jeremiah, The Anchor Bible
(Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1966), pp. xci-xcvi, 88f.
8. Rowley, pp. 199-201.
9. John Bright, A History of
10. Questions have been raised
whether the two visions accompanied Jeremiah's call (see Jeremiah 1:4-10). In Jeremiah,
pp. 7f., Bright finally does admit that if they were not integral parts of
Jeremiah's call they were given to him soon afterwards.
11. If one could demonstrate that
Jeremiah's second vision (see Jeremiah 1:13ff.) came at a date significantly
later than 627 or 626 B.C., the year of his call, then the vision could not
have been (mistakenly) applied to the Scythians and would have referred from
the first only to the Chaldeans. But nothing internal or external to the text
supports a late date for this vision. See Bright, Jeremiah, pp. 7f.
12. Whether Jeremiah had the
Scythians in mind, as some scholars maintain, or whether the Lord originally
had reference to the Chaldeans, the route into
13. Rowley, pp. 232-34.
14. The issue rests on the dating of
the confessions. While it is rather certain that they were not all written at
the same time (Rowley, pp. 220f.), their general date of composition is crucial
if we are to place the prophet's crisis during Josiah's reign (640-609 B.C.),
especially since the confessions relate the public and familial outcry against
him (see Jeremiah 11:19-21; 12:6; 18:18, .; 20:7f.; 10). One key is the second
confession (see Jeremiah 15:10-21), which included a renewal of Jeremiah's call
(vv. 20f.) in almost the same terms used in his initial summons by the Lord
(cf. Jeremiah 1:18f.). As Rowley points out, the renewal "can most
naturally be placed after his initial experience of failure," early in his
ministry rather than late (p. 222). See John Bright, "A Prophet's Lament
and Its Answer: Jeremiah 15:10-21," Interpretation 28 (1974):59-74.
15. Herodotus, The Histories,
I.103-6.
16. See references in Rowley, pp.
208f.
17. Ibid., p. 209.
18. Ibid., pp. 211-12. A recently
published review of the archaeological evidence which generally supports
Herodotus's account is Edwin Yamauchi's "The Scythians: Invading Hordes
from the Russian Steppes," Biblical Archaeologist 46 (Spring
1983):90-99. No less a scholar than T.R. Glover thought that Jeremiah had made
clear reference to the Scythians in 6:22-23; see his Herodotus, Sather
Classical Lectures (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1924), p. 95.
19. See also Judges 1:27; 1
Chronicles 7:29; and 1 Samuel 31:10, 12, where it is recorded that the bodies
of Saul and Jonathan were hung on the wall of Bethshan by the Philistines.
Josephus, in Antiquities of the Jews VI.xiv.8 [374] and elsewhere, has
noted that Scythopolis was the former Bethshan.
20. The Septuagint reading of Judges
1:27 makes the identification between Bethshan and Scythopolis. Hence, the
latter would have been well established by the time of the translation of the
book of Judges from Hebrew to Greek (third century or earlier?). That the new
toponym was widely held by the second century B.C. can be seen by its
appearance in 1 Maccabees 5:52; 7:36; and 2 Maccabees 12:39.
21. William Smith, ed., Dictionary
of Greek and Roman Geography, vol. 1 (London: John Murray, 1873; reprint
ed., AMS Press [1966]), pp. 398f., 757; Pauly-Wissowa, Real-Encyclopadie der
classischen Altertumswissenschaft, Zweite Reihe [R-Z], Dritter Halbband,
columns 947f.
22. Rowley, pp. 210f.
23. Herodotus, The Histories,
I.103, 106.
24. See references in Rowley, pp.
202, 211.
25. Ibid., p. 211, makes the
attractive suggestion that the prophetess Hulda was consulted about the Book of
the Law (2 Kings 22:14ff.) because the young Jeremiah had already been
discredited by this time, 621 B.C.
26. See note 14 above.
27. See Rowley's brief commentary,
pp. 220-23. Bright has much more to say in his Jeremiah.
28. Recent studies include those by
W. V. Chambers, "The Confessions of Jeremiah: A Study in Prophetic
Ambivalence" (Ph.D. dissertation, Vanderbilt University, 1972);
Cheng-Chang Wang, "A Theology of Frustration—An Interpretation of
Jeremiah's Confessions," South East Asia Journal of Theology, 15
(1974):36-42; and P. Welten, "
29. One hears echoes, of course, of a
similar prayer uttered by the modern-day Prophet Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail
(D&C 121:1-6). Compare Habakkuk 1:2-4, 13.
30. See the recent article on
Jeremiah's citation of the words of the Lord here by G. V. Smith, "The Use
of Quotations in Jeremiah XV 11-14," Vetus Testamentum 29
(1979):229-31.
31. Bright, Jeremiah, p. 110:
"Literally 'a deceitful (brook),' a stream that goes dry in summer and
cannot be depended upon for water. Remember that Jeremiah had once (see
Jeremiah 2:13) called Yahweh 'the fountain of living waters'!"
32. The prophet's decision to remain
silent has usually been associated with his disappointment in the reforms of
Josiah (see Rowley, p. 200). But Jeremiah's words in chapter 20, verse 7, seem
to point to a frustration growing out of something deeper. Consequently, I
believe that his period of silence had to do with the seeming nonfulfillment of
his prophecies, not with his disappointment in the reform movement. A treatment
of all of chapter 20 appears in D. J. A. Clines, "Form, Occasion and
Redaction in Jeremiah 20," Zeitschrift fur die Alttestamentliche
Wissenschaft 88 (1976):390-409.
33. I refer to Job's lament (Job
chapter 3).
34. Zephaniah 1:10 mentions a series
of landmarks on the north side of
35. D. Winton Thomas, ed., Documents
from Old Testament Times (reprinted;
36. See, for instance, A. Leo
Oppenheim, Ancient Mesopotamia: Portrait of a Dead Civilization
(Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1964), pp. 161-63, 168-70; and Bright, A
History of Israel, pp. 288-302.
37. It is Herodotus who mentioned the
Scythian wont to plunder (The Histories, I.106).
(Monte S.
Nyman, ed., Isaiah and the Prophets: Inspired Voices from the Old Testament
[Provo: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1984], 105.)
Jeremiah 21-25
October 12, 2006
Josiah 640
-609 BC – A declining Assyria was the power in the area, but
Neo-Babylonian Empire (Chaldean
Era) – Wikpedia Encyclopedia
Through the centuries of Assyrian domination,
Nabopolassar was followed by his son Nebuchadnezzar II, whose reign of 43
years made
Of the reign of the last Babylonian king, Nabonidus (Nabu-na'id),
and the conquest of
In 539 BC Cyrus invaded
Cyrus now claimed to be the legitimate successor of
the ancient Babylonian kings and the avenger of Bel-Marduk,
who was assumed to be wrathful at the impiety of Nabonidus in removing the
images of the local gods from their ancestral shrines, to his capital
The invasion of
A year before Cyrus' death, in 529 BC, he
elevated his son Cambyses II in the government, making him king of
Babylon, while he reserved for himself the fuller title of "king of the
(other) provinces" of the empire. It was only when Darius
Hystaspis acquired the Persian throne and ruled it as a representative of
the Zoroastrian
religion, that the old tradition was broken and the claim of
After the murder of Darius, it briefly recovered
its independence under Nidinta-Bel, who took the name of Nebuchadnezzar III,
and reigned from October 521 BC to August 520 BC, when the
Persians took it by storm. A few years later, probably 514 BC,
The
death of King Josiah and the chronology of Kings after him up to the
destruction of the Kingdom of Judah
Incidentally, I misinformed you last
time when I said that it was Necho who installed Zedekiah. Necho installed
Zedekiah's predecessor. Let me give you the lineup here. We will begin with
Hezekiah because the Book of Mormon is full of Isaiah, and Isaiah is the great
preacher. In the Dead Sea Scrolls Isaiah hopelessly swamps all the others as
far as statistics are concerned. So we will begin with Isaiah and King Hezekiah
because that's where the story of the Book of Mormon begins. That was way back
in the eighth century (720 B.C.) when the Assyrians descended on
This is typical of the story:
Zedekiah very soon rebelled against the Babylonians. He rebelled against
Nebuchadnezzar who had installed him on the throne (who trusts whom in these
days?). That brought the Babylonians in, and Nebuchadnezzar came and destroyed
(Hugh
Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon--Semester 1: Transcripts of Lectures
Presented to an Honors Book of Mormon Class at Brigham Young University,
1988--1990 [Provo: Foundation for Ancient Re 46.)
Events in
For more than a century the southern
kingdom continued a troubled and uncertain existence. Then in the year 608
B.C.—which marks the era immediately preceding the opening of the Book of
Mormon—
But the Jewish people did not gain
their freedom. Instead of Egyptian foreigners ruling their country, Babylonian
foreigners took their place.
The Period at the Time of the Departure of Lehi from
These struggles between Assyria,
Babylonia, and
(Daniel H.
Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1976], 61.)
Jeremiah
7-20 – the time of Jehoiakim, chapters 36-39 are the historical chapters of
Jeremiah.
(Jeremiah 36:1-32.)
1 And it came to pass in
the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that this
word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
2 Take thee a roll of a
book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against
3 It may be that the house
of
4 Then Jeremiah called
Baruch the son of Neriah: and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the
words of the LORD, which he had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book.
5 And Jeremiah commanded
Baruch, saying, I am shut up; I cannot go into the house of the LORD:
6 Therefore go thou, and
read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the LORD
in the ears of the people in the LORD's house upon the fasting day: and also
thou shalt read them in the ears of all
7 It may be they will
present their supplication before the LORD, and will return every one from his
evil way: for great is the anger and the fury that the LORD hath
pronounced against this people.
8 And Baruch the son of
Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in
the book the words of the LORD in the LORD's house.
9 And it came to pass in
the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of
10 Then read Baruch in the
book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, in the chamber of Gemariah
the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the higher court, at the entry of the new
gate of the LORD's house, in the ears of all the people.
11 ¶ When Michaiah the son
of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had heard out of the book all the words of the
LORD,
12 Then he went down into
the king's house, into the scribe's chamber: and, lo, all the princes sat
there, even Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and
Elnathan the son of Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the
son of Hananiah, and all the princes.
13 Then Michaiah declared
unto them all the words that he had heard, when Baruch read the book in the
ears of the people.
14 Therefore all the
princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of
Cushi, unto Baruch, saying, Take in thine hand the roll wherein thou hast read
in the ears of the people, and come. So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll
in his hand, and came unto them.
15 And they said unto him,
Sit down now, and read it in our ears. So Baruch read it in their ears.
16 Now it came to pass,
when they had heard all the words, they were afraid both one and other, and
said unto Baruch, We will surely tell the king of all these words.
17 And they asked Baruch,
saying, Tell us now, How didst thou write all these words at his mouth?
18 Then Baruch answered
them, He pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth, and I wrote them
with ink in the book.
19 Then said the princes
unto Baruch, Go, hide thee, thou and Jeremiah; and let no man know where ye be.
20 ¶ And they went in to the
king into the court, but they laid up the roll in the chamber of Elishama the
scribe, and told all the words in the ears of the king.
21 So the king sent Jehudi
to fetch the roll: and he took it out of Elishama the scribe's chamber. And
Jehudi read it in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the princes
which stood beside the king.
22 Now the king sat in the
winterhouse in the ninth month: and there was a fire on the hearth
burning before him.
23 And it came to pass, that
when Jehudi had read three or four leaves, he cut it with the penknife, and
cast it into the fire that was on the hearth, until all the roll
was consumed in the fire that was on the hearth.
24 Yet they were not
afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his
servants that heard all these words.
25 Nevertheless Elnathan
and Delaiah and Gemariah had made intercession to the king that he would not
burn the roll: but he would not hear them.
26 But the king commanded
Jerahmeel the son of Hammelech, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah
the son of Abdeel, to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet: but the
LORD hid them.
27 ¶ Then the word of the
LORD came to Jeremiah, after that the king had burned the roll, and the words
which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying,
28 Take thee again another
roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, which
Jehoiakim the king of
29 And thou shalt say to
Jehoiakim king of Judah, Thus saith the LORD; Thou hast burned this roll,
saying, Why hast thou written therein, saying, The king of Babylon shall
certainly come and destroy this land, and shall cause to cease from thence man
and beast?
30 Therefore thus saith
the LORD of Jehoiakim king of
31 And I will punish him
and his seed and his servants for their iniquity; and I will bring upon them,
and upon the inhabitants of
32 ¶ Then took Jeremiah
another roll, and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah; who wrote
therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim
king of
We are
fasting but Jehovah isn’t seeing it.
Their approach to fasting was an outward show, the intent was missing,
and fasting without the Spirit is just going hungry!
Verse 5 –
He isn’t allowed to go to the temple even though he was a priest, the people
didn’t like what Jehovah had to say. Baruch
got the assignment to read prophesies of Jeremiah to the people on this fast
day at the temple.
Verse 6 –
The day is Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement), the High Priest goes into the Holy of
Holies to atone for the sins of the people.
The people are to afflict themselves; they are fasting but aren’t
receiving what they want, so they complain!
The Day of Atonement
The concept of substitution or
vicarious ordinances is perhaps best seen in
Upon this day the high priest, he who
held the office and position once given to Aaron, was to preside. He alone
could stand as mediator for the people. Both a cleansing and a sacrificial
ritual preceded his entrance into the Holy of Holies. He was first required to
cleanse himself, then to clothe entirely in white linen garments (this in
distinction to the golden garments which he otherwise wore). On this day he was
to make a sin offering (a young bullock) and a burnt offering (a ram) for
himself and his own family. These were to be purchased with his own money. From
the public treasury he was to purchase two young goats for a sin offering, and
a ram for a burnt offering. These he sacrificed in behalf of the people. By lot
one of the goats was to be designated as the goat of the Lord, the name Jehovah
being placed upon him. (McConkie, Bruce R. The Promised Messiah.
In his epistle to the Hebrews, Paul
shows how the law of Moses and particularly the ritual associated with the Day
of Atonement was an outward ordinance or type that was fulfilled in Christ. He
described the tabernacle as "a worldly sanctuary" where the sacrificial
ordinances performed on the Day of Atonement prefigured the atoning sacrifice
of Christ. These ordinances were to remain "until the time of
reformation," when Christ should come as a high priest of "a greater
and more perfect tabernacle," to prepare himself and all men, by the
shedding of his own blood, to obtain "eternal redemption for us."
Paul described the Mosaic covenant as a "shadow of good things to come,
for it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away
sins But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat
down on the right hand of God." (Hebrews 9 and 10.)
"Knowing, as we do, that sins
are remitted in the waters of baptism; that baptisms were the order of the day
in Israel; and that provision must be made for repentant persons to free
themselves from sins committed after baptism—we see in the annual
performances of the Day of Atonement one of the Lord's provisions for renewing
the covenant made in the waters of baptism and receiving anew the blessed purity
that comes from full obedience to the law involved. In our day we gain a
similar state of purity by partaking worthily of the sacrament of the Lord's
supper." (McConkie, Bruce R. The Promised Messiah.
In his epistle to the Hebrews, Paul
shows how the Law of Moses and particularly the ritual associated with the Day
of Atonement was an outward ordinance or a type which was fulfilled in Christ.
(Joseph
Fielding McConkie, Gospel Symbolism [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1999],
82.)
(Isaiah 58:1-7.)
1 Cry aloud, spare not,
lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and
the house of Jacob their sins.
2 Yet they seek me daily,
and delight to know my ways, as a nation that did righteousness, and forsook
not the ordinance of their God: they ask of me the ordinances of justice; they
take delight in approaching to God.
3 ¶ Wherefore have we
fasted, say they, and thou seest not? wherefore have we afflicted
our soul, and thou takest no knowledge? Behold, in the day of your fast ye find
pleasure, and exact all your labours.
4 Behold, ye fast for
strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye shall not fast
as ye do this day, to make your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is it such a fast that I
have chosen? a day for a man to afflict his soul? is it to bow down his
head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? wilt
thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to the LORD?
6 Is not this the
fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy
burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
7 Is it not to deal
thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy
house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not
thyself from thine own flesh?
Likening Isa. 58 unto Ourselves
This chapter outlines the true law of
the fast. In our fasting we are to do far more than simply abstain from two
meals, nor are we to put on an appearance of one who is making a sacrifice. In
a true fast we seek to help and bless others. We remove heavy burdens from the
shoulders of others. We share our substance. If we do these things, we will be
blessed spiritually and temporally. Our portion of light will increase. Our
health will be strengthened. The Lord will be our guide in all things.
The Lord speaks again of the Sabbath.
He promises that if we will turn away from our own pleasures on the Sabbath and
turn to the things that will delight the Lord, he will lift us up to spiritual
richness and bestow on us all the blessings of Jacob.
The True Law of the Fast (58:1-12)
As the headnote to Isa. 58 in the LDS
edition of the Bible reads, 58:1-2 gives us the "true law of the fast,
with its attendant blessings." That fasting is more than going without
food and drink for a period of time is made unmistakably clear.
The passage opens with the Lord
instructing Isaiah to proclaim the sins of the house of
Those who obey this law are promised
great blessings, including spiritual light (58:8); physical health (58:8);
increased righteousness (58:8); answers to prayer (58:9); continual guidance
from the Lord (58:11); a plenitude of spiritual food and water, representing
the full blessings of the Atonement, even when others lack (58:11); and a
restoration of their lands of inheritance (58:12). This passage parallels
1:10-20, in which the Lord rebukes the people for outward obedience without a
true yielding of the heart.
Notes and Commentary
58:1 voice like a trumpet.
58:2 ordinance of their God. In this context, this expression
refers to the laws of God.
ordinances of justice. This phrase may refer to righteous
judgments, just laws, or ordinances that help to justify us before God.
58:3 Wherefore have we fasted. Here the people ask why the Lord
doesn't recognize their efforts to fast.
afflicted our soul. Some have viewed
fasting as a time to seek suffering or self- abasement (Lev. 16:29, 31; 23:27,
32). In 58:5, the Lord rebukes such attitudes, saying he has not commanded a
fast wherein a person would "afflict his soul."
ye find pleasure/exact all your
labors. Here the
prophet explains why the people's fasting and prayers for deliverance went
unheard. They were not sincere in their devotion, they turned to their own
pleasures "in the day of [their] fast" instead of losing themselves
in the Lord and his work, and they required others to work instead of allowing
them to participate in the spirit of the fast.
exact all your labours. This phrase may mean "inflict
travail on others." Though the Israelites themselves may not have been
working on their fast days, they were requiring others to work, most likely
hired laborers.
58:4 fast for strife and debate/smite with
the fist of wickedness. What should have been a religious observance that increased love and
holiness led only to hunger and irritability, strife, debate, and physical
fighting.
58:5 bow down his head as a bulrush. This expression means hanging the
head to give the appearance of suffering.
sackcloth and ashes. These signs of self-abasement and
mourning (22:12; 1 Kgs. 21:17-29; Job 42:6) were parts of a true fast in
ancient
58:6 the fast that I have chosen. To fast in the Lord's way, we must
repent of our willful sins, our unkindnesses, and our selfishness
(1:16-17).
loose the bands of wickedness. The bands of wickedness may
be the chains or bonds of sin (2 Ne. 1:13, 23; 9:45). As President Spencer W.
Kimball put it, "Sin [is] like handcuffs on the wrists, a ring in the
nose, and slave bands around the neck."2 The bands of wickedness
may also refer to the bonds of slavery and oppression discussed below.
undo the heavy burdens. These burdens might be those a
master would place on a servant, or they could refer to the emotional burdens
people carry.
let the oppressed go free. People were
oppressed under slavery or other forms of servitude. For instance, it was the
practice in ancient times to take the property of the poor—even the clothes
from their backs—as collateral for a debt. With no property, including
clothing, the poor had no option but to stay in the servitude of their creditor
(Job 22:6). The Lord urges mercy (Ezek. 18:7,
16), even to a removal of the debt (Deut. 24:12-13; Ex. 22:25-26).
break every yoke. Yokes are used to control beasts of
burden to keep them in a straight path of servitude. The mentality and practice
of using other human beings in this manner must be broken. Also, the bondage of
sin is a yoke to the soul that fasting can help to break.
58:7 bread to the hungry/bring the
poor/cover him.
These actions are the essence of pure religion (Matt. 25:31-46; James 1:27).
Those who have done these things will receive God's blessings (Ezek.
18:7-9, 16-17): their fasting will be
recognized and their prayers heard.
hide not thyself. When someone is in distress we must
not pretend that we do not see or["[pass] by on the other side" (Luke
10:31-32) and refuse to help (Deut. 22:1- 4). This injunction applies
particularly to "thine own flesh," meaning members of our own
families.
thine own flesh. Footnote c to 58:7 in the LDS
edition of the Bible equates this phrase with "thy brother, or
relative." In a broader sense, however, all men are children of the same
God (Job 31:15) and should be treated as brothers.
(Donald W.
Parry, Jay A. Parry, and Tina M. Peterson, Understanding Isaiah [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1998], 512.)
The purpose of
fasting: Spiritual in nature
- To lose the bands of wickedness
(Repent of your sins)
- To undo the heavy burdens (No
work on the Sabbath)
- Let the oppressed go free (Take
care of the poor in society, search them out)
- Break every yoke (Who do you
worship? What keeps you from serving Jehovah?)
Fasting in the Book of Mormon and the Bible
Stephen D. Ricks
For Latter-day Saints, a natural part
of every month is fast Sunday, when they abstain from food and drink for two
meals, contribute a fast offering from the money saved by fasting (if not
contributing more than that), and join with others in worship and in bearing
witness to the truth. On other occasions, special needs will also warrant
fasting: an illness, preparation for giving or receiving a priesthood blessing,
a vital decision, or a persistent dilemma. The practice of fasting, so
significant and cherished a part of the Latter-day Saint religious life, is
also abundantly attested in ancient
Fasts may be individual and private
or communal and public; they may be periodic and institutionalized (e.g., in
our own practice, fast Sunday) or spontaneous (i.e., fasts which are not
explicitly prescribed). Among the ancient Israelites and the Nephites, all of
these types of fasting are attested, and will be considered in this paper.
Periodic and Institutionalized Fasts
1. Day of Atonement Fasting. The only periodic fast prescribed
for the Israelites in the Pentateuch (the five books of Moses) occurs on the
Day of Atonement, "the tenth day of the seventh month" of the ancient
Jewish calendar (the first month of the current Jewish calendar), when the Lord
commanded the Israelites to meet together to "afflict [their] souls"
(i.e., to fast) and to "offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord"
(Leviticus 23:27ff.; see also 16:29, 31; Numbers 29:7-10). There are no
references to this festival in the Old Testament outside of the books of Moses,
although Isaiah 58:3-7 may refer to abuses of the fast associated with the Day
of Atonement.
The observance of the Day of Atonement fast is never explicitly
mentioned in the Book of Mormon. However, its observance may be implied in Alma
30:2, where fasting, mourning, and prayer are referred to, and in Alma 45:1,
where fasting, rejoicing, and prayer are mentioned as taking place at the
beginning of the year, at the time when the Day of Atonement rites were
probably observed among the Nephites. This presumption that these two fasts
reflect observances associated with the Pentateuch is, I think, strengthened by
the observation in Alma 30:3 (following the mention of fasting and associated
rites) that "the people did observe to keep the commandments of the Lord;
and they were strict in observing the ordinances of God, according to the law
of Moses; for they were taught to keep the law of Moses until it should be
fulfilled." fn
2. Other Periodic Fasts. Four
periodic fasts commemorating events surrounding or immediately following the
destruction of the kingdom of Judah by the Babylonians are mentioned in
Zechariah 7:5 and 8:19: (1) the fast that was held to observe the beginning of
the siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar on the tenth day of the tenth month
(Tebet) in the ninth year of the reign of Zedekiah (cf. 2 Kings 25:1; Jeremiah
39:1); (2) the fast commemorating the breach of the wall of Jerusalem on the
ninth day of the fourth month (Tammuz) in the eleventh year of Zedekiah's reign
(Jeremiah 39:2, 52:6-7); (3) the fast memorializing the destruction of the
temple on the tenth day of the fifth month (Ab) in the nineteenth year of
Nebuchadnezzar's rule (cf. Jeremiah 52:12-13; 2 Kings 25:8-9); (4) the fast
commemorating the murder of the Babylonian puppet Gedaliah on the third day of
the seventh month (Tishri; cf. 2 Kings 25:24-25; Jeremiah 41:1). Since all of
these fasts commemorate events during the Babylonian conquest, the destruction
of
Spontaneous Fasts
1. Fasting Following a Death.
Both the Bible and the Book of Mormon record instances of fasting as a sign of
mourning following a death. After the defeat and death of Saul and his sons,
the men of Jabesh Gilead fasted seven days (1 Samuel 31:13; 1 Chronicles 10:12
1 Chronicles 10:12), as did David and his companions (2 Samuel 1:12).
Similarly, public fasting occurs in the Book of Mormon in conjunction with
prayer and mourning after the murder of the chief judge Seezoram (Helaman 9:10).
No specific reason is mentioned in the Book of Mormon for these prayers, but
they may have been to obtain solace for the living rather than mercy for the
dead. Individual fasting following a death is also attested in ancient
The practice of fasting as a sign of
mourning following a death appears to have been a customary feature of
pre-exilic Israelite religion (cf. 1 Samuel 31:13; 2 Samuel 1:12; 3:35; 1
Chronicles 10:12 1 Chronicles 10:12). However, the practice is not recorded for
the post-exilic period or in the New Testament. It is also of importance that
fasting as a sign of mourning is recorded in the Book of Mormon only in
pre-Easter passages (so Helaman 9:10), but never following the appearance of
the risen Christ to the Nephites.
2. Petitionary Fasting.
Spontaneous fasting, both in public and in private, for a specific purpose, is
attested several times in the Book of Mormon and in the Old Testament. When
3. Preparatory Fasting.
Fasting as an act preparatory to seeking the gifts of the Spirit can be seen in
the account of the sons of Mosiah, who had given themselves "to much
prayer, and fasting; therefore they had the spirit of prophecy, and the spirit
of revelation" (Alma 17:3, 9; see also Alma 5:46, 8:26). In a slightly
different vein, Moses fasted on the mountain for forty days when receiving the
Ten Commandments (see Exodus 34:28; Deuteronomy 9:9), Saul fasted before
visiting the witch of Endor (1 Samuel 28:20), and Ahab and Jezebel proclaimed a
public fast in anticipation of the trial of Naboth (1 Kings 21:9, 12).
4. Fasting As a Religious
Exercise. Fasting for no explicit reason is not attested in the Old
Testament before the Babylonian exile. However, this practice burst into full
bloom during the early pre-Christian centuries, and is frequently mentioned in
the intertestamental literature and in the New Testament (cf. Testament of
Joseph 3:4; 9:2; Judith 6:8; Luke 2:36-38). It was probably against
hypocritical fasting of this sort that Jesus inveighed: "Moreover when ye
fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their
faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. . . . When thou fastest, anoint
thine head, and wash thy face, that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto
thy Father which is in secret" (Matthew 6:16-18). (This does not, I
believe, represent a rejection of fasting as such, but rather a condemnation of
its improper practice.) To an extent, this fasting had itself become somewhat
institutionalized, and was observed on a regular basis by the Pharisees and
possibly also by the disciples of John the Baptist. The Pharisee in Jesus'
parable was probably referring to such a practice when he boasted, "I fast
twice in the week" (Luke 18:12). Both later Jewish and Christian
traditions agree in identifying these two days as Monday and Thursday. fn The
New Testament makes no specific mention of fasts regularly observed by the
primitive Christian community. However, the Didache, or TEACHING OF THE TWELVE
APOSTLES, dating from about A.D. 100 and giving one of the earliest post-New
Testament glimpses of the life of the Church, provides for two fasts each week,
on Wednesday and Friday, and not on Monday and Thursday "with the
hypocrites" (i.e., the Pharisees, or possibly the Jews in general). fn The
pre-Easter portions of the Book of Mormon contain three references to such a
practice among the Nephites (Omni 1:26;
There are several types of fasting
mentioned in the Bible which are not attested in the Book of Mormon, including
penitential fasting (Deuteronomy 9:18; 1 Samuel 7:6; 1 Kings 21:27; Ezra 9:1;
Joel 1:14, 2:12-17; Jonah 3:5-9), fasting following a misfortune besides death
(Joshua 7:6; 1 Samuel 1:17, 20:34; 1 Kings 21:4; Esther 4:1, 3) and fasting in
preparation for battle (1 Samuel 14:24).
There are several references in the
Old Testament (but, again, none in the New Testament) to the practice of
penitential fasting. After commanding the Israelites to "put away the
strange gods and Ashtaroth from among [them]," Samuel ordered them to gather
at Mizpeh. "And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water; and
poured it out before the Lord, and fasted on that day, and said there, We have
sinned against the Lord" (1 Samuel 7:3-6). Even Ahab, when he heard the
prophecy of doom pronounced against him by Elijah, "rent his clothes, and
put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went
softly" (1 Kings 21:27). In response to these evidences of penitence, the
Lord told Elijah: "I will not bring the evil in his [Ahab's] days: but in
his son's days will I bring the evil upon his house" (1 Kings 21:28-29;
cf. also Deuteronomy 9:18; Ezra 10:6; Nehemiah 9:1; Joel 1:14, 2:12-17; Jonah
3:5-9).
Fasting as a sign of mourning
following a calamity besides death is attested in ancient
In preparation for a battle against
the Philistines, Saul forbade his soldiers to eat until evening "that I
may be avenged on mine enemies" (1 Samuel 14:24). Jonathan disobeyed his
father's directive at his peril.
In the Bible, other ritual acts are
frequently associated with fasting: donning sackcloth (1 Kings 21:27; Nehemiah
9:1; Psalm 69:11; Isaiah 58:5; Daniel 9:3; Jonah 3:5), strewing ashes on
oneself (Esther 4:1, 3; Isaiah 58:5; Daniel 9:3; Jonah 3:5), weeping (2 Samuel
1:12, 12:21-23; Nehemiah 1:4; Joel 2:12-17), prayer (Nehemiah 1:4; Daniel 9:3),
mourning (2 Samuel 1:12; Nehemiah 1:4; Joel 2:12-17), making a libation of
water (1 Samuel 7:6), anointing and washing oneself (2 Samuel 12:20), and
offering peace and burnt offerings (Judges 20:26). In the Book of Mormon, the
number of recorded acts connected with fasting is smaller: mourning is recorded
twice (Alma 30:2; Helaman 9:10—though the exact manner of mourning is not more
explicitly stated) and anointing and washing oneself is mentioned once (3 Nephi
13:17), while prayer is frequently mentioned (Omni 1:26; Mosiah 27:22, 23; Alma
5:46, 6:6, 17:3, 9, 28:6, 30:2, 45:1; Helaman 3:35; 3 Nephi 13:17, 27:1; 4
Nephi 1:12; Moroni 6:5).
In summary, recorded instances of
fasting in the Old Testament and in the pre-Easter sections of the Book of
Mormon show numerous sources of motivation, but communal fasting as a religious
act plays a relatively minor role. By the time of Christ, however, religious
devotion had become a major motive for fasting, and remained so both in the primitive
Church in
(Paul R.
Cheesman, ed., The Book of Mormon: The Keystone Scripture [Provo: BYU
Religious Studies Center, 1988], 127.)
Verse 9 –
The people weren’t afraid of Jeremiah’s prophesies, they lost the light of
Christ. The Day of Atonement was in the
7th month. Having a fast in
the 9th month was unusual, they were in a severe drought and were
fasting for rain, and they were highly afflicted!
Verses
10-32 – The story of Jeremiah’s prophesies read to Jehoiakim and his
court. This is like the Book of Mormon’s
story of Abinadi. The king wants
Jeremiah dead, they didn’t like the temple sermon in chapter 26 and the reading
of his prophesies against the
(Jeremiah 22:18-19.)
18 Therefore thus saith
the LORD concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of
19 He shall be buried with
the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of
The people
may have been involved in his death; they didn’t like him very much. His calling and destruction were made sure.
Jeremiah 21
– This starts the section of Zedekiah being a vassal king of
The Lord
tells the people He will fight against them; he is behind
(Jeremiah 21:1-8.)
1 The word which came unto
Jeremiah from the LORD, when king Zedekiah sent unto him Pashur the son of
Melchiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, saying,
2 Enquire, I pray thee, of
the LORD for us; for Nebuchadrezzar king of
3 ¶ Then said Jeremiah
unto them, Thus shall ye say to Zedekiah:
4 Thus saith the LORD God
of Israel; Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your
hands, wherewith ye fight against the king of Babylon, and against the
Chaldeans, which besiege you without the walls, and I will assemble them into
the midst of this city.
5 And I myself will fight against you with an outstretched
hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath.
6 And I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and
beast: they shall die of a great pestilence.
7 And afterward, saith the
LORD, I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, and his servants, and the people,
and such as are left in this city from the pestilence, from the sword, and from
the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand
of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life: and he shall
smite them with the edge of the sword; he shall not spare them, neither have
pity, nor have mercy.
8 ¶ And unto this people thou shalt say, Thus saith the LORD;
Behold, I set before you the way of life, and the way of death.
Zedekiah
didn’t learn from the past! He rebelled
like the others before him, No one learned from Josiah’s reforms. The siege lasted almost 1 year, when the
Babylonians broke into
Ezekiel has
been in
A Prophecy against Zedekiah (Jer. 21:1-10)
During Nebuchadrezzar's fn siege of
Jerusalem in 587 B.C., King Zedekiah sent two messengers, Pashur and Zephaniah,
to Jeremiah with the request that he inquire of the Lord on behalf of the king
and all of Judah "if so be that the Lord will deal with us according to
all his wondrous works, that he may go up from us" (Jer. 21:2). The phrase
"wondrous works" (Hebrew, niple'ot) is used throughout the Old
Testament to refer to the "mighty acts" that the Lord performed in
the deliverance of
Prophecies against the Kings of
The passage in Jeremiah 21:11 through
22:9 is a call to the kings in the house of David to be faithful to the ethical
imperatives of the covenant to ensure social justice: to execute judgment (Jer.
21:12) and righteousness and to "deliver the spoiled out of the hand of
the oppressor: and do no wrong, do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless,
nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood" (Jer. 22:3). If they failed to
do this, as they had in the past, then destruction would come. After the
destruction, many of the world would pass by
Chapter 22 contains several short
prophecies directed against three successive kings of
Jeremiah 22:10-12 prophesies the
captivity of Shallum, another name for Jehoahaz (1 Chron. 3:15) son of Josiah,
which was fulfilled when he was removed from the throne and taken to Egypt by
Pharaoh Necho in 609 B.C. (2 Kgs. 23:33-34).
Jeremiah 22:13-19 is directed against
Jehoahaz's successor, Jehoiakim, who attempted to justify his unjust reign by
the props of a new and magnificent palace instead of judging the cause of the
poor and the needy (vv. 13-16). His reward will be an ignominious death and
"the burial of an ass, drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of
Jeremiah 22:20-30 contains an oracle
against Coniah, another name for Jehoiachin, son of Jehoiakim. His punishment
will be like that of a useless, broken pot, to be cast off by the Lord to join
his countrymen in exile to
A Prophecy of Restoration (Jer. 23)
Jeremiah 23 may be best categorized
as a messianic oracle. Verses 1 through 4 pronounce doom on the
"pastors" (shepherds) of
Jeremiah 23:9-40 continues the
denunciation of the wicked shepherds, specifying the wickedness of the false
prophets and priests. This section provides a key for distinguishing and
dealing with false, as opposed to true, prophets. Their sins are grievous:
"They commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of
evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness" (Jer. 23:14). This
description brings to mind Christ's injunction given in the Sermon on the Mount
and repeated to the Nephites: "Beware of false prophets, who come to you
in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them
by their fruits" (Matt. 7:15-16; 3 Ne. 14:15-16). Because these false
prophets have come on their own accord, the Lord said, "I have not sent
these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they
prophesied" (Jer. 23:21); "I have heard what the prophets said, that
prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed. How long
shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are
prophets of the deceit of their own heart; Which think to cause my people to
forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as
their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal" (Jer. 23:25-27). Consequently
they speak their own words and not the words of the Lord; "they speak a
vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord" (Jer.
23:16). They were popular because their message was what the people wanted to
hear: "The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every
one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come
upon you" (Jer. 23:17). fn Following such prophets is nothing less than
idolatry — attempting to find divine approval for selfish interests — and the
Lord accused them of such, characterizing these false prophets as those
"which think to cause my people to forget my name . . . as their fathers
have forgotten my name for Baal" (Jer. 23:27).
The same image of "one that
walketh after the imagination of his own heart" (Jer. 23:17) occurs in the
Doctrine and Covenants and is applied to our day. The people of this generation
are likewise accused of idolatry: "They seek not the Lord to establish his
righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image
of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose
substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon,
even Babylon the great, which shall fall" (D&C 1:16; emphasis added).
Two Baskets of Figs (Jer. 24)
After Nebuchadnezzar captured
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 252.)
Evil
doesn’t mean sin, just an opposite of good.
Indifference could be evil.
Elder Neal A. Maxwell
From Men and Women of Christ:
If
we enlist and take the Savior's yoke upon us we "shall find rest unto
[our] souls" (Matthew 11:29). If we are only part-time soldiers, though,
partially yoked, we experience quite the opposite: frustration, irritation, and
the absence of His full grace and spiritual rest. In that case weaknesses
persist and satisfactions are intermittent. . . Actually the partially yoked
experience little spiritual satisfaction, because they are burdened by carrying
the awful weight of the natural man -- without any of the joys that come from
progressing toward becoming "the man of Christ." They have scarcely
"[begun] to be enlightened" (
Strange
as it seems, a few of the partially yoked, undeservedly wearing the colors of
the kingdom, are just close enough to the prescribed path and process to be
able to observe in others some of the visible costs of discipleship. Sobered by
that observation, they want victory without battle and expect campaign ribbons
merely for watching; but there is no witness until after the trial of their
faith (see Ether 12:6).
These same Church members know just enough about the doctrines to
converse superficially on them, but their scant knowledge about the deep
doctrines is inadequate for deep discipleship (see 1 Corinthians 2:10). Thus
uninformed about the deep doctrines, they make no deep change in their lives.
They lack the faith to "give place" (
(Jeremiah
24:1-10.)
1 The LORD shewed me, and,
behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the LORD,
after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the
son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters
and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon.
2 One basket had
very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the
other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were
so bad.
3 Then said the LORD unto
me, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that
cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
4 ¶ Again the word of the
LORD came unto me, saying,
5 Thus saith the LORD, the
God of Israel; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are
carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land
of the Chaldeans for their good.
6 For I will set mine eyes
upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build
them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them
up.
7 And I will give them an
heart to know me, that I am the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I
will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.
8 ¶ And as the evil figs,
which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the LORD, So will I
give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem,
that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt:
9 And I will deliver them
to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to
be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I
shall drive them.
10 And I will send the
sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from
off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers
The good figs still had the light of
Christ, while the bad figs were like the king, totally dark, no light left.
An element of interest in Jeremiah's
prophetic work is the manner in which he taught object lessons (see Teacher;
Teacher Development). For instance, Jeremiah called attention to the impending
fall of
Jeremiah and his writings were well
respected by his contemporary, Lehi, and later Book of Mormon prophets who
possessed a copy of some of Jeremiah's prophecies on the plates of brass (cf. 1
Ne. 5:13; 7:14). A later Book of Mormon prophet, Nephi 2, indicates that
Jeremiah had prophesied of the messiah's first coming (Hel. 8:13-20). However,
current texts of Jeremiah do not have clear references to this event,
underscoring the observation that in the transmission of the biblical text
parts may have been lost, or that Lehi may have possessed a fuller version.
This is not surprising since ancient evidence both from
The book of Jeremiah presents rich
insights into the attributes of God, the nature of prophets and prophecy, and
varied teaching techniques. The available text of Jeremiah, however, suggests
that scribes or others have allowed some parts that were "plain and
precious" (cf. 1 Ne. 13:20-42) to be omitted.
(Encyclopedia of Mormonism, 1-4
vols., edited by Daniel H. Ludlow (New York: Macmillan, 1992), 722.)
The Lord
cleanses the entire environment, all the wicked will be destroyed. I and II Samuel I and II Kings are written to
the people in the good figs basket.
These are the reasons you’re in this predicament, you broke the covenant
made with Moses and Joshua. They didn’t
know what covenant the Lord is talking about, this opens the door for prophets
like Ezra.
Ezekiel is
the prophet of the captivity. Ezra the
scribe helps the remnant understand what the law is. The captivity lasts 60-70 years. The Lord is planning for the rebirth of
The returning
remnant brought back parts of the temple, but not all. They had to be clean to do this. Only a small group returned. There was a small Jewish community in
God looks
at every individual and knows which basket we fit in. He knows what is going on in each
individual. He will do all He can to
work with you. He alone knows what it
takes to bring us home.
Jeremiah
21:10 – The city is gone; the land will be cleansed by fire.
Jeremiah
21:11-14 – This is what the kings of
Verse 13 –
“I am against thee O inhabitants above the valley on the rock of the plateau”
this was Bruce’s translation of this verse.
(Jeremiah 22:1-17.)
1 Thus saith the LORD; Go
down to the house of the king of
2 And say, Hear the word
of the LORD, O king of
3 Thus saith the LORD; Execute ye judgment and righteousness,
and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor: and do no wrong, do
no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed
innocent blood in this place.
4 For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in
by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in
chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people.
5 But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by myself,
saith the LORD, that this house shall become a desolation.
6 For thus saith the LORD
unto the king's house of
7 And I will prepare
destroyers against thee, every one with his weapons: and they shall cut down
thy choice cedars, and cast them into the fire.
8 And many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall
say every man to his neighbour, Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this
great city?
9 Then they shall answer, Because they have forsaken the
covenant of the LORD their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them.
10 ¶ Weep ye not for the
dead, neither bemoan him: but weep sore for him that goeth away: for he
shall return no more, nor see his native country.
11 For thus saith the LORD
touching Shallum the son of Josiah king of Judah, which reigned instead of
Josiah his father, which went forth out of this place; He shall not return
thither any more:
12 But he shall die in the
place whither they have led him captive, and shall see this land no more.
13 ¶ Woe unto him that
buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that
useth his neighbour's service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;
14 That saith, I will
build me a wide house and large chambers, and cutteth him out windows; and it
is cieled with cedar, and painted with vermilion.
15 Shalt thou reign,
because thou closest thyself in cedar? did not thy father eat and drink,
and do judgment and justice, and then it was well with him?
16 He judged the cause of
the poor and needy; then it was well with him: was not this to
know me? saith the LORD.
17 But thine eyes and thine heart are not but for thy
covetousness, and for to shed innocent blood, and for oppression, and for
violence, to do it.
Jeremiah in the Time of Jehoiakim,
609-598 B.C.
Jehoiakim submitted to
Jeremiah had nothing good to say about Jehoiakim and vigorously denounced
him, comparing him unfavorably with his father Josiah (e.g., Jer. 22:13-19). It
was Jehoiakim who banned Jeremiah from the temple and upon hearing the
prophetic words recorded on his scroll cut them up and burned them—as recorded
in Jeremiah 36. Jeremiah prophesied that the king's death would not be lamented
and that he would be "buried with the burial of an ass" (Jer.
22:18-19).
Jeremiah suffered much rejection and persecution during those years,
resulting in the threat on his life by officials after the temple sermon (Jer.
7; 26). Even his fellow citizens of Anathoth and his family turned against him
(Jer. 11:21; 12:6). In this period he recorded: "The word of the Lord came
also unto me, saying, Thou shalt not take thee a wife, neither shalt thou have
sons or daughters in this place" (Jer. 16:1-2), apparently indicating that
he would not be allowed to have a normal family life. It was probably in this
period that he wrote many of his personal laments found interspersed in
chapters 7 through 20
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 200.)
Verse 17
describes Jehoiakim to a T.
Some Warnings (Jer. 25-26)
Jeremiah 25 is dated to the fourth
year of the reign of Jehoiakim, 605 B.C. Jeremiah reminded the people that he
had spent twenty-three years warning them about the consequences of their
apostasy. Drawing heavily on phrases and images found in his temple sermon in
609 (chaps. 7, 26), fn Jeremiah identified the enemy from the north—of whom he
had been warning Judah from the beginning—as Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. He
announced that because the people had not repented they would be destroyed and
taken into captivity.
In the first part of chapter 25
Jeremiah predicted, "And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an
astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of
The second part of Jeremiah 25
involves the image of the Lord giving to Jeremiah the divine cup of wrath,
which the prophet was to deliver to all nations, spreading destruction over the
whole world—a fulfillment of his calling to be a prophet to the nations (Jer.
25:15-38). This passage will be examined in conjunction with Jeremiah 46
through 51. fn
Jeremiah 26 is an account of
Jeremiah's temple sermon, in which he warned the inhabitants of
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 201.)
-Original Draft-
The Divine Justification for the
Babylonian Destruction of
Bruce Satterfield
Department of
From Glimpses of Lehi's Jerusalem (John W. Welch,
David Rolph Seely, Jo Ann H. Seely, ed.s.
Foundation of Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, Brigham Young Universtity,
In January of 588 B.C.,
Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, laid siege against
Why
did God allow such horrible misery and destruction to come upon his chosen
people? What purpose did it serve? The answer to these queries is important to
understand because many cities as well as civilizations have and will undergo
the same fate that
PART ONE: Agency is Essential to God's Plan
The central principle
undergirding the Lord's justification for allowing civilizations like
Light of Christ Essential
to Agency of Man
Lehi taught that certain
conditions must exist before agency can be exercised. First, there must be
opposing choices (2 Nephi 2:15). Second, the choices must be enticing. Said he,
"Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself.
Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed
by the one or the other" (2 Nephi 2:16). Commenting on this, President
Harold B. Lee taught, "Father Lehi explained to his son that in order to
accomplish that eternal purpose there must be opposition in all things, and
that to every individual upon the earth there had to be given the right of free
agency and also that there must be in the world the power to entice to do
evil and the power to entice to do good."
(4)
The Book of Mormon teaches
that "the Spirit of Christ,"also known as the light of Christ, the Spirit
of God, and the Spirit of the Lord
(5), is the agent that entices men and women to do good (Moroni
7:16-17). On the other hand, it is the "the will of the flesh and the evil
which is therein, which giveth the spirit of the devil power to captivate"
that entices men and women to do evil (2 Nephi 2:29).
"The Spirit giveth
light to every man that cometh into the world" (D&C 84:46). This light
manifests itself as man's conscience, though this is not the full extent to
which the light of Christ may be experienced.
(6) According to President Joseph F. Smith, it is by means of this
Spirit that "every man is enlightened, the wicked as well as the good, the
intelligent and the ignorant, the high and the low, each in accordance with his
capacity to receive the light; and this Spirit or influence which emanates from
God may be said to constitute man's consciousness."
(7) In line with this, Elder McConkie wrote, "By virtue of this
endowment all men automatically and intuitively know right from wrong and
are encouraged and enticed to do what is right (Moro. 7:16.)."
(8) Without the light of Christ there would be no agency. With no
enticement for good, man would naturally give way to the enticement for evil.
Therefore, the scriptures teach that the light of Christ "strives" to
be with man (D&C 1:33; Genesis 6:3; Moses 8:17; 2 Nephi 26:11; Ether 2:15).
The Loss of the Spirit
Brings Destruction
However, the scriptures also
teach that it is possible to lose the light of Christ. The Lord has repeatedly
said, "my Spirit shall not always strive with man" (D&C 1:33;
Genesis 6:3; Moses 8:17; 2 Nephi 26:11; Ether 2:15). It follows that when the
Spirit is lost there is a loss of agency. In such a condition, man is unable to
act for himself, a condition that is unacceptable in the violates the plans of
God. When a society as a whole reaches the point that the light of Christ no
longer strives with them, then those people are "ripe for
destruction." Nephi stated: "For the Spirit of the Lord will not
always strive with man. And when the Spirit ceaseth to strive with man then
cometh speedy destruction, and this grieveth my soul" (2 Nephi 26:11;
emphasis added).
Such was the condition of
the people in the days of Noah as well as the cities of
How the Light of Christ
is Lost
Understanding how one loses
the light of Christ is pertinent to this study. Men lose the light of Christ
when they continually sin against the light. Speaking to the brother of Jared,
the Lord said: "I will forgive thee and thy brethren of their sins; but
thou shalt not sin any more, for ye shall remember that my Spirit will not
always strive with man; wherefore, if ye will sin until ye are fully ripe ye shall
be cut off from the presence of the Lord" (Ether 2:15). In addition to
continuing in sin, the attitude of the sinner towards sin plays a major role in
the loss of the Spirit. President George Albert Smith said: "The spirit of
God continues to strive with men everywhere, as long as they make the effort to
keep his commandments. When men abandon the truth, refuse to do the right,
the Lord of necessity withdraws his spirit and men are left to the buffetings
of the adversary."
(12)
Those who continually defy
the light of Christ and commit sin sear "their conscience as with a hot
iron" (JST 1 Timothy 4:2). "All men receive this Spirit," wrote
Elder McConkie, "but not all hearken to its voice. Many choose to walk in
carnal paths and go contrary to the enticings of the Spirit. It is possible to
sear one's conscience to the point that the Spirit will withdraw its influence
and men will no longer know or care about anything that is decent and
edifying."
(13)
Spencer W. Kimball spoke
frequently about how people get into a position of rebelliousness that would
cause the light of Christ to leave them. "Conscience warns but does not
govern. Conscience tells the individual when he is entering forbidden worlds,
and it continues to prick until silenced by the will or by sin's
repetition."
(14) "The will" of the sinner is often manifested in
rationalizing or excusing sin. "When people know right from wrong and find
themselves in the broad way to destruction, they have two ways to go. They may
repent and cleanse themselves and obtain eventual peace and joy, or they may rationalize
and excuse themselves and try the "escape" road. Those who follow
the latter road sometimes so completely rationalize that they become calloused
and lose the desire to repent, until the Spirit of God ceases to strive with
them."
(15) Such rationalization is due to an individual's unresponsiveness
to the things of God. "When the Lord said, 'My spirit shall not always
strive with man . . .' this was not because the Spirit is unwilling to strive
but because he is made so unwelcome. He is willing to come to the rescue of
anyone who really wants to be helped, who will yield to assistance. But when a
person pushes the Spirit away and ignores and puts out the 'unwelcome sign,'
eventually the Spirit of the Lord ceases to strive. He does not move away from
the individual; it is the person who moves away from the Lord."
(16)
As one continues to
rationalize sin, it becomes nearly impossible to repent. President Kimball
wrote, "A man may rationalize and excuse himself till the groove is so deep
he cannot get out without great difficulty. . . And if the yielding person
continues to give way he may finally reach the point of 'no return.' The Spirit
will 'not always strive with man.'(D&C 1:33.)"
(17) This is the most damnable aspect of continuing in sin.
"Free agency," declared President Marion G. Romney, "possessed
by any one person is increased or diminished by the use to which he puts it.
Every wrong decision one makes restricts the area in which he can thereafter
exercise his agency. The further one goes in the making of wrong decisions in
the exercise of free agency, the more difficult it is for him to recover the
lost ground. One can, by persisting long enough, reach the point of no return.
He then becomes an abject slave. By the exercise of his free agency, he has
decreased the area in which he can act, almost to the vanishing point."
(18)
The scriptures refer to
those who, through seared consciences, have reached this point as "past
feeling" (Ephesians 4:19; 1 Nephi 17:45;
Like Laman and Lemuel, those
who will not feel the warning voice of their own conscience will likewise not
listen to the warning voice of God's prophets who are sent to stall their
downward fall. Being "past feeling" that they cannot "'feel' the
words of God or his prophets."
(21) Indeed, rejecting the Lord's prophets is an indicator that the
light of Christ is nearly gone out or has ceased altogether within a person or
society. Nephi observed of the Jews in his day, "For behold, the Spirit of
the Lord ceaseth soon to strive with them; for behold, they have rejected the
prophets" (1 Nephi 7:14). Destruction follows those who fail to listen to
their own conscience or the Lord's prophets. The Lord has said, "the day
cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord [i.e., light of
Christ], neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of
the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people"
(D&C 1:14).
From the foregoing, the
following list characterizes those who are in jeopardy of losing or who have
lost the light of Christ:
- In a state of rebellion, refusing to do what is right
- Sin is continually repeated
- Sin is rationalized or excused
- Repetition of sin cuts a deep grove making it difficult
for the sinner to "get out" of sin, i.e., repent
- Conscience is seared; the sinner is "past
feeling" or calloused; no longer aware of sinning
- No desire to repent of sin
- Will not follow the Lord's prophets
PART TWO: The Witness of Jeremiah and Ezekiel
The writings of Jeremiah and
Ezekiel witness that the inhabitants of
The Witness of Jeremiah
The century before the
prophet Jeremiah began his ministry saw two major religious reforms instituted
by the kings of Judah involving the removal of "high places"of
worship (whether to Jehovah or pagan deities), the eradication of both foreign
and domestic idol worship, a refurbishing of the temple built by Solomon, and a
reemphasis of the observance of the Mosaic code. The first was initiated by
Hezekiah (ca.715-687 B.C.) as recorded in 2 Kings 18 and 2 Chronicles 29-31.
However, Hezekiah's son, Manasseh (ca. 687-642 B.C) reversed his fathers reform
policies (see 2 Kings 31; 2 Chronicles 33). This had the effect of causing
"Judah and the inhabitants of
Despite Josiah's reforms,
the reversal of Hezekiah's reforms by Manasseh proved disastrous for
The Light of Christ
Diminishes Among the Jews
Living in the aftermath of
Josiah's reform, Jeremiah witnessed the sinful nature and rebellious heart of
The metaphor of washing with
soap but remaining spiritually unclean was an accurate portrayal of the Jew's
response to Josiah's reforms. Through Jeremiah, the Lord said, "
More evidence that the
people were losing the light of Christ is found in another prophecy pronounced
probably towards the end of Josiah's reign. Jeremiah berated the wickedness
that had saturated Jerusalem saying, "Run ye to and fro through the
streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in the broad places
thereof, if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that
seeketh the truth; and I will pardon it [i.e., forgive Jerusalem]"
(Jeremiah 5:1). Any real attempt to do this would have been futile for
"this people hath a revolting [ Heb. sarar, stubborn] and a
rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone." (Jer. 5:23). Neither were
they conscience-stricken. "Were they ashamed when they had committed
abomination?" the Lord asked. "Nay, they were not at all ashamed,
neither could they blush" (Jer. 6:15).
Since Josiah's religious
reforms had had little effect upon his people, Jeremiah warned that the Lord
would "bring a nation upon [them] from far" that would
"impoverish [their] fenced cities, wherein [they] trustedst, with the
sword." (Jer. 5:15-17). This was a prophecy of the Babylonian siege of
598-597 B.C. (600 B.C. in Book of Mormon chronology), the year before Lehi was
called to be a prophet. The siege, however, would not render
The Light of Christ is
Almost Extinguished
As Josiah's reign came to an
end, the light of Christ was flickering in the winds of sin Yet, the Spirit was
still striving with the Jews. But during the reign of Josiah's son, Jehoiakim,
who reigned from 609-598 B.C., the light was all but blown out. Under
Jehoiakim, Josiah's reform policies came to an end. Immediately, things went
from bad to worse.
In the first year of
Jehoiakim's reign, Jeremiah stood in the gate of the Temple and speaking in the
name of the Lord, he delivered a sermon denouncing the wickedness of the Jews
and offering them a chance to repent (Jer. 7; 26).
(26) The Jews had come to believe that their pretended reforms were
enough to turn away Jehovah's wrath. Therefore, they believed they could
continue in sin without consequence. Through Jeremiah, the Lord said:
"Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn
incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; And come and
stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are
delivered to do all these abominations?" (Jer. 7:8-10) He then reminded
them what happened to the tabernacle at Shiloh in the days of Eli, who's son's,
as well as all
The initial response of the
leaders to Jeremiah's denunciation was to have Jeremiah put to death, "for
he hath prophesied against this city" (Jer. 26:11). Immediately Jeremiah
rebuked them, saying, "amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice
of the Lord your God; and repent, and the Lord will turn away the evil that he
hath pronounced against you" (JST Jer. 26:13). This unnerved some of the
leaders. "This man is not worthy to die," they said, "for he
hath spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God" (Jer. 26:16). This
incident demonstrates that early in the reign of Jehoiakim, there still was
some respect for God's prophets among the people. There was still hope!
But hope was diminishing.
The chronicler tells us that Jehoiakim "did that which was evil in the
sight of the LORD his God" (2 Chron. 36:5; also 2 Kings 23:37). The Lord
sent prophets, including Jeremiah, warning him to repent. But he refused to
hear them. Therefore, Jeremiah said to him: "I have spoken unto you,
rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened. And the LORD hath sent unto
you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but ye have
not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear" (Jer. 25:3-4). Refusal to
heed the Lord's prophets is a sign that the light of Christ was nearly
extinguished in the life of the king.
As the king went, so went
the people. They became more stubborn, refusing to follow any of the commands
of Jehovah through the prophets. Further, they disregarded the law of Moses,
the basis of the covenant made between God and
Finally, an incident
happened in Jehoiakim's reign that sealed the fate of he and his people.
(27) The Lord had Jeremiah write all the prophecies and warnings that
had been given him on a scroll. He then wanted the scroll read to all the
people. "It may be," the Lord said to Jeremiah, "that the house
of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may
return every man from his evil way; that I may forgive their iniquity and their
sin" (Jer. 36:1-3). Jeremiah had his scribe, Baruch, go to the temple,
where the people had gathered to fast, and read the scroll. (For some reason,
Jeremiah had been banned from entering the temple.) But there is no evidence
that this had any effect upon the people whatsoever. In fact, the Jewish
officials who were present reported the incident to Jehoiakim who demanded to
hear what was written on the scroll. As the scroll was being read, Jehoiakim
took a penknife and cut each column that had been read and threw it in the
fire. This he did "until all the roll was consumed in the fire."
"Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor
any of his servants that heard all these words" (Jer. 26:20-24). Jehoiakim
then sent a guard to arrest Jeremiah and Baruch "but the LORD hid
them." (Jer. 26:26).
This was a telling point!
The light of Christ had ceased to exist with Jehoiakim and the other rulers of
the Jews. They had become past feeling and calloused. They had no regard for
the Lord nor his prophet. As a consequence, the Lord told Jeremiah to say to
the king, "He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David: and his
dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost.
And I will punish him and his seed and his servants for their iniquity; and I
will bring upon them, and upon the inhabitants of
Last Chance?
As prophesied, the
Babylonians sieged
During the reign of
Zedekiah, the Jews were given one more chance for repentance. Like Mormon, who,
knowing that "the day of grace was passed" for his people (Mormon
2:15), continued to preach repentance (Mormon 3:2-3), prophets were sent
throughout
The offer of repentance was
aimed at the spark of divinity within each person. President Joseph F. Smith
believed that it was hard to extinguish all that is good in a soul. Said he,
"I do not know whether it is possible for any soul to become so debased as
to lose all regard for that which is pure and chaste, good and true and
godlike. I believe that there still lingers in the heart of the most vicious
and wicked, at times at least, a spark of that divinity that has been planted
in the souls of all the sons of God." However, he continued, "Men may
become so corrupt that they do not have more than mere glimpses of that divine
inspiration that strives to lead them toward and to love good."
"But," he said, "I do not believe there is a soul in the world
that has absolutely lost all conception and admiration of that which is good
and pure, when he sees it. It is hard to believe that a human being may become
so depraved that he has lost all desire that he might also be good and pure, if
it were possible." Yet, he conceded that "many people have abandoned
themselves to evil and have come to the conclusion that there is no chance for
them." President Smith concluded, "While there is life there is hope,
and while there is repentance there is a chance for forgiveness."
(30)
But the chance for
repentance was refused and hope was vanquished. The people rejected the
warnings of the prophets and continued in their wickedness. Therefore, in a
letter written during the reign of Zedekiah to the Jews who had been exiled in
Babylon after the siege of 597 B.C., Jeremiah wrote the word of the Lord
concerning the those who remained in Jerusalem: "Behold, I will send upon
them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile
figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil. And I will persecute them with
the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver them to
be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, and an
astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I
have driven them: Because they have not hearkened to my words, saith the LORD,
which I sent unto them by my servants the prophets" (Jer 29:17-19).
Ezekiel's Witness
About this same time,
Jeremiah was shown a vision of two baskets of figs, one full of good figs and
the other full of poor figs (Jer. 24). He was told that the basket of poor figs
represented Zedekiah and all the Jews who remained in
Ezekiel, a priest who had
been among those exiled, was called of God to help the Jews undergo the change
of heart that would prepare them for their eventual return. He was made "a
watchman unto the house of
Ezekiel began to receive
revelations and visions mid-way between the 597 B. C. exile (see Ezek. 1:2) and
the final siege and destruction of
Ezekiel Witnesses the
Apostasy of
In 592 B.C., Ezekiel was
taken in vision to
The vision commended with
Ezekiel seeing through successive stages "increasingly greater acts of
apostasy."
(34) At first he was taken to a gate on the northern wall of the city
(35), where he saw an altar with "the image of jealousy"
(36) (Ezek. 8:3,5).
(37) Just as the northern kingdom saw an increase in the number of altars
throughout the land before its destruction (Hosea 8:11; 10:1), Ezekiel
witnessed the same proliferation among the Jews in
Ezekiel was brought within
the northern gate of the inner court immediately surrounding the temple. The
inner court and the temple were designed to be the central place of Jehovah
worship. But Ezekiel witnessed that Jehovah was no longer honored nor
worshiped. Immediately upon his entrance into the inner court, his attention
was drawn to the sound of several women sitting near where he stood, who were
"weeping for Tammuz" (Ezek. 8:13-14), a Mesopotamian fertility deity,
whose annual death and resurrection rites were accompanied by mourners weeping
upon his death.
(40) After gazing upon this scene, the Lord told Ezekiel to focus his
attention on the area between the altar and the porch of the temple, an area of
great sanctity. Only the temple itself was more sacred.
(41) In this place of holiness, Ezekiel saw twenty-five men
"with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward
the east; and they worshipped [Heb. shachah, to bow down]
(42) the sun toward the east" (Ezek. 8:16). Whether these men
were involved in pagan solar worship, such as was found in Egypt or
Mesopotamia, or a form a solarized Jehovah worship as some have suggested,
(43) what it is clear is that their actions were seen by the Lord as
abominable (Ezek. 8:17). It was a deliberate affront to true Jehovah worship.
In the area where priests would pray to Jehovah in behalf of
Ezekiel was told that these
contemptible cultic actions were superceded only by the general social
corruption of the people. The Lord said: "Is it a light thing to the house
of
The Withdrawal of the
Light of Christ
As he had seen the
wickedness of the Jews in successive degrees, Ezekiel witnessed the withdrawal
of the light of Christ is successive stages. While in the inner court, Ezekiel
heard the Lord call for the servants whose assignment was to destroy
The moving of the glory of
the Lord to the threshold of the temple was the first stage of the Lord's
abandonment of his people. But he would not abandon them to their destruction
until all the righteous had been removed. He commanded the man with the
writer's inkwell attached to his side to go throughout Jerusalem and place a
mark (Heb., taw, the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet written in the
old Hebrew script as an X) on the foreheads of everyone who found the
abominations of the people shameful (Ezek. 9:4). We are not told whether he
found any or not. The other six men were told to follow him and destroy all
whom had no mark. When the man with the inkhorn returned from his assignment,
he was told to get coals from between the cherubim, which acted as the throne
where the glory of the Lord rested, and "scatter them over the city"
(Ezek. 10:2). The city would now be destroyed by fire.
As the man did so, the glory
of the Lord moved from the threshold to the east gate of the temple (Ezek.
10:18-19). Ezekiel was taken by the Spirit to the same place (Ezek. 11:1) where
he witnessed further apostasy of the people of
Ezekiel asked the Lord,
"wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of
Conclusion
Somewhere between a year to
two years before
The writings of Jeremiah and
Ezekiel bear out Nephi's assertion. We have seen that the light of Christ
strove with the people of
Their
utter rejection of Jehovah left them without the influence of the light of
Christ. Though, as Ezekiel saw, the light of Christ remained until
Notes
1. Bruce
R. McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book, 1985), p.90.
2. David
O. McKay, Gospel Ideals, Compiled by G. Homer Durham (Salt Lake
City: The Improvement Era, 1953), p.299; also Conference Report, April 1950,
pp. 32-33.
3.
McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p.89; emphasis
added.
4. Harold
B. Lee, Conference Report, October 1945, p.46; emphasis added.
5. See
Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, Compiled by John A. Widstoe (Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book, 1919.), p.60-61; Harold B. Lee, Stand Ye In
Holy Places: Selected Sermons and Writings of President Harold B. Lee (Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book, 1975), p.115; Joseph Fielding Smith Jr., Doctrines
of Salvation: Sermons and Writings of Joseph Fielding Smith. 3 vols. Edited
by Bruce R. McConkie (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954-1956), 1:50-51;
McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p.257.
6. See
Marion G. Romney, "The Light of Christ," Ensign (May
1977), pp. 43-45. For other descriptions on the light of Christ, see
Smith, Doctrines of Salvation, 1:49-54; McConkie, A New
Witness for the Articles of Faith, p.257-258; Parley P. Pratt, Key
to the Science of Theology 10th ed. (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1948),
pp.38-42; and B.H. Roberts, The Seventy's Course in Theology, Fifth
Year. Divine Immanence and the Holy Ghost (Salt Lake City: Deseret News, 1912),
pp.1-10.
7.
Smith, Gospel Doctrine, p.61.
8. Bruce
R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine 2nd ed., rev. (Salt Lake City:
Bookcraft, 1966), p.156; emphasis added.
9. Neal A.
Maxwell, Sermons Not Spoken (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1985),
p.91.
10. Neal
A. Maxwell, Look Back at Sodom: A Timely Account from Imaginary Sodom
Scrolls (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1975), p.13.
11. John
Taylor, The Government of God (Orem, Utah: Grandin Book,
1992), pp.52-53.
12.
George Albert Smith, Sharing the Gospel With Others (Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book, 1948), p.29; also, Conference Report, Oct. 1916, p.48; emphasis
added
13.
McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p.260.
14.
Spencer W. Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball. Compiled by
Edward L. Kimball (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1982), p.162; emphasis added.
15.
Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.82; emphasis added.
President Kimball often mentioned this point. For example, he stated,"the
Spirit of God ceases to strive with the man who excuses himself in
wrong-doing" (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.86;
emphasis added.). Again, "Self-justification is the enemy of
repentance. God's Spirit continues with the honest in heart to strengthen, to
help, and to save, but invariably the Spirit of God ceases to strive with the
man who excuses himself in his wrong doing." (Faith
Precedes the Miracle [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1972], p.234; emphasis
added).
16.
Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.162; emphasis added.
17.
Spencer W. Kimball, The Miracle of Forgiveness (Salt Lake City:
Bookcraft, 1969), p.86.
18.
Marion G. Romney, "The Perfect Law of
19. Kimball,
Faith Precedes the Miracle, p.209.
20. Neal
A. Maxwell, Wherefore Ye Must Press Forward (Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book, 1977), p.15.
21. Neal
A. Maxwell, For the Power is in Them: Mormon Musings (Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book, 1970), p.43.
22. This
is why the writer of 2 Kings informs the reader that in spite of Josiah's
religious reforms, "the LORD turned not from the fierceness of his great
wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against
23. I am
following the generally accepted chronology of the life of Jeremiah. It should
be noted that William Holladay has made a compelling argument for a different
chronology. See his work in the Hermeneia Series, Jeremiah 2: A Commentary
on the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1989),
pp. 24-35.
24. The
phrase translated in the KJV, "I will not transgress," should be
rendered, "I will not serve." The Hebrew word avad, translated
"transgress", means "to work or serve".
25.
William McKane, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Jeremiah
(Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1986), p. 43.
26. It
is assumed by most scholars that Jeremiah chapters 7 and 26 are about the same
event.
27.
There is some debate as to the exact date of this incident. Jer. 36:1 places this
in the fourth year of Jehoiakim's reign (604 B.C.). However, the Septuagint
(43:9) places it in the eighth year (601 B.C.). William Holladay argues
convincingly for the later date. See Jeremiah 1: A Commentary on the Book of
the Prophet Jeremiah (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1986), pp. 4-5).
28.
29. The
concept that the whole does not necessarily reflect each individual is seen in
the D&C where the Lord speaks of being pleased with the Church,
"speaking unto the church collectively and not individually." (1:30)
30.
Smith, Gospel Doctrine, pp.27-28.
31.
Though Ezekiel's message was generally to the house of
32. C.U.
Wolf, "Watchman," in The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible,
4 Vols. (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1962), 4:806.
33.
Scholarship is divided as to whether Ezekiel 11 is a continuation of the vision
found in Ezekiel 8-10 or a separate vision. For example, Zimmerli sees no
reason for this being "an originally independent vision" (Ezekiel
1, p 257) while Keith W. Carley views this a "separate vision" (The
Book of the Prophet Ezekiel [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1974],
p. 66). It is admitted that there are problems with the present placement of
the scene portrayed in Ezekiel 11 (it would logically fit better before
34.
Carely, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 51.
35. The
Hebrew text of Ezekiel 8:3,5 is difficult lending itself to various possible
translations. The text however seems to suggest that the altar and image of
jealousy were located next to the norther city gate which would have been north
of the northern gate of the inner court where Ezekiel was first set down. Among
those who hold this view, see S. Fish, Ezekiel (London: Soncino, 1985),
p. 42; Carely, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 52; Walther Zimmerli,
Ezekiel 1 (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1979), p. 238. But others (such
as Daniel I. Block, The Book of Ezekiel Chapters 1-24 [
36. Many
have suggested that the image was the Canaanite fertility goddess, Asherah (see
Carley, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 53; Moshe Greenberg, Ezekiel
1-20 [
37. High
places with images of pagan deities were often placed near the gates of cities
(see 2 Kings 23:8) as can be seen for example, at the Iron Age gates of Tel Dan
(see Abraham Biran, "Dan," in The New Encyclopedia of
Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, 4 Vols. Ephraim Stern, ed [New
York: Simon & Schuster, 1993], 1:323-332; also Avraham Biran, "Sacred
Spaces of Standing Stones, High Places and Cult Objects at Tel Dan,"
Biblical Archaeology Review, Sep/Oct 1998 [Vol. 24 No. 5], pp. 38-45, 70)
and Bethsaida (et-Tel) (see Rami Arav, et al., "Bethsaida
Rediscovered," Biblical Archaeology Review, Jan/Feb 2000 [Vol. 26
No. 1], pp. 45-56).
38. This
corroborates Jeremiah's testimony wherein he said, "according to the
number of the streets of
39. For
an excellent discussion of the layout of Solomon's temple including surrounding
courts, see Victor V. Hurowitz, "Inside Solomon's Temple," Bible
Review (April 1994), pp. 24-37, 50. For other discussions, see Roland de Vaux,
Ancient Israel: Vol. 2 Religious Institutions (New York: McGraw-Hill,
1961), pp. 312-322; Menahem Haran, Temples and Temple Service in Ancient
Israel (Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns, 1985) pp. 189-194. Also helpful
is Leslie C. Allen's discussion of Ezekiel's movements within the temple
complex, including diagram, in Word Biblical Commentary: Ezekiel 1-19
(Dallas, TX: Word Books, 1994), pp. 139-141.
40.
There is scholarly debate the as to the exact nature of Tammuz (Dumuzi)
worship. See, O.R. Gurney, "Tammuz Reconsidered: Some Recent
Developments," Journal of Semitic Studies 7 (1962), pp. 142-160;
Thorkild Jacbosen, "Toward the Image of Tammuz," in Toward the
Image of Tammuz and Other Essays on Mesopotamian History and Culture, ed.
W. L. Moran (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard, 1970), pp. 73-103); Samuel Noah Kramer,
The Sacred Marriage Rite (Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University
Press, 1969), pp. 107-133; Edwin M. Yamauchi, "Tammuz and the Bible,"
Journal of Biblical Literature 84 (1965), pp. 283-290.
41.
Later Rabbi's considered the area between the altar and the porch of the temple
one of the most sacred areas in the land. The Mishnah describes "ten
degrees of holiness" beginning with the
42. The
form shachah is found this verse is mishtachawithem, which is
unusual. It appears to be a participle with a second masculine singlular
perfect sufformative. Some scholars (such as Zimmerli, Ezekiel 1, pp.
221 and Block, The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 1-24, p. 296, n. 70) assign
this to scribal error feeling the word should be written mishtachawim,
the normal rendering of worship. However, the Rabbis traditionally explained
this unusual form as a compound of mashchithim (they destroy) and mishtachawim
(they worship). They see in the word as it is presently rendered the dual
nature of the abomination being acted out before the Lord: the worship of the
sun god would bring about the destruction of the temple (see Fisch, Ezekiel,
p. 45).
43.
Zimmerli, Ezekiel 1, pp. 243-244
44. The
primary use of chamas in the Old Testament is in societal contexts:
oppression, injustice, and false accusation based upon greed. But chamas
can be taken to the point of physical violence and destruction. For a greater
understanding of this word, see H. Haag, "Chamas," in Theological
Dictionary of the Old Testmanet. Presently 10 vols. Edited By G. Johannes
Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren (Grand Rapids, Mich: Eerdmans, 1980), 4:
478-487.
45.
Kimball, The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.162.
46.
President Marion G. Romney taught that the light of Christ may be experienced
in three phases: first, the light which enlighteneth every man that cometh into
the world; second, the gift of the Holy Ghost; and third, is the second
comforter obtained through the more sure word of prophecy when one's calling
and election is made sure (see "The Light of Christ," Ensign
[May 1977], pp. 43-45). In order to obtain the fulness of the light of Christ
one must experience all three phases. These three phases are central to temple
worship and are represented in modern temples through various stages of the
endowment. These three phases can also be seen in the layout of Solomon's
temple. The first phase may be represented by the area outside of the temple
including both outer and inner courts. The second phase may be represented by
the holy place that housed, among other things, the seven branched candelabra.
The third phase may be represented by the holy of holies with its ark of the
covenant.
Jeremiah 26-30
October 19, 2006
26:1-24 In the beginning of the reign
of Jehoiakim . . . came this word from the Lord, saying . . . Stand in the
court of the Lord's house, and speak unto all the cities of
The first of twenty historical chapters
that relate many of the prophet's experiences and the persecution he suffered
as he continued his mission, chapter 26 dates to five years before the previous
chapter, being "in the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim," or 609
B.C. Jeremiah delivered this message from the Lord on the temple grounds, so
that the worshippers might repent and be saved. If they would not do so, they
might know that they would be overcome and the temple itself destroyed, as was
the tabernacle at Shiloh in Eli's time (Jer. 26:6a; BD, "
The king had put one prophet to death
for such prophesying (see Jer. 26:20a, on the similar danger to Lehi,
another prophet of this same time); however, Ahikam, son of Shaphan the scribe
of the days of good King Josiah, successfully defended and saved Jeremiah (Jer.
26:20-23a, 24a).
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 560.)
(Jeremiah 26:2-9.)
2 Thus saith the LORD;
Stand in the court of the LORD's house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah,
which come to worship in the LORD's house, all the words that I command thee to
speak unto them; diminish not a word:
3 If so be they will
hearken, and turn every man from his evil way, that I may repent me of the
evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings.
4 And thou shalt say unto
them, Thus saith the LORD; If ye will not hearken to me, to walk in my law,
which I have set before you,
5 To hearken to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I
sent unto you, both rising up early, and sending them, but ye have not
hearkened;
6 Then will I make this
house like
7 So the priests and the
prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of
the LORD.
8 ¶ Now it came to pass,
when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the LORD had commanded him
to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the
people took him, saying, Thou shalt surely die.
9 Why hast thou prophesied
in the name of the LORD, saying, This house shall be like
This
chapter is given in the reign of Jehoiakim.
We have discussed this before along with chapter 7. He is in the court between the brazen sea and
the huge altar of sacrifice. He was a
priest so he was allowed inside.
Verse 3 –
The word repent in this verse actually means remorse or relent (scripture
footnote).
The false
prophets wanted to kill Jeremiah for his speech, they say they worship Jehovah
without the inner change of heart; they simply go through the motions of
observing the law.
The Yoke of
Although the heading in Jeremiah 27:1
gives a date in the reign of Jehoiakim (apparently in error), I will discuss
the related events in chapters 27 through 29 in the context of the reign of
Zedekiah. fn Chapters 27 and 28 record the symbolic act performed by Jeremiah
when he wore a yoke around his neck representing the word of the Lord, urging
the people to submit to
This was truly a test for
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 204.)
Verses 6-9
– The people had a difficult time distinguishing between the true prophets and
the false ones. Was there a priest craft
going on here?
In chapter 26 we learn that after
this sermon the people, in conjunction with the priests and prophets, took
Jeremiah before the rulers of Judah, saying, "Thou shalt surely die"
(Jer. 26:8Jer. 26:8-10). They charged him before the rulers as prophesying
against the holy city. Jeremiah's defense was simple: "The Lord sent me to
prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have
heard. Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and obey the voice of the
Lord your God, and repent, and the Lord will turn away the evil that he hath
pronounced against you" (JST Jer. 26:12-13). In the ensuing debate
"certain of the elders" argued that Jeremiah should be spared, citing
the example of Micah, who also had prophesied against the city and had been
spared by King Hezekiah. It was probably only the intervention of Ahikam, the
son of Shaphan, fn a high court official, that saved Jeremiah's life. The
danger of being killed for delivering such a message was real, as evidenced by
a note at the end of chapter 26 about an otherwise unknown prophet Urijah of
Kirjath-jearim, who, like Jeremiah, prophesied against Jerusalem during the
reign of King Jehoiakim. The king sought to put him to death, but he fled to
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 223 - 224.)
Jeremiah is
pessimistic, he is commanded to teach doom and gloom, the false prophets are
optimistic, they seem to believe their own words.
The Voice of Warning: Jeremiah, Lehi, and Others
Jeremiah had begun his ministry in
On one occasion Jeremiah stood in the
court of the Temple warning that the Lord was going to make his House like Shiloh,
and the city of Jerusalem desolate without an inhabitant (see Jer. 26:9Jer.
26:9). fn "All the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of
the Lord," intending to kill him (just as when Jesus later prophesied the
destruction of the next Temple at the same place; the people tried to kill
Jesus; see Matt. 24:1-2; John 8:20, 37-59). Certain elders of the people
reminded the crowd to be careful what they did with Jeremiah—other prophets had
also spoken in the name of the Lord and prophesied the destruction of
Jerusalem; for example, Micah of Moresheth-gath in the days of Hezekiah, and a
contemporary of Jeremiah, one Urijah of Kiriath-jearim (see Jer. 26:17-20).
Yet another prophet was in the city
at the time, teaching the same things. Lehi warned of the impending destruction
of
The Book of Mormon says, "There
came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the
great city
Lehi's sons Laman and Lemuel did not
believe that
(David B.
Galbraith, D. Kelly Ogden, and Andrew C. Skinner, Jerusalem: The Eternal
City [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1996], 104.)
The story
of Nebuchadnezzar
Nebuchadnezzar, King of
Emerging as victor at the Battle of
Carchemish on the Euphrates, Nebuchadnezzar II (Nabu-kudurri-usur; 605-562
B.C.) solidified his dominions in the
Nebuchadnezzar pursued the Assyrian
policy of population deportation. There were three major deportations: in 605,
597, and 586 B.C. One might suppose that by the third invasion of
In 605-604 B.C. the Babylonian
warrior-king exiled some Jews from
Zedekiah reigned for eleven years in
And it came to pass in the ninth year
of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that
Nebuchadnezzar king of
And the city was besieged unto the
eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
And on the ninth day of the fourth
month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people
of the land.
And the city was broken up, and all
the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is
by the king's garden: (now the Chaldees were against the city round about:) and
the king went the way toward the plain.
And the army of the Chaldees pursued
after the king, and overtook him in the plains of
So they took the king, and brought
him up to the king of
And they slew the sons of Zedekiah
before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him with fetters
of brass, and carried him to
We know from Jeremiah 34:7 that two
fortified positions were the last to hold out against the armies of Babylon:
"When the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all
the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish, and against Azekah: for
these defenced cities remained of the cities of Judah."
Archaeological discoveries
corroborate the biblical record of the Babylonian sieges and the destruction of
The Chronicle of Nebuchadnezzar II is
a cuneiform inscription that mentions the siege of "the city of
The Lachish Ostraca were found by J.
L. Starkey in the gateway guardroom at Tel ed-Duweir (biblical
The Babylonian armies camped on the
hills overlooking
Excavations in the City of
As late as 1962 the most widely used
textbook on biblical archaeology lamented that "from
Though Babylonians did carry out mass
deportations, they did not follow the Assyrians' policy of transpopulation.
Jews were forced away from their land, but nobody was brought in to settle it.
The few remaining Jews, mostly poor, eked out a bare existence and paid tribute
to their conquerors. The administrative center of the Babylonians was about
seven miles north of
(David B.
Galbraith, D. Kelly Ogden, and Andrew C. Skinner, Jerusalem: The Eternal
City [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1996], 106.)
(Jeremiah 27:2-22.)
2 Thus saith the LORD to
me; Make thee bonds and yokes, and put them upon thy neck,
3 And send them to the
king of
4 And command them to say
unto their masters, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Thus shall
ye say unto your masters;
5 I have made the earth,
the man and the beast that are upon the ground, by my great power and by
my outstretched arm, and have given it unto whom it seemed meet unto me.
6 And now have I given all
these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of
7 And all nations shall
serve him, and his son, and his son's son, until the very time of his land
come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him.
8 And it shall come to
pass, that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar
the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the
king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the LORD, with the sword, and
with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his
hand.
9 Therefore hearken not ye
to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreamers, nor to your
enchanters, nor to your sorcerers, which speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not
serve the king of
10 For they prophesy a lie
unto you, to remove you far from your land; and that I should drive you out,
and ye should perish.
11 But the nations that
bring their neck under the yoke of the king of
12 ¶ I spake also to
Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, Bring your necks
under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live.
13 Why will ye die, thou
and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD
hath spoken against the nation that will not serve the king of
14 Therefore hearken not
unto the words of the prophets that speak unto you, saying, Ye shall not serve
the king of
15 For I have not sent
them, saith the LORD, yet they prophesy a lie in my name; that I might drive
you out, and that ye might perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you.
16 Also I spake to the
priests and to all this people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Hearken not to the
words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying, Behold, the vessels of
the LORD's house shall now shortly be brought again from Babylon: for they
prophesy a lie unto you.
17 Hearken not unto them;
serve the king of
18 But if they be
prophets, and if the word of the LORD be with them, let them now make
intercession to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house
of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go
not to Babylon.
19 ¶ For thus saith the
LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning
the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in this city,
20 Which Nebuchadnezzar
king of Babylon took not, when he carried away captive Jeconiah the son of
Jehoiakim king of Judah from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah
and Jerusalem;
21 Yea, thus saith the
LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in
the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of
22 They shall be carried
to
This
message isn’t new, Lehi was saying the same thing, (1 Nephi 1), that’s why the
priests and elders wanted them dead.
Lehi & Jeremiah: Prophets Priests & Patriarchs
David Rolph, JoAnn H. Seely
Lehi and Jeremiah: Prophets, Priests, and
Patriarchs
David Rolph and Jo Ann H.
Seely
"For it came to pass in
the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, . .
. there came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that they must repent,
or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed" (1 Nephi 1:4). Thus Nephi
begins his record with the call of his father Lehi to become a prophet and to
join the other prophets in
Lehi and Jeremiah are an
interesting study in contrast. Both were prophets, but Lehi was called to leave
A brief review of their
background and mission may foster a greater appreciation for these prophets and
help illuminate the message they proclaimed. We can learn from the book of
Jeremiah what it was like to live in
Lehi was a wealthy family
man who was well educated, as evidenced by the instruction he gave his children
(see 1 Nephi 1:1–2). Because Lehi was familiar with the language of the
Egyptians and with desert life, many have suggested he was a merchant.3
He was married to Sariah, and they had four sons and an unspecified number of
daughters. Two more sons were born in the wilderness as they traveled.
Jeremiah, on the other hand, was a priest and was commanded not to marry or
have children because the deplorable situation in
Both men came to their people
prophesying the destruction of
The lives of these two men
are symbolic of different aspects of
Lehi's life illustrated the
"tender mercies of the Lord" (1 Nephi 1:20; 2 Nephi 1:2). He was
commanded to deliver his family from destruction, to leave
Jeremiah, in his ministry,
longed to flee into the wilderness: "Oh that I had in the wilderness a
lodging place of wayfaring men; that I might leave my people, and go from them!
for they be all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men" (Jeremiah
9:2). On one occasion in his tent in the wilderness, Lehi began to murmur
against the Lord because of his afflictions (see 1 Nephi 16:20), and his family
forever remembered
Historical Setting
Jeremiah and Lehi were both descendants of
Lehi descended from the
tribe of Joseph through Manasseh (see
David established the
capital of the
Jeremiah and Lehi lived
their early years in the reign of King Josiah, known as one of the most
righteous of
The
Lehi and his family
certainly knew of the prophet Jeremiah. Some of his prophecies up to the time
of Zedekiah had already been copied onto the brass plates (see 1 Nephi 5:13).
Furthermore Nephi made note of Jeremiah's incarceration (see 1 Nephi 7:14).
These observations raise an important question of whether Lehi and his family
departed early in the reign of King Zedekiah, perhaps within the first year of
his reign (597–596 BC), or whether the party left
Lehi and Jeremiah may have
known each other, and it may well have been through the priesthood that they
shared association. We may assume that those commissioned by the Lord to
prophesy in
The Records
Lehi kept a record, although we only know it through the writings of his sons.
Nephi used his father's record in his own account on the large plates and the
small plates.12
In the small plates, Nephi and Jacob give us portions from the record of Lehi
interspersed in their own writings (see 1 Nephi 1– 2 Nephi 4; Jacob 2:23–24;
3:5). Nephi tells us he did not make a "full account of the things which
[his] father hath written, for he hath written many things which he saw in
visions and in dreams; and he also hath written many things which he prophesied
and spake unto his children" but that he made an "abridgment of the
record of [his] father" (1 Nephi 1:16–17).
A collection of the writings
of Jeremiah was preserved on the brass plates and another passed down—now found
in the Old Testament. The Book of Mormon records that the brass plates
contained "the prophecies of the holy prophets, from the beginning, even
down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah; and also many
prophecies which have been spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah" (1 Nephi
5:13).13
Although we do not know the process by which the keeper of the brass plates
acquired and wrote the prophecies on the plates, the book of Jeremiah is the only
book in the entire Bible that tells us how it originated.
In 605 BC the Lord commanded
Jeremiah to recite to his scribe Baruch all of the word of the Lord from the
time of Josiah down to that moment (see Jeremiah 36:1–4). Jeremiah then
commanded Baruch to take this scroll and read it to the people in the precincts
of the temple (see Jeremiah 36:8). This Baruch did, but, when King Jehoiakim
heard about it, he ordered Baruch to deliver the scroll to the king. Jehoiakim
had a servant read the scroll to him, and as he heard the words of the Lord
read to him he took his knife and cut the scroll in pieces and burned it (see
Jeremiah 36:20–26). The Lord then commanded Jeremiah to take a fresh scroll and
give it to Baruch and to dictate again the prophecies. Baruch wrote down all of
the prophecies that had been lost, together with many similar words (see
Jeremiah 36:32).
From this account we learn
many significant things about the book of Jeremiah, and several possibilities
emerge as to how Jeremiah's writings were preserved on the brass plates. First,
it seems clear that Jeremiah maintained the prophecies in his memory for a long
time. Jehoiakim's destruction of the scroll of Jeremiah may have provided the
impetus for the keeper of the record on the brass plates to acquire a copy of
the prophecies of Jeremiah. The keeper of the brass plates could have had
Jeremiah dictate the prophecies directly to him to be recorded on the plates;
possibly Baruch loaned him the scroll; or perhaps the keeper of the brass
plates copied the record from the second scroll as a backup in case the scroll
was again destroyed. It is interesting that the Book of Mormon does not specify
that the prophecies of Jeremiah up to the time of Zedekiah were preserved.
Perhaps this is an indication that the sayings of Jeremiah were copied onto the
brass plates in conjunction with the attempt to destroy the prophecies of
Jeremiah during the reign of King Jehoiakim (see Jeremiah 36).
Prophetic Calling
Both prophets began their records with an account of their call. Jeremiah was
called in his youth. In 627 BC the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah as a youth
and called him to be a prophet to the nations, delivering messages of
destruction—"to destroy, and to throw down"—and of restoration—"to
build, and to plant" (Jeremiah 1:10). The Lord revealed to him,
"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). Jeremiah was overwhelmed and replied in language
rather like that of Enoch and Moses, "Ah, Lord God! behold, I cannot
speak: for I am a child" (Jeremiah 1:6). The Lord commanded him to
"be not afraid" (Jeremiah 1:7) to go where he was sent and to deliver
the message, which was given symbolically to Jeremiah by the touch of the
Lord's hand to his mouth (see Jeremiah 1:7–10). The Lord reassured him that
"I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar"
against the kings, princes, priests, and people, and "they shall not prevail
against thee; for I am with thee" (Jeremiah 1:19; see also 1:11–19). His
entire life's mission consisted of delivering the word of the Lord and
witnessing the calamities that befell those who would not respond.
Lehi, on the other hand,
received his visionary call as a mature man, while praying "with all his
heart, in behalf of his people" (1 Nephi 1:5)—behavior already suggesting
prophetic stature. Because we do not have his complete record, we cannot be
certain that this is the first time he received divine instruction, but it is
the first vision that we have record of, and it is reminiscent of the vision in
Isaiah chapter six, where that prophet saw the Lord upon his throne at the time
he received his prophetic call (see Isaiah 6:1–13). Lehi recorded that "he
thought he saw God sitting upon his throne" with the angels singing and
praising God. He then saw one whose "luster was above that of the sun at
noon-day" and "twelve others following him" (1 Nephi 1:8–10).
Lehi was also given a book to read, from which he learned of the abominations
and destruction of
Types of Moses and Types
of Christ
Although Jeremiah and Lehi were both prophets and both delivered similar
messages, their lives were quite different. Each of their ministries manifested
the will of the Lord and testified of the Savior, but in very different ways.
Lehi and his family would
relive the Exodus.14
Lehi received his call when he went before the Lord in the tradition of Moses
as mediator for his people (see Exodus 32:30–32), praying "in behalf of
his people" (1 Nephi 1:5). The Lord appeared to him just as he appeared to
the children of
Whereas Moses led his people
to Sinai, where they received the law on tablets of stone and built the ark and
the tabernacle, Lehi led his people into the desert with the law safely
preserved on plates of brass. After many trials the children of
Moses, before he was taken
away from his people,15
gathered the children of
Lehi would be remembered by
his descendants as the deliverer and the founder of their community (see Mosiah
7:19–20), and the divine deliverance of Lehi and his family was understood as a
type and a shadow of the divine deliverance from sin and death that would be
provided in the future by the atonement (see
The course of Jeremiah's
life tragically turned out to be a reversal of the exodus. Whereas Moses led
his people away from idolatrous
Both Moses and Jeremiah were
types of Christ, but they each manifested different aspects of his mission.
Moses was a prophet who demonstrated the power of God over the elements and
over
An overlooked role of
Jeremiah's life was that he presided over the exile from afar. Many of the
righteous among
"The Manner of
Prophesying"
There was a sophisticated tradition or style of prophecy among the ancient
Israelites called by Nephi "the manner of prophesying among the Jews"
(2 Nephi 25:1). The word of the Lord was communicated to the prophets through
dreams, visions, or sometimes through the spoken word. It was often presented
in poetry, replete with dramatic and vivid imagery and symbols. Sometimes the
prophets communicated the word of the Lord orally, sometimes in writing, and
sometimes through symbolic acts. Jeremiah and Lehi are both prime examples of
prophets within this tradition. They were both visionary men whose lives and
prophecies were full of graphic symbols and images.
Many of Lehi's divine
communications came through dreams and visions. At the outset of his ministry
he saw God on his throne and the coming of the Savior, and he read a book
containing the abominations of his people. He then saw the marvelous vision of
the tree of life that represented the quest for eternal life (see 1 Nephi 8).
In this vision Lehi saw his family following a path, holding to a rod of iron,
and moving through the mist of darkness toward the tree of life to partake of
the fruit. Laman and Lemuel would not partake of the fruit, and Lehi used his
account of this vision to exhort his sons to hearken to his words and seek the
mercy of the Lord. Nephi, desiring to "see, and hear, and know of these
things," prayed to the Lord for help in understanding. In response, he was
told that "the mysteries of God shall be unfolded . . . by the power of
the Holy Ghost" (1 Nephi 10:17, 19). Laman and Lemuel were not able to
understand the symbolism of Lehi's vision and complained, "We cannot
understand the words which our father hath spoken," and Nephi asked them,
"Have ye inquired of the Lord?" (1 Nephi 15:7, 8). On another
occasion in the wilderness, Lehi named the river Laman and the valley Lemuel in
a dramatic attempt to teach his sons through symbolic acts.
Jeremiah too had
visions—frequently occasions when the Lord used ordinary objects to teach
divine truths such as an almond rod (see Jeremiah 1:11–12), a seething pot (see
Jeremiah 1:13–14), a basket of figs (see Jeremiah 24), and a cup of wrath (see
Jeremiah 25:15–38). Throughout his ministry Jeremiah was called upon to perform
a series of dramatic symbolic acts to teach his people: burying a linen girdle
as a symbol of the exile (see Jeremiah 13), watching a potter at work as a
symbol of the destruction and restoration of Israel (see Jeremiah 18), breaking
an earthen flask as a symbol of destruction (see Jeremiah 19), wearing a yoke
as a symbol of captivity (see Jeremiah 27:2–28:17), purchasing land in Anathoth
as a symbol of return and restoration (see Jeremiah 32:6–44), and bringing the
Rechabites before the king as an example of a people faithful to their covenants.
Message: Repent or
Be Destroyed
The prophecies of Jeremiah and Lehi have four common and central themes:
repentance and the impending destruction and exile by the Babylonians; the
coming of the Messiah; the future scattering and gathering of Israel; and the
eventual restoration of the gospel in the latter days.
Lehi
and Jeremiah Compared
|
||
|
S. Kent Brown |
||
|
|
Jeremiah |
Lehi |
|
His home1 |
Born at Anathoth, two
miles NE of Jerusalem (see Jeremiah 1:6) |
Near but outside |
|
Year of birth2 |
Around 640 BC |
Around 640 BC |
|
Age at call2 |
A "child" or
youth (Jeremiah 1:6) |
An adult with a family |
|
Main message to citizens3 |
Repent or be destroyed |
Repent or be destroyed |
|
Response to citizenry3 |
Persecution |
Fled |
|
Fate4 |
Survived destruction;
kidnapped to |
died in |
|
1. Jeremiah was born in
the |
||
In the years preceding
Lehi's departure from
Both men were persecuted for
their prophecies, and the Jews sought their lives. Jeremiah was repeatedly
arrested, tried, and eventually put into a pit. Lehi's life was threatened in
Lehi was able to escape the
destruction of
Message: Christ
Both prophets saw and prophesied the coming of the Messiah. Lehi saw a vision
in which he read from a book things that "manifested plainly of the coming
of a Messiah, and also the redemption of the world" (1 Nephi 1:19). Lehi
further described a detailed dream in which he saw the coming of John the
Baptist, John's baptism of the Messiah, and the ministry of the Savior, his
rejection and crucifixion on earth, and his resurrection (see 1 Nephi 10:4–11).
Most important, Lehi, in a masterful sermon directed to his son Jacob, taught
the doctrine of the fall and the atonement and how the plan makes eternal life
possible (see 2 Nephi 2).
The prophet Nephi (son of
Helaman) taught his people that many Old Testament prophets including Jeremiah
had seen the day of the coming of the Messiah and the redemption that he would
bring (see Helaman 8:20, 22–23). The writings of Jeremiah in the Bible indeed
contain two such prophecies about the coming of the Messiah (see Jeremiah
23:1–8; 33:15–18)—perhaps there were more on the brass plates that are no longer
preserved in the Bible. Both prophecies foresaw the day when God will
"raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King" who will
"reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the
earth" (Jeremiah 23:5; see also 33:15). Interpreters have variously seen
these prophecies as pointing to either the first or the second comings of
Christ or both.
Message: Scattering and
Restoration
Jeremiah and Lehi are central to the restoration. Not only did they see and
prophesy the events of the restoration, but their records played a significant
role in the reestablishment of the covenant in the fulness of times. In 1823
Lehi delivered to his family
a prophecy given by the Lord to Joseph of Egypt that a "righteous
branch" of the house of Israel, not the Messiah (2 Nephi 3:5), would be
broken off, and in the future a choice seer would be raised out of this lineage
(see 2 Nephi 3:6) who would bring many to the knowledge of the covenants made
with the fathers (see 2 Nephi 3:7). He continued that the descendants of Judah
and the descendants of Joseph would both write records that would "grow
together, unto the confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions,
and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the
knowledge of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my
covenants, saith the Lord" (2 Nephi 3:12).
Lehi and Jeremiah both
participated in the fulfillment of these prophecies. Lehi, a descendant of
Joseph, founded the people that would author the Book of Mormon. In 1827
Jeremiah died in obscurity
in
Notes
1. Besides Jeremiah and Lehi, from this period we
know of the prophetess Huldah and the prophets Zephaniah, Habakkuk, and Uriah
of Kirjath-jearim (see Jeremiah 26) in Judah, and Ezekiel and Daniel in exile.
2. Some
interpret the Book of Mormon evidence that Lehi left
3. See
Hugh W. Nibley, Lehi in the Desert, The World of the Jaredites, There Were
Jaredites (Salt Lake City: Deseret Books and FARMS, 1988), 34–42. See also
John A. Tvedtnes, "Was Lehi a Caravaneer?" (FARMS, 1984).
4. S.
Kent Brown, "What Is Isaiah Doing in First Nephi? Or, How Did Lehi's
Family Fare so Far from Home," in From
5. Nahman Avigad, Discovering
6. Some
scholars believe this date represents the birth of Jeremiah, who was called
from the womb—in which case he would be almost 30 when the Book of Mormon
opens, younger than Lehi.
7. Magen Broshi, "Estimating the Population of
Ancient
8. When
Nephi and his brothers were sent back to Jerusalem to obtain the brass plates,
they found it necessary to "go down to the land of our father's
inheritance" (1 Nephi 3:16) in order to retrieve their property and "up
again unto the house of Laban" (1 Nephi 3:23) to bargain with Laban for
the plates (see 1 Nephi 3:22–24) . Some Latter-day Saint scholars believe this
language indicates Lehi and his family lived "outside" of
9. Randall P. Spackman, "Introduction to Book
of Mormon Chronology: The Principal Prophecies, Calendars, and Dates."
(FARMS, 1993), 6–14; and "The Jewish/Nephite Lunar Calendar," 57–59.
10. See
W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986), 1:1–10, for a
chronology of events in Jeremiah's prophetic career.
12. The
translation of Mormon's abridgment of the large plates for the period from Lehi
to Mosiah was part of the 116 pages lost by Martin Harris (HC, 1:20–28; D&C
3, 10). For a discussion of Lehi's record, see S. Kent Brown, "Recovering
the Missing Record of Lehi," in From
13. The
writings of several prophets that are preserved on the brass plates are not
found in the Old Testament: Zenos, Zenock, Neum, and Ezias (see 1 Nephi 19:10;
Helaman 8:19–20).
14. Important articles discussing the exodus
typology in the Book of Mormon include George S. Tate, "The Typology of
the Exodus Pattern in the Book of Mormon," in Literature of Belief:
Sacred Scripture and Religious Experience, ed. Neal E. Lambert (Provo,
Utah: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1981), 245–62; S. Kent Brown, "The
Exodus Pattern in the Book of Mormon," in From Jerusalem to Zarahemla,
75–98.
15. Although the biblical text implies that Moses
died, the Book of Mormon makes it clear that he was actually translated (see
16. Some scholars have even called him an
"anti-Moses." See, for example, Luis A. Schokel, "Jeremías
17. Oliver Cowdery's report is found in the Messenger
and Advocate 1/5 (1835): 78–80; 1/7 (1935): 108–12; and 1/10 (1835):
156–59. A convenient list and important discussion of these passages can be
found in Kent P. Jackson, "The Appearance of Moroni to Joseph Smith (JS—H
27–49)," in Studies in Scripture: Volume Two: The Pearl of Great Price,
ed. Robert L. Millet and Kent P. Jackson (Salt Lake City: Randall Book, 1985),
339–66.
There was
trouble in
Verses 2-11
– The Lord brought this yoke upon you, serve
If this is
what it takes to bring you back to me, so be it.
Verses
12-18 – Jehovah is behind this
The temple
vessels were not taken in the 1st siege but were taken back to
27:1-22 In the beginning of the reign
of Jehoiakim . . . came this word unto Jeremiah from the Lord, saying . . .
Make thee bonds and yokes, and put them upon thy neck
Symbolic "bonds and yokes"
were to be prepared by the prophet about eleven years before Zedekiah's time
and sent to the neighboring nations with the warning that the Lord was
permitting Babylon as His "servant" to dominate them for a time (Jer.
27:6-8). The false "prophets" who promised them safety, or said the
vessels taken earlier from the temple would soon be returned, were not to be
trusted. The way for Zedekiah of Judah to survive was to submit to
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 561.)
Jeremiah 28
– The contest between a prophet of God and a false prophet, a death sentence
comes upon Hannaniah.
(Jeremiah 28:1-17.)
1 And it came to pass the
same year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the
fourth year, and in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of
Azur the prophet, which was of Gibeon, spake unto me in the house of the
LORD, in the presence of the priests and of all the people, saying,
2 Thus speaketh the LORD
of hosts, the God of Israel, saying, I have broken the yoke of the king of
3 Within two full years
will I bring again into this place all the vessels of the LORD's house, that
Nebuchadnezzar king of
4 And I will bring again
to this place Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, with all the
captives of Judah, that went into Babylon, saith the LORD: for I will break the
yoke of the king of Babylon.
5 ¶ Then the prophet
Jeremiah said unto the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests, and in
the presence of all the people that stood in the house of the LORD,
6 Even the prophet
Jeremiah said, Amen: the LORD do so: the LORD perform thy words which thou hast
prophesied, to bring again the vessels of the LORD's house, and all that is
carried away captive, from Babylon into this place.
7 Nevertheless hear thou
now this word that I speak in thine ears, and in the ears of all the people;
8 The prophets that have
been before me and before thee of old prophesied both against many countries,
and against great kingdoms, of war, and of evil, and of pestilence.
9 The prophet which
prophesieth of peace, when the word of the prophet shall come to pass, then
shall the prophet be known, that the LORD hath truly sent him.
10 ¶ Then Hananiah the
prophet took the yoke from off the prophet Jeremiah's neck, and brake it.
11 And Hananiah spake in
the presence of all the people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Even so will I
break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of
12 ¶ Then the word of the
LORD came unto Jeremiah the prophet, after that Hananiah the prophet had
broken the yoke from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying,
13 Go and tell Hananiah,
saying, Thus saith the LORD; Thou hast broken the yokes of wood; but thou shalt
make for them yokes of iron.
14 For thus saith the LORD
of hosts, the God of Israel; I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all
these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they
shall serve him: and I have given him the beasts of the field also.
15 ¶ Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet,
Hear now, Hananiah; The LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to
trust in a lie.
16 Therefore thus saith the LORD; Behold, I will cast thee
from off the face of the earth: this year thou shalt die, because thou hast
taught rebellion against the LORD.
17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh
month.
The First Siege of Jerusalem (2 Kgs.
23-30-24:16; 2 Chron. 36:1-10)
In a little more than twenty years
Jehoiakim's eighteen-year-old son,
Jehoiachin, also denounced as an evil ruler, was placed on the throne in 598
B.C. (2 Kgs. 24:9). The first Babylonian siege of Jerusalem occurred three
months later, with the city surrendering to Nebuchadnezzar on 16 March 597 B.C.
fn At this time, Jehoiachin, his mother, and the entire royal household were
taken hostage and transported to Babylon (2 Kgs. 24:12). Along with the royal
family, thousands of Judah's leaders, craftsmen, soldiers, and people of
influence were carried away (2 Kgs. 24:14-16). This was the beginning of what
is called "the Exile," the period in which the Jews were exiled from
their homeland to
The Final Days of
The Babylonian ruler appointed
Mattaniah, Josiah's son and Jehoiachin's uncle, to be king of
The ten years of Zedekiah's reign
(597-587 B.C.), before the final siege and destruction of
In January of 588 B.C.,
The sacking, spoiling, looting,
burning, and physical cruelty to political prisoners by ancient Near Eastern
conquerors is aptly illustrated in 2 Kings 25:7-21, as well as in the book of
Jeremiah and other scriptures touching upon the final scenes in Jerusalem. No
mercy was shown to the rebellious Zedekiah: he first was forced to witness the
execution of his sons, fn then his eyes were put out, and finally he was bound
in chains and transported to Babylon, where he remained until his death (2 Kgs.
25:7). A month later, Nebuzar-adan, commander of Nebuchadnezzar's guard,
arrived in
Much of the remaining population was
deported to
Gedaliah, a nobleman, fn was
appointed governor over the remaining poor peasants. Even a puppet ruler was
not safe in those turbulent times, for he was soon assassinated by Ishmael, a
distant member of the royal family, with the assistance of other conspirators
(2 Kgs. 25:25-26; Jer. 40:7-41:15). The murderers subsequently fled to
Second Kings concludes by telling of
an event some thirty-seven years later. Nebuchadnezzar's son, Amel-marduk
(562-560 B.C.), the Evil-merodach of the King James Version, ascended the
throne of
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 173.)
These are
dangerous times; the Spirit is needed as a guide in their life (like ours
today)
Many people
who fight against Jehovah had their calling and destruction made sure.
We don’t
know Isaiah as well as we know Jeremiah, that’s too bad. There aren’t stories about Isaiah like there
are about Jeremiah.
This
chapter is like the conflict in Lehi’s own family, interesting parallel.
Jeremiah 29
– Jeremiah sends letters to those in
(Jeremiah 29:4-23.) –
Jeremiah’s life was an object lesson for all of Judah.
4 Thus saith the LORD of
hosts, the God of Israel, unto all that are carried away captives, whom I have
caused to be carried away from
5 Build ye houses, and
dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them;
6 Take ye wives, and beget
sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to
husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; that ye may be increased
there, and not diminished.
7 And seek the peace of
the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto
the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.
8 ¶ For thus saith the
LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Let not your prophets and your diviners, that
be in the midst of you, deceive you, neither hearken to your dreams
which ye cause to be dreamed.
9 For they prophesy
falsely unto you in my name: I have not sent them, saith the LORD.
10 ¶ For thus saith the
LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and
perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.
11 For I know the thoughts
that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to
give you an expected end.
12 Then shall ye call upon
me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you.
13 And ye shall seek me,
and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart.
14 And I will be found of
you, saith the LORD: and I will turn away your captivity, and I will gather you
from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith
the LORD; and I will bring you again into the place whence I caused you to be
carried away captive.
15 ¶ Because ye have said,
The LORD hath raised us up prophets in
16 Know that thus
saith the LORD of the king that sitteth upon the throne of David, and of all
the people that dwelleth in this city, and of your brethren that are not
gone forth with you into captivity;
17 Thus saith the LORD of
hosts; Behold, I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence,
and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
18 And I will persecute
them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will deliver
them to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth, to be a curse, and an
astonishment, and an hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I
have driven them:
19 Because they have not
hearkened to my words, saith the LORD, which I sent unto them by my servants
the prophets, rising up early and sending them; but ye would not hear,
saith the LORD.
20 ¶ Hear ye therefore the
word of the LORD, all ye of the captivity, whom I have sent from
21 Thus saith the LORD of
hosts, the God of Israel, of Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and of Zedekiah the son
of Maaseiah, which prophesy a lie unto you in my name; Behold, I will deliver
them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of
22 And of them shall be
taken up a curse by all the captivity of Judah which are in Babylon,
saying, The LORD make thee like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of
Babylon roasted in the fire;
23 Because they have
committed villany in
In Jeremiah 29 we find a letter in
which Jeremiah delivered the word of the Lord to those already in exile in
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies in
Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1993], 205 - 206.)
Jeremiah 30
– This is a chapter of hope and renewal great poetry, but it is quite away in
the future, post Second Coming. This has
nothing to do with coming back from captivity in
(Jeremiah 30:2-24.)
2 Thus speaketh the LORD
God of
3 For, lo, the days come,
saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people
4 ¶ And these are
the words that the LORD spake concerning
5 For thus saith the LORD;
We have heard a voice of trembling, of fear, and not of peace.
6 Ask ye now, and see
whether a man doth travail with child? wherefore do I see every man with his
hands on his loins, as a woman in travail, and all faces are turned into
paleness?
7 Alas! for that day is
great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's
trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.
8 For it shall come to
pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke
from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve
themselves of him:
9 But they shall serve the
LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them.
10 ¶ Therefore fear thou
not, O my servant Jacob, saith the LORD; neither be dismayed, O Israel: for,
lo, I will save thee from afar, and thy seed from the land of their captivity;
and Jacob shall return, and shall be in rest, and be quiet, and none shall make
him afraid.
11 For I am with
thee, saith the LORD, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations
whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I
will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished.
12 For thus saith the
LORD, Thy bruise is incurable, and thy wound is grievous.
13 There is none to
plead thy cause, that thou mayest be bound up: thou hast no healing medicines.
14 All thy lovers have
forgotten thee; they seek thee not; for I have wounded thee with the wound of
an enemy, with the chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of thine
iniquity; because thy sins were increased.
15 Why criest thou for
thine affliction? thy sorrow is incurable for the multitude of thine
iniquity: because thy sins were increased, I have done these things unto
thee.
16 Therefore all they that
devour thee shall be devoured; and all thine adversaries, every one of them,
shall go into captivity; and they that spoil thee shall be a spoil, and all
that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.
17 For I will restore
health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the LORD; because
they called thee an Outcast, saying, This is
18 ¶ Thus saith the LORD;
Behold, I will bring again the captivity of Jacob's tents, and have mercy on
his dwellingplaces; and the city shall be builded upon her own heap, and the
palace shall remain after the manner thereof.
19 And out of them shall
proceed thanksgiving and the voice of them that make merry: and I will multiply
them, and they shall not be few; I will also glorify them, and they shall not
be small.
20 Their children also
shall be as aforetime, and their congregation shall be established before me,
and I will punish all that oppress them.
21 And their nobles shall
be of themselves, and their governor shall proceed from the midst of them; and
I will cause him to draw near, and he shall approach unto me: for who is
this that engaged his heart to approach unto me? saith the LORD.
22 And ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
23 Behold, the whirlwind
of the LORD goeth forth with fury, a continuing whirlwind: it shall fall with
pain upon the head of the wicked.
24 The fierce anger of the
LORD shall not return, until he have done it, and until he have
performed the intents of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it.
The Book of Consolation (Jer. 30:3Jer. 30-31)
Jeremiah's heavy burden of
destruction and sorrow is balanced by equally weighty prophecies of restoration
and consolation, collected in chapters 30 and 31. Hope is found in the promise
of a restoration and renewal of the covenant — a new covenant — and a gathering
and return to the Promised Land. These two chapters can be divided into three
sections: chapter 30, prophecy of hope directed to
Chapter 30 looks to a day when Israel
and Judah, referred to together with the name of their father Jacob, will be
released from the yoke and bonds of their captivity (Jer. 30:3Jer. 30:3, 8),
return to the land of their inheritance (Jer. 30:3Jer. 30:3), and "serve
the Lord their God, and David their king" (Jer. 30:9). The imagery of
return and restoration in this chapter is that of healing. The wounds had been
caused by the Lord, "For I have wounded thee with the wound of an enemy,
with the chastisement of a cruel one, for the multitude of thine iniquity;
because thy sins were increased" (Jer. 30:14). Just as the wounds will be
healed, so will the relationship be resumed: "Their children also shall be
as aforetime, and their congregation shall be established before me" (Jer.
30:20). As in past days, the wrath of the Lord will be reserved for those who oppress
his people (Jer. 30:20), and "it shall fall with pain upon the head of the
wicked" (Jer. 30:23), who are the enemies of
The first part of chapter 31 contains
a prophecy about the gathering of
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 252.)
The
Northern kingdom is scattered and in agony, this will happen to
Verse 9 –
David = Christ = Look at the chapter heading for Jeremiah 30.
Ezek. 37:25 my servant David shall be their
prince for ever. The
scriptures indicate that when the tribes of
66. Most Latter-day Saint scholars agree that the millennial David is
none other than Jesus Christ. See, for example, McConkie, Millennial
Messiah, 602-11; New Witness, 518; Millet, "Life in the
Millennium," 182; Jackson, "The Lord Is There," 306-7.
(Donald W. Parry and Jay A. Parry, Understanding
the Signs of the Times [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1999], 114 -
115.)
Verses
11-14 – I am the only one who can save thee, all others have left thee, they
were sent to punish you for your sins which increased. No hope if you don’t change your ways! Turn back to me!
Some words from Jeremiah while in prison, and some from an earlier
prophecy, seem to have inspired part of the third verse of the latter-day hymn
"How Firm a Foundation" (Hymns [Salt Lake City: The Church of
Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1985], no. 85; Jer. 30:11Jer. 30:10-11;
33:7).
The theme of restoration continues,
promising the gathering of Judah and Israel and their establishment as a
unified, righteous kingdom at last, with a divine "Branch" descended
from David as King to "execute judgment and righteousness" (Jer.
33:7-18). The promise of these actions is as sure as the sequences of day and
night and the order of the heavens and earth.
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 565.)
All Nations Will Come to an End
D&C 87:6
6 And thus, with the sword and by
bloodshed the inhabitants of the earth shall mourn; and with famine, and plague,
and earthquake, and the thunder of heaven, and the fierce and vivid lightning
also, shall the inhabitants of the earth be made to feel the wrath, and
indignation, and chastening hand of an Almighty God, until the consumption
decreed hath made a full end of all nations.
The Lord has decreed that when he
reigns on the earth in the Millennium, the world will no longer have any
nations that were created by man. "It shall come to pass in that
day," the Lord announced, "that I will seek to destroy all the nations
that come against
If "all nations" have been
destroyed, what remains is that which the Lord has established and created. As
he said through Jeremiah, speaking to Israel: "I am with thee, saith the
Lord, to save thee: though I make a full end of all nations whither I have
scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee
in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished" (Jer. 30:11;
see also Jer. 47). Thus, all the nations
of man will come to a full and complete end through the judgments of the last
days, including the wars that precede the Lord's coming. But the nation that is
bound to the Lord by covenant will continue. This nation is repentant
(Donald W.
Parry and Jay A. Parry, Understanding the Signs of the Times [Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book Co., 1999], 281.)
Verse 17 –
I am the one who can restore thy health, 1 Nephi 11, come unto me so I can heal
you.
Verses 18
-24 – They come back and are now into a state of happiness, the only way this
happens is coming unto Christ. Verse 22
is a classic, also Jeremiah 31:1
Jeremiah 31-35
October 26, 2006
When
The Bible and the Angel Moroni
About three years after the First
Vision, the Prophet received several visits from the angel
Some of the passages
The First Vision and the instruction
of
(Robert J.
Matthews, A Bible! A Bible! [
The first part of chapter 31 contains
a prophecy about the gathering of
A New Covenant
The second half of Jeremiah 31
contains a prophecy directed to
The fulfillment of this prophecy
occurred in stages. First, in the universal sense, this prophecy was fulfilled
by Christ. On the eve of his arrest, at the Last Supper, Jesus and his
disciples celebrated, through the symbolism of the Passover meal, the
miraculous deliverance from the bondage of Egypt and the destruction of
Pharaoh's army at the Red Sea — events that are types of the Atonement, which
delivers us from the bondage of sin and death. At the end of that Passover
meal, when the events leading up to the covenant at Sinai were symbolized and
the Passover lamb was eaten, Matthew records: "And as they were eating,
Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples,
and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and
gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new
testament ['covenant' fn, which is shed for many for the remission of
sins" (Matt. 26:26-28). In the meridian of time, Christ literally
fulfilled what had been symbolically celebrated through the law of sacrifice
for millennia and meticulously observed through the Mosaic law for centuries.
Jesus instructed his disciples that from that day forth the symbols of bread
and wine would replace those of blood sacrifice as contained in the Passover.
Whereas the blood sacrifice looked forward with faith and hope to the time when
Christ would come and accomplish the Atonement, so the sacramental meal would
look back. The symbolism of the historical event of the deliverance from
Joseph Smith, in a letter in 1833, fn
taught that in a more specific sense the "new covenant" was not
completely fulfilled in the meridian of time: "Christ, in the days of His
flesh, proposed to make a covenant with them, but they rejected Him and His
proposals, and in consequence thereof, they were broken off, and no covenant
was made with them at that time. But their unbelief has not rendered the
promise of God of none effect: no, for there was another day limited in David,
which was the day of His power; and then His people, Israel, should be a
willing people;—and He would write His law in their hearts, and print it in
their thoughts; their sins and their iniquities He would remember no
more." fn
Jeremiah described the nature of this new covenant in the language of
the Exodus known throughout Jeremiah: "But this shall be the covenant that
I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will
put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be
their God, and they shall be my people" (Jer. 31:33). The
"heart" and "inward parts" represent an internalization of
the covenant in the souls of those who accept it. Paul discussed the nature of
this covenant, written "not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of
the heart" (2 Cor. 3:3) and explained that this process of internalization
can only occur through the power of the Spirit. The fulfillment of this
prophecy is in process with the establishment of the new and everlasting
covenant. It is "new" because, as the Lord said, "all old
covenants have I caused to be done away in this thing"; and it is "everlasting"
because it is "that which was from the beginning" (D&C 22:1).
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 242 - 243.)
(Jeremiah 31:1-14.)
1 At the same time, saith
the LORD, will I be the God of all the families of
2 Thus saith the LORD, The
people which were left of the sword found grace in the wilderness; even
3 The LORD hath appeared
of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love:
therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.
4 Again I will build thee,
and thou shalt be built, O virgin of
5 Thou shalt yet plant
vines upon the mountains of
6 For there shall be a
day, that the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim shall cry, Arise ye, and
let us go up to Zion unto the LORD our God.
7 For thus saith the LORD;
Sing with gladness for Jacob, and shout among the chief of the nations: publish
ye, praise ye, and say, O LORD, save thy people, the remnant of
8 Behold, I will bring
them from the north country, and gather them from the coasts of the earth, and
with them the blind and the lame, the woman with child and her that travaileth
with child together: a great company shall return thither.
9 They shall come with
weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by
the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble: for I
am a father to
10 ¶ Hear the word of the
LORD, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He
that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth
his flock.
11 For the LORD hath
redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him that was stronger
than he.
12 Therefore they shall
come and sing in the height of
13 Then shall the virgin
rejoice in the dance, both young men and old together: for I will turn their
mourning into joy, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice from their
sorrow.
14 And I will satiate the
soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness,
saith the LORD.
Verses 2-3
– To those who stayed behind in
Verses 4-5
– We are happy and joyful today, a greater joy awaits us in the
Millennium. The planting of vineyards
signified permanence; they will stay in the land for a long period of time.
Today in
Verse 6 –
The church
exists today to prepare a people for the Millennium. It will be a time of oneness between God and
His people. There will be no poor,
New Jerusalem
For Latter-day Saints, the gathering
of
The tenth article of faith, written
by the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1842, declares that the New Jerusalem will be
built upon the American continent. He learned this as he translated the Book of
Mormon (3 Ne. 20:22; Ether 13:2-6). Additional revelation on this subject came
in September 1830 and was further clarified in the subsequent months (D&C
28:9; 42:33-36, 62, 67; 57:3). In July 1831, Joseph Smith traveled to Jackson
County, Missouri, at the command of the Lord, where it was announced that the
long-awaited gathering of
Even as the ancient tribes of
The writings of Ether, written prior
to 125 B.C., abridged by
Also, the book of Revelation speaks
of "the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven"
(Rev. 21:2, 10). This may relate to the return of the city of
The future rebuilding of the Holy
Land for the house of
He will assemble the Natives, the
remnants of Joseph in
And there shall be his tabernacle,
his sanctuary, his throne, and seat of government for the whole continent of
North and
The city of Zion, with its sanctuary
and priesthood, and the glorious fulness of the gospel, will constitute a
standard which will put an end to jarring creeds and political wranglings, by
uniting the republics, states, provinces, territories, nations, tribes,
kindred, tongues, people and sects of North and South America in one great and
common bond of brotherhood. Truth and knowledge shall make them free, and love
cement their union. The Lord also shall be their king and their lawgiver; while
wars shall cease and peace prevail for a thousand years [pp. 259-60].
The prophet Isaiah declared that in a
future time "out of
GRAHAM W. DOXEY
(Encyclopedia
of Mormonism, 1-4 vols., edited by Daniel H. Ludlow (New York: Macmillan,
1992), 1009.)
End of
verse 7 – save thy people = Hosanna = “Jehovah save us please”, the please must
be included, as a petition not as an order, who are we to direct Him?
Verse 8 –
coast of the earth = not coasts as we think, but as regions on the earth.
Verse 9 –
Father to
(Doctrine and Covenants
133:26-40.)
26 And they who are in the
north countries shall come in remembrance before the Lord; and their prophets
shall hear his voice, and shall no longer stay themselves; and they shall smite
the rocks, and the ice shall flow down at their presence.
27 And an highway shall be
cast up in the midst of the great deep.
28 Their enemies shall
become a prey unto them,
29 And in the barren
deserts there shall come forth pools of living water; and the parched ground
shall no longer be a thirsty land.
30 And they shall bring forth their rich treasures unto the
children of Ephraim, my servants.
31 And the boundaries of the everlasting hills shall tremble
at their presence.
32 And there shall they fall down and be crowned with glory,
even in
33 And they shall be filled with songs of everlasting joy.
34 Behold, this is the blessing of the everlasting God upon
the tribes of
35 And they also of the
tribe of
36 And now, verily saith
the Lord, that these things might be known among you, O inhabitants of the
earth, I have sent forth mine angel flying through the midst of heaven, having
the everlasting gospel, who hath appeared unto some and hath committed it unto
man, who shall appear unto many that dwell on the earth.
37 And this gospel shall
be preached unto every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.
38 And the servants of God
shall go forth, saying with a loud voice: Fear God and give glory to him, for
the hour of his judgment is come;
39 And worship him that
made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters—
40 Calling upon the name
of the Lord day and night, saying: O that thou wouldst rend the heavens, that
thou wouldst come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence.
133:26
"they who are in the north
countries"
This has reference to the return of
the lost ten tribes of
"[Concerning the] bringing forth
of the Lost Tribes from their hiding place, which is known to God, but unknown
to man. Nevertheless, I have found elders in Israel who would tell me that the
predictions relating to the Lost Tribes are to be explained in this figurative
manner—that the gathering of those tribes is already well advanced and that
there is no hiding place whereto God has led them, from which they shall come
forth, led by their prophets to receive their blessings here at the hands of
gathered Ephraim, the gathered portions that have been scattered among the
nations. Yea, let God be true, and doubt we not his word, though it makes the
opinions of men appear to be lies. The tribes shall come; they are not lost
unto the Lord; they shall be brought forth as hath been predicted." (James
E. Talmage, CR, October 1916, p. 76.)
"It is understood that the ten
tribes of
At a conference of the Church held in
June 1831, the Prophet said that John the Revelator was then among the ten
tribes of
"But hear it all Israel, after
your sorrow and pain and distress and after the days of your tribulation, your
great Eloheim will stretch out his hand and gather you from every nation
wherever you are driven, and he will bring you home to your own land, and you
shall rebuild, your temple and city, and you shall be delivered by Shiloh when
he comes. That will be fulfilled; and all that God has said with regard to the
ten tribes of
133:32
"and they shall . . . be crowned
. . . by the hands of . . . the children of Ephraim"
"Joseph, son of Jacob, was blessed by the Lord with the birthright
in Israel, and stood first among the sons of Jacob. This blessing was also the
inheritance of Ephraim, the second son of Joseph. We read in the fifth chapter
of Chronicles the following: 'The sons of Reuben, the firstborn of
133:34
"the richer blessing upon the
head of Ephraim"
"It is my testimony that 'today' is the day of Ephraim. It is the
day which the Lord has set to fulfil his promises made in the times of the
Ancient Patriarchs, when he said that he would scatter Israel to the four
corners of the world, and that Ephraim should be scattered in all the nations,
and then in the 'last days' be gathered out again. [Jer. 30:3; 1 Nephi
19:15-16; 3 Nephi 5:24.] Many are being gathered out by our missionaries, as
'one of a family and two of a city' [Jer. 3:14] and they are found here, gathered
into a gathering place appointed of the Lord, and they are receiving his
blessings. This is why so many of us are declared to be of Ephraim."
(Hyrum G. Smith, CR, April 1929, pp. 122-23.)
(Daniel H.
Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Doctrine and Covenants, 2 vols.
[Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978], 1: 674.)
The king of
Redemption
means “to buy back”, it is associated with the Lord, not sin. Jeremiah 32 tells a story of Jeremiah while
in prison buying a parcel of land from a relative. Leviticus 25 gives the rules and order of the
family involved to be a Go’el (Redeemer).
"Hear the word of the Lord, O ye
nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered
Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock. For the
Lord hath redeemed Jacob, and ransomed him from the hand of him, that was
stronger than he. Therefore they shall come and sing in the height of
"Behold, I will gather them out
of all countries whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my fury, and
in great wrath; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause
them to dwell safely." Not only will
Nearly all of the prophecies about
the gathering of
One of the greatest prophecies for
which there has been a partial fulfillment up to this time, and which awaits a
far grander and greater fulfillment in the days ahead, is given in these words:
"Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: not according to the
covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand
to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although
I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord." The Mosaic covenant, the law
of carnal commandments, the lesser law, the preparatory gospel—all these shall have
an end. They will be replaced with the gospel, the higher law, the eternal
fulness that includes the covenant God made with Abraham.
"But this shall be the covenant
that I will make with the house of
Why do we say it has been made so far
only to a limited degree? Because, as the holy word affirms, it involves more
than the mere receipt of the gospel. A
covenant, to have full force and validity, must be accepted in full both by God
in heaven and by man on earth. The grand part of the covenant is this:
"They shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his
brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of
them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive their
iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." (Jeremiah 31:31-34.) As
Joseph Smith taught in his great sermon on the Second Comforter, this promise
has reference to the receipt of that added Comforter, which means that they
have the personage of Jesus Christ to attend them and to appear unto them from
time to time. Those so blessed are the ones who remain after the destruction of
the wicked at the ushering in of the Millennium. (Teachings of the Prophet
Joseph Smith, p. 149.) That is to say, the complete fulfillment is
Millennial.
The prophetic word speaks of Israel,
of the remnants of that once-favored people who are now scattered in all the
nations of the earth, of the literal seed of the bodies of the prophets of old;
it says that these—the descendants of the ancients—shall be gathered. Of this
there is no question. But what of the Gentiles in the last days? Is not the
gospel for them also? In answer we ask: What of the Gentiles in the days of
ancient
In most pointed and precise language,
Isaiah says, concerning the gathering of the Gentiles in the last days, that it
shall be with them as it was with the righteous Gentiles in ancient days.
"Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the
Lord, speak, saying, The Lord hath utterly separated me from his people:
neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree." Are the Gentiles
denied gospel blessings? Shall the eunuchs have no hope of eternal families in
the realms ahead?
"For thus saith the Lord unto
the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and
take hold of my covenant; even unto them will I give in mine house and within
my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give
them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off." Gentiles and eunuchs
and strangers may all be saved if they will join with
And as to the day of gathering, the
holy word continues: "Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves
to the Lord, to serve him, and to love the name of the Lord, to be his
servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold
of my covenant; even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them
joyful in my house of prayer: . . . for mine house shall be called an house of
prayer for all people." The God of Israel is also the God of the whole
earth; he seeks to save
Hence: "The Lord God which
gathereth the outcasts of
Jeremiah has a like prophecy about
the gathering of the Gentiles. "Behold, I will pluck them out of their
land," out of their ancient lands. That is, the Gentile nations shall be
scattered. "And it shall come to pass, after that I have plucked them out
I will return, and have compassion on them, and will bring them again, every
man to his heritage, and every man to his land." They are promised not an
inheritance in the lands of
(Bruce R.
McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1985], 547.)
Bruce
talked about the cities set aside for the tribe of Levi; Jeremiah’s hometown
was one of these cities.
Jeremiah was a Levite from Anathoth
(see Josh. 21:18), one of the Levitical cities, which lay about one hour's walk
over the Mount of Olives northeast of Jerusalem (still called in Arabic Anata).
He is mentioned in the Book of Mormon, and Laban, an elder of the Jews, must
have been acquainted with him (see 1 Ne. 5:13; 7:14; Helaman 8:20). The first
year of Nebuchadnezzar was 605 B.C. Jeremiah began his ministry about 627 B.C.,
and he continued prophesying right to the day Nebuchadnezzar entered Jerusalem
in 587 B.C.—a total of forty years (see Jer. 25:3). People may have begun to
wonder about Jeremiah's prophecies when five years passed, then ten, then
twenty. They could have become a little complacent, especially with false
prophets predicting opposite and more comfortable prophecies. ("The
prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my
people love to have it so"; Jer. 5: 31.) Lamentations of Jeremiah are the
prophet's eyewitness feelings over the destruction of
Some people think prophets have
no business involving themselves in politics. If so, they've never read the Old
Testament. Elijah and Elisha were very involved in the politics of their day.
Isaiah, Amos, Jeremiah, Daniel, and others, too, were also very involved in the
politics of their day. The Lord is not limited in his sphere of influence.
Jeremiah, like Isaiah and other prophets,
followed the pattern of doom-hope. He foresaw doom-desolation-destruction, but
he also foresaw a glorious time of reinstatement-restoration-redemption.
Biblical scholars and archaeologists have also recognized this pattern in the
prophets' writings. See, for example, Levine, Jerusalem Cathedra, 2:23.
Specific references in Jeremiah to the Jews' return to Jerusalem ("the
Jews" is used here in a national sense, meaning Israelites then living in
the southern kingdom of Judah), and their prosperity in it are found in
3:17-18; 16:14-15; 23:3; 24:6-7; 30:3; 31:17; 32:37-38, 42; 33:15-16. Lehi
similarly prophesied of hope in the future; see, for example, 1 Ne. 10:3.
Read and compare Jeremiah 7, another scathing
speech by the prophet in the court of the
(David B.
Galbraith, D. Kelly Ogden, and Andrew C. Skinner, Jerusalem: The Eternal
City [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1996], 111.)
(Jeremiah 32:6-15.)
6 ¶ And Jeremiah said, The
word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
7 Behold, Hanameel the son
of Shallum thine uncle shall come unto thee, saying, Buy thee my field that is
in Anathoth: for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.
8 So Hanameel mine uncle's
son came to me in the court of the prison according to the word of the LORD,
and said unto me, Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is
in the country of Benjamin: for the right of inheritance is thine, and
the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself. Then I knew that
this was the word of the LORD.
9 And I bought the field
of Hanameel my uncle's son, that was in Anathoth, and weighed him the
money, even seventeen shekels of silver.
10 And I subscribed the
evidence, and sealed it, and took witnesses, and weighed him the
money in the balances.
11 So I took the evidence
of the purchase, both that which was sealed according to the law
and custom, and that which was open:
12 And I gave the evidence
of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Maaseiah, in the
sight of Hanameel mine uncle's son, and in the presence of the witnesses
that subscribed the book of the purchase, before all the Jews that sat in the
court of the prison.
13 ¶ And I charged Baruch
before them, saying,
14 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Take
these evidences, this evidence of the purchase, both which is sealed, and this
evidence which is open; and put them in an earthen vessel, that they may
continue many days.
15 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of
The land was bought during a lull in
the siege. The Lord commands and
Jeremiah obeys, this is another object lesson about the eventual return of
Verse 14 – The end product of the
scattering is redemption, a cleansing.
Placing the deed in an earthen jar gives permanence to the act. Like the
32:1-44 The word that came to
Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of
Significant incidents occurred in the
life of the prophet at the beginning of
With many avowals of faith that the
Lord could do anything, the prophet asked for reassurance, and the word of the
Lord came again, reaffirming that indeed nothing is "too hard" for
the Lord. Though He would give
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 565.)
A prophet
acts as a mediator between God and man.
A Promise of Restoration (Jer. 32-33)
Jeremiah 32 and 33 can be read
together with chapters 30 and 31 as parts of the Book of Consolation, because
they contain prophecies of the restoration of
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 206.)
The church
today buys land all over the earth, someday we will know why. Interesting thought from Bruce.
Matthew 2 –
Herod killing innocent children is another scriptural example like the
destruction of
Jacob and
Rachel have a son Benjamin, Rachel dies while Benjamin lives, this took place
in Bethlehem, great sorrow are found in
all of these events. How are they
redeemed?
(Jeremiah 31:15-17.)
15 ¶ Thus saith the LORD;
A voice was heard in Ramah, lamentation, and bitter weeping; Rahel
weeping for her children refused to be comforted for her children, because they
were not.
16 Thus saith the LORD;
Refrain thy voice from weeping, and thine eyes from tears: for thy work shall
be rewarded, saith the LORD; and they shall come again from the land of the
enemy.
17 And there is hope in
thine end, saith the LORD, that thy children shall come again to their own
border.
31:1-40 At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the
families of
This statement, which ends the
previous chapter in the Hebrew scriptures (to avoid its ending with negative
predictions), expresses the theme of chapter 31. It anticipates divine loving
kindness, the gathering of
The next section harks back to the tragic times of the apostasy and loss
of the northern ten tribes. "Ramah" is a point south of Jerusalem,
looking toward Bethlehem; it is still called Ramat Rachel ("height
of Rachel"), in memory of the death of Rachel, wife of Jacob, because she
bore her last baby near that point and died. The original concept of her
mourning for her children arose from the captivity of the ten tribes (whose
leader was the birthright tribe of Ephraim, son of Joseph, son of Rachel and
Jacob). This prophecy ends with anticipation of their return. Matthew adapted
the words to characterize the lamentation in nearby
Following Ephraim's "bemoaning himself," the prophet indicated
that the Lord is aware of both their sorrow and their repentance and will speed
the return of Ephraim and the others. The righteousness of those latter-day
generations of
Then Jeremiah recorded the Lord's
promises to "sow"
The new covenant of the latter days
will not be a set of standards imposed externally but an internal set, with
individuals' minds and hearts committed to right and justice.
In conclusion, the prophet foresaw
the establishment of the
(Ellis T. Rasmussen, A Latter-day
Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake City: Deseret, 1993], 563.)
Parents
today feel great sorrow when a child wanders from the gospel family. Remember that they are Christ’s before you
had them and they are still His afterwards, through the Atonement He has
spiritually begotten all who enter into the covenant with Him.
What binds
us to Him is the Abrahamic covenant.
Because Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were so faithful in keeping their part
of the covenant the Lord is relentless in returning us to the fold, He is
required to keep His end of the covenant.
He will do all He can within the law of agency, like Jonah, you can go
to
Today the
House of Israel is quite different then our ancient ancestors, we find it
repulsive to worship more then one God, we work at loving Jehovah with all our
heart, the new covenant we enter with him more fully points our course of
direction to Him. There has been a
cultural change over these many centuries.
(Jeremiah 31:31-34.) –
Millennial fulfillment
31 ¶ Behold, the days
come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of
32 Not according to the
covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by
the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake,
although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:
33 But this shall be
the covenant that I will make with the house of
34 And they shall teach no
more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD:
for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them,
saith the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their
sin no more.
"Things Too Wonderful for Me"
VAUGHN J. FEATHERSTONE
Vaughn J. Featherstone was a member of the Quorum of the
Seventy of
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when this devotional
address was given at
There is a scripture to which President Howard W. Hunter
referred during the training of General Authorities at October conference 1992.
I have written that statement in my scriptures in the margin. This is the
scripture from Jeremiah 31:31–34:
Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a
new covenant with the house of
Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers
in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt;
. . .
But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the
house of Israel; After those days, saith the Lord, I will put my law in their
inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they
shall be my people.
And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and
every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from
the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the Lord: for I will forgive
their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.
It is my conviction that most of you will live to see that
day. How can the great Jehovah put His law in our inward parts and write it in
our hearts? Why will there no longer be a need to teach our neighbors? Why will
He forgive our iniquity?
A year ago this coming April, President Packer, who, along
with the Twelve Apostles, is responsible for the training of all of the General
and Area Authorities, gave us counsel and direction that will lead to the
fulfillment of the quote from Jeremiah. The training was the deepest and most
meaningful of any I have experienced in my 29 years as a General Authority. It
changed my life and, I would assume, the lives of all the Brethren. President
Packer is a divine seer. He took the necessary preparation time and made the
total effort required by the Lord to receive the direction necessary from the
Lord. He read the books on Christ by Frederic William Farrar, possibly the most
accurate biblical scholar outside of the Church. It is he and his writings that
Elder James E. Talmage quotes in Jesus the Christ. Elder Bruce R.
McConkie referred to his works often. President Packer read The New Foxe's
Book of Martyrs, which I also picked up and read. The humiliation,
suffering, and horror of the early Christians and the cruelty of the protesters
is beyond our ability to comprehend. Most of the Christians were burned at the
stake, had their flesh torn from them, were buried alive, or were put in dens
with half-starved lions or tigers. These early Christians suffered the deepest,
most penetrating pain possible, and almost to their dying breath called out to
Jesus. It was as though they could already see Him. As I read stories of
hundreds who suffered those horrific experiences, I wondered, and I hoped that
if I were ever to be put in similar circumstances that I would suffer in the
wonderful dignified way they did. I hope I would be strong enough to do that.
President Packer read Jesus the Christ again. He read
every scripture about the Holy Ghost and the Spirit of God in the standard
works. He pondered and prayed, and the revelation came. I am convinced it was
not just to be lodged in the hearts of the Brethren but is revelation for the
whole Church. I believe as General Authorities we are under the sacred and holy
obligation to take the message to the Church. I believe you will hear more on
this inspired subject in the days, months, and years ahead that will help and
bless this Church more than anything else.
President Packer's message was that we must live worthy to
have the Holy Ghost with us 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for the rest of
our lives. This was not a message for us only; it is a message for every member
of the Church. Can you imagine what would happen if every man, woman, youth,
and child lived in such a way as to qualify? We would startle the world.
Imagine 11 million members of the Church now, and then 20, 50, 80, and 100
million in the future having the constant companionship of the Holy Ghost.
It is my belief that President Howard W. Hunter, quoting
that wonderful scripture in Jeremiah, knew that in a future day not many years
off President Packer would help us qualify for the fulfillment of this
wonderful blessing.
The second revelation of absolute and profound importance
came as he and the Twelve encouraged us to testify of the Living Christ. You
have read the declaration of the Living Christ by President Hinckley, his
counselors, and the Quorum of the Twelve. How often do we testify of the things
we hold most precious and dear in this life? For some it may be
occasionally--i.e., once a year or once in a while when we are called upon to
speak or in a testimony meeting. We are true disciples of Christ; we ought to
testify every day in every Latter-day Saint home to our wives/husbands,
siblings, and children. These are the people we should love most on this earth.
These are those we want to know the truth of this mighty work. Opportunities
will come at school, in our work, and in the community to testify to our
friends and neighbors not of our faith in a humble and sweet way, as well as to
testify to each other and build greater faith.
For example, a son may say
to us, "I sure think President Hinckley is a good man."
We could say, "Indeed,
he is wonderful."
What if instead we said,
"Son, I know he is a prophet of God, a seer, and a revelator. He may be
one of the greatest prophets that ever lived."
Can you see the difference?
Can you feel the difference?
A daughter might say,
"We have a nice bishop."
We could respond, "Yes,
sweetheart, he is."
What if we took this
opportunity to say, "Sweetheart, he was called by God by revelation. He
has the mantle upon him, and he is guided by inspiration in his calling."
Children need to hear their
parents testify. Siblings can strengthen each other, and their friends can be
lifted spiritually.
Can you think of anything in
this generation that would affect members of the Church more than living to be
worthy of the Holy Ghost constantly and testifying as guided and directed by
the Holy Ghost of the truth of this great, majestic, divine work and more
especially of Him whose work this is?
This is how we will put His
law in our inward parts, and it will be written in our hearts. It is how our
iniquity will be forgiven. Of course, when we live worthy of the Holy Ghost, it
will have required repentance, submission, and meekness. Then we will have
qualified, and then the Holy Ghost will inspire us to testify and forgiveness
will come.
Section 93 of the Doctrine
and Covenants teaches us the reality of the possibility for every worthy member
of this Church:
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. [D&C 93:1]
The Savior said "every
soul," not just the Brethren or specially privileged souls--every soul.
Can you comprehend the power that would surge through the Church if every soul
sought to seek the face of Christ and know that He is? Remember, the Lord's
promises are sure.
In the first section of the
Doctrine and Covenants the Lord counsels us in this powerful declaration:
What I the Lord have
spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself; and though the heavens and the
earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled,
whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same. [D&C 1:38]
In D&C 18:36 the Lord
teaches, "Wherefore, you can testify that you have heard my voice."
If ever I have heard the Lord's voice, it is in the declaration from D&C 1.
There is a witness that penetrates my heart and soul that what the Lord states
is truth. Like Jeremiah, I thrill that "his word [is] in mine heart as a
burning fire shut up in my bones" (Jeremiah 20:9).
This is the time to make a
sacred resolution to follow the apostles and the prophets, to seek the Holy
Ghost, and to testify and qualify to see the Master's face.
It has been my experience
that fasting, prayer, study, and pondering are essential. Equally important is
service. We must follow the pattern Christ modeled for us. King Benjamin said:
And behold, I tell you
these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in
the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God. [Mosiah 2:17]
This is a great talk in its
entirety.
In the Old Testament the Lord told
(Stephen E.
Robinson, Believing Christ: The Parable of the Bicycle and Other Good News
[Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1992],.)
Why do we say it has been made so far
only to a limited degree? Because, as the holy word affirms, it involves more
than the mere receipt of the gospel. A covenant, to have full force and
validity, must be accepted in full both by God in heaven and by man on earth.
The grand part of the covenant is this: "They shall teach no more every
man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they
shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the
Lord: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no
more." (Jeremiah 31:31-34.) As
Joseph Smith taught in his great sermon on the Second Comforter, this promise
has reference to the receipt of that added Comforter, which means that they
have the personage of Jesus Christ to attend them and to appear unto them from
time to time. Those so blessed are the ones who remain after the destruction of
the wicked at the ushering in of the Millennium. (Teachings of the Prophet
Joseph Smith, p. 149.) That is to say, the complete fulfillment is
Millennial.
The prophetic word speaks of Israel,
of the remnants of that once-favored people who are now scattered in all the
nations of the earth, of the literal seed of the bodies of the prophets of old;
it says that these—the descendants of the ancients—shall be gathered. Of this
there is no question. But what of the Gentiles in the last days? Is not the
gospel for them also? In answer we ask: What of the Gentiles in the days of
ancient
(Bruce R.
McConkie, A New Witness for the Articles of Faith [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1985], 549.)
Last of Jeremiah
November 2, 2006
Bruce spent
the opening of the class reviewing Elder Bednar’s devotional talk on the
gathering. It was a powerful talk. It is a miracle to live in the time period we
now enjoy. The world is clueless to what
is happening to prepare for the Millennium.
The Spirit and Purposes of
Gathering
Elder David A. Bednar
Brigham Young
University–Idaho Devotional
October 31, 2006
Sister Bednar and I are
grateful to be back on campus with you this afternoon. We love you.
My general authority
colleagues who are assigned to speak at BYU–Idaho devotionals often ask me if I
have any advice for them as they prepare their messages. My answer is always
the same.
Do not underestimate the
students at Brigham Young University–Idaho. Those young people will come to the
devotional eager to worship and to learn the basic doctrines of the restored
gospel. Those young men and women will come to the devotional with their
scriptures in hand and ready to use them. They will come to the devotional
prepared to seek learning by study and also by faith. Treat and teach those
young men and women as who they really are.
This afternoon I will take my own advice. During the time Sister Bednar and I
served here in Rexburg, I often said from this pulpit that the greatest
compliment I could give you as students is to treat you and to teach you as who
you are pirit sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father with a particular and
important purpose to fulfill in these latter days. I now plead and pray for the
Holy Ghost to assist me and you as together we discuss the spirit and purposes
of gathering.
We are met together today
to participate in the groundbreaking for two buildings on this campus—the
addition to the
I called Sister Bednar,
who was in
Our gathering today is an
important episode in the ongoing development of this Church sponsored
institution of higher education. During the last decade, one of the most
important educational events of the restoration has occurred in
Can you begin to sense the
magnitude of the miracle—and how the hand of the Lord has enabled so much to be
accomplished in such a short period of time? And the most important addition to
the campus continues to rise majestically to the south of the Gordon B.
Hinckley Building. We all look forward to the completion and dedication of the
The pace at and
effectiveness with which these projects have moved forward defies rational
explanation. I am personally grateful for the lessons I learned as these
projects were conceived, critiqued, modified, and executed. The planning for
and constructing of these new buildings and the remodeling of existing
facilities on this campus has required faith, inspiration, persistence, and
patience. I pay tribute to the good people on this campus who have labored so
diligently and valiantly to make this construction miracle at BYU–Idaho a
reality
The two buildings for
which we break ground today represent the final phase of a comprehensive campus
upgrade—the last major elements in the physical infrastructure of Brigham Young
University–Idaho. These two projects are the largest and most complex of all
the projects that have been undertaken thus far—in terms of both size and cost.
And because of their sheer scope, it would be easy for us to “miss the mark”
and think only in terms of the temporal purposes and uses of these two
buildings.
We would be wise to
remember that all things unto the Lord are spiritual, “and not at any time have
I given unto you a law which was temporal; neither any man, nor the children of
men (D&C 29:34). Interestingly, the renovated
The Principle of Gathering
The gathering of scattered
The Tenth Article of Faith
states: “We believe in the literal gathering of Israel and in the restoration
of the Ten Tribes; that Zion (the New Jerusalem) will be built upon the
American continent; that Christ will reign personally upon the earth; and, that
the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory” (Articles of
Faith 1:10)
Thus on a grand and global
scale, the house of
Using the scriptures, we
will now briefly review several basic purposes of gathering, places of
gathering, and blessings of gathering. The order in which these items are
presented is not intended to reflect relative importance or priority.
Purposes of Gathering
First, what are the fundamental
purposes of gathering? The Lord gathers His people to worship, to build up the
Church, for a defense, and to receive counsel and instruction.
Purpose #1. To worship
“And there was one day in every week that was set apart that they should gather
themselves together to teach the people, and to worship the Lord their God, and
also, as often as it was in their power, to assemble themselves together”
(Mosiah 18:25)
Purpose #2. To build up the Church
“Again, verily I say unto you, I will show unto you wisdom in me concerning all
the churches, inasmuch as they are willing to be guided in a right and proper
way for their salvation—
“That the work of the gathering together of my saints may continue, that I may
build them up unto my name upon holy places; for the time of the harvest is
come, and my word must needs be fulfilled” (D&C 101:63-64).
Purpose #3. For a defense
“And that the gathering together upon the land of Zion, and upon her stakes,
may be for a defense, and for a refuge from the storm, and from wrath when it
shall be poured out without mixture upon the whole earth” (D&C 115: 6).
Purpose #4. To receive counsel and instruction
“And it came to pass after many days there were a goodly number gathered
together at the place of Mormon, to hear the words of
Places of Gathering
What are the primary places of gathering? The Lord’s people are gathered into
His restored Church, into holy temples, into stakes of
Place #1. Into the Lord’s restored Church
“That the work of the gathering together of my saints may continue, that I may
build them up unto my name upon holy places; for the time of harvest is come,
and my word must needs be fulfilled.
“Therefore, I must gather together my people, according to the parable of the
wheat and the tares, that the wheat may be secured in the garners to possess
eternal life, and be crowned with celestial glory, when I shall come in the
kingdom of my Father to reward every man according as his work shall be”
(D&C 101:64-65).
Place #2. Into holy temples
“Behold, the field was ripe, and blessed are ye, for ye did thrust in the
sickle, and did reap with your might, yea, all the day long did ye labor; and
behold the number of your sheaves! And they shall be gathered into the garners,
that they are not wasted.
Please note that President Howard W. Hunter taught that the garners are the
holy temples (see Church News, 17 September 1994). This interpretation by
President Hunter adds additional clarity about the importance of sacred temple
covenants and ordinances, that the sheaves are not wasted.
“Yea, they shall not be beaten down by the storm at the last day; yea, neither
shall they be harrowed up by the whirlwinds; but when the storm cometh they
shall be gathered together in their place, that the storm cannot penetrate to
them; yea, neither shall they be driven with fierce winds whithersoever the
enemy listeth to carry them” (Alma 26:5-6).
The Prophet Joseph Smith declared that in all ages the divine purpose of
gathering is to build temples so that the Lord’s children can receive the
highest ordinances and thereby gain eternal life (see TPJS, pp. 307-308, 314).
Place #3. Into stakes of Zion
“We ask thee to appoint unto Zion other stakes besides this one which thou hast
appointed, that the gathering of thy people may roll on in great power and
majesty, that thy work may be cut short in righteousness” (D&C 109:59).
Place #4. Into families
And most significantly, by the power of the Melchizedek priesthood and through
the ordinances of the
“And it came to pass that when they came up to the temple, they pitched their
tents round about, every man according to his family, consisting of his wife,
and his sons, and his daughters, and their sons, and their daughters, from the
eldest down to the youngest, every family being separate one from another”
(Mosiah 2:5).
Blessings of Gathering
Finally, what are the blessings of gathering? The gathering of the Lord’s
people brings blessings of edification, preservation, and strength.
Blessing #1. Edification
“For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the
edifying of the body of Christ:
“Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of
God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of
Christ” (Ephesians 4:12-13).
Blessing #2. Preservation
“And the day shall come that the earth shall rest, but before that day the
heavens shall be darkened, and a veil of darkness shall cover the earth; and
the heavens shall shake, and also the earth; and great tribulations shall be
among the children of men, but my people will I preserve” (Moses 7:61).
Blessing #3. Strength
“For Zion must increase in beauty, and in holiness; her borders must be
enlarged; her stakes must be strengthened; yea, verily I say unto you, Zion
must arise and put on her beautiful garments” (D&C 82:14).
These blessings associated with the spirit and purposes of gathering will be
increasingly evident throughout your life.
The Principle of Gathering at Brigham
Young University–Idaho
The spirit, purposes, and
blessings of gathering also occur in smaller but equally important ways on this
set apart and special campus. The power of righteous unity can pervade your
classrooms, your home evening groups, the weekly devotionals, among students
studying in the library, and in student wards and stakes. This spirit of
gathering brings assurance, encouragement, and a sense of purpose greater than
self. At BYU–Idaho you gather to worship the Father in the name of the Son, to
build up the Church and the university, to find defense and protection, and to
receive counsel and instruction.
You gather together to
learn and to prepare for your mortal and eternal opportunities and
responsibilities. You gather together to strengthen each other. You gather
together to develop appropriate relationships and to create eternal families.
You gather together to increase in understanding about the purpose and measure
of your creation.
You are richly blessed to
be students gathered together on the campus of BYU–Idaho. In September of 1997, President James E. Faust, second counselor in the
First Presidency, came to this campus to dedicate the
Elder Eyring arrived in Rexburg one day early to review
several university issues with me and to ensure that everything was in order
for President Faust. When I picked up Elder Eyring at the airport, I learned
that he had just returned from a two-week assignment in
As we drove to our home, I asked Elder Eyring if he was
interested in quickly walking through the completed
Our last stop was the Taylor Chapel where Elder Eyring stood
near the pulpit on the stand and gazed into the audience area for quite a long
time. After a few minutes, I asked him: “Elder Eyring, what are you thinking
about?” He answered with this profound and penetrating observation: “I am
thinking about how much we do for so few and how little we do for so many.” He
then continued, “The tithing of the people I just visited in
Sister Bednar and I
returned last week from an assignment in
A Warning and A Promise
In the authority of the holy Apostleship, I now raise a voice
of warning and make a solemn promise. If the day ever were to come that intellectual
arrogance, a lack of appreciation, and a spirit of demanding entitlement take
root on this campus—among the students, faculty, employees or the
administration, or within the community—then in that day the Spirit of Ricks
will be well on the way to being extinguished—and the heavenly influence and
blessings that have prospered this institution and the people associated with
it will be withdrawn. Conversely, as long as intellectual modesty, humility,
gratitude, obedience, and frugality continue to characterize those who learn
and serve at BYU–Idaho, then this university will shine forth ever brighter as
a beacon of righteousness and of inspired educational innovation.
My Witness
I declare my special
witness that Jesus is the Christ and that the fullness of His gospel has been
restored to the earth in these latter days through the Prophet Joseph Smith. I
know and witness that the Savior lives. He stands at the head of His Church,
and He directs its affairs through revelation to a living prophet. I so witness
in the sacred name of Jesus Christ, amen.
© 2000 Intellectual
Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.
Elder
Bednar also closed the meeting by giving the closing prayer.
Bruce said
we will close out the book of Jeremiah tonight and next week we will begin the
book of Ezekiel. These two prophets
stood as witnesses to the destruction of the
The book of
Jeremiah is not in chronological order, whoever put the book together jumped
around with the events and stories. But
that’s OK, can you imagine Jeremiah’s life as a mini series!?
34:1-22 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord, when
Nebuchadnezzar . . . and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the earth of his
dominion, and all the people, fought against
These are prophetic words and
political actions from the last days of Jerusalem, 588 to 586 B.C. Jeremiah
gave the king one more warning and promise as the siege was being prepared
against his fortress cities—Jerusalem, Lachish, and Azekah. The king and people
were by that time fearful enough that they made a token repentance, freeing
their fellow Hebrews who were in bondage to them, as the law of Moses required.
Society had become polarized into the rich and the poor. If a poor family could
not pay their rent and taxes, part or all of the family could be taken into
servitude for the debt.
Then
35:1-19 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of
Jehoiakim . . . saying, Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and speak unto them (This is a story of a righteous, obedient people versus the
disobedient folks of
This revelation came much earlier
than those preceding (see Jer. 27, which records a revelation from Jehoiakim's
time).
The Rechabites, here presented as an
example for
The Rechabites' exemplary behavior
was their obedience to the teachings of the law and of their forefathers. They
would not drink wine, even wine offered them in the temple. They had abandoned
their traditional tents and come to
In contrast, neither northern
36:1-32 in the fourth year of Jehoiakim . . . this word came unto
Jeremiah from the Lord, saying, Take thee a roll of a book, and write therein
all the words that I have spoken unto thee against
This event is also from an earlier
time. The fourth year of Jehoiakim would have been about 605 B.C. This chapter
provides an example of the way Jeremiah's revelations and historical sketches
were written and preserved (TG, "Scriptures, Writing of"; "Scriptures,
Preservation of"; BD, "Canon). It tells that the prophet used the
services of a scribe and indicates the materials used; it also shows the period
covered by his writings to this point—about twenty-three years (Jer. 1:1-2;
36:1-2, 18). It tells the purposes of the prophetic writing and shows
Jeremiah's situation as he dictated the revelations. It records the response of
the servants and princes and the response of the king. Finally, it shows how
the copies of revelations destroyed by the king were restored through the
prophet.
37:1-21 And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal . . . and Zephaniah . . . to
the prophet Jeremiah, saying, Pray now unto the Lord our God for us
This incident and prophetic warning
came in the days of King Zedekiah, at a time of a break in the Babylonian siege
(ca. 588 B.C.; Jer. 35:2Jer. 35:1-5; 34:10-11). It seems surprising that the
king would finally ask the prophet to pray in behalf of
When the prophet sought a little
respite out of the city, he was apprehended, accused of deserting to the enemy,
flogged, and imprisoned. Oddly enough, when the king heard of the incident
"many days" later, he sent for the prophet and secretly asked again
for the word of the Lord. Even though the word was still that he would be
overthrown by
38:1-28 Therefore the princes said unto the king, We beseech thee, let
this man be put to death: for thus he weakeneth the hands of the men of war
that remain in this city
Because Jeremiah continued to assert
that the Lord would not save
The faith and courage of the
Ethiopian Ebed-melech (which means "the king's servant"), is
noteworthy, and his practical way of rescuing the prophet admirable.
Miraculously, the king allowed the rescue, which must be attributed to divine
intervention.
The pitiable king's last consultation
with the prophet drew from him the same divine edict: unworthy of protection,
he could only surrender. The promise was merciful, for he could thereby live
and the city would not be burnt, but the king had no faith in that promise. He
feared Jewish defectors among the Babylonians, despite the prophet's
reassurances. The interview did end with a plan being made that would keep the
prophet out of the hands of his adversaries until the city fell.
39:1-18; 40:1-6 In the ninth year of Zedekiah . . . came Nebuchadrezzar
. . . against
The commentary on another account of
this event (2 Kgs. 25) gives some details of the tragic devastation of
Note again the fate of the leaders
and of the king's family. In contrast to their fate, note that the poor, who
had often been taken into servitude by the leaders and rich land owners, were
given "the vineyards and the fields" by the Babylonian captain of the
guard (Jer. 34:8-11; 39:1-10, 6b; 41:10; 43:6). The Babylonians treated
the prophet well, as had been promised (Jer. 15:11); further details are given
in Jeremiah 41.
Gedaliah, who was appointed by the
Babylonians to rule over the Jews remaining in the land, was the son of the
same Ahikam who had defended the prophet earlier (Jer. 39:11-14; 26:24;
40:2-5).
An earlier prophecy to Ebed-melech,
promising him deliverance, is mentioned (Jer. 39:15-18).
The "testimony" of
Nebuzaradan is noteworthy, as is his consideration for the prophet (Jer.
40:1-6).
40:7-16; 41:1-18 Then they came to Gedaliah
Gedaliah was accepted as the leader
of the remnant of
The wicked prevailed, however; with a
false show of friendship, Elishama "of the seed royal," with some
princes, ate with Gedaliah and then rose up to slay him. All who were with him,
and even some who were coming to worship at the ruins of the house of the Lord,
were ruthlessly slain.
Nothing is known of the pit
"which Asa the king had made," though it may have been part of that
good king's defenses of
42:1-22 pray for us unto the Lord thy God, even for all this remnant . .
. That the Lord thy God may shew us the way wherein we may walk, and the thing
that we must do
Johanan and Jezaniah, who had been
faithful friends to Gedaliah, appeared to be humble, faithful, and receptive to
divine guidance when they asked counsel of the Lord through the prophet; but
Jeremiah knew their minds and asked for their promise that they would do what
the Lord directed. They said, perhaps intentionally, "pray to the Lord thy
God," but he countered, "I will pray unto the Lord your God"
(Jer. 42:1-6).
The counsel came that they should not
take refuge in
43:1-13 Then spake Azariah . . . and Johanan . . . and all the proud
men, saying unto Jeremiah, Thou speakest falsely: the Lord our God hath not
sent thee to say, Go not into
Refusing to heed the revelation, the
leaders and people chose to go to
44:1-30 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews which
dwell in the
There were four places in which Jews
already dwelt in
Far from being repentant, the
spokesmen among them in
The prophet responded with a stinging
reprimand of them and their forefathers for their idolatry and their perfidious
justification of it. He essentially affirmed their excommunication from God and
his goodness. Only a small remnant would return to testify of their fate. The
prophet gave them, as a certification of his word, a prophecy that Pharaoh Hophra
would be conquered by Nebuchadnezzar as Zedekiah had been (Jer. 44:20-30).
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 566.)
The Siege of
The chief priests and Elders wanted Jeremiah dead, they thought he was a
traitor, he always teaches doom and gloom against us. But they didn’t kill him, Why?
In the course of the siege of
Jerusalem (588-587 B.C.), Zedekiah had by a covenant with the people (Jer.
34:8) implemented the release of Hebrew slaves, who were to be freed at the end
of seven years according to the Mosaic law (Ex. 21:2; Deut. 15:12). This
covenant had been confirmed with a solemn oath ceremony in the temple (Jer.
34:15). fn But the people had broken their oath and forced the slaves back into
submission (Jer. 34:11). fn
The Lord pointed out to the people
that they had taken a step toward repentance with the declaration of liberty to
their slaves—a repentance that could have led to their own deliverance. In
response to their unwillingness to keep their recent covenant, the Lord
responded with sarcasm: "Behold, I proclaim a liberty for you, saith the
Lord, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine" (Jer. 34:17).
Jeremiah warned the people that the Babylonians would return (Jer. 34:22;
37:5-10) after defeating the Egyptians and would punish them for their
unfaithfulness. The penalty of death was pronounced upon those who had broken
this covenant: "Their dead bodies shall be for meat unto the fowls of the
heaven, and to the beasts of the earth" (Jer. 34:20).
Following the incident of the
Rechabites (Jer. 35), the burning of the scroll (chap. 36), and Jeremiah's
promise of the Babylonian return (chap. 37), Jeremiah was delivered to the king
and charged with treason and weakening the morale of the people under siege
with his prophecies of doom (Jer. 38:1-5). The vacillating Zedekiah first
turned him over to the princes who wished to kill him, saying, "He is in
your hand" (Jer. 38:5). They cast him into a dungeon full of mire until
his noble friend Ebed-melech, an Ethiopian eunuch, saved him and delivered him
to better conditions in the court of the prison. There Zedekiah once again
secretly consulted him, promising him his life if he would but tell him the
word of the Lord. Wearily Jeremiah, perhaps for the last time, delivered the
same message to Zedekiah: "Thus saith the Lord . . . If thou wilt
assuredly go forth unto the king of
The Fall of
In Jeremiah 39 and 52 we find
recorded one of the major events of the history of
A month after
Because Jeremiah had been an advocate
of submission to
Jeremiah in
(Jeremiah 42:3-4.) – “Thy
God turns to Your God” by Jeremiah, he is a teacher to the end.
3 That the LORD thy God may shew us the way wherein we
may walk, and the thing that we may do.
4 Then Jeremiah the
prophet said unto them, I have heard you; behold, I will pray unto the LORD your God according to your words; and it
shall come to pass, that whatsoever thing the LORD shall answer you, I
will declare it unto you; I will keep nothing back from you.
A group of Judahites, apparently
worried about Babylonian retaliation for the assassination of the governor,
besought Jeremiah to pray and obtain the word of the Lord for them and promised
to obey this word "whether it be good, or whether it be evil" (Jer.
42:6). After ten days the Lord responded, "If ye will still abide in this
land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and
not pluck you up" (Jer. 42:10). The Lord went on to warn them that if in
fact they did proceed to Egypt, as they had evidently been planning to do,
"the sword, which ye feared, shall overtake you there in the land of
Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were afraid, shall follow close after you
there in Egypt; and there ye shall die" (Jer. 42:16). The people, after
consulting with "all the proud men," responded to Jeremiah, the
prophet of the Lord, "Thou speakest falsely: the Lord our God hath not
sent thee to say, Go not into
For some reason this group forced
Jeremiah and his scribe Baruch to accompany them to
In chapter 44 of his book we find
Jeremiah, the prophet to the nations, delivering the word of the Lord for the
last time, addressing all the Jews in
(Jeremiah 44:28.) – A
small remnant will return from Egypt
28 Yet a small number that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, and all the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose words shall stand, mine, or theirs.
A Message to Baruch (Jer. 45)
Jeremiah 45, out of chronological
sequence, identifies itself as the words of the Lord delivered by Jeremiah to
Baruch his scribe in the fourth year of Jehoiakim, after Baruch had completed
writing, or rather rewriting, the words of Jeremiah (see Jer. 36). Baruch is
often in the background of the book, and in this short prophecy we get our only
poignant, personal glimpse of Baruch's own sacrifice and suffering as he
realized that Jeremiah's words of doom to Israel would affect his own life. The
Lord said that he could offer no immediate comfort or relief from the terrible
things that were then happening and that were soon to come about (Jer. 45:4).
Those "great things" that Baruch would like to pursue for himself in
his personal life would not be attainable. The only consolation the Lord could
offer was that his life would be spared (Jer. 45:5). fn
Baruch remained faithful to Jeremiah
to the end. The last we hear of him he was in
Historical Appendix (Jer. 52) – The poor in the city were taken, while
the poor in the land were left to harvest.
This is the story of the destruction of
It is fitting that the chapter
describing the siege, capture, and destruction of
Throughout his ministry Jeremiah
pronounced prophecies of comfort and hope for restoration. Although he told
those in
A Lifetime of Commitment
Jeremiah exemplifies for us many
important aspects of a prophet. He was a servant of the Lord called to deliver
his word. Therefore, he had to remain throughout his life worthy to receive the
word and be willing to deliver it. From the time of his call when the Lord
first delivered his word to him until we last hear of him in
Forty years is a short time in the
history of the world, but for Jeremiah it was a commitment of his whole life.
Because of his faithfulness he suffered many trials and much affliction, and
his entire life stands as an example of faith, obedience, and sacrifice.
The Lord promised Jeremiah from the
beginning that he would "hasten" to perform his word (Jer. 1:12), and
Jeremiah witnessed the fulfillment of many of his prophecies in his own
lifetime—including the destruction of
At one point in his life Jeremiah recalled
the joy he once had found in his calling: "Thy words were found, and I did
eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart; for I
am called by thy name, O Lord God of hosts" (Jer. 15:16). He then lamented
the persecution and loneliness that resulted from delivering the words: "I
sat not in the assembly of the mockers, nor rejoiced; I sat alone because of
thy hand" (Jer. 15:17). The Lord responded with the promise he had made at
the beginning: "I will make thee unto this people a fenced brasen wall:
and they shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail against thee: for
I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee, saith the Lord" (Jer.
15:20-21). The Lord protected and preserved Jeremiah until his mission was completed.
As we study the life of Jeremiah, we begin to understand a man who trusted in
the Lord rather than in the arm of flesh (Jer. 17:5-8) and one whose call was
to sacrifice the approval of men in order to gain the presence of God.
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 206.)
Greed and
Fear rule these people, it takes over.
The Spirit has left these people, they are without hope.
Ezekiel 1-5
November 9, 2006
Elder Oak’s devotional this week – Sisters, don’t fall for the worldly urging that women should
emulate men in various masculine characteristics. That is not what the
Lord created you to do. Please don’t misunderstand me. I am not
saying that women should not be doctors or lawyers or any particular occupation
that fits their circumstances. To use lawyering as an example, what I am
saying is that women should not attempt to be manly lawyers. Nor
should women emulate the worldly ways of womanhood. Your destiny is to be a wife and a mother in
Bruce read
the BD concerning Lamentations and Ezekiel.
Ezekiel (God will strengthen) is the 2nd witness to Jeremiah to the
destruction of
He is taken
to
BIBLE
DICTIONARY
Lamentations, Book of
Or,
Dirges over the fall of
Written
as songs after the fall of
BiBLE
DICTIONARY
Ezekiel
God will strengthen.
A
priest of the family of Zadok, and one of the captives carried away by
Nebuchadnezzar along with Jehoiachin. He settled at Tel Abib on the Chebar, and
prophesied during a period of 22 years, 592-470 B.C. The book of Ezekiel has three main divisions: 1 1 - 24,
prophecies of judgment against
Among
the notable teachings of Ezekiel are chs. 3 and 18, which show the significance
of a prophet’s warning and the individual responsibility of every person for
the consequences of his own behavior; ch. 37, which depicts the valley of dry
bones, each bone coming together, bone to his bone, in the resurrection, the
restoration of Israel, and the uniting of the stick (record) or Ephraim with
the stick of Judah; and chs. 47 - 48, the description of the latter-day temple
in
THE PROPHETS OF THE EXILE: SAVIORS OF
A PEOPLE
RICHARD D. DRAPER
Like Jeremiah, Ezekiel was a priest
(Ezek. 1:3). That explains in part why he became one of Nebuchadnezzar's many
hostages, the Babylonians concentrating on children of the gentry, clergy, and
aristocracy. His captors would have taken him into Babylon about 597 B.C., with
a group of Jewish exiles deported about a decade before Jerusalem was
destroyed.<#>39 Because Jeremiah had been prophesying for more
than ten years by that time, it is very likely that Ezekiel would have heard
his testimony and caught the same fire. God called him to carry the message
into the streets of the Babylonian captives as Jeremiah did in the streets of
He used the prophetic `ot,
rather exaggerated symbolic acts, as the means of drawing attention to his
message. Among other things, he symbolized the coming fate of Jerusalem by
drawing a picture of the city on a brick and then, while eating rationed foods,
simulating a siege against it (See Ezek. 4:1-15).
A little later, he shaved off his
hair and beard. That act alone, especially shaving his beard, would have
brought him a great deal of attention. Men in both the Babylonian and the
Jewish cultures wore beards, and the Jews viewed them as a sign of adult male
vitality and glory.<#>40 The prophet's clean-shaven face would
have startled those who viewed it. But they would have sensed his message, for
the shaved beard symbolized a radical change in the state of
affairs.<#>41 He did not leave his audience guessing as to which
way affairs were going to change. One-third of his hair he burned with fire,
another he hacked with the sword, and the last he scattered to the wind. He did
retain a few strands, which he tied to the hem of his robe (see Ezek. 5:1-5).
This ritual act he followed with a
stern warning. "This is
Ezekiel clearly preached against the idea that
the temple alone would save the people. He recounted a vision in which he saw
the Lord's Spirit lift from the sanctuary, hover over the temple for a moment,
and then depart to the east (see Ezek. 9:8;
10:18; 11:23). His message was
both clear and simple: It was not the temple but righteousness that would be
(Sperry
Symposium Voices of Old Testament Prophets: The 26th Annual Sidney B. Sperry
Symposium [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1997], 100.)
A WATCHMAN TO THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL
(EZEKIEL 1-24)
STEPHEN D. RICKS
No themes so thoroughly pervade the
writings of the prophets as judgment and hope. Of the sixteen canonical
"writing prophets," ten—Amos, Hosea, Micah, Isaiah, Zephaniah,
Jeremiah, Obadiah, Ezekiel, Zechariah, and Joel—wrote about
Unlike the two other major
"writing prophets," Isaiah and Jeremiah, nothing is recorded about
Ezekiel in the historical writings that have been preserved in the Old
Testament (Kings and Chronicles), but few prophets have been more highly
personal in their writings than Ezekiel. According to Ezekiel's own record, he
was descended from priestly lines and was the son of Buzi, who is otherwise
unknown (Ezek. 1:3), was born in the kingdom of Judah in the seventh century
B.C., was taken by Nebuchadnezzar into exile with King Jehoiachin in 597 B.C.,
and was active in his prophetic calling in captivity in Babylon. If he was
already functioning as a priest before being taken into
I. 1-3 Ezekiel's Prophetic Call
II. 4-24 Prophecies against Disobedient
III. 25-32 Prophecies against Foreign Nations
IV. 33-37 Restoration
V. 38-39 Gog and
VI. 40-48 A New
Ezekiel's Vision, Prophetic Call, and Commission (Ezek. 1-3)
Ezekiel 1 through 3 contains an account
of Ezekiel's call to be a prophet. Like the commissions of many of the prophets
in scripture and in noncanonical writings (e.g., the Pseudepigrapha, Jewish
writings dating primarily from the period between the two testaments), Ezekiel
1 through 3 contains a record of a remarkable "throne-theophany"
vision of the heavenly realms, as well as several other regularly recurring
features: a historical introduction, a divine confrontation, the reaction, the
throne-theophany, the prophetic commission, divine reassurance, and the
conclusion of the call. The prophetic call of Ezekiel in chapters 1 through 3
shows particularly close parallels to the calls of Lehi in 1 Nephi 1 and 2 and
of Isaiah in Isaiah 6 and will be considered in conjunction with them. This call
pattern may be schematized as follows (in the interest of space, only the
examples from Ezekiel will be cited in the discussion):
Ezek. 1-3 Isa. 6 1 Ne. 1-2
1. Historical Introduction 1:1-3 6:1a 1:4
2. Divine Confrontation 1:4-28a 6:1b-4 1:6a – Face to face meeting with
Jehovah, not a negative meeting
3. Reaction 1:28b 6:5 1:6b-7
4. Throne-Theophany 1:20-26a 6:1b-4 1:8
5. Commission 2:3-8 6:9-10 2:1 – Tell
6. Reassurance 2:9-3:2 6:6-7
7. Conclusion 3:22-27 6:11b-13b 1:18-20 – I included the 1st
footnote as a reference for the above chart.
This chart, and some of the subsequent discussion, is based
on the perceptive study by Blake T. Ostler, "The Throne-Theophany and
Prophetic Commission in 1 Nephi: A Form-Critical Analysis," BYU
Studies, Fall 1986, p. 72, though it diverges from that of Ostler at
several points. I have eliminated one of the features given by Ostler in his
chart, the "objection," which follows the "commission" in
Isa. 6 but is absent from both the calls of Lehi and Ezekiel. Similarly, I have
not included Jeremiah on this chart, because it represents an
"auditory" rather than a "thronetheophany" type of
prophetic commission; cf. Stephen D. Ricks, "The Narrative Call Pattern in
the Prophetic Commission of Enoch (Moses 6)," BYU Studies, Fall
1986, pp. 97-105.
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies
in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1993],.)
1. The
"historical introduction" usually contains short introductory remarks
providing such background details as the time, place, and historical setting of
the prophetic call. The "historical introduction" to Ezekiel's call
provides not merely the year, but also the day and month of the vision:
"Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the
fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river Chebar, that
the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. In the fifth day of the
month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity, the word of the
Lord came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of
the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the Lord was there upon
him" (Ezek. 1:1-3). Similar dating is to be found in Ezekiel 3:16; 8:1;
20:1; 24:1; 26:1; 29:1, 17; 30:20; 31:1; 32:1; 32:17; 33:21; 40:1 (cf. Hag.
1:1; 2:1, 20). fn
2. In the
"divine confrontation" either God, an angel, or some other
manifestation of the divine appears to the individual. The "divine
confrontation" (Ezek. 1:4-28a) unfolds in a manner unique in scripture,
through a symbolic vision of the chariot with four wheels and of "the
likeness of the glory of the Lord." This highly ornate, difficult, and
puzzling passage has probably engendered more commentary than any other chapter
in the Old Testament and has spawned a whole genre of mystical literature in
later Judaism known as merkavah (chariot) mysticism. fn
3. In the
"reaction" section the prophet reacts to his confrontation with the
divine through words or actions reflecting awe, fear, or unworthiness. Thus,
following his vision, Ezekiel reports that "when I saw it, I fell upon my
face, and I heard a voice of one that spake" (Ezek. 1:28b).
4. In the
course of the "divine confrontation," the prophet has a
"throne-theophany" vision in which he sees God seated on his throne.
In Ezekiel, the image of God seated on his throne is less direct than it is in
the visions of Lehi and Isaiah: "above the firmament" is "the
likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness
of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man" (Ezek. 1:26).
fn
5. In the
"commission," the individual recipient is commanded to perform a
given task and assume the role of prophet to the people. Ezekiel's commission
is accompanied by a description of the people to whom he was being sent:
"And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of
6. In the
"reassurance" section of the prophetic call passages, God or his
representative promises the prophet that he will be protected so that he can
fulfill his call. Sometimes combined with the "reassurance" is some
act that symbolizes God's protecting power. The prophetic
"reassurance" in Ezekiel contains such a supernatural, symbolic act.
Ezekiel was handed a book containing "lamentations, and mourning, and
woe" (Ezek. 2:10), which he was commanded to eat. Amazingly, despite the
book's content, it was like honey in taste, perhaps symbolizing that God's
gifts, of whatever sort they may be, are sweet.
7. The
prophetic call generally concludes with a statement indicating that the prophet
begins to execute his commission. As we shall see below, although Ezekiel was
disposed to preach to the people, he was constrained from doing so because of
their wickedness.
The Watchman on the Tower (Ezek. 3:16-21)
After his initial call, Ezekiel sat
overwhelmed for seven days (Ezek. 3:15). Ezekiel was called to be a watchman in
the service of God, whose chief task it was to warn his people in accordance
with the words God had given him (Ezek. 3:16-21; cf. 33:1-9). The image of the
watchman derives from the role of the watchman on the wall of the city and
refers to his role in warning against the approach of an enemy. Besides his
role in guarding against the incursions of enemies, he was obliged to watch
constantly for signs of fire or civil disturbance within the city (cf. 2 Sam.
18:24-27; 2 Kgs. 9:17-20). In Doctrine and Covenants 124 the image of the
watchman is also used. There, the Nauvoo House is commanded to be built as
"a resting place for the weary traveler, that he may contemplate the glory
of Zion, . . . that he may receive also the counsel from those whom I have set
to be as plants of renown, and as watchmen upon her walls" (D&C
124:60-61).
Ezekiel's main task as a watchman was
to announce the imminent judgment of God upon
From the time of his call until the
fall of
Symbolic Acts (Ezek. 4-5)
Ezekiel 4 and 5 contain a series of
acts symbolic of God's judgment on the city of
Command
Thou also, son of man, take thee a
tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem:
And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against
it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round
about. Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron
between thee and the city: and set thy face against it
Interpretation
and it shall be besieged, and thou
shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of
Other symbolic act passages in
Ezekiel that contain a command and the interpretation of the command include
4:8-9, 9-17; 5:1-17; 12:17-20; 21:11-12, 23-29; 24:1-14; 37:15-28. The passages
in Ezekiel that contain a command, the report of the carrying out of the
command, and the interpretation of the command are 12:1-11 and 24:15-24. fn
In the first symbolic act (Ezek.
4:1-3), Ezekiel took a tile, drew on it Jerusalem, and then sketched in forts,
mounds, and battering rams—much as a Babylonian military commander might do.
Thereafter, Ezekiel took an iron plate and placed it between himself and the
tile with
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 267.)
Divine
confrontation = a face to face meeting, it isn’t a negative connotation.
Rock and
Fire are constant in these visions. In
describing the 1st vision, Joseph described the Father and the Son
as enveloped in a “pillar of fire”, later he would cross out the phrase and
replace it with “a pillar of light”.
Ezekiel 1-3
– The meaning of the vision revolves around the concept of God power and knowledge;
He is everywhere and knows everything.
Even a slave in faraway
(Doctrine and Covenants
38:1.)
1
Thus saith the Lord your God, even Jesus Christ, the Great I AM, Alpha and
Omega, the beginning and the end, the same which looked upon the wide expanse
of eternity, and all the seraphic hosts of heaven, before the world was made;
The Omniscience of an Omnipotent and Omniloving God
Few doctrines, save those pertaining
to the reality of the existence of God, are more basic than the truth that God
is omniscient. "O how great the holiness of our God! For he knoweth all
things, and there is not anything save he knows it." (2 Nephi. 9:20.)
Unfortunately, this truth is sometimes only passively assented to by
individuals who avoid exploring it and coming to understand its implications.
Later on, such believers sometimes have difficulty with the implications of
this core doctrine—which connects with other powerful doctrines such as the foreknowledge
of God, foreordination, and foreassignment. The all-loving God
who shapes our individual growing and sanctifying experiences—and then sees us
through them—could not do so if He were not omniscient.
The word omniscient has, at
times, been used carelessly, unnecessarily blurring our understanding of this
very fundamental attribute of God. We read in the Prophet Joseph Smith's Lectures
on Faith that God is perfect in the attributes of divinity, and one of
these is knowledge: ". . . seeing that without the knowledge of all
things, God would not be able to save any portion of his creatures; for it is
by reason of the knowledge which he has of all things, from the beginning to
the end, that enables him to give that understanding to his creatures by which
they are made partakers of eternal life; and if it were not for the idea
existing in the minds of men that God had all knowledge it would be impossible
for them to exercise faith in him." (Lecture 4, paragraph 11.)
Joseph Smith also declared, "God
is the only supreme governor and independent being in whom all fullness and
perfection dwell; who is omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient." (Lecture
2, paragraph 2.)
God, who knows the beginning from the
end, knows, therefore, all that is in between. He could not safely see us
through our individual allotments of "all these things" that shall
give us experience if He did not first know "all things."
Below the scripture that declares
that God knows "all things" there is no footnote reading "except
that God is a little weak in geophysics"! We do not worship a God who
simply forecasts a generally greater frequency of earthquakes in the last days
before the second coming of His Son; He knows precisely when and where all
these will occur. God has even prophesied that the Mount of Olives will cleave
in twain at a precise latter-day time as
There are no qualifiers, only flat
and absolute assertions of the omniscience of God such as these: "The Lord
searcheth all hearts, and understandeth all." (1 Chronicles 28:9.) The
psalmist said that the Lord's "understanding is infinite." (Psalm 147:5.)
"Now we are sure that thou knowest all things." (John 16:30.)
"The Lord knoweth all things which are to come." (Words of Mormon
1:7.)
Mortals should not aspire to teach
God that He is not omniscient by adding qualifiers that He has never used in
the scriptures. Job rightly asked, "Shall any teach God knowledge?"
(Job 21:22.)
The Lord could not know all things
that are to come if He did not know all things that are past as well as all
things that are present.
The Lord Himself said that He
"knoweth all things, for all things are present" before Him. (D&C
38:2.) We read, too, that "all things are present with me, for I know them
all." (Moses 1:6.)
Therefore, God's omniscience is not
solely a function of prolonged and discerning familiarity with us—but of the
stunning reality that the past and present and future are part of an
"eternal now" with God! (Joseph Smith, History of the Church
4:597.)
Most, if not all of us, have been
momentarily wrenched by the sound of a train whistle spilling into the night
air—and we have been inexplicably subdued by the mix of memories and feelings
it evokes. Perhaps, too, we have been beckoned by a lighted cottage across a
snow-covered meadow at dusk. Or we have heard the distant but drawing soft
laughter of children at play. Or we have been tugged at by the strains of
singing from a nearby church. In such moments we have felt a deep yearning, as
if we were outside something to which we belonged and of which we so much
wanted again to be a part. The impact has been brief, to be sure—but real!
There are spiritual equivalents of
these moments. They seem to occur most often when time touches eternity. In
these moments, we feel a longing closeness—but we are still separate. And the
partition that produces this paradox is something we call the veil.
We define the veil as the border
between mortality and eternity; it is also a film of forgetting that covers the
memories of earlier experiences. This forgetfulness will be lifted one day, and
on that day we will see forever, rather than "through a glass,
darkly." (1 Corinthians 13:12.)
However, there are poignant reminders
of the veil even now, adding to our sense of being close but still outside. In
our deepest prayers, when the agency of man encounters the omniscience of God,
we sometimes sense how provincial our petitions really are. We perceive that
there are more good answers than we have good questions, and that we have been
taught more than we can tell, for the language used is not that which tongue
can transmit.
We experience this same close
separateness when a baby is born, and also as we wait with those who are
dying—for then we brush against the veil, as goodbyes and greetings are said
almost within earshot of each other. In such moments, this resonance with
realities on the other side of the veil is so real that it can be explained in
only one way.
No wonder the Savior said that His
doctrines would be recognized by His sheep, that we would know His voice, that
we would follow Him. (John 10:14.) We do not, therefore, follow strangers. Deep
within us, His doctrines do strike the promised chord of familiarity and
underscore our true identity. Our sense of belonging grows in spite of our
sense of separateness, for His teachings stir our souls, awakening feelings
within us that have somehow survived underneath the encrusting experiences of
mortality.
This inner serenity that the believer
knows as he brushes against the veil is cousin to certitude. The peace it
brings surpasses our understanding and certainly our capacity to explain. It is
a serenity that stands in stark contrast to the restlessness of the world in
which, said Isaiah, the wicked are like the pounding and troubled sea, which
cannot rest. (Isaiah 57:20.)
But mercifully the veil is there! It
is fixed by the wisdom of God for our good. It is no use our being irritated
with the Lord over that reality, for it is clearly a condition to which we
agreed so long ago. Even when the veil is parted briefly, it will be on His
terms, not ours. Such partings of the veil happen, of course, but in private
settings and often with instructions or needed reassurances to expedite God's
work and always to reward faith—not to moot faith.
Without the veil, for instance, we
would lose that precious insulation which keeps us from a profound and disabling
homesickness that would interfere with our mortal probation and maturation.
Without the veil, our brief, mortal walk in a darkening world would lose its
meaning, for one would scarcely carry the flashlight of faith at noonday and in
the presence of the Light of the world!
Without the veil, we could not
experience the gospel of work and the sweat of our brow. If we had the security
of having already entered into God's rest, certain things would be unneeded;
Adam and Eve did not carry social security cards in the Garden of Eden!
And how could we learn about
obedience if we were shielded from the consequences of our disobedience?
Nor could we choose for ourselves in
His holy presence among alternatives that do not there exist, for God's court
is filled with those who have both chosen and overcome—whose company we do not
yet deserve.
Fortunately, the veil keeps the
first, second, and third estates separate, hence our sense of separateness. The
veil insures the avoidance of having things "compound in one"—to our
everlasting detriment. (2 Nephi 2:11.) We are cocooned, as it were, in order
that we might truly choose. Once, long ago, we chose to come to this very
setting where we could choose. It was an irrevocable choice! And the veil is
the guarantor that that choice will be honored.
Eventually, the veil that now
encloses us will be no more. Neither will time. (D&C 84:100.) Time is
clearly not our natural dimension. Thus it is that we are never really at home
in time. Alternately, we find ourselves wishing to hasten the passage of time
or to hold back the dawn. We can do neither, of course, but whereas the fish is
at home in water, we are clearly not at home in time—because we belong to
eternity. Time, as much as any one thing, whispers to us that we are strangers
here.
Thus the veil stands—not forever to
shut us out, but as a mark of God's tutoring love for us. Any brush against it
produces a feeling of "not yet," but also faint whispers of
anticipation when these words will be heard by the faithful: "Well done,
thou good and faithful servant."
The veil (which is both the film of
forgetting and the border between mortality and eternity) will, one day, be
shown to have been a succoring screen for us earthlings. Were it possible to
breach it on the wrong terms, we would see and experience, before we are ready,
things that would moot much of the value in this mortal experience. Remember,
we are being proven as to our faith and fitted for strenuous chores to be done
elsewhere. To change the nature of this necessary experience by premature
commingling would mean that we would not be suitable company for those we yearn
to be with, nor would we be ready to go where they are ready to go, nor to do
the things that they have painstakingly learned to do. There is no other way!
Since—unlike for us enclosed by the veil—things are, for God, one
"eternal now," it is to be remembered that for God to foresee is not
to cause or even to desire a particular occurrence—but it is to take that
occurrence into account beforehand, so that divine reckoning folds it into the
unfolding purposes of God. Thus, for those with faith it can be said as by
Paul, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that
love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose." (Romans
8:28.)
The actual determinations, however,
are made by us mortals using our agency as to this or that course
of action. For these determinations and decisions we are accountable. The
essence of agency will have been present (and later at the judgment will be
shown to have been provably present); otherwise the justice of our
omniscient Father in heaven (another perfected attribute) would not have
obtained. (
Our agency is preserved, however, by
the fact that as we approach a given moment we do not know what our response
will be. Meanwhile, God has foreseen what we will do and has taken our decision
into account (in composite with all others), so that His purposes are not
frustrated.
It is unfortunate that our concerns
do not center more upon the correctness of what we do in a given moment—and
less upon whether or not God's having foreseen what we would do then somehow
compromises our agency. It is equally regrettable that our souls should be
troubled at all because we cannot figure out "how" God does it, when
it has been made so abundantly clear and on so many occasions that He does do
it. In any event, this great reality of omniscience will happily operate even
if it is for us an unexplained reality!
In so many ways, we rely upon rather
than resent the predictability of other things in this second estate. Each
spring planting, each sunrise, each beat of the heart, each contraction and
expansion of the lungs—to these we scarcely give a thought. These are assumed
by us to be "built in" features of our lives. Think of the chaos if
it were not so!
Likewise, the life spans of planets,
as well as prophets, are known to God; the former pass away by his word. (Moses
1:35.) To a suffering Joseph Smith, God said, "Thy days are known, and thy
years shall not be numbered less." (D&C 122:9.) Such a promise could
not have been made if all other things that bore upon the life span of Joseph
Smith were not also known beforehand to God—in perfectness. God can see into
the hearts of the malcontent even before they form a mob, just as He saw where
civil rebellion in
Rather than questioning God's
foreseeing of "all these things" in each of our lives, this perfected
quality in God should fill us with wonderment and send us to our knees.
Worshipful acknowledgment of an omniscient God will cause us to cooperate in
the stretching of our souls.
On a much lower level of
significance, it is good that Mozart's contemporaries did not restrain him from
performing and composing as a lad until they could understand why he was
such a prodigy. We are blessed by unexplained mortal genius as it flowers; why
not accept also that humankind is blessed in far, far greater ways by the
genius of God!
There is simply no way to reconcile
the doctrine of the omniscience of God with the notion of a god who is
something less than that.
Unfortunately, the omniscience of God
in the minds of some well-meaning Latter-day Saints has been qualified by the
concept of "eternal progression." Some have wrongly assumed God's
progress is related to His acquisition of additional knowledge. In fact, God's
"eternal progression" (if one is nevertheless determined to apply
these two words to God) is related to the successful execution, again and
again, of His plan of salvation to redeem billions of His children throughout
His many creations. President Brigham Young said there are "millions of
earths" like this one. (JD 11:41.) Of this marvelous recurring and
redemptive process that rolls forth on such a vast scale, God has said that
"his course is one eternal round." (D&C 3:2.)
President Joseph Fielding Smith
observed that God's progression "is in building worlds and bringing to
pass the immortality and eternal life of man . . . not his intelligence or
knowledge, or virtue, or wisdom, or love, for these things are, as the
scriptures teach, in a state of perfection." (Church History and Modern
Revelation, 1947, 1:169.)
Since we cannot fully comprehend any
one of God's perfected attributes, we surely cannot comprehend them in the
aggregate. But we can have faith in Him and in His attributes as He has
described these to us. This is what He asks of us. We may say that this is a
lot to ask, but anything less will not do.
Those who try to qualify God's
omniscience fail to understand that He has no need to avoid ennui by learning
new things. Because God's love is also perfect, there is, in fact, divine
delight in that "one eternal round" which, to us, seems to be all
routine and repetition. God derives His great and continuing joy and glory by
increasing and advancing His creations, and not from new intellectual
experiences.
There is a vast difference,
therefore, between an omniscient God and the false notion that God is on some
sort of post-doctoral fellowship, still searching for additional key truths and
vital data. Were the latter so, God might, at any moment, discover some new
truth not previously known to Him that would restructure, diminish, or undercut
certain truths previously known by Him. Prophecy would be mere prediction.
Planning assumptions pertaining to our redemption would need to be revised.
Fortunately for us, however, His plan of salvation is constantly underway—not
constantly under revision.
An omniscient God foresaw the modern
establishment of
The Lord foresaw the establishment
two centuries ago of precious but imperative constitutional freedoms in the
land of America, the host nation for His kingdom in the last days—the place
where many of the events connected with the restoration could occur, and where
He could establish His church without its light being snuffed out by a state
religion or paganism. But a god who was not omniscient might have attempted to
establish his restored church in beleaguered
The Lord's determination of timing is
also tied to His omniscience. But even mortals can see through the glass of
history "darkly." The readers, for instance, of Barbara Tuchman's
highly researched book about the fourteenth century (A Distant Mirror)
will note how that century included several plagues of the black death (in just
one of these visitations death took one in three of all mortals living between
Iceland and India); the interminable "hundred years" war; and peasant
revolts that racked much of Europe. Hardly the century or the setting that the
Restoration would require! It would also have been a century without printing
presses—no time to bring forth the Book of Mormon!
A god who did not perfectly know his
prophets—and indeed all his spirit children—might have selected a prominent
nineteenth-century clergyman to receive the first vision, only to find later
that the clergyman was bent on taming the truths he thus learned. In order to
make these truths more acceptable to his fellow clergymen, such an individual
might have excised such words as "none" and "all" from the
message of that theophany in the grove in which the Lord described churches at
the time of the restoration. (Joseph Smith—History 1:19.) The carefully and
divinely selected receiver of that marvelous manifestation, Joseph Smith, had
to suffer and die for repeating those divinely declared words. God's martyrs
are not permitted great concern over public relations, for truth is a
relentless taskmaster.
A god who is not omniscient would
have had difficulty predicting two millennia beforehand the troubled conditions
(including the ominous, multinational military convergence) that will occur in
the Middle East in connection with the second coming of the Savior. (Zechariah
14:2; Revelation 11.) If He did not know all the factors and variables
beforehand, those prophecies and all prophecies would come to naught. These final
scenes of some of the difficulties in the last days, for all someone less than
omniscient might know, could well end up being centered not in the Middle East,
but on the
If God did not know our predilections
and our choices even before we made them, and had not planned accordingly, we
might well have ended up having Joseph Smith born in Manchuria and the Book of
Mormon plates buried in
Though His plans are known to Him,
there is no premature exposure of the Lord's plans. This could bring
unnecessary persecution upon an unready Lord's people. Further, a premature
showing of His power and strength in support of His Saints could cut short the
trial of our faith.
Where God has immersed His people for
His purposes in larger events, we do not, therefore, always see secular history
that confirms spiritual happenings. (See D&C 121:12.) For instance, there
appears to be no conclusive secular record of Moses and the Exodus in Egyptian
history. There is even some disagreement among scholars about which pharaoh was
the pharaoh of the Exodus.
Human history has its limitations,
but obscurity its usefulness.
Traditional discussions of
omniscience ignore the fact that this attribute is much more than God's simply
noticing and observing everything as it happens. It is a remarkable thing for
God to notice every sparrow that falls. But God could be fully noticing and
aware—and yet still be surprised, along with the rest of us. Yet the living God
is aware of all things before they unfold. This supernal dimension of
knowledge is a part of omniscience!
Because of His omniscience and
foreknowledge, God is, therefore, able to see His plan unfold safely. If He
were less than omniscient and did not, in fact, operate out of perfect
foreknowledge, His plan of salvation would by now be in shambles.
The Father needed to know, for
instance (and know long before assignments were given in the premortal world),
that Jesus Christ would not break in Gethsemane or upon
One might multiply examples of this
foreknowledge which grows out of God's omniscience, end upon end. Suffice it to
say, we are safe in knowing that one of the perfected attributes of our Father
in heaven is knowledge. No wonder the Prophet Joseph taught that if men do not
comprehend the character of God, they do not comprehend themselves.
God is never surprised (fantasy
stories to the contrary) by unexpected arrivals in the spirit world because of
unforeseen deaths. But we must always distinguish between God's being able to
foresee and His causing or desiring something to happen, a very important
distinction! God foresaw the fall of His beloved David but did not cause it.
(See D&C 132:39.) Sending for Bathsheba was David's decision, and even her
battle-weary husband Uriah's sleeping loyally by David's door was not enough to
bring a by then devious and determined David to his senses. (2 Samuel 11:9.)
By foreseeing, God can plan and His
purposes can be fulfilled, but He does this in a way that does not in the least
compromise our individual free agency, any more than an able meteorologist
causes the weather rather than forecasts it. Part of the reason for this is our
forgetfulness of our earlier experiences and the present inaccessibility of the
knowledge and understanding we achieved there. The basic reason, of course, is
that, as we decide and act, we do not know what God knows. Our decisions are made
in our context, not His.
This mortal probation (of which the
Gods said before we came here, "Let us prove them herewith") is,
therefore, a perfectly arranged test. We will all end up kneeling and saying to
God that He has been perfect in His justice and His mercy. In fact, we will
acknowledge that we deserve the reward, or lack of it, which we one day will
receive!
Perhaps it helps to emphasize—more
than we sometimes do—that our first estate featured learning of a cognitive
type, and it was surely a much longer span than that of our second estate, and
the tutoring so much better and more direct.
The second estate, however, is one
that emphasizes experiential learning through applying, proving,
and testing. We learn cognitively here too, just as a good university
examination also teaches even as it tests us. In any event, the books of the
first estate are now closed to us, and the present test is, therefore, very
real. We have moved, as it were, from first-estate theory to
second-estate laboratory. It is here that our Christlike characteristics
are further shaped and our spiritual skills are thus strengthened.
Such a transition in emphasis
understandably produces genuine anxiety, for to be "proved herewith"
suggests a stern test, a test that must roll forward to completion or else all
that has been invested up to that point would be at risk.
Some find the doctrines of the
omniscience and foreknowledge of God troubling because these seem, in some way,
to constrict their individual agency. This concern springs out of a failure to
distinguish between how it is that God knows with perfection what is to come
but that we do not know, thus letting a very clear and simple doctrine get
obscured by our own finite view of things.
Personality patterns, habits, strengths,
and weaknesses observed by God over a long period in the premortal world would
give God a perfect understanding of what we would do under a given set of
circumstances—especially when He knows the circumstances to come. Just because we
cannot compute all the variables, just because we cannot extrapolate
does not mean that He cannot do so. Omniscience is, of course, one of
the essences of Godhood; it sets Him apart in such an awesome way from all of
us even though, on a smaller scale, we manage to do a little foreseeing
ourselves at times with our own children even with our rather finite and
imperfect minds.
Ever to be emphasized, however, is
the reality that God's "seeing" is not the same thing as His
"causing" something to happen.
We must not approach God as if He
were somehow constrained by finite knowledge and by time. A useful and
illustrative episode is the one involving the prophet Elisha and his young
manservant. The prophet could see that a surrounded
In a very real sense, all we need to know is that God knows all!
If one searches for still other
reasons as to why the doctrine of the omniscience of God is a stumbling block
for some, some of these are attributable to the democratic age in which we live
with its inordinate efforts at equalizing everything, rather than achieving
justice. The deification of man and the subsequent deep disappointment with man
have both happened within decades of each other. It has been a time of terrible
wrenching for the humanist and the optimist.
The dashed plans of mankind have led
many people to a despair and disappointment with life and with themselves.
Mortals then impute their deficiencies, somehow, to Divinity.
Yet was it not God who, from the
beginning, reminded earthlings that the wisdom of men is foolishness? We are
only discovering, afresh, what He has long told us about all man's puny efforts
that do not rely upon Him. Mortals are fretting over the weakened arm of flesh,
but God has told us for centuries to beware of those biceps!
This mortal shortfall not only
results from the tiny databank men have accumulated—compared to God's—but it
also occurs because of the quality and nature of such information as men have
collected in that tiny databank. Mortals are, in fact, "ever learning, and
never able to come to the knowledge of the truth." (2 Timothy 3:7.) So
much of the secular data men have accumulated is accurate, but ultimately
unimportant. Even learning useful things has often diverted mankind from
learning crucial things.
Furthermore, let us not forget that
great insight given us about the premortal world. The ascendancy of Jesus
Christ (among all of our spirit brothers and sisters) is clearly set forth. Of
Him it was said that He is "more intelligent than they all." (Abraham
3:19.) This means that Jesus knows more about astrophysics than all the humans
who have ever lived, who live now, and who will yet live. Likewise, the same
may be said about any other topic or subject. Moreover, what the Lord knows is,
fortunately, vastly more—not just barely more—than the
combination of what all mortals know.
Even with the "brightest and the
best," for instance, the current scientific competency in predicting
earthquakes is a very inexact science. Scientists recently predicted a major
quake along
Prophecy, happily, springs from very
exact knowledge in the mind of the Lord Jesus Christ and God the Eternal
Father, and it is surely very exacting in our lives as we experience its
fulfillment.
God's omniscience is not stressed
herein merely to put man down. We are His sons and daughters, and it is good
that we seek to be like Him, including becoming perfect in knowledge. But it is
the mark of an apt pupil to recognize what he does not know and from whom he
can learn more. We must not let our foolish pride insulate us from the reality
of God's omniscience and the implications that flow from it, touching so many
facets of our daily lives.
There is little doubt, for instance,
but that a goodly portion of our pride proceeds from some assumptions we make
about ourselves and our lives—assumptions that are at first soothing but very
wrong. We think, for instance, that we "own" ourselves. It is
perfectly true that our individual identity is guaranteed, that we are agents
for ourselves, and so forth—but this truth, when it is torn away from other
realities, gives us a very lopsided view of things. Without the ransoming
atonement of the Savior, we would be stranded souls, doomed to die with no hope
of the resurrection or of individual immortality. We were literally purchased
by Jesus. (Acts 20:28.) Quite true, we do not yet have to acknowledge that
reality, though someday we will. Nor are we now even forced to follow the
conditions that the Purchaser laid down. So, in a sense, we are quite free to
do as we please, just as if we were our "own."
But it is a terrible illusion, an
illusion that will be shattered by His second coming and the judgment.
Meanwhile, the illusion is kept alive because some want to believe it. The
resistance to feeling owned spreads to our not wanting to be reminded of how
very dependent we are upon God. If we do not come to know God and to love Him,
this resentment of reality can become very real.
This illusion underwrites the false
assumptions that we make about our time, our talents, and our possessions that
each of us sees as "mine." We may even feel noble when we give of our
time and means, and we are apt to be somewhat grumpy if anyone, especially a
prophet, reminds us that all that we have belongs to God anyway.
It never quite strikes home to most
of us that to give two hours in church or neighborly service would not even be
possible if God did not give us breath itself from moment to moment and did not
keep that tiny but marvelous pump, the heart, working from second to second.
King Benjamin's sermon about how God
supports us from moment to moment as well as immediately blesses us (when we
keep His commandments) was not designed to be a popular sermon in
self-sufficient times like ours. For us to be called "unprofitable
servants" and to be reminded that even our bodies are made of the dust of
the earth that also "belongeth to him"—these are hard sayings that
bruise our pride. (Mosiah 2:21-25.) Unless—unless, through humility and
obedience, we can transform feeling owned into a grand sense of belonging, and
being purchased into gratitude for being rescued, and dependency into
appreciation for being tutored by an omniscient God, which He does in order
that we might become more dependable and have more independence and scope for
service in the future.
It is very fortunate that an
omniscient God is likewise perfect in His love; otherwise He might not say to
us, "This is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and
eternal life of man." (Moses 1:39.) Indeed, if God were omniscient and
omnipotent and not also omniloving, where would we be?
Therefore, our childish concerns over
being owned and over being too dependent upon Him would merely be amusing if
such attitudes did not carry within them the possibility of tragedy. The myopic
pride that fails to acknowledge these overarching realities and says, "I
am the Captain of my soul," fails to see that "corporal of my
soul" would be at least somewhat closer to the truth.
In sum, what we know of God and His
attributes we learn from Him—directly and through His prophets. It is
significant that in none of His direct pronouncements has the Father declared
anything that suggests He is less than omniscient. Qualifying words simply do
not appear! It is mortal speculation (which wrongly emphasizes that He is like
us, rather than that we are to become like Him) that is the source of erroneous
expressions that God is somehow less than omniscient.
Moreover, even the speculation that
God would tell us that He is less than omniscient if we could but
understand is in error; it quickly dissolves in the presence of another
absolute trait of God—that He cannot lie. (Titus 1:2.)
When we assert mortal qualifiers
about God's omniscience, even with seemingly good motives, it is but our
attempt to democratize Deity, to pull God down; fortunately, His work and glory
is to lift us up, and His is the work that will finally prevail.
Therefore, in order for us to develop
trust in God to see us through all these things, we must have a measure of
understanding about His nature, including His omniscience. The Prophet Joseph
Smith said it was the first principle of real religion to know the true nature
of God. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 345.)
Jesus Christ said in His great high
priestly prayer, "And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the
only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3.)
The myopic and despairing soul-cry
and question, "If there is a God, why does He permit suffering?"
reflects a basic failure to understand the very nature of life with its
components of chastening and suffering. And as for that question, it is not
difficult to imagine who originated it, however understandably sincere some are
who now raise it. The question strikes at the heart of Father's plan, because
it comes from him who rejected that plan!
The future duties to be given to some
of us in the worlds to come by an omniscient God will require of us an earned
sense of esteem as well as proof of our competency. Thus the tests given to us
here are given not because God is in doubt as to the outcome, but because we
need to grow in order to be able to serve with full effectiveness in the
eternity to come.
Further, to be untested and unproven
is also to be unaware of all that we are. If we are unknowing of our
possibilities, with what could we safely be entrusted? Could we in ignorance of
our capacities trust ourselves? Could others then be entrusted to us?
Thus the relentless love of our
Father in heaven is such that in His omniscience, He will not allow the cutting
short some of the brief experiences we are having here. To do so would
be to deprive us of everlasting experiences and great joy there. What
else would an omniscient and loving Father do, even if we plead otherwise? He
must at times say no.
Furthermore, since there was no
exemption from suffering for Christ, how can there be one for us? Do we really
want immunity from adversity? Especially when certain kinds of suffering can
aid our growth in this life? To deprive ourselves of those experiences, much as
we might momentarily like to, would be to deprive ourselves of the outcomes
over which we shouted with anticipated joy when this life's experiences were
explained to us so long ago, in the world before we came here.
Life is a school in which we enrolled
not only voluntarily but rejoicingly; and if the school's Headmaster employs a
curriculum—proven, again and again on other planets, to bring happiness to
participants—and if we agreed that once we were enrolled there would be no
withdrawals, and also to undergo examinations that would truly test our ability
and perceptivity, what would an experienced Headmaster do if, later on, there
were complaints? Especially if, in His seeming absence, many of the school
children tore up their guiding notebooks and demanded that He stop the
examinations since these produced some pain? There is, to use jargon from
American higher education, no way to "CLEP" the examinations of the
second estate; one learns by taking the full course!
Even in the context of acknowledging
His omniscience, the chastening experiences of life are difficult enough for us
to bear. We could not trust in the perfectness of God's judgment if we did not
first know that He foresaw and carefully calibrated our chastening and learning
experiences accordingly.
In order for "all these
things" to make sense, we must come to understand that God has "all
sense." Only then can we repose with confidence in His perfect love!
(Neal A.
Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1979], 6.)
(Ezekiel 1:26-28.) –
Ezekiel’s Throne Theophany
26 ¶ And above the
firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne,
as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was
the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it.
27 And I saw as the colour
of amber, as the appearance of fire round about within it, from the appearance
of his loins even upward, and from the appearance of his loins even downward, I
saw as it were the appearance of fire, and it had brightness round about.
28 As the appearance of
the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance
of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness
of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I
heard a voice of one that spake.
(Doctrine and Covenants
76:92-93.) – Joseph Smith’s Throne Theophany
92 And thus we saw the
glory of the celestial, which excels in all things—where God, even the Father,
reigns upon his throne forever and ever;
93 Before whose throne all
things bow in humble reverence, and give him glory forever and ever.
Acts 7 –
Stephen teaches about God appearing to man outside of the temple, verse
47. Heaven is my throne; God is not
confined to a building.
God knows
what needs to happen to bring about His purposes.
The phrase Son of man
is used more in Ezekiel then in any other book of scripture, the footnote in
chapter 2:1 gives the explanation that the phrase is a Hebrew idiom meaning
human and is not to be confused to the same title which refers to Christ. In the New Testament (Greek) it is in upper
case, there isn’t upper or lower case in Hebrew.
The Son of Man
In ancient literature, there are two
senses in which the title Son of Man is employed: in a generic sense with the
meaning "human being" and in a more formal sense, employed largely in
later Jewish literature, referring to the one who is to come on the clouds of
heaven to deliver the righteous from their oppressors, and to judge the inhabitants
of the earth (Higgins 15-17; Fitzmyer 8, 20; Daniel 7:13-14; I Enoch chapters
37-71). In the Old Testament, it is almost without exception that the phrase
represents the less formal of the two. One thinks immediately of the phrase
used by the Lord to address the prophet Ezekiel (Ezek. 2:4Ezekiel 2:1-8;
3:1-10). In the case of his work, the prophet was addressed consistently by the
Hebrew phrase ben-'adham, son of man. While there are those who have
argued that it was this Ezekielic use of the phrase that stood behind its
application to Jesus in the New Testament (Higgins 15-16), it is far more
likely that the more formal sense conveyed in Daniel 7:13 lies closer to the
meaning of Jesus' sayings about the Son of Man fn
I saw in the night visions, and,
behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the
Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him
dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages,
should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass
away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed. Although most non-LDS
scholars now accept the point of view that the critical phrase is to be
translated with the indefinite article "like a Son of man" and
not the definite one "like the Son of man" (Higgins 16,
emphasis added; Bruce 130; the Revised Standard Version), the force is hardly
diminished. For it is clear that this Son of Man was to be given "an
everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away," plainly underscoring the
formal, divinely royal sense of the appellation. And it is this notion which
stands closer to what we see noted about the Son of Man in both the Similitudes
of Enoch and the New Testament gospels. Let us now take up the issue of the
conception of the Son of Man as it appears in the Enochian literature and then
turn to the New Testament.
(H. Donl
Peterson and Charles D. Tate, Jr., eds., The Pearl of Great Price:
Revelations from God [Provo: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1989], 58.)
(Ezekiel 2:1-10.)
1 And he said unto me, Son
of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee.
2 And the spirit entered
into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that
spake unto me.
3 And he said unto me, Son
of man, I send thee to the children of
4 For they are
impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt
say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.
5 And they, whether they
will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious
house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.
6 ¶ And thou, son of man,
be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and
thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid
of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a
rebellious house.
7 And thou shalt speak my
words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they
are most rebellious.
8 But thou, son of man,
hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house:
open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.
9 ¶ And when I looked,
behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was
therein;
10 And he spread it before
me; and it was written within and without: and there was written
therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.
Reserving
Judgment on Gospel Issues
Not Fully Understood
Bruce R. McConkie
All gospel mysteries
become plain and simple and easy to understand once the light of heaven sheds
its darkness-dispelling rays into the hearts and souls of sincere seekers of
truth.
It is almost superfluous to suggest that those who seek the truth and desire
understanding will, by instinct, reserve judgment on issues they may not
understand (as, for instance, that Christ is both the Father and the Son; or
that the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are one God in a sense far greater than
merely being one in purpose) until the mystery of godliness, on whatever point
is involved, has been set forth in full. (The Promised Messiah,
pp.5-6)
LORD God = Jehovah
Elohim “He is Gods” this name has a far deeper meaning which Elder McConkie
alludes to.
LORD GOD = Jehovah, as in the Old Testament, Jesus Christ,
one with the Father, this isn’t as simple as we make it out to be.
Ezekiel is using a different name for Jehovah. We demean Heavenly Father when we say that
Jesus Christ is the God of the Old Testament.
He is the Father of all, we don’t understand the role of Heavenly Father
and we need to study this mystery.
Ezekiel 3:2-21.)
Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that
thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of
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
5 For thou art not
sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the
house of
6 Not to many people of a
strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand.
Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee.
7 But the house of
8 Behold, I have made thy
face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their
foreheads.
9 As an adamant harder
than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at
their looks, though they be a rebellious house.
10 Moreover he said unto
me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine
heart, and hear with thine ears.
11 And go, get thee to
them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them,
and tell them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; whether they will hear, or whether they
will forbear.
12 Then the spirit took me
up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, saying, Blessed be
the glory of the LORD from his place.
13 I heard also the
noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the
noise of the wheels over against them, and a noise of a great rushing.
14 So the spirit lifted me
up, and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but
the hand of the LORD was strong upon me.
15 ¶ Then I came to them
of the captivity at Tel-abib, that dwelt by the
16 And it came to pass at
the end of seven days, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
17 Son of man, I have made
thee a watchman unto the house of
18 When I say unto the
wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to
warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man
shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness,
nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy
soul.
20 Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his
righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he
shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin,
and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood
will I require at thine hand.
21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that
the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is
warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.
D&C 77:14. Ezekiel also was asked to open his
mouth and eat the book that was given to him. The writing on both sides
contained "lamentations, and mourning, and woe. Moreover he said unto me,
Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house
of
(Robert L. Millet and Kent P. Jackson, eds., Studies in
Scripture, Vol. 1: The Doctrine and Covenants [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book
Co., 1989], 276.)
Ezekiel was called as a
Watchman over the people; his was a voice of warning. Don’t hold back, remember who called you to
the work. Like Stake Presidents and
Bishops today, they are to help the saints come unto Christ, turn (repent) of
our sins. If they don’t warn us they
will be held accountable before God.
They can save themselves and I can save myself by warning them.
Verse 19 – The Hebrew (shuv) means to turn, for us it means
to repent, Elder Burton’s talk.
The reminder that Ezekiel is a
watchman whose responsibility is to warn is repeated later in the book of
Ezekiel (33:1-9) in greater detail.
Even if a prophet knows the people
will not repent as a result of his preaching, he must still warn in order that
his garments might be clean from the blood of that generation. (See Jacob
1:18-19.)The prophet Mormon cautions that even though the people reject the
message of missionaries, prophets, or other representatives of God because of
their own "hardness, let us labor diligently; for if we should be brought
under condemnation; for we have a labor to perform whilst in this tabernacle of
clay, that we may conquer the enemy of all righteousness, and rest our souls in
the kingdom of God." (Moro. 9:6.)
In modern times, Spencer W. Kimball
has taught the importance of this principle:
I am sure that Peter and James and
Paul found it unpleasant business to constantly be calling people to repentance
and warning them of dangers, but they continued unflinchingly. So we, your
leaders, must be everlastingly at it; if young people do not understand them
the fault may be partly ours. But, if we make the true way clear to you, then
we are blameless. (BYUSY, Jan. 5, 1965, p. 6.)
(Daniel H. Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Old
Testament [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1981], 332 - 333.)
The Watchman (Ezek. 33)
Chapter 33 repeats themes that were
first introduced in Ezekiel 3:17-21 and 18:20-32. Ezekiel was called to be a
"watchman" for his people, a metaphor that is explained clearly in
33:2-9. A watchman's responsibility was to warn his people of the coming of
invading armies. If he fulfilled his responsibility and warned them, he would
be guiltless if they fell to the sword. But if he failed to warn them, God
would require their blood "at the watchman's hand" (Ezek. 33:6). The
Lord told Ezekiel that his prophetic call carried the same weight of
responsibility. If he warned the people with God's message and they refused to listen,
he would be innocent of the consequences that they would bear. If, however, he
failed to warn them as commanded, God would require their blood at Ezekiel's
hand (Ezek. 33:7-8). Because of this responsibility that comes to those who are
called to serve, Lehi's sons Jacob and Joseph magnified their callings, lest
they "would not be found spotless at the last day" (Jacob 1:18-19).
fn
The Lord cares much less about whom
he should blame for our wrongdoings than that we overcome them and be blessed.
"I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked," he said, "but
that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil
ways; for why will ye die, O house of
The last section of chapter 33 (vv.
21-33) begins with the announcement that
Had the people not been warned? Had
Ezekiel and other prophets not been watchmen to let them know that these
disasters would come? Indeed they had been warned, but their rejection of God's
prophets was one of the causes of their sorrows. As the Lord told Ezekiel,
"they hear thy words, but they will not do them" (Ezek. 33:31).
Because the watchman had raised his voice and the people had not obeyed, they
would carry the full burden of their sins. Ezekiel had foretold the
consequences of their behavior, and when they would be forced to the
realization that his prophecies had come true—as they surely would—then they
would know "that a prophet hath been among them" (Ezek. 33:33).
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1
Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 292.)
(Ezekiel 4:1-8.)
1 Thou also, son of man,
take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even
2 And lay siege against
it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also
against it, and set battering rams against it round about.
3 Moreover take thou unto
thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the
city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay
siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of
4 Lie thou also upon thy
left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of
5 For I have laid upon
thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three
hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of
6 And when thou hast
accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the
iniquity of the house of
7 Therefore thou shalt set
thy face toward the siege of
8 And, behold, I will lay
bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till
thou hast ended the days of thy siege.
5 years before
The people need to know he is the
Lord’s mouthpiece. They start to listen
and follow him; of course the majority rejects his message.
4:1-17 son of man, take thee a tile,
and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even
As a mode of communicating with his
people, Ezekiel was to use symbolic objects, illustrations, and acts. Some of
them are described in this and the next chapter. It was fitting that Ezekiel,
who was called and instructed by spectacular visual revelations, was also to
use visual aids to instruct the people Ezek. 4:1-8).
A portrayal on a clay tablet and a
small model demonstration were used to show the Babylonian siege of
Next, the prophet was shown
symbolically that he had to counter the rebelliousness
Ezekiel's third demonstration was to
prepare and eat a small amount of mixed-grain bread (about one-half pound) and
a small amount of water (about one quart) each day for a period of time to
symbolize the defiled and limited food they would eat in captivity. The polluted fuel for baking the bread was
so repulsive that he objected and was given a less objectionable option.
The message was that lack of proper food and drink was part of the price the
people paid for infidelity.
(Ellis T. Rasmussen, A Latter-day
Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake City: Deseret, 1993],
586.)
The Lord is reasonable to Ezekiel’s
complaint. He was a priest and wanted to obey the Law, the Lord was not harsh
to him.
Ezekiel: Prophet of Judgment, Prophet
of Promise
Gerald N. Lund
As I looked over the assignment to
cover the entire book of Ezekiel in a fifty-minute lecture, it occurred to me
that the job is somewhat analogous to trying to guide a tour of
The same problems are encountered in
trying to cover Ezekiel in an hour's time. We can choose three or four special
areas, focus on them in some detail, and tell you that the rest are also
interesting. Or we can give an overview, orienting you to the layout of the
book, so that when you return to it with more time you can find your own way
about.
Obviously, if that is really what we
are limited to, both options have their frustrations and their drawbacks. But I
choose the second option. We are going to discuss the book of Ezekiel using the
"monorail" approach. I accept the inherent frustrations in that
approach with the hope that, when you come back to Ezekiel on your own, you
will be better oriented, will know what to look for, and will therefore have a
more meaningful experience.
As I look at the book of Ezekiel, I
find four points of orientation that help us chart our course. They are all
interdependent and interwoven, but still can be seen as four ways to view
Ezekiel. They are: (1) Ezekiel the man, (2) Ezekiel the captive, (3) Ezekiel
the answerer, and (4) Ezekiel the writer.
Ezekiel the man
Considering the length of his book,
we know surprisingly little about Ezekiel the man. His name means "God
strengthens," fn or, as one scholar translated it, "God will
prevail" or "whom God has strengthened." fn This name is
significant and appropriate.
We know from his own record that he
was the son of Buzi (unfortunately we don't know who Buzi was), and that he was
a priest (Ezekiel 1:3). Almost certainly he was carried away captive into
Josephus says that Ezekiel was
carried away when he was young, implying that he may have been a young man or
even a boy. fn That he was a boy doesn't seem likely, however, for several
reasons. First, it was in the fifth year of his exile that he was called to be
a prophet (Ezekiel 1:2). Second, in chapter 4, verse 14, Ezekiel spoke of his
youth as though it was long past. Third, in the ninth year of his captivity,
Ezekiel's wife died (Ezekiel 24:16-18), which again would seem to imply that he
was a little older man. Finally, Ezekiel 1:1 contains an interesting phrase to
consider: "Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth
month, in the fifth day of the month" (emphasis added). Though Ezekiel
doesn't say the thirtieth year of what, some scholars have assumed that maybe
it was the thirtieth year of his own life. If that were the case, he would have
been about twenty-five when he was taken into captivity. However, if it refers
to the thirtieth year of his captivity, we cannot say for sure how old he was.
(See similar dating references in Ezekiel 29:17; 31:1; etc.)
In two or three places in Ezekiel, we
learn that while he was in exile the elders of the Jews came to his home to
counsel with him (for example, see Ezekiel 8:1; 14:1; 20:1). Most often they
rejected his counsel, but it is interesting that he functioned as a prophet in
a very personal, face-to-face setting. It was for this reason that one scholar
referred to him as a "pastor as well as prophet." fn
We know from Ezekiel's own record
that he lived among the exiles in Tel Abib (Ezekiel 1:1, 3; 3:15), which seems
to have been a colony of the Jewish exiles on the river Chebar, probably a
small tributary of the Euphrates a little east of the city of Babylon itself.
He spent his life among the captives, and the record indicates that he
ministered for at least twenty-two years after his call as a prophet. Some
questionable traditions indicate that he died a martyr at the hands of one of
the Jewish leaders offended by his prophecies. fn Beyond that we know virtually
nothing more about Ezekiel the man.
However, the Book of Mormon provides
one additional interesting insight. In 1 Nephi 1:4, Nephi writes, "For it
came to pass in the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah,
king of Judah, (my father Lehi, having dwelt at Jerusalem in all his days); and
in that same year there came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that
they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed" (emphasis
added). Ezekiel was contemporary with Lehi and could easily have been one of
those prophets. We know the names of four of the prophets of that day—Lehi,
Ezekiel, Jeremiah, and Daniel. Lehi's call was to lead a colony out of
Ezekiel the Captive
When I talk about Ezekiel the
captive, I refer to the historical setting in which he lived and wrote. And to
do that I first need to talk about some historical and prophetic antecedents
which are relevant to his time. Then we also need to explain the historical
setting in which Ezekiel was found.
Probably the most important
historical and prophetic antecedent dates back to Moses and his warnings to the
people of
The second historical precedent was
the echoing of Moses' warning by virtually every prophet after Moses. Joshua,
Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, Amos, Hosea, Micah—everywhere we look, the prophets are
found reminding
That event should have been such a
graphic demonstration of the principle of spiritual survival—turn to God and
live or face destruction—that Judah would have repented. But less than a
century later, we find
Now let us look at the historical
setting of Ezekiel's own day. In 612 B.C.,
But
Even though Jehoiakim was now a
vassal king to
About 598 B.C. (traditional dating)
Nebuchadnezzar decided to teach
In 2 Kings 24 we read the final
outcome of this event. The passage beginning in verse 14 is particularly
noteworthy in our study of Ezekiel: "And he carried away all
"And he carried away Jehoiachin
to
"And all the men of might, even
seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths a thousand," and so on, and so
on.
So Nebuchadnezzar virtually took the
entire upper and middle classes of
During the next ten years, Zedekiah,
who was appointed to replace Jehoiachin as the ruler in
Then a second interesting event
happened. Two prophets, Jeremiah and Ezekiel, reportedly uttered
"contradictory" prophecies. Because these two prophecies seemed to
directly contradict each other, Zedekiah rationalized that the two true
prophets couldn't be trusted and went on listening to the false prophets. Let's
examine the "contradictory" prophecies.
Jeremiah 34:2-3 says: "Thus
saith the Lord, the God of Israel; Go and speak to Zedekiah king of
"And thou [Zedekiah] shalt not
escape out of his hand, but shalt surely be taken, and delivered into his hand;
[and then notice this phrase] and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the
king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth, and thou
shalt go to Babylon" (emphasis added). That is Jeremiah's prophecy.
But in Ezekiel 12:13,Ezekiel said of
Zedekiah, "My net also will I spread upon him, and he shall be taken in my
snare: and I will bring him to
It is obvious why the king thought
the two prophets contradicted each other. Jeremiah said Zedekiah would look
into the eyes of the king of
But of course they did not contradict
each other. The fulfillment is an interesting one. When Nebuchadnezzar came a
third time and conquered
But whatever the cause, Zedekiah and
Judah did not repent. Again they revolted against
That is the historical setting in
which Ezekiel lived and prophesied. Without an understanding of those
circumstances, the meaning of Ezekiel's writings will largely remain obscure.
fn
Ezekiel the Answerer
In the face of Nebuchadnezzar's
successes in
1. Is
2. If God is really God, and we
are really his chosen people, why is he allowing this to happen?
3. If we are being destroyed for
being like the other nations (which Ezekiel and other prophets had said
many times), then why aren't those nations destroyed?
4. What will this tragedy mean for
the covenant? What will happen to all of the promises God has made about
Now, those are some profound
questions, and Ezekiel answered each one of them. And in fact, it is in
understanding those questions and seeing how Ezekiel sought to answer them that
we gain the greatest insights into his book. As much of his work is aimed at
answering those questions, let's take them one at a time.
1. Is
In chapter 24 we read that Ezekiel's
wife died on the very day Nebuchadnezzar besieged
"Son of man, behold, I take away
from thee the desire of thine eyes [that is a hebrew euphemism for wife] with a
stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run
down.
"Forbear to cry, make no
mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy
shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
"So I spake unto the people in
the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning [within twelve
hours of his wife's death!] as I was commanded." (Emphasis added.)
Isn't that something? The Lord said
in essence that the death of Ezekiel's wife would serve as a type and symbol of
So in answer to the people's first
question, "Will Jerusalem really be destroyed?" Ezekiel gives a clear
and unmistakable answer—yes.
2. If God is really God, and we
are really his chosen people, why is he allowing this to happen? To this
second question, once again Ezekiel answers that God is God and
Ezekiel 5:8: It is the Lord specifically who
executes these judgments.
Ezekiel 7:4: The Lord not only
refuses to have pity but specifically states, "I will recompense thy ways
upon thee."
Ezekiel 7:19: Riches and wealth were
"the stumblingblock of their iniquity."
Ezekiel 8: This entire chapter is
devoted to a vision of the wickedness of
Ezekiel 16: This chapter contains a
scathing denunciation of
And so Ezekiel's answer to the second
question thunders out again and again.
3. The third question raised by the
tragedy of
His second answer is also clear and
simple: Whoever said that the other nations are exempt from the wrath of the
Lord? Chapters 25 to 32 and chapter 35 describe the judgments that would come
or had already come upon Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyre, Sidon, Egypt,
Assyria, and Babylon. While these nations were sometimes used by the Lord as
the rods for punishing
4. The fourth question which arises
out of the tragedy of these times asks: If Jerusalem is destroyed, if the
temple is lost, if we are scattered among the Gentiles, what does this mean
for the covenant? Are we totally rejected by God? Are the promises and
prophecies now set aside?
In his answer to the first three
questions Ezekiel is a "prophet of judgment," but his answers to this
final question make him a prophet of promise." A careful study of his
writings shows that even the most harsh and caustic predictions and judgments
were counterbalanced by an immediate addendum of hope. For example, after
making dire and specific predictions of Jerusalem's destruction through famine,
pestilence, war, and cannibalism (see Ezekiel 5:5-17), after predicting that
Israel will be smitten with such devastation that the bones of the people will
lie unburied at the altars of their false gods (see Ezekiel 6:4-5), the Lord
tells Ezekiel: "Yet will I leave a remnant. ...And they that escape of you
shall remember me among the nations. ...And they shall know that I am the
Lord." (Ezekiel 6:8-10.)
Chapters 7 through 11 give an unremitting,
uncompromising picture of
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord
God; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the
countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the
And they shall come thither, and they
shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations
thereof from thence.
And I will give them one heart, and I
will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their
flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:
That they may walk in my statutes,
and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will
be their God. (Ezekiel 11:17-20.)
This pattern of judgment and hope is
repeated over and over. Earlier in this article, mention was made of the
scathing denunciation of
Additionally, we find in Ezekiel's
writings some of the grandest and most promising prophecies of
1. Israel will return to the covenant
and experience an eventual conversion to the gospel (Ezekiel 6:8-10; 11:17-20;
16:60-63; 17:22-24; 20:33-44; 33:11-16; 36:25-28; 37:1-14).
2.
3. The
4. Latter-day scripture will be
joined with the writings of Judah (Ezekiel 37:15-20).
5. Joseph and Judah will become one
nation again, united under the gospel covenant (Ezekiel 37:21-25).
6. The temple will be rebuilt in
7. The nations of the world will
gather against
8.
What a message of hope and
inspiration, and note how directly each of those prophecies serves to answer
these questions. Has the Lord forgotten
Ezekiel the Writer
Our final area of examination is to
look at the organization of Ezekiel's book. The text gives no clue to who
collected and organized his writings into the book we now find in the Old
Testament. It may have been Ezekiel himself, but whoever did it seems to have
understood the four basic questions and Ezekiel's answers to them. Note the
following structure:
Chapters 1-3 God is God, he is real
and has all power. He
has called me, Ezekiel, as his prophet.
Chapters 4-24 Because of idolatry,
wickedness, and rejection
of the covenant,
be destroyed and
Chapters 25-32 The surrounding
nations are likewise going
to reap the judgments of God because of
their wickedness.
Chapters 33-48 But God will still
fulfill the covenants he
made with the ancient patriarchs.
will not be totally destroyed. In the future
they will be restored to their lands,
converted
to the true covenant, have righteous
prophets, rebuild their temple, and accept
the Messiah as their ruler.
Summary and Conclusion
There you have it—a quick
"monorail ride" around Ezekiel. I admit that we have had to ignore
much that is of great interest, much that is of great worth. And while this
approach has been somewhat frustrating and incomplete, at least I hope you will
return at your own leisure to read the book of Ezekiel and to study him in
depth, using this introduction to help you find greater satisfaction and
fruitfulness.
Notes
Footnotes
1. J.D. Douglas, ed., The New
Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.,
1962), p. 406.
2. Samuel Fallows, The Popular and
Critical Bible Encyclopedia, 3 vols. (Chicago: Howard-Severance Co., 1911),
1:639.
3. Flavius Josephus, Josephus:
Complete Works, trans. William Whiston (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Kregel
Publications, 1960), Antiquities of the Jews 10.6.3.
4. James Hastings, ed., Dictionary
of the Bible (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1909), p. 251.
5. Ibid.; Fallows, 1:639.
6. See also Josephus, Wars of the
Jews, 6.4.4.
7. Josephus, Antiquities of the
Jews, 10.6.3.
8. For excellent summaries of this
period of history see Harry Thomas Frank, Discovering the Biblical World
(New York: Harper and Row, 1975), pp. 124-30; Michael Avi-Yonah, ed., A
History of the Holy Land (Jerusalem: Jerusalem Publishing House, 1969), pp.
90-97; Great People of the Bible and How They Lived (Pleasantville,
N.Y.: Reader's Digest, 1974), pp. 230-45.
(Monte S.
Nyman, ed., Isaiah and the Prophets: Inspired Voices from the Old Testament
[Provo: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1984], 75.)
Ezekiel 6-10
November 16, 2006
Bruce gave
a review of chapters 4 and 5, and the respective object lessons.
(Ezekiel 4:14-15.)
14 Then said I, Ah Lord
GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted: for from my youth up even till now
have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither
came there abominable flesh into my mouth.
15 Then he said unto me,
Lo, I have given thee cow's dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy
bread therewith.
It is interesting how Ezekiel asked
for clarification of the use of dung.
Use cow dung, you don’t need to use man’s dung. Frankly during a siege how many cows would be
alive?
Although Ezekiel was a prophet to the
Israelitish exiles in Babylonia, he was permitted to see in vision what would
happen to the Israelites who were still around
The Book of Mormon indicates that
some residents of
Similar prophecies concerning
cannibalism among Israelites in
(Daniel H.
Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Old Testament [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1981], 334.)
(Ezekiel 5:2-4.)
And thou, son of man, take thee a sharp knife,
take thee a barber's razor, and cause it to pass upon thine head and
upon thy beard: then take thee balances to weigh, and divide the hair.
2 Thou shalt burn with
fire a third part in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are
fulfilled: and thou shalt take a third part, and smite about it with a
knife: and a third part thou shalt scatter in the wind; and I will draw out a
sword after them.
3 Thou shalt also take
thereof a few in number, and bind them in thy skirts.
4 Then take of them again,
and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; for
thereof shall a fire come forth into all the house of
1/3 – Burnt
>>> 1/3 – Slain by sword >>> 1/3 – Scattered to the wind
Judgment upon the Mountains of
Whereas Ezekiel's words in chapters 4
and 5 were directed primarily to the community in exile in
In chapter 7, it is no longer the
single community but the whole of the people who are addressed. "Over and
over the prophet repeats his devastating message until his words pound the
reader like a hammer. Disaster approaches. An end has come upon the land. Doom
is near. God will not spare any of the people and will not pity them. The
people are helpless against the approaching enemy. Prophets, priests, elders,
and king are terrified and can do nothing. God will be known to Israel only in
the irreversible judgment that will repay the people for their sins." fn
This section is redolent of the terror of the "Day of the Lord"
prophecies found in other prophets, perhaps most notably Amos (5:18-20; 8:1-14)
and Isaiah (chap. 13), in which God would approach Israel, for good or ill, in
judgment.
(Ezekiel 6:2-10., 13
And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face
toward the mountains of
3 And say, Ye mountains of
Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the
mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys; Behold, I, even
I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places.
4 And your altars shall be
desolate, and your images shall be broken: and I will cast down your slain men
before your idols.
5 And I will lay the dead
carcases of the children of
6 In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste,
and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and
made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be
cut down, and your works may be abolished.
7 And the slain shall fall
in the midst of you, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
8 ¶ Yet will I leave a
remnant, that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among the
nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries.
9 And they that escape of
you shall remember me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives,
because I am broken with their whorish heart, which hath departed from me, and
with their eyes, which go a whoring after their idols: and they shall lothe
themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.
10 And they shall know
that I am the LORD, and that I have not said in vain that I would
do this evil unto them.
13 Then shall ye know that I am the LORD, when their
slain men shall be among their idols round about their altars, upon every
high hill, in all the tops of the mountains, and under every green tree, and
under every thick oak, the place where they did offer sweet savour to all their
idols.
What are the high places? 1 Samuel 9: 9-22 & 1 Kings 3:1-5. There were altars of sacrifice (animal) and
altars of incense (prayer). Many people could be there they could spend several
days there and they ate and slept there. They also worshipped various gods
besides Jehovah.
They are not temples! Yet a priesthood class ran them before there
was a temple. They were hard to destroy
because of the people’s idolatry.
There was an importance emphasis on
trees, Genesis 12:6-7, Joshua 24:23-26:
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,
which leaves the grammatical number doubtful. Etymologically the long
ā (
)
indicates derivation from a non-extant root, 
.
The meaning is assured. The only point in doubt is whether the bamah
originally received its name from the circumstance that it was located on a
towering elevation or from the possible fact that, independently of its
location, it was itself a raised construction. The latter view seems the
more reasonable.The use in Assyrian of "bamati" in the sense of
"mountains" or "hill country," as opposed to the
plains, as well as similar implications in Hebrew (II Sam. i. 19,
"high places" parallel to the "mountains" in II Sam. i.
21; comp. Micah iii. 12; Josh. xxvi. 18; Ezek. xxxvi. 2; Num. xxi. 28), is
secondary. Because the bamah was often located on a hilltop; it gave its
name to the mountain. The reverse is difficult to assume in view of the
fact that the bamah is often differentiated from the supporting elevation
(Ezek. vi. 3; I Kings xi. 7, xiv. 23), and that bamot were found in valleys
(Jer. vii. 31, xix. 5, xxxii. 35; Ezek. l.c.) and in cities (I Kings
xiii. 32; II Kings xvii. 9, xxiii. 5) at their gates (II Kings xxiii. 8). 
(Ezek.
vi. 3; II Kings xxxi. 3), 
(Lev.
xxvi. 30), 
(II
Kings xxiii. 8, 15; II Chron. xxxi. 1), and 
(II
Kings xxiii. 15). If "ramah" (Ezek. xvi. 24, 31) is an equivalent
for "bamah," as it seems to be, the verbs denoting its erection (
and 
)
offer additional evidence. Moreover, the figurative value of the term in
the idioms "tread upon high places" (e.g., in Deut.
xxxiii. 29), "ride on high places" (e.g., Deut. xxxii.
13), where "fortress" is held to be its meaning, supports the
foregoing view. The conquest of any city, the defeat of any tribe, included
in ancient days the discomfiture of the deities, and hence the destruction
or the disuse of their sanctuaries. Even in Ps. xviii. 34 (Hebr.) the word
has this implication. "To place one on one's bamot" signifies to
give one success (comp. Hab. iii. 19; Amos iv. 13; Micah i. 3; Job ix. 8;
Isa. xiv. 14, lviii. 14), or to recognize orassert one's superiority.
Attached to these high places were priests ("kohanim": I Kings
xii. 32; xiii. 2, 23; II Kings xvii. 32, xxiii. 20; called also
"kemarim"; II Kings xxiii. 5), as well as "
from 
in
nif'al, "to join oneself to"). At these bamot joyous festivals
were celebrated (Hosea ii. 13 [A. V. 15], 15[17]; ix. 4) with libations and
sacrifices (ib. ii. 5 [7], iii. 1); tithes were brought to them
(Gen. xxviii. 20-22; Amos iv. 4); and clan, family, or individual
sacrifices were offered at them (I Sam. ix. 11; Deut. xii. 5-8, 11; the
prohibition proving the prevalence of the practise). It was there that
solemn covenants were ratified (Ex. xxi. 6, xxii. 8 [7]) and councils held
(I Sam. xxii. 6, LXX.).
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Again and again the Lord has warned
the Church about following other voices, as, for example, at D&C 43:5:
"This shall be a law unto you, that ye receive not the
teachings of any that shall come before you as revelations or commandments; and
this I give unto you that you may not be deceived, that you may know they
are not of me" (emphasis added).
This verse of scripture deserves much
more attention than it gets. This is a law, a commandment from
God every bit as binding on the members as "Thou shalt not kill" and
"Thou shalt not steal," maybe even more so since it was given
specifically to the Church in these latter days. If we are to avoid deception,
we are commanded by God not to listen to anyone who purports to reveal
his doctrine or his will other than the properly called, sustained, and
ordained priesthood leadership. Period. No ifs, ands, or buts—no exceptions.
This includes religion teachers, fn authors, neighbors, rumors, newspapers,
television, so-called "intellectuals," prevailing scientific opinion,
returned missionaries, brothers-in-law, business partners, housewives,
boyfriends, girlfriends, political candidates, a "friend of a
friend," a "guy in my ward," mystics, gurus, and "real
spiritual people." (Have I left anyone out?) Do we get the message here?
Nobody talks for God but God and those properly called by God and properly
sustained by the Church to represent him and conduct his business here on earth. I find the blind, ignorant compulsion of
so many of the Saints to break this commandment and follow this guru or that
self-appointed teacher as scandalous and inexplicable as the compulsion of
ancient Israel to worship idols in the groves and high places of the Canaanites.
Certainly the stupidity required and the results obtained are the same in both
cases.
(Stephen E. Robinson, Following
Christ: The Parable of the Divers and More Good News [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1995], 99 - 100.)
(Ezekiel 8:1-18.)
1 And it came to pass in
the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the
month, as I sat in mine house, and the elders of
2 Then I beheld, and lo a
likeness as the appearance of fire: from the appearance of his loins even
downward, fire; and from his loins even upward, as the appearance of
brightness, as the colour of amber.
3 And he put forth the
form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me
up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to
Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was
the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.
4 And, behold, the glory
of the God of Israel was there, according to the vision that I saw in
the plain.
5 ¶ Then said he unto me,
Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up
mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold northward at the gate of the
altar this image of jealousy in the entry.
6 He said furthermore unto
me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations
that the house of
7 ¶ And he brought me to
the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall.
8 Then said he unto me,
Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a
door.
9 And he said unto me, Go
in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here.
10 So I went in and saw;
and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the
idols of the house of
11 And there stood before
them seventy men of the ancients of the house of
12 Then said he unto me,
Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of
13 ¶ He said also unto me,
Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they
do.
14 Then he brought me to
the door of the gate of the LORD's house which was toward the north;
and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz.
15 ¶ Then said he unto me,
Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou
shalt see greater abominations than these.
16 And he brought me into
the inner court of the LORD's house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of
the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty
men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the
east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.
17 ¶ Then he said unto me,
Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of
18 Therefore will I also
deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though
they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.
Ezerkiel is now the 2nd
witness to the wickedness of the people.
8:1-18 the spirit lifted me up
between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to
This vision came a year and two months
after Ezekiel's first vision and allowed him to perceive the flagrant idol
worship right in the temple at
He was shown idols and idolatrous
worship at the north gate and in secret chambers (with elders participating);
he saw also at the door of the north gate that women supplicated a nature god
and eastward in front of the temple men worshipped the sun god while turning
their backs on the temple. With a now unknown obscene gesture involving a
branch and the nose, they spurned the Lord. It is evident that virtually
everyone had turned to other gods for help, knowing that the living God was
against them (Ezek. 8:5-18).
(Ellis T. Rasmussen, A Latter-day
Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake City: Deseret, 1993],
589.)
The 4 Abominations
- Image of Jealousy – vs 3
- Praying to images on the wall – a secret men’s
anmal cult worship, hidden from the outside world vs 7
- Women worship false gods Dumuzi and Inanna, the
Babylonian gods of fertility this is a women’s cult Bruce wrote an article
about them, it isn’t on the website, it’s an historical article not a
religious one. vs 13-14
- A prayer ritual facing the sun (eastern
direction) with their backs to the Lord’s temple, they prostrate
themselves before the sun with their backsides facing the Lord’s house! vs
16-18 Yikes!
A final kind of idolatry, one that caused the Lord's presence to depart
from his people as invading armies advanced on them (Ezekiel 8:6; 9:1-11),
concerns the pollution of the temple by idols. Several kinds of idolatry
polluted the house of God anciently, including the symbol of envy, fn a
man-made idol situated at the inner entrance and exit (Ezekiel 8:3, 5). Men
also viewed all manner of images portrayed against a wall (Ezekiel 8:10-12);
elders of
Because the Lord's people polluted
the house of God by setting up their abominations in it (Jeremiah 7:30;
23:11), the temple proved no place of protection for them in the time of
judgment (Jeremiah 7:4-10). When
(John M. Lundquist and Stephen D.
Ricks, eds., By Study and Also by Faith: Essays in Honor of Hugh W. Nibley
on the Occasion of His Eightieth Birthday, 27 March 1990, 2 vols. [Salt Lake
City and Provo: Deseret Book Co., Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon
Studies, 1990], 2: 398.)
(Ezekiel 9:2-11.)
He cried also in mine ears
with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw
near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand.
2 And, behold, six men
came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every
man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed
with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood
beside the brasen altar.
3 And the glory of the God
of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of
the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the
writer's inkhorn by his side;
4 And the LORD said unto
him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set
a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the
abominations that be done in the midst thereof.
5 ¶ And to the others he
said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your
eye spare, neither have ye pity:
6 Slay utterly old and
young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man
upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the
ancient men which were before the house.
7 And he said unto them,
Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they
went forth, and slew in the city.
8 ¶ And it came to pass,
while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and
cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou destroy all the residue of
9 Then said he unto me,
The iniquity of the house of
10 And as for me also,
mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will
recompense their way upon their head.
11 And, behold, the man
clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the
matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me.
The Apostle John used portions of
Ezekiel in his book of Revelation.
Remember the early saints had the Old Testament as their scriptures,
they understood Ezekiel’s visions. The
destroying angels are described in chapter 9.
Linen = white robes
The glory of God is leaving the
temple and Ezekiel watches His glory leaving the temple and
Verse 4 – the mark is X, those who
still have the Light of Christ and feel badly for what is happening receive the
mark on their forehead.
D&C 1:8-10. The servants of the
Lord have been given "power to seal." Ancient seals were used either
to stamp the name of the owner, or some other mark of identification, on a
document, or other object. Some seals were signet rings, worn on the hand;
others were quite large affairs. In Ezek.
9:4-6, the man in linen garment was commanded to place a "mark"—the
letter Tav, our T—on the foreheads of those who did not partake in the
abominations practiced in
(Hyrum M. Smith and Janne M. Sjodahl,
Doctrine and Covenants Commentary [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1978], 6.)
A similar pattern is found in the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel sees in
vision six men come to
It is interesting that in the last
days, the final cleansing of the earth also begins at the Lord's house:
"Upon my house shall it begin, and from my house shall it go forth, saith
the Lord; first among those among you, saith the Lord, who have professed to
know my name and have not known me, and have blasphemed against me in the midst
of my house, saith the Lord." (D&C 112:25-26.)
In all three examples, Revelation,
Exodus, and Ezekiel, a mark or seal of some sort was placed upon those who were
to be protected from the forces of destruction. We learn from the book of
Revelation that in our day that mark or seal will be the "name of the
Father." We learn from the dedicatory prayer of the
I do not wish to suggest there is
some mystical manner in which we receive the name of the Father in the temple.
We must be wise as we interpret and apply symbolic language. The early
Israelites were told by Moses to "bind" the commandment to "love
the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might
. . . for a sign upon thine hand, and . . . as frontlets between thine
eyes." (Deuteronomy 6:5-8.) In other words, the love and worship of God
was to be constantly before their eyes, and their whole lives were to be guided
by that love. They would have, in essence, an "eye single to the glory of
God." (D&C 4:5.)
When we love and serve God with all
our heart, soul, and might, we are truly his children. His name is upon us,
just as the name of my own earthly father is upon me. We belong to his family
and carry his name. Where, if not in the temple, do we as members of the Church
promise that we will love and serve God with all our heart, soul, and might?
Where are our eyes directed so completely to the glory of the Lord? When we
make and strive to keep our covenants, his name is upon us. Then we need not
fear the powers of the destroyer. The destroyer will pass us over. He cannot
prevail, even though his forces are combined. His threatened entry into our
homes and lives will be opposed.
In Revelation, John promised the
Saints from
(S. Michael Wilcox, House of
Glory: Finding Personal Meaning in the Temple [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book
Co., 1995], 52.)
This is symbolic, yet we know from
the object lesson of chapter 5 what would really happen. Little children died because their parents
did not have the light of Christ, remember where little children go at death. It is far better for them there then on earth
in a wicked condition. They had no
chance in mortality.
Chapter 10 is like chapter 1. The Lord is ready to leave; the fire is a
symbol of cleansing. This is a picture
of His omnipresence, wings, faces, etc. . . .
Those who were destroyed are those who turned their back on His light
and glory, they rejected Jehovah. God’s
Spirit will not always strive with man, He has been there to help, but they
rejected Him.
Verse 19 – Cherubs face east, they
are leaving in that direction. Why?
The Departure of the Lord's Glory from the
In Ezekiel 8 through 11, the picture
of aberrant worship was reinforced when the prophet was shown an idol being
worshiped in the temple, fn men praying toward the sun (forbidden in Deut.
4:19) with their backs to the temple (Ezek. 8:14-16), fn and women
participating in mourning rites for Tammuz (Dumuzi), the ancient dying and
rising fertility god of Mesopotamia, whose annual journey to the underworld was
the occasion for wailing among his worshipers. When Tammuz died in the fourth
month of the year (at the summer solstice), he descended into the netherworld,
taking all his rain clouds with him. He needed to be resurrected in the autumn,
in time for the beginning of the rainy season. Meanwhile, his consort descended
after him to call him back from death. fn
The visionary judgment against the
temple began when God called six armed executioners of the city, who approached
the temple from the north, the traditional invasion route of enemy armies and
the direction from which divine judgment was usually thought to come. They were
accompanied by a scribe clothed in linen, the traditional garb of priests (Ex.
28:29-42) and angels (Dan. 10:5; 12:6). The Lord commanded the scribe to put a
mark (the Hebrew letter taw, which originally had the appearance of our
X) on all of the people in
The theological significance of this
section is considerable. Many at
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 274.)
This is a
portion of a
The Early Oracles of
Ezekiel
In 598-597 B.C. (600 B.C.
Book of Mormon time),
Shortly after this, the
prophet Jeremiah was shown a vision of two baskets of figs, one full of good
figs and the other full of poor figs (Jer. 24). He was told that the basket of
poor figs represented Zedekiah and all the Jews who remained in
On the other hand, the
basket of good figs represented those who had been exiled to
Ezekiel, a priest who had
been among those exiled, was called of God to help the Jews undergo the change
of heart that would prepare them for their eventual return. He was made “a
watchman unto the house of
Ezekiel began to receive
revelations and visions mid-way between the 597 B. C. exile (see Ezek. 1:2) and
the final siege and destruction of
Then he made clear that
The hearts of the people of
In language similar to that
used of the people living in the days of Noah before the flood (see Gen. 6:13)
the Lord said of Judah and Jerusalem: “the end is come upon the four corners of
the land [of Judah]... for the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city [of
Jerusalem] is full of violence” (Ezek. 7: 2, 23). The people of
The Vision of the
Corrupted
In 592 B.C., Ezekiel was
taken in vision to
At first he was taken to a
gate on the northern wall of the city[4]
, where he saw an altar with “the image of jealousy”[5]
(Ezek. 8:3,5) [6]
. Just as the northern kingdom saw an increase in the number of altars
throughout the land before its destruction (Hosea 8:11; 10:1), Ezekiel
witnessed the same proliferation among the Jews in
Next, Ezekiel was shown a
secret chamber in the wall near a gate leading into the inner court directly
surrounding the temple.[8]
Within the chamber he saw men practicing secret rites associated with images of
“every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the
house of
In an attempt to justify
their actions, the men said, “The LORD seeth us not; the LORD hath forsaken the
earth” (Ezek. 8:7-12). Instead of repenting of their actions and pleading that
the Lord would return, Jehovah’s absence was used as a justification for their
worship of pagan deities.
Ezekiel was brought within
the northern gate of the inner court immediately surrounding the temple. The
inner court and the temple were designed to be the central place of Jehovah
worship. But Ezekiel witnessed that Jehovah was no longer honored nor
worshiped. Immediately upon his entrance into the inner court, his attention
was drawn to the sound of several women sitting near where he stood, who were
“weeping for Tammuz” (Ezek. 8:13-14), a Mesopotamian fertility deity, whose
annual death and resurrection rites were accompanied by mourners weeping upon
his death [9].
After gazing upon this
scene, the Lord told Ezekiel to focus his attention on the area between the
altar and the porch of the temple, an area of great sanctity. Only the temple
itself was more sacred. [10]
In this place of holiness, Ezekiel saw twenty-five men “with their backs toward
the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshiped
[Heb. shachah, to bow down][11]
the sun toward the east” (Ezek. 8:16).
Whether these men were
involved in pagan solar worship, such as was found in Egypt or Mesopotamia, or
a form a solarized Jehovah worship as some have suggested [12],
what it is clear is that their actions were seen by the Lord as abominable
(Ezek. 8:17). It was a deliberate affront to true Jehovah worship. In the area
where priests would pray to Jehovah in behalf of
Ezekiel was told that these
contemptible cultic actions were superseded only by the general social corruption
of the people. The Lord said: “Is it a light thing to the house of
As in Ezekiel 7:23, the
language of their social corruptions is reminiscent of the people in the days
of Noah. Having literally turned their backs upon the light of Christ, the
people had given themselves over to the “will of the flesh and the evil which
is therein” (2 Nephi 2:29).
Following the desires of the
natural man, like those in the days of Noah, “every imagination of the thoughts
of [their] heart[s] was only evil continually” (Gen. 6:5; cf. Moses 8:22).
Ignoring the light of Christ, the Jews lost their agency. The Lord was forced
to destroy them for their own good and the good of their children. “Therefore,”
the Lord told Ezekiel, “will I also deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare,
neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice,
yet will I not hear them” (Ezek. 8:18).
The Withdrawal of the
Glory of the Lord
As he had seen the wickedness
of the Jews in successive degrees, Ezekiel witnessed the withdrawal of the
light of Christ in successive stages. While in the inner court, Ezekiel heard
the Lord call for the servants whose assignment was to destroy
Then “the glory of the God
of Israel,” which had filled the house of the Lord at the time of Solomon’s
dedication of the temple (1 Kings 8:10-11), and presumably had remained there,
moved from the holy of holies to the threshold of the temple. Remember that
those who were worshiping in the hidden chamber justified their actions
claiming that the Lord had abandoned them (see Ezek. 8:12). But the truth was,
the Lord had not abandoned them. His glory or light was still there.
The moving of the glory of
the Lord to the threshold of the temple was the first stage of the Lord’s
abandonment of his people. But he would not abandon them to their destruction
until all the righteous had been removed. He commanded the man with the
writer’s inkwell attached to his side to go throughout
The other six men were told
to follow him and destroy all whom had no mark. When the man with the inkhorn
returned from his assignment, he was told to get coals from between the
cherubim, which acted as the throne where the glory of the Lord rested, and “scatter
them over the city” (Ezek. 10:2). This signified that
As the man did so, the glory
of the Lord moved from the threshold to the east gate of the temple (Ezek.
10:18-19). Ezekiel was taken by the Spirit to the same place (Ezek. 11:1) where
he witnessed further apostasy of the people of
Their being left behind,
however, was not intended to justify their wicked actions. Rather their
wickedness would justify their destruction. Ezekiel was commanded to prophesy
against them, saying, “And I will bring you out of the midst thereof, and
deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will execute judgments among you.
Ye shall fall by the sword... And ye shall know that I am the LORD: for ye have
not walked in my statutes, neither executed my judgments, but have done after
the manners of the heathen that are round about you” (Ezek. 11:9-10, 12).
Ezekiel asked the Lord,
“wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of
This is a key verse. Though
If Israel would respond to
the light of Christ and come unto the Lord, the Lord would “give them one
heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart
out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: That they may walk in
my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my
people, and I will be their God” (Ezek. 11:19-20).
Ezekiel was later shown that
the remnant of
References:
1.
See Gospel Doctrine Lesson 43 in
2.
C.U. Wolf, “Watchman,” in The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the
Bible, 4 Vols. (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1962), 4:806.
3.
Carely, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 51.
4.
The Hebrew text of Ezekiel 8:3, 5 is difficult lending itself to
various possible translations. The text however seems to suggest that the altar
and image of jealousy were located next to the northern city gate which would
have been north of the northern gate of the inner court where Ezekiel was first
set down. Among those who hold this view, see: S. Fish, Ezekiel (London:
Soncino, 1985), p. 42; Carley, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 52; Walther
Zimmerli, Ezekiel 1 (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1979), p. 238. But others
(such as Daniel I. Block, The Book of Ezekiel Chapters 1-24 [
5.
Many have suggested that the image was the Canaanite fertility
goddess, Asherah [see Carley, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 53; Moshe
Greenberg, Ezekiel 1-20 (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1983), p. 168; Fisch,
Ezekiel, p. 42]. But Zimmerli does not think so (Ezekiel 1, pp. 238-239).
6.
High places with the images of pagan deities were often placed
near the gates of cities (see 2 Kings 23:8) as can be seen, for example, at the
Iron Age gates of Tel Dan [see Avraham Biran, “Dan,” in The New Encyclopedia of
Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land, 4 Vols. Ephraim Stern, ed. (New
York: Simon & Schuster, 1993),1:323-332; also Avraham Biran, “Sacred Spaces
of Standing Stones, High Places and Cult Objects at Tel Dan,” Biblical
Archaeology Review, Sep/Oct 1998 (Vol. 24 No. 5), pp. 38-45, 70] and Bethsaida
(et-Tel) [see Rami Arav, et al., “Bethsaida Rediscovered,” Biblical Archaeology
Review, Jan/Feb 2000 (Vol. 26 No.1), pp. 45-56].
7.
This corroborates Jeremiah’s testimony wherein he said, “according
to the number of the streets of
8.
For an excellent discussion of the layout of Solomon’s temple
including surrounding courts, see Victor V. Hurowitz, “Inside Solomon’s
Temple,” Bible Review (April 1994), pp. 24-37, 50. For other discussions, see
Roland de Vaux, Ancient Israel: Vol. 2 Religious Institutions (New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1961), pp. 312-322; Menahem Haran,
9.
There is scholarly debate the as to the exact nature of Tammuz
(Dumuzi) worship. See, O.R. Gurney, “Tammuz Reconsidered: Some Recent
Developments,” Journal of Semitic Studies 7 (1962), pp. 142-160; Thorkild
Jacbosen, “Toward the Image of Tammuz,” in Toward the Image of Tammuz and Other
Essays on Mesopotamian History and Culture, ed. W. L. Moran (Cambridge, Mass.:
Harvard, 1970), pp. 73-103); Samuel Noah Kramer, The Sacred Marriage Rite
(Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1969), pp. 107-133; Edwin M.
Yamauchi, “Tammuz and the Bible,” Journal of Biblical Literature 84 (1965), pp.
283-290.
10. Later rabbis considered
the area between the altar and the porch of the temple one of the most sacred
areas in the land. The Mishnah describes “ten degrees of holiness” beginning
with the
11. The form shachah is found
this verse is mishtachawithem, which is unusual. It appears to be a participle
with a second masculine singlular perfect sufformative. Some scholars (such as
Zimmerli, Ezekiel 1, pp. 221 and Block, The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 1-24, p.
296, n. 70) assign this to scribal error feeling the word should be written
mishtachawim, the normal rendering of worship. However, the Rabbis
traditionally explained this unusual form as a compound of mashchithim (they
destroy) and mishtachawim (they worship). They see in the word as it is
presently rendered the dual nature of the abomination being acted out before
the Lord: the worship of the sun god would bring about the destruction of the
temple (see Fisch, Ezekiel, p. 45).
12. Zimmerli, Ezekiel 1, pp.
243-244.
13. The primary use of chamas
in the Old Testament is in societal contexts: oppression, injustice, and false
accusation based upon greed. But chamas can be taken to the point of physical
violence and destruction. For a greater understanding of this word, see H.
Haag, “Chamas,” in Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament.
Presently 10 vols. Edited By G. Johannes Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren (Grand
Rapids, Mich: Eerdmans, 1980), 4: 478-487.
14.
President Marion G.
Romney taught that the light of Christ may be experienced in three phases:
first, the light which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world;
second, the gift of the Holy Ghost; and third, is the second comforter obtained
through the more sure word of prophecy when one’s calling and election is made
sure (see “The Light of Christ,” Ensign [May 1977], pp. 43-45). In order to
obtain the fulness of the light of Christ one must experience all three phases.
These three phases are central to temple worship and are represented in modern
temples through various stages of the endowment. These three phases can also be
seen in the layout of Solomon’s temple. The first phase may be represented by
the area outside of the temple including both outer and inner courts. The
second phase may be represented by the holy place that housed, among other
things, the seven branched candelabra. The third phase may be represented by
the holy of holies with its ark of the covenant.
Ezekiel 11-20
November 30, 2006
Bruce had a
lot of ground to cover so he hit and missed a few chapters tonight.
The loss of
light in
(Ezekiel 11:1-15.)
1 Moreover the spirit
lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate of the LORD's house, which
looketh eastward: and behold at the door of the gate five and twenty men; among
whom I saw Jaazaniah the son of Azur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes
of the people.
2 Then said he unto me,
Son of man, these are the men that devise mischief, and give wicked
counsel in this city:
3 Which say, It is
not near; let us build houses: this city is the caldron, and we be
the flesh.
4 ¶ Therefore prophesy
against them, prophesy, O son of man.
5 And the Spirit of the
LORD fell upon me, and said unto me, Speak; Thus saith the LORD; Thus have ye
said, O house of Israel: for I know the things that come into your mind, every
one of them.
6 Ye have multiplied your
slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets thereof with the slain.
7 Therefore thus saith the
Lord GOD; Your slain whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they are the
flesh, and this city is the caldron: but I will bring you forth out of
the midst of it.
8 Ye have feared the
sword; and I will bring a sword upon you, saith the Lord GOD.
9 And I will bring you out
of the midst thereof, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will
execute judgments among you.
10 Ye shall fall by the
sword; I will judge you in the border of
11 This city shall
not be your caldron, neither shall ye be the flesh in the midst thereof; but
I will judge you in the border of
12 And ye shall know that I am the LORD: for ye have
not walked in my statutes, neither executed my judgments, but have done after
the manners of the heathen that are round about you.
13 ¶ And it came to pass,
when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon
my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou make a
full end of the remnant of
14 Again the word of the
LORD came unto me, saying,
15 Son of man, thy
brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house
of
11:1-16 Son of man, these are the men
that devise mischief, and give wicked counsel in this city
Yet, before his vision of
Even as Ezekiel had prophesied, one
of the leaders, Pelatiah, died. The prophet wondered whether that instant
punishment signaled the beginning of the end of the "remnant of
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 590.)
(Ezekiel 11:16-25.) –
Sanctuary = Temples around the world, the Latter Day restoration.
16 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD: Although I have
cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among
the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries
where they shall come.
17 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather
you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered,
and I will give you the land of Israel.
18 And they shall come
thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the
abominations thereof from thence.
19 And I will give them
one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony
heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:
20 That they may walk in
my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my
people, and I will be their God.
21 But as for them
whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their
abominations, I will recompense their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord
GOD.
22 ¶ Then did the cherubims lift up their wings, and the
wheels beside them; and the glory of the God of
23 And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the
city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.
24 ¶ Afterwards the spirit
took me up, and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God into
25 Then I spake unto them
of the captivity all the things that the LORD had shewed me.
Vs 19 = Jeremiah 34:31-34
The light of Christ is now removed
from the city; it isn’t too far away on the
11:17-25 Thus saith the Lord God; I
will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries
where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel
As is usual in connection with prophecies of the scattering and exile of
Some important corollary promises were added: the former abominations in
idolatrous worship will exist no more, for the people will be of "one
heart"; a "new spirit within" will be given. The unreceptive
attitude called "the stony heart" will be replaced by a receptive and
sensitive "heart of flesh." True worship of the true God will then
resume.
This marvelous vision of Ezekiel concluded when the cherubim and the
wheeled throne-chariot bearing the Glory of the Lord moved up and away from the
midst of the city, to hover for a time over the mount (of Olives) east of the
city and then depart. Then the Spirit returned the prophet to
(Ellis T.
Rasmussen, A Latter-day Saint Commentary on the Old Testament [Salt Lake
City: Deseret, 1993], 590.)
Symbols and Prophecies of Exile (Ezek. 12-14)
In sight of the exiles in
Then the interpretation of the
pantomime is given, and the entire act is interpreted as a type of what would
happen to the people: "Like as I have done, so shall it be done unto them:
they shall remove and go into captivity" (Ezek. 12:11). The symbolic acts
of the prophets are similar to the simile curses found in the ancient Near
East, fn in which a curse is dramatized by some kind of symbolic action. fn
Such "simile curses,"
explicit or implied, are to be found in the Book of Mormon as well as elsewhere
in the Old Testament. In Alma 46, Moroni called upon the people to take up arms
against Amalickiah, in response to which they rent "their garments in
token, or as a covenant, that they would not forsake the Lord their God; or, in
other words, if they should transgress the commandments of God . . . the Lord
should rend them even as they had rent their garments" (Alma 46:21).
Similarly, one of Moroni's soldiers "smote off the scalp of
Zerahemnah" and then "took up the scalp from off the ground by the
hair, and laid it upon the point of his sword, and stretched it forth unto
them, saying unto them with a loud voice: Even as this scalp has fallen to the
earth, which is the scalp of your chief, so shall ye fall to the earth except
ye will deliver up your weapons of war and depart with a covenant of
peace" (Alma 44:13-14).
Ezekiel attacked all false human
hopes (Ezek. 12:21-28; cf. 33:23-29), thereby preparing the ground for a hope
based on God's own purposes (Ezek. 36:16-38). The people would no longer be
able to repeat the proverb, as they had in the past, "The days are
prolonged, and every vision faileth" (Ezek. 12:22). Ezekiel affirmed that
God's words would be fulfilled and that there would not be a long delay in
their fulfillment. Ezekiel also attacked the false prophets and diviners—men
and women— who, through their lying oracles (which one commentator referred to
as "whistling in the dark" fn), had given
Ezekiel's writing is suffused with a
strong sense of the sovereignty of God and his direction of human history.
God's activity in history includes judgment as well as salvation and is
intended to bring the house of
Three Prophetic Allegories (Ezek. 15-17)
To strengthen in the minds of his
readers the certainty of God's judgment against
With striking, graphic, sometimes
shocking language, Ezekiel described
By means of a third allegory (chap.
17), an explanation is given for God's judgment on
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 285.)
We had a
long discussion on agency, the natural man and the light of Christ. Good and evil always have existed and always
will exist, Satan did not create evil he fell to it, and he uses it to entice
man toward evil, while the light of Christ entices man to do well.
The light
of Christ strives with us for our good.
If there was only evil agency would not exist, it would be a wicked
society and the children born into such a place would have no chance.
Agency is
the power to act. The Millennium will
have both choices, good and evil, but the people will choose good thus bound
Satan, at the end however some will choose evil and that ushers the end of the
Millennium.
Free Choice
Free to
Choose Good or Evil
2 Nephi 2
26
And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children
of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they
have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves
and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the
great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.
27
Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them
which are expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and
eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity
and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil; for he seeketh
that all men might be miserable like unto himself.
28
And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and
hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose
eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit;
29
And not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh and the evil
which is therein, which giveth the spirit of the devil power to captivate, to
bring you down to hell, that he may reign over you in his own kingdom.
(Emphasis added)
Brigham Young
Many
are disposed through their own wickedness "to do as I damned please,"
and they are damned. (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.65)
Purpose of Life is to
Learn to Choose
Boyd K. Packer
We
come into mortal life to receive a body and to be tested, to learn to choose.
("The Choice," Ensign, Nov. 1980, p. 21)
We Can Never Make A
Choice Independent of Good or Evil Influences
Henry B. Eyring
They
may mock and deride, as did a man named Korihor, with these words recorded in
the Book of Mormon: "And thus ye lead away this people after the foolish
traditions of your fathers, and according to your own desires; and ye keep them
down, even as it were in bondage, that ye may glut yourselves with the labors
of their hands, that they durst not look up with boldness, and that they durst
not enjoy their rights and privileges" (Alma 30:27).
Korihor
was arguing, as men and women have falsely argued from the beginning of time,
that to take counsel from the servants of God is to surrender God-given rights
of independence. But the argument is false because it misrepresents reality.
When we reject the counsel which comes from God, we do not choose to be
independent of outside influence. We choose another influence. We reject the
protection of a perfectly loving, all-powerful, all-knowing Father in Heaven,
whose whole purpose, as that of His Beloved Son, is to give us eternal life, to
give us all that He has, and to bring us home again in families to the arms of
His love. In rejecting His counsel, we choose the influence of another power,
whose purpose is to make us miserable and whose motive is hatred. We have moral
agency as a gift of God. Rather than the right to choose to be free of
influence, it is the inalienable right to submit ourselves to whichever of
those powers we choose. ("Finding Safety in Counsel," Ensign,
May 1997, p. 25)
The Choice Between Good
and Evil is the Most Important We Will Ever Make
Marion G. Romney
Let
us never forget ... That we are here subject to opposing influences--the
influence of Satan and his followers on the one hand, and the influence of
Christ and his followers on the other hand;
That
as we are being acted upon by these two influences, we are free "to choose
liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose
captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil."
(2 Ne. 2:27.)
It
is important that we keep in mind that the choices we make as we decide what is
good and what is evil are the most important decisions we will ever make. Upon
them depends our happiness or misery throughout time and eternity. ("The
Voice of the Spirit," Ensign, Aug. 1978, p. 4)
Blessings
If We Choose Right Punishments If We Choose Wrong
Neal A. Maxwell
Moral
agency in the face of difficult choices was not for Adam and Eve alone (Moses
7:32; D&C 101:78). There are blessings if we choose aright and penalties if
we choose wrongly. Therefore, attempting to stand between friends and the
consequences of their wrong choices is not realistic; it is not nearly as
useful as being lovingly at their sides before and when choices are being made.
Men and women really are "free to choose" (2 Nephi 2:27), and we
cannot and should not try to have it otherwise. (But for a Small Moment,
p.130)
We Are
Free To Choose Our Responses
Neal A. Maxwell
While
we are not always free to choose just when and how all of life's interactions
will occur, we are nevertheless free to choose our responses to these moments.
("The Pathway of Discipleship," Ensign, Sept. 1998, p. 10)
Marvin J. Ashton
In
God's plan we are usually free to choose the changes we make in our lives and
we are always free to choose how we will respond to the changes that come.
("Progress through Change," Ensign, Nov. 1979, p.61)
Our
Choices May Effect the Next Generation
Neal A. Maxwell
All
are free to choose, of course, and we would not have it otherwise.
Unfortunately, however, when some choose slackness, they are choosing not only
for themselves, but for the next generation and the next. Small equivocations
in parents can produce large deviations in their children! Earlier generations
in a family may have reflected dedication, while some in the current generation
evidence equivocation. Sadly, in the next, some may choose dissension as
erosion takes its toll. ("Settle This in Your Hearts," Ensign, Nov.
1992, pp. 65-66)
Our
Choices Show What We Value
Boyd K. Packer
Our
lives are made up of thousands of everyday choices. Over the years these little
choices will be bundled together and show clearly what we value. ("The
Choice," Ensign, Nov. 1980, p. 21)
Agency and Choice
Agency-A Gift From God
Moses 4
3
Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the
agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him . . .
Moses 7
32
The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship
of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created
them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency;
D&C 101
78
That every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity,
according to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may
be accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment.
Agency, The Foundation
Principle
Marion G. Romney
I
purpose to make a few remarks about the foundation principle upon which the
gospel of Jesus Christ is built, the principle of agency. (Conference Report,
October 1968, p.64)
Agency
Is an Eternal Principle
Brigham Young
The
volition of the creature is free; this is a law of their existence and the Lord
cannot violate his own law; were he to do that, he would cease to be God. He
has placed life and death before his children, and it is for them to choose. If
they choose life, they receive the blessing of life; if they choose death, they
must abide the penalty. This is a law which has always existed from all
eternity, and will continue to exist throughout all the eternities to come.
Every intelligent being must have the power of choice, and God brings forth the
results of the acts of his creatures to promote his Kingdom and subserve his
purposes in the salvation and exaltation of his children. (Discourses of
Brigham Young, p.62)
Agency - The Power to
Act
2 Nephi 2
14
And now, my sons, I speak unto you these things for your profit and learning;
for there is a God, and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the
earth, and all things that in them are, both things to act and things to
be acted upon. (emphasis added)
Dictionary Definitions of Agency
Webster's Collegiate Dictionary-Faculty or state of acting or of
exercising power; action.
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, 11 ed.-The capacity,
condition, or state of action or of exerting power.
Dictionary of Sociology - The term agency is usually juxtaposed to
structure and is often no more than a synonym for action, emphasizing
implicitly the undetermined nature of human action, as opposed to the alleged
determinism of structural theories.
Agency - the Power to Do According to Our Own Will
Mosiah 2
God
"has created you from the beginning, and is preserving you from day to
day, by lending you breath, that ye may live and move and do according to
your own will" (verse 21; emphasis added)
31
Wherefore, he gave commandments unto men, they having first transgressed the
first commandments as to things which were temporal, and becoming as Gods,
knowing good from evil, placing themselves in a state to act, or being
placed in a state to act according to their wills and pleasures, whether to do
evil or to do good- (emphasis added)
Joseph Fielding Smith
This
great gift of agency, that is the privilege given to man to make his own
choice, has never been revoked, and it never will be. It is an eternal
principle giving freedom of thought and action to every soul. No person,
by any decree of the Father, has ever been compelled to do good; no person has
ever been forced to do evil. Each may act for himself. It was Satan's
plan to destroy this agency and force men to do his will. There could be no
satisfactory existence without this great gift. Men must have the privilege to
choose even to the extent that they may rebel against the divine decrees. Of
course salvation and exaltation must come through the free will without
coercion and by individual merit in order that righteous rewards may be given
and proper punishment be meted out to the transgressor. Therefore, when the
great day of the Lord shall come, the wicked who have merited banishment from a
righteous government will be consumed, or the privilege of continuance on the
earth will be denied. (Answers to Gospel Questions, 2:20; emphasis
added)
Agency - The Power to
Choose and Act
Marion G. Romney
Free
agency means the freedom and power to choose and act. Next to life itself, it
is man's most precious inheritance. ("Church Welfare Services' Basic
Principles," Ensign, May 1976, p. 120)
Agency
Given to Choose and Act On Good or Evil Choices
Gordon B.
Mankind
has been given agency to choose between right and wrong. ("Reverence and
Morality," Ensign, May 1987, 47)
Boyd K. Packer
We
want our children and their children to know that the choice of life is not
between fame and obscurity, nor is the choice between wealth and poverty. The
choice is between good and evil, and that is a very different matter indeed.
("The Choice," Ensign, Nov. 1980, p. 21)
Joseph B. Wirthlin
The
Father's plan gave us our agency to choose right or wrong, good or evil so we
can learn, develop, and progress. ("Deep Roots," Ensign, Nov.
1994, p. 75)
David B. Haight
We
have our agency to choose right from wrong, good from evil. But just because
evil exists does not mean that we must partake of it. You cannot do wrong and
feel right. ("A Time for Preparation," Ensign, Nov. 1991, p.
37)
Dallin H. Oaks
When
I say free agency I refer to what the scripture calls agency, which
means an exercise of the will, the power to choose. ("Free Agency and
Freedom," in The Book of Mormon: Second Nephi, The Doctrinal Structure
[Eds. Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate, Jr. Religious Studies Center, BYU,
Provo Utah, 1989] p. 1)
Howard W. Hunter
Today,
I would like to address both groups, members of our church as well as others,
about one of the most important tenets of our faith and one of the most
precious of God's gifts to mankind. It is our freedom, our agency, our
inalienable and divine right to choose what we will believe and what we will
not believe, and to choose what we want to be and what we want to do. I wish to
speak of our responsibility and our opportunity to choose God, and the good,
and eternal life; or to select evil, the destructive, and that which leads to
painful misery and despair. ("The Golden Thread of Choice," Ensign,
Nov. 1989, p. 17)
Neal A. Maxwell
The
vital revelations about the agency of man-our freedom to choose-inevitably
disclose the perfect generosity and justice of God. ("Free to
Choose," in Moving in His Majesty& Power [
Dallin H. Oaks
God
has given us agency--the power to choose between good (the path of life) and
evil (the path of spiritual death and destruction.("Same-Gender Attraction,"
Ensign, Oct. 1995, p. 8)
Good
and Evil Is Determined By God Not Man
Spencer W. Kimball
You
probably think you have found a new freedom: to think wholly for yourself, to
make wholly your own determinations, to criticize and decide for yourself what is
right and wrong. That was decided eternities ago. Right and wrong are not to be
determined by you or me. Those elements were decided for us before our birth.
We have the free agency to do the right or do the wrong, but who are we to
alter those changeless things? We can scoff at sacred things, express our own
little opinions, but remember that millions of men and women with keener minds
than ours, with more erudite training than yours and mine, have said things and
done things more startling, more ugly, more skeptical than you or I could think
of. Millions have gone down the path you are entering. They have all come to
grief or will ultimately. Shall the violin say to Tony Stradivarius, "You
did not make me"? Shall the created thing question the creator? ... (The
Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.160)
Richard G. Scott
Please
understand, no one has the privilege to choose what is right. God reserved that
prerogative to Himself. ("Healing Your Damaged Life," Ensign,
Nov. 1992, p. 61)
Our Choices Can Never Be
Independent of Good or Evil Influences
Henry B. Eyring
Korihor
was arguing, as men and women have falsely argued from the beginning of time,
that to take counsel from the servants of God is to surrender God-given rights
of independence. But the argument is false because it misrepresents reality.
When we reject the counsel which comes from God, we do not choose to be
independent of outside influence. We choose another influence. We reject the
protection of a perfectly loving, all-powerful, all-knowing Father in Heaven,
whose whole purpose, as that of His Beloved Son, is to give us eternal life, to
give us all that He has, and to bring us home again in families to the arms of
His love. In rejecting His counsel, we choose the influence of another power,
whose purpose is to make us miserable and whose motive is hatred. We have moral
agency as a gift of God. Rather than the right to choose to be free of
influence, it is the inalienable right to submit ourselves to whichever of
those powers we choose. ("Finding Safety in Counsel," Ensign,
May 1997, p. 25)
Choice Brings
Consequences
Gordon B.
I
repeat, each of us has a choice between right and wrong. But with that choice
there inevitably will follow consequences. ("Reverence and Morality,"
Ensign, May 1987, p. 47)
Boyd K. Packer
In
mortality men are free to choose, and each choice begets a consequence.
("Atonement, Agency, Accountability," Ensign, May 1988, p.71)
God-Not
Man-Determines Consequences of Actions
Brigham Young
Our
Father controls the results of our acts at his own pleasure, and we cannot
prevent it. Man can produce and control his own acts, but he has no control
over their results. God causes even the wrath of man to praise him, to redound
to his glory and the salvation of his children. (Discourses of Brigham Young,
p.63)
He
has given them the privilege of choosing for themselves, whether it be good or
evil; but the results of our choice is still in his hand. All his children have
the right of making a path for themselves of walking to the right or to the
left, or telling the truth or that which is not true. This right God has given
to all people who dwell on the earth, and they can legislate and act as they
please; but God holds them in his hands, and he will bring forth the results of
his glory, and for the benefit of those who love and serve him, and he will
make the wrath of men to praise him. All of us are in the hands of that God. (Discourses
of Brigham Young, p.62)
Joseph B. Wirthlin
The
Lord has given you the gift of agency (see Moses 7:32) and instructed you
sufficiently to know good from evil (see 2 Ne. 2:5). You are free to choose
(see 2 Ne. 2:27) and are permitted to act (see 2 Ne. 10:23; Hel. 14:30), but
you are not free to choose the consequences. With absolute certainty, choices
of good and right lead to happiness and peace, while choices of sin and evil
eventually lead to unhappiness, sorrow, and misery. ("Running Your
Richard G. Scott
Yes,
moral agency allows you to choose what you will, but you cannot control the
outcome of those choices. Unlike the false creations of man, our Father in
Heaven determines the consequences of your choices. Obedience will yhield
happiness, while ciolation of His commandments will not. ("How To Live
Well Amid Increasing Evil," Ensign, May 2004, pp. 100-103)
The
secret to solve problems in your life will be found in understanding and using
the eternally beneficial interaction of your agency and [God's] truth.
The
Master said: "He that keepeth [the] commandments receiveth truth and
light. …
"Light
and truth forsake that evil one …
"And
that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience,
from the children of men." (D&C 93:28, 37, 39; emphasis added.)
He
also declared, "Every man may act in doctrine and principle, … according
to the moral agency which I have given unto him, that every man may be
accountable … in the day of judgment" (D&C 101:78; italics added).
These
scriptures teach how to overcome the effects of wrong choices, whether they be
lying, stealing, gambling, addiction to alcohol or drugs, immorality,
inflicting abuse, or anything like it. Simply stated, one must use his agency
to obey truth.
When
others give you advice, have you ever said, "I just don't believe the way
you do. Those are your standards and your principles. I have my own"?
Please understand that no one can change truth. Rationalization, overpowering
self-interest, all of the arguments of men, anger, or self-will cannot change
truth. Satan knows that, so he tries to create an atmosphere where one
unwittingly begins to feel that he can not only choose what to do, but can
determine what is right to do. Satan strives to persuade us to live outside
truth by rationalizing our actions as the right of choice.
But
our Eternal Father defined truth and established what is right and wrong before
the creation of this earth. He also fixed the consequences of obedience and
disobedience to those truths. He defended our right to choose our path in life
so that we would grow, develop, and be happy, but we do not have the right
to choose the consequences of our acts. Those who willfully, consistently
disobey His commandments will inevitably learn that truth. Joseph Smith was
inspired to record, "When we obtain any blessing from God, it is by
obedience to that law upon which it is predicated." (D&C 130:21.)
Please
understand, no one has the privilege to choose what is right. God reserved that
prerogative to Himself. Our agency does allow us to choose among alternate
paths, but then we are bound to the consequence God has decreed. Later, if we
don't like where the path takes us, the only out is through repentance.
("Healing Your Damaged Life," Ensign, Nov. 1992, p. 61)
Not Free To Alter
Consequences
Ezra Taft Benson
We
are free to choose, but we are not free to alter the consequences of those
choices. (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p.382)
Not
Free to Escape Consequences of Exercised Agency
Spencer W. Kimball
Of
course we can choose; the free agency is ours, but we cannot escape the consequences
of our choice. (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.195)
Men
have free agency, as the Lord has made clear. They may do right or wrong but
they cannot escape the responsibility of answering for their errors if they are
normal individuals. (The Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, p.159)
Russell M. Nelson
Often,
however, agency is misunderstood. While we are free to choose, once we have
made those choices, we are tied to the consequences of those choices.
("Addiction or Freedom," Ensign, Nov. 1988, p. 7)
We
are free to think. We are free to plan. And then we are free to do. But once an
action has been taken, we are never free from its consequences. ... To clarify
this concept, we can learn from the astronaut. Any time during the selection
process, planning, and preparation, he is free to withdraw. But once the
powerful rocket fuel is ignited, he is no longer free to choose. Now he is
bound by the consequences of his choice. Even if difficulties develop and he
might wish otherwise, the choice made was sealed by action. ("Reverence
for Life," Ensign, May 1985, 13)
Boyd K. Packer
Life
is meant to be a test to see if we will keep the commandments of God. (See 2
Ne. 2:5.) We are free to obey or to ignore the spirit and the letter of the
law. But the agency granted to man is a moral agency. (See D&C 101:78.) We
are not free to break our covenants and escape the consequences.
("Covenants," Ensign, Nov. 1990, p. 84)
Neal A. Maxwell
There
is always at least one victim of iniquity. Yes, I am free to choose, but I can neither
be immune from the consequences of my wrong choices nor avoid accountability.
("Free to Choose," in Moving in His Majesty& Power [
Consequences
to Agency Reach Even to Our Desires
Dallin H. Oaks
God's
law can assign consequences solely on the basis of our innermost thoughts and
desires. There is no uncertainty in the administration of this law. As Ammon
taught King Lamoni, God "looketh down upon all the children of men; and he
knows all the thoughts and intents of the heart; for by his hand were they all
created from the beginning." (
Similarly,
Paul warned the Hebrews that God "is a discerner of the thoughts and
intents of the heart," and "all things are naked and opened unto the
eyes of him." (Heb. 4:12-13.)
In
other words, God judges us not only for our acts, but also for the desires of
our hearts. He has said so again and again. This is a challenging reality, but
it is not surprising. Agency and accountability are eternal principles. We exercise
our free agency not only by what we do, but also by what we decide, or will, or
desire. Restrictions on freedom can deprive us of the power to do, but no one
can deprive us of the power to will or desire. Accountability must therefore
reach and attach consequences to the desires of our hearts. (“The Desires of
Our Hearts," Ensign, June 1986, pp. 64-65)
Agency in Pre-mortality
Howard W. Hunter
There
are, of course, those who, in bitterness and disbelief, have rejected the idea
of an independent spirit in man that is capable of free will and choice and
true liberty.
We
declare a bright and glorious view of God and man to all who will hear, a view
revealed in and illuminated by the restored light of the gospel of Jesus
Christ. We testify of God's loving goodness and of his eternal respect for each
of us, for us as individual children of God and for what each of us may become.
As
our prophet leader, President Ezra Taft Benson has declared, "The Church
of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints proclaims that life is eternal, that it
has purpose. … [God has a] plan … for the benefit and blessing of us, His
children. …
"Basic
to [that] all-important plan is our free agency. …
"The
right of choice … runs like a golden thread throughout the gospel … for the
blessing of His children." (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, Salt
Lake City: Bookcraft, 1988, pp. 80-81.)
Part
of our reassurance about the free, noble, and progressing spirit of man comes
from the glorious realization that we all existed and had our identities, and
our agency, long before we came to this world. To some that will be a new
thought, but the Bible teaches clearly just such an eternal view of life, a
life stretching back before this world was and stretching forward into the
eternities ahead.
God
said to Jeremiah, "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." (Jer. 1:5.) At another time God reminded Job
that "all the sons of God shouted for joy" (Job 38:7) before there
was yet any man or woman on the earth God was creating. The Apostle Paul taught
that God the Father chose us "before the foundation of the world."
(Eph. 1:4.)
Where
and when did all of this happen? Well, it happened long before man's mortal
birth. It happened in a great premortal existence where we developed our
identities and increased our spiritual capabilities by exercising our agency
and making important choices. We developed our intelligence and learned to love
the truth, and we prepared to come to earth to continue our progress.
Our
Father in Heaven wanted our growth to continue in mortality and to be enhanced
by our freedom to choose and learn. He also wanted us to exercise our faith and
our will, especially with a new physical body to master and control. But we
know from both ancient and modern revelation that Satan wished to deny us our
independence and agency in that now-forgotten moment long ago, even as he
wishes to deny them this very hour. Indeed, Satan violently opposed the freedom
of choice offered by the Father, so violently that John in the Revelation
described "war in heaven" (Rev. 12:7) over the matter. Satan would
have coerced us, and he would have robbed us of that most precious of gifts if
he could: our freedom to choose a divine future and the exaltation we all hope
to obtain.
Through
Christ and his valiant defense of our Father's plan, the course of agency and
eternal aspirations prevailed. In that crucial, premortal setting, a major
milestone was passed, a monumental victory was won. As a result, we would be
allowed to continue to pursue what President David O. McKay once described as
the "eternal principle of progress." Later Christ himself would come
to earth, President McKay noted, "to perfect society by perfecting the
individual and only by the exercising of Free Agency can the individual even
approach perfection." (In Conference Report, Apr. 1940, p. 118). [Howard
W. Hunter, "The Golden Thread of Choice," Ensign, Nov. 1989,
p. 18]
We can’t
blame all our sins on Satan, the natural man within us can also choose good or
evil (2 Nephi 2:27-29).
Our spirit
versus the natural man, the spirit is our real self. Satan tries to create an evil environment to
entice us, he is trying to strengthen the natural man, and he manipulates the
environment to get us to fall.
A person
who has been spiritually reborn still has evil tendencies, yet they seek a
righteous environment which strengthens the spirit over the natural man, it can
become a celestial environment.
(Mosiah 3:19.)
19
For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and
will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy
Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the
atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek,
humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord
seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.
The Persistence of the
Natural Man
___________________________________________
Though it is true that that natural
man can be "put off" and men become "a saint" -- or a
spiritual man (Mosiah 3:19) -- this does not mean that the natural man or the
flesh is "dead". We must be careful to recognize the
persistence of the natural man. Note the following statements:
Neal A. Mawell
- Christ’s Atonement, of course, is for super sinners and
the midrange sinners and then good people who make a lot of mistakes but
are not wicked! Each of these acts of drawing upon the Atonement requires
us to put off the natural man. I am persuaded that so much of taking
up the cross daily –- daily, not quarterly or semiannually
–- consists of putting off the natural man (see Mosiah 3:19). Doing
this involves some arduous isometrics -– the old man working against
the new spiritual man. That natural man, as you know, will not go quietly
or easily. And even when he is put off, he has a way of hanging around,
hoping to throw his saddle on us once again. (The Holy Ghost: Glorifying
Christ, Ensign, July 2002, p. 56)
- As you pursue your discipleship and observe the human
scene, do not be surprised or unnerved by the natural man’s relentless
push for preeminence and power. (“The Pathway of Discipleship,” Ensign,
Sept. 1998, p. 13)
- Nor does the natural man or the natural woman go
away quietly or easily. Hence the most grinding form of calisthenics we
will ever know involves the individual isometrics required to put off the
natural man. Time and again, the new self is pitted against the stubborn
old self. Sometimes, just when at last we think the job is done, the old
self reminds us that he or she has not fully departed yet. (“Becoming a
Disciple,” Ensign, June 1996, p. 15)
Brigham Young
- As I have told you, your spirit is continually
warring with the flesh; your spirit dictates one way, your flesh suggests
another, and this brings on the combat. (Journal of Discourses,
3:212)
- When we receive the Gospel, a warfare commences
immediately; Paul says, "for I delight in the law of God, after the
inward man," but I see another law in my members warring against the
law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is
in my members." We have to fight continually, as it were, sword in
hand to make the spirit master of the tabernacle, or the flesh subject to
the law of the spirit. If this warfare is not diligently prosecuted, then
the law of sin prevails, and in consequence of this some apostatize from
the truth when crossing the plains, learn to swear instead of to pray,
become high-minded and high tempered instead of learning to be patient and
humble, and when they arrive in these vallies they feel so self-sufficient
that they consider themselves the only ones that are really right; they
are filled with darkness, the authority of the Spirit is not listened to,
and the law of sin and death is the ruling power in their tabernacles. (Journal
of Discourses, 9:287-288)
If you take away the
light of Christ you have an evil environment, you will do evil. Agency is lost in that society, it’s like
(Moses 8:17.)
17
And the Lord said unto Noah: My Spirit
shall not always strive with man, for he shall know that all flesh shall
die; yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years; and if men do not
repent, I will send in the floods upon them.
(Mormon 2:13-15.)
13 But behold this my joy
was vain, for their sorrowing was not unto repentance, because of the goodness
of God; but it was rather the sorrowing of the damned, because the Lord would
not always suffer them to take happiness in sin.
14 And they did not come
unto Jesus with broken hearts and contrite spirits, but they did curse God, and
wish to die. Nevertheless they would struggle with the sword for their lives.
15 And it came to pass
that my sorrow did return unto me again, and I saw that the day of grace was
passed with them, both temporally and spiritually; for I saw thousands of them
hewn down in open rebellion against their God, and heaped up as dung upon the
face of the land. And thus three hundred and forty and four years had passed
away.
Keep
yourself in a righteous environment, it strengthens the spirit and weakens the
natural man, surround yourself and your family with a righteous atmosphere.
The hope
was with those who had been scattered, the Lord will work with them to bring
them back.
Look how
the older children of Lehi and Ishmael acted by losing the light of Christ
versus the younger children. Lehi had to
get his family out of
(1 Nephi 7:14-15.)
14 For behold, the Spirit
of the Lord ceaseth soon to strive with them; for behold, they have rejected
the prophets, and Jeremiah have they cast into prison. And they have sought to
take away the life of my father, insomuch that they have driven him out of the
land.
15 Now behold, I say unto
you that if ye will return unto
Look at
Ether the only one with the light of Christ during the end of the
Jaredites. Satan seeks all men to be
miserable like himself. He seeks the
total destruction of all.
Bruce went
into great detail on the Light of Christ to a question by a student, it took
the majority of class.
Teachings
Concerning
The Light of Christ
Bruce R. McConkie
There
is a spirit - the Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of Christ, the light of truth,
the light of Christ - that defies description and is beyond mortal
comprehension. It is in us and in all things; it is around us and around all
things; it fills the earth and the heavens and the universe. It is everywhere,
in all immensity, without exception; it is an indwelling, immanent,
ever-present, never-absent spirit. It has neither shape nor form nor
personality. It is not an entity nor a person nor a personage. It has no
agency, does not act independently, and exists not to act but to be acted upon.
As far as we know, it has no substance and is not material, at least as we
measure these things. It is variously described as light and life and law and
truth and power. It is the light of Christ; it is the life that is in all
things; it is the law by which all things are governed; it is truth shining
forth in darkness; it is the power of God who sitteth upon his throne. It may
be that it is also priesthood and faith and omnipotence, for these too are the
power of God.
This light
of truth or light of Christ is seen in the light of the luminaries of heaven;
it is the power by which the sun, moon, and stars, and the earth itself are
made. It is the light that proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill
the immensity of space." It is "the light which is in all things,
which giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are
governed, even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the
bosom of eternity, who is in the midst of all things." It is the agency of
God's power; it is the means and way whereby "he comprehendeth all
things," so that "all things are before him, and all (A New
Witness for the Articles of Faith, pp. 257-258)
First Presidency
Statement (Joseph F.
Smith, Anthon H. Lund, Charles W. Penrose)
There is a
universally diffused essence which is the light and life of the world, which
proceedeth forth from the presence of God throughout the immensity of space,
the light and power of which God bestows in different degrees to "them
that ask him," according to their faith and obedience, but the Holy Ghost,
which Christ said He would send to His apostles from the Father (John 14:26)
was and is a "personage of spirit," and was not to come until Christ
went away (John 16:7). Also the endowment from that divine being, the third
person in the Holy Trinity, called "the gift of the Holy Ghost," is a
special blessing sealed upon baptized repentant believers in Jesus Christ, and
is "an abiding witness." The spirit of God may be enjoyed as a temporary
influence by which divine light and power come to mankind for special purposes
and occasions. But the gift of the Holy Ghost, which was received by the
apostles on the day of Pentecost, and is bestowed in confirmation, is a
permanent witness and higher endowment than the ordinary manifestation of the
Holy Spirit. (Messages of the First Presidency, Vol.5, p.4)
From True to the
Faith: A Gospel Reference (Published by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, 2004)
The
Light of Christ "proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the
immensity of space." It is "the light which is in all things, which
giveth life to all things, which is the law by which all things are
governed" (D&C 88:12-13; see also D&C 88:6-11). This power is an
influence for good in the lives of all people (see John 1:9; D&C 93:2). In
the scriptures, the Light of Christ is sometimes called the Spirit of the Lord,
the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, or the Light of Life.
The
Light of Christ should not be confused with the Holy Ghost. It is not a
personage, as the Holy Ghost is. Its influence leads people to find the true
gospel, be baptized, and receive the gift of the Holy Ghost (see John 12:46;
Conscience
is a manifestation of the Light of Christ, enabling us to judge good from evil.
The prophet Mormon taught: "The Spirit of Christ is given to every
man, that he may know good from evil; wherefore, I show unto you the way to
judge; for every thing which inviteth to do good, and to persuade to believe in
Christ, is sent forth by the power and gift of Christ; wherefore ye may know
with a perfect knowledge it is of God. … And now, my brethren, seeing that
ye know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ,
see that ye do not judge wrongfully; for with that same judgment which ye judge
ye shall also be judged" Moroni 7:16, Moroni 7:18). [p. 96]
Joseph F. Smith
The Holy
Ghost as a personage of Spirit can no more be omnipresent in person than can
the Father or the Son, but by his intelligence, his knowledge, his power and
influence, over and through the laws of nature, he is and can be omnipresent
throughout all the works of God. It is not the Holy Ghost who in person
lighteth every man who is born into the world, but it is the light of Christ,
the Spirit of Truth, which proceeds from the source of intelligence, which
permeates all nature, which lighteth every man and fills the immensity of
space. You may call it the Spirit of God, you may call it the influence of
God's intelligence, you may call it the substance of his power, no matter what
it is called, it is the spirit of intelligence that permeates the universe and
gives to the spirits of men understanding, just as Job has said. (Job 32:8;
Doc. and Cov. 88:3-13.) [Gospel Doctrine, p.61]
Joseph Fielding Smith
- President Joseph F. Smith has expressed it thus:
"The Holy Ghost as a personage of Spirit can no more be omnipresent
in person than can the Father or the Son, but by his intelligence, his
knowledge, his power and influence, over and through the laws of nature,
he is and can be omnipresent throughout all the works of God." Thus
when it becomes necessary to speak to us, he is able to do so by acting
through the other Spirit, that is, through the Light of Christ. (Doctrines
of Salvation, 1:40)
- LIGHT OF CHRIST IS THE POWER OF GOD. This Light of
Christ is not a personage. It has no body. I do not know what it is as far
as substance is concerned; but it fills the immensity of space and
emanates from God. It is the light by which the worlds are controlled, by
which they are made. It is the light of the sun and all other bodies. It
is the light which gives life to vegetation. It quickens the understanding
of men, and has these various functions as set forth in these
verses. It is: "The light which is in all things, which giveth
life to all things, which is the law by which all things are governed,
even the power of God who sitteth upon his throne, who is in the bosom of
eternity, who is in the midst of all things." This is our explanation
in regard to the Spirit of Christ, or Light of Truth, which every man
receives and is guided by. Unless a man had the blessings that come from
this Spirit, his mind would not be quickened; there would be no vegetation
grow; the worlds would not stay in their orbits; because it is through
this Spirit of Truth, this Light of Truth, according to this revelation,
that all these things are done. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:52)
- THE HOLY GHOST WORKS THROUGH THE LIGHT OF CHRIST.
The person of the Holy Ghost can work through the Spirit of Christ that
permeates everything, or he can work by personal contacts. The Holy Ghost
can act through some other influence or force. This may be a crude
illustration, and yet I think it answers our purpose. We have in this
building a young lady sitting down at the switchboard. Someone on this
floor wants to get in touch with someone on the second floor; somebody
else in another part of the building wants to talk with someone in another
building; and so on. They are all connected with the parties they want to
talk to. In a similar way the Holy Ghost could speak to someone here,
someone over there, and someone way off in some other part of the country,
even in a foreign land, and each receive the message intended for him.
That is not hard to understand when we think of telegraphy. They send
several messages over a wire at the same time. Radio stations send
messages of different wave lengths all over the earth. (Doctrines of
Salvation, 1:54)
- INVENTIONS COME BY SPIRIT OF LORD. There has
never been a step taken from that day to this, in discovery or invention,
where the Spirit of the Lord (that is, the spirit of which Joel spoke, the
Light of Christ, not the Holy Ghost!) was not the prevailing force,
resting upon the individual, which caused him to make the discovery or the
invention. The world does not understand that but it is perfectly clear to
me; nor did the Lord always use those who have faith, nor does he always
do so today. He uses such minds as are pliable and can be turned in
certain directions to accomplish his work, whether they believe in him or
not. (Doctrines of Salvation, 1:178)
- INVENTORS USED BY THE LORD. Now, do you think
that these discoveries and inventions by Marconi, by Edison, by Bell, by
Stephenson and by the other inventors and discoverers without naming them,
have come just because these men have been sitting down and concentrating
their minds upon these matters and have discovered them through their
thought or accidentally? Not in the least, but the Spirit of the Lord, the
Light of Christ, has been back of it, and has been impelling them to do
these very things; and why? Because the time is here; it is ripe. We are
ready for these discoveries, these inventions, and they all have a bearing
upon the restoration of the gospel and preparation for the time which is
yet future, but which is shortly to come, when Christ shall reign on the
earth, and for a thousand years peace shall be established. That is what
it is all for. Now, a man like
Richard G. Scott
The ability
to have an unsettled conscience is a gift of God to help you succeed in this
mortal life. It results principally from the influence of the Light of Christ
on your mind and heart. The Light of Christ is that divine power or influence
that emanates from God through Jesus Christ [see Topical Guide, "Light of
Christ," p. 290]. It gives light and life to all things. It prompts all
rational individuals throughout the earth to distinguish truth from error,
right from wrong. It activates your conscience [see
Joseph B. Wirthlin
As
the sun gives life and light to the earth, a spiritual light gives nourishment
to our spirits. We call this the Light of Christ. The scriptures teach us that
it "lighteth every man that cometh into the world" (John 1:9; see
also Moro. 7:16; D&C 84:46). Thus, all mankind can enjoy its blessings. The Light of Christ is the divine
influence that allows every man, woman, and child to distinguish between good
and evil. It encourages all to choose the right, to seek eternal truth, and to
learn again the truths that we knew in our premortal existence but have
forgotten in mortality.
The Light of Christ should not be
confused with the personage of the Holy Ghost, for the Light of Christ is not a
personage at all. Its influence is preliminary to and preparatory to one's
receiving the Holy Ghost. The Light of Christ will lead the honest soul to
"hearkeneth to the voice" (D&C 84:46) to find the true gospel and
the true Church and thereby receive the Holy Ghost. ("The Unspeakable
Gift," Ensign, May 2003, p. 26)
In the endowmwnt we learn how to
control the light. We learned how to control it in pre mortality and we learn
more and more in phases of how to control the light. We will learn a lot more about this in the
Millennium. To be God and Goddesses we
must learn how to control this light perfectly.
God is God because He controls
this power perfectly.
D&C 88 and 93 Light =
Truth, Intelligence, life, law, power.
The various kingdoms control the light according to their obedience and
knowledge. Fulness and perfection are
only found in the highest degree of the Celectial kingdom, you must keep that
law of each kingdom to receive the light of each kingdom, various levels
according to our obedience to that kingdoms laws.
Sons of Perdition have no
light no glory, nothing, a sad state of affairs.
Ezekiel sees the glory
leave the temple and
Bruce discussed briefly the
relationship between the symbolism of Ezekiel and the book of Revelation. Early Christians only had the Old Testament
so they knew this relationship well. We
as a church need to study the OT much more then we do, it helps explain all of
the other scriptures we have.
The Light of Christ
President Marion G.
Romney
Conference Report, Apr. 1977, p. 59-63;
or Ensign, May 1977, p. 43-45
My brethren, I pray, and ask
you to join in that prayer, that while I speak we will enjoy the Spirit of
Christ. If we don't enjoy it, we won't enjoy these remarks, because my topic is
"The Light of Christ." There are three phases of the light of Christ
that I want to mention.
The first one is the light
which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world;
The second phase is the gift of the Holy Ghost;
And the third is the more sure word of prophecy.
The Light of Christ
In the eighty-eighth section
of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord says, "The light of Christ . . .
proceedeth forth from the presence of God to fill the immensity of space."
(Vv. 7, 12 [D&C 88:7, 12].)
In another revelation, it is
written that this light, which is "the Spirit of Jesus Christ . . . giveth
light to every man that cometh into the world; and the Spirit enlighteneth
every man through the world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit."
(D&C 84:4546.)
This Spirit is, no doubt,
the source of one's conscience, which Webster defines as "a knowledge or
feeling of right and wrong with a compulsion to do right."
Mormon was alluding to this
Spirit when he wrote to his son
"Wherefore, take heed,
my beloved brethren, that ye do not judge that which is evil to be of God, or
that which is good and of God to be of the devil.
"For behold, my
brethren, it is given unto you to judge, [and that gift is because the light of
Christ enlighteneth every man that cometh into the world], that ye may know
good from evil; and the way to judge is as plain, that ye may know with a
perfect knowledge, as the daylight is from the dark night.
"For behold, the Spirit
of Christ is given to every man that he may know good from evil." (Moro.
7:1316 [
President Joseph F. Smith
says that this Spirit of Christ "strives with . . . men, and will continue
to strive with them [if they will resist the enticings of Satan], until it
brings them to a knowledge of the truth and the possession of the greater light
and testimony of the Holy Ghost." (Gospel Doctrine, Deseret Book Co.,
1973, pp. 6768.)
Gift of the Holy Ghost
Now, this statement of
President Smith's brings us to a consideration of the second phase of our
subject: the gift of the Holy Ghost.
The Holy Ghost is a person,
a [Ensign, p. 44] spirit, the third member of the Godhead. He is a messenger
and a witness of the Father and the Son. He brings to men testimony, witness,
and knowledge of God the Father, Jesus Christ His Son, and the truths of the
gospel. He vitalizes truth in the hearts and souls of men.
"There is a
difference," said the Prophet Joseph Smith, "between the Holy Ghost
and the gift of the Holy Ghost. Cornelius received the Holy Ghost before he was
baptized, which was the convincing power of God unto him of the truth of the Gospel,
but he could not receive the gift of the Holy Ghost until after he was
baptized. Had he not [been baptized], the Holy Ghost which convinced him of the
truth of God, would have left him." (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph
Smith, p. 199.) That's not my statement; that's the statement of the Prophet
Joseph Smith. But I know it's true.
The gift of the Holy Ghost
confers upon one, as long as he is worthy, the right to receive light and
truth.
Obtaining the gift of the
Holy Ghost is preceded by faith, repentance, and baptism. Retaining the spirit,
power, and guidance of the Holy Ghost requires a righteous life--a dedicated
effort to constantly comply with the laws and ordinances of the gospel.
Member of the Godhead
The Holy Ghost is, as we
have said, the third member of the Godhead. Of Him the Prophet Joseph said:
"The Holy Ghost has not
a body of flesh and bones [as we know that God and Jesus Christ have], but is a
personage of Spirit." (D&C 130:22.)
The Holy Ghost is the great
witness of, the messenger for, and testifier of the Father and the Son. The
Savior, speaking of Him as the "Spirit of truth," said:
"When he, the Spirit of
truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of
himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew
you things to come.
"He shall glorify me:
for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you." (John 16:1314.)
By the witness and power of
the Holy Ghost we receive personal testimonies of the truths of the gospel, including
knowledge of God the Father and His beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and
Redeemer.
Notwithstanding the
availability of the gifts of the Holy Ghost, there are many people who live
within reach of them who fail to see them. Concerning such tragedy, the Lord
said:
"Behold, I am Jesus
Christ, the Son [CR, p. 61] of God. I am the same that came unto mine own, and
mine own received me not. I am the light which shineth in darkness, and the
darkness comprehendeth it not." (D&C 6:21.)
Comprehending the light
All three of the synoptic
Gospel writers record the following classic illustration of the difficulty one
in darkness has in comprehending the light. Matthew's version reads:
"When Jesus came into
the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, saying, Whom do men
say that I the Son of man am?
"And they said, Some
say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one
of the prophets." (Matt. 16: 1314.)
Now, the people who
expressed these opinions were Christ's contemporaries. Their conclusions
evidenced the fact that they knew something about His mighty works. No doubt
they were aware of His claim that He was the Son of God. Their minds, however,
were opaque to the light of His true identity. Although the light was shining
brightly about them, they "comprehended it not."
Having heard their answer as
to who men said He was, Jesus directed to His disciples the question, "But
whom say ye that I am?" (Matt. 16:15 [Matthew 16:15] .)
Then Peter, speaking for
himself and presumptively for the others, answered, "Thou art the Christ,
the Son of the living God." (Matt. 16:16 [Matthew 16:16] .) In this
declaration, Peter evidenced the fact that he and his fellow disciples did
comprehend the light shining in the world of spiritual darkness around them.
In His response to Peter's
answer, Jesus declared a truth understood only by those who comprehend the
light by and through the gift and power of the Holy Ghost, for Jesus' answer
was:
"Flesh and blood hath
not revealed it unto thee," He said, "but my Father which is in
heaven, . . . and upon this rock"--meaning, upon the rock of revelation,
which comes by means of the Holy Ghost--"I will build my church; and the
gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Matt. 16:1718 [Matthew
16:1718] .)
How difficult it is to get
one in darkness to comprehend the light or to believe that there is such light
is illustrated by John's account of the interview between Jesus and Nicodemus.
"There was," says
John, "a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
"[Who] 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.
"Jesus answered and
said . . . Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he
cannot see the
"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?
"Jesus answered,
Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the
Spirit, he cannot enter into the
One is born again by
actually receiving and experiencing the light and power inherent in the gift of
the Holy Ghost.
"More sure word of
prophecy"
Now, concerning the third
phase of our theme, "the more sure word of prophecy" (D&C 131:5),
which is obtained by making one's "calling and election sure" (2 Pet.
1:10 [2 Peter 1:10]), the Prophet Joseph said:
"After a person has
faith in Christ, repents of his sins, and is baptized for the remission of his
sins and receives the Holy Ghost, (by the laying on of hands) . . . then let
him continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting after
righteousness, and [CR, p. 62] living by every word of God, and the Lord will
soon say unto him, Son, thou shalt be exalted. When the Lord has thoroughly
proved him, and finds that the man is determined to serve Him at all hazards,
then the man will find his calling and his election made sure, then it will be
his privilege to receive the other Comforter, which the Lord hath promised the
Saints, as is recorded in the testimony of
In the eighty-eighth section
of the Doctrine and Covenants is recorded a revelation in which the Lord,
addressing some of the early Saints in
"I now send upon you
another Comforter, even upon you my friends that it may abide in your hearts,
even the Holy Spirit of promise; which other Comforter is the same that I
promised unto my disciples, as is recorded in the testimony of John.
"This Comforter is the
promise which I give unto you of eternal life, even the glory of the celestial
kingdom." (D&C 88:34.)
I should think that all faithful
Latter-day Saints "would want that more sure word of prophecy, that they
were sealed in the heavens and had the promise of eternal life in the
Anchor to men's souls
As I read the sacred
records, I find recorded experiences of men in all dispensations who have had
this more sure anchor to their souls, this peace in their hearts.
Lehi's grandson Enos so
hungered after righteousness that he cried unto the Lord until "there came
a voice unto [him], saying: Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be
blessed." (Enos 5 [Enos 1:5] .) Years later Enos revealed the nature of
this promised blessing when he wrote:
"I soon go to the place
of my rest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest. And
I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality, and shall stand
before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me:
Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the mansions of
my Father." (Enos 27 .)
To
To His twelve Nephite
disciples, the Master said:
"What is it that ye
desire of me, after that I am gone to the Father?
"And they all spake,
save it were three, saying: We desire that after we have lived unto the age of
man, that our ministry, wherein thou hast called us, may have an end, that we
may speedily come unto thee in thy kingdom.
"And he said unto them:
Blessed are ye because ye desired this thing of me; therefore, after that ye
are seventy and two years old ye shall come unto me in my kingdom; and with me
ye shall find rest." (3 Ne. 28:13 [3 Nephi 28:13] .)
As
"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." (Eth. 12:37
[Ether 12:37] .)
Paul, in his second epistle
to Timothy, wrote:
"I am now ready to be
offered, and the time of my departure is at hand.
"I have fought a good
fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
"Henceforth there is
laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge,
shall give me at that day." (2 Tim. 4:68 [2 Timothy 4:68] .)
Assurances in our day
In this dispensation many
have received like assurances. In the spring of 1839, while the Prophet Joseph
and his associates were languishing in Liberty Jail, Heber C. Kimball, our
president's grandfather, labored against great odds caring for the Saints and
striving to free the brethren who were in jail. On the sixth of April he wrote:
"My family having been
gone about two months, during which time I heard nothing from them; our
brethren being in prison; death and destruction following us everywhere we
went; I felt very sorrowful and lonely. The following words came to mind, and
the Spirit said unto me, 'write,' which I did by taking a piece of paper and
writing on my knee as follows: . . .
"Verily I say unto my
servant Heber, thou art my son, in whom I am well pleased; for thou art careful
to hearken to my words, and not transgress my law, nor rebel against my servant
Joseph Smith, for thou hast a respect to the words of mine anointed, even from
the least to the greatest of them; therefore"--listen to this--"thy
name is written in heaven, no more to be blotted out for ever." (Orson F.
Whitney, Life of Heber C. Kimball, Bookcraft, 1975, p. 241; italics added.)
To the Prophet Joseph Smith
the Lord said:
"I am the Lord thy God,
and will be with thee even unto the end of the world, and through all eternity;
for verily I seal upon you your exaltation, and prepare a throne for you in the
kingdom of my Father, with Abraham your father." (D&C 132:49; italics
added.)
Witness of truths
Now my beloved brethren, by
way of summary and conclusion, I bear witness to the verity of these great
truths. I know that the Spirit of Christ enlighteneth "every man that
cometh into the world; and [that] the Spirit enlighteneth every man through the
world, that hearkeneth to the voice of the Spirit." (D&C 84:46.)
I know that everyone who,
following the whisperings of the Spirit, develops faith, is baptized, and
receives the Holy Ghost through the laying on of hands by those having
authority, may, by compliance with the teachings of the gospel, receive the
gifts and the power of the Holy Ghost.
And I bear further witness
that every such person who, having come this far, will follow the Prophet's
admonition to "continue to humble himself before God, hungering and thirsting
after righteousness, and living by every word of God" (Teachings of the
Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 150), may obtain the more sure word of prophecy.
That the Lord will bless all
of us priesthood bearers that we will so understand these great truths, that in
the end we shall, by making our calling and election sure, enjoy the full light
of Christ, I humbly pray, in the name of Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. Amen.
Bruce mentioned a great
talk by President Packer on the Light of Christ.
The Light of Christ:
What Everyone Called to Preach the Gospel,
Teach the Gospel, or Live the Gospel
Should Know
President Boyd K. Packer
Acting President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles
Ensign, April 2005, pp. 8-14
From an address given on June 22, 2004, at a seminar for new
mission presidents,
Missionary Training Center, Provo, Utah.
Most members of the Church
have a basic understanding of the Holy Ghost. Most have experienced its
promptings and understand why the Holy Ghost is called the Comforter.
They know "the Holy
Ghost . . . is a personage of Spirit" (D&C 130:22) and a member of the
Godhead (see Articles of Faith 1:1).
But many do not know that
there is another Spirit - "the light of Christ" (D&C 88:7) -
another source of inspiration, which each of us possesses in common with all
other members of the human family. If we know about the Light of Christ, we
will understand that there is something inside all of us, and we can appeal to
that in our desire to share truth.
The Holy Ghost and the Light
of Christ are different from each other. While they are sometimes described in
the scriptures with the same words, they are two different and distinct
entities. It is important for you to know about both of them.
The more we know about the
Light of Christ, the more we will understand about life and the more we will
have a deep love for all mankind. We will be better teachers and missionaries
and parents, and better men and women and children. We will have deeper regard
for our brothers and sisters in the Church and for those who do not believe and
have not yet had conferred upon them the gift of the Holy Ghost.
The Light of Christ is
defined in the scriptures as "the Spirit [which] giveth light to every man
that cometh into the world" (D&C 84:46; emphasis added); "the
light which is in all things, which giveth life to all things, which is the law
by which all things are governed" (D&C 88:13; see also John 1:4-9;
D&C 84:45-47; 88:6; 93:9).
And the Light of Christ is
also described in the scriptures as "the Spirit of Jesus Christ"
(D&C 84:45), "the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Corinthians 3:18; see
also Mosiah 25:24), "the Spirit of truth" (D&C 93:26), "the
light of truth" (D&C 88:6), "the Spirit of God" (D&C
46:17), and "the Holy Spirit" (D&C 45:57). Some of these terms
are also used to refer to the Holy Ghost.
The First Presidency has
written, "There is a universally diffused essence which is the light and
the life of the world, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world,
which proceedeth forth from the presence of God throughout the immensity of
space, the light and power of which God bestows in different degrees to 'them
that ask him,' according to their faith and obedience."["Receiving
the Holy Ghost," Improvement Era, Mar. 1916, 460. ]
Regardless of whether this
inner light, this knowledge of right and wrong, is called the Light of Christ,
moral sense, or conscience, it can direct us to moderate our actions - unless,
that is, we subdue it or silence it.
Every spirit child of our
Heavenly Father enters into mortality to receive a physical body and to be
tested.
"The Lord said . . .
they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their
knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto
man his agency" (Moses 7:32).
"Wherefore, men are
free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient
unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the
great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the
captivity and power of the devil" (2 Nephi 2:27).
Therefore, we know that
"every man may act in doctrine and principle pertaining to futurity,
according to the moral agency [the words free agency do not
appear in the revelations] which I have given unto him, that every man may be
accountable for his own sins in the day of judgment" (D&C 101:78;
emphasis added).
We are admonished to
"quench not the Spirit" (1 Thessalonians 5:19). Thus we can see that
"[all] are instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil" (2
Nephi 2:5; see also 2 Nephi 2:27). They have their agency, and they are
accountable.
This Spirit of Christ
fosters everything that is good, every virtue (see
Conscience affirms the
reality of the Spirit of Christ in man. It affirms, as well, the reality of
good and evil, of justice, mercy, honor, courage, faith, love, and virtue, as
well as the necessary opposites - hatred, greed, brutality, jealousy (see 2
Nephi 2:11, 16). Such values, though physically intangible, respond to laws
with cause-and-effect relationships as certain as any resulting from physical
laws (see Galatians 6:7-9). The Spirit of Christ can be likened unto a
"guardian angel" for every person.[See Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines
of Salvation , comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. (1954-56), 1:54. ]
The Spirit of Christ can
enlighten the inventor, the scientist, the painter, the sculptor, the composer,
the performer, the architect, the author to produce great, even inspired things
for the blessing and good of all mankind.
This Spirit can prompt the
farmer in his field and the fisherman on his boat. It can inspire the teacher in
the classroom, the missionary in presenting his discussion. It can inspire the
student who listens. And of enormous importance, it can inspire husband and
wife, and father and mother.
This inner Light can warn
and guard and guide. But it can be repulsed by anything that is ugly or
unworthy or wicked or immoral or selfish.
The Light of Christ existed
in you before you were born (see D&C 93:23, 29-30), and it will be with you
every moment that you live and will not perish when the mortal part of you has
turned to dust. It is ever there.
Every man, woman, and child
of every nation, creed, or color - everyone, no matter where they live or what
they believe or what they do - has within them the imperishable Light of
Christ. In this respect, all men are created equally. The Light of Christ in
everyone is a testimony that God is no respecter of persons (see D&C 1:35).
He treats everyone equally in that endowment with the Light of Christ.
It is important for a
teacher or a missionary or a parent to know that the Holy Ghost can work
through the Light of Christ. A teacher of gospel truths is not planting
something foreign or even new into an adult or a child. Rather, the missionary
or teacher is making contact with the Spirit of Christ already there. The gospel
will have a familiar "ring" to them. Then the teaching will come
"to the convincing of [those who will listen] that Jesus is the Christ,
the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations" (Book of Mormon
title page).
During His mortal ministry,
Jesus taught His gospel and put in place the foundation upon which His Church
would be built. The foundation was built of stones of doctrine which can
neither be seen with mortal eyes nor felt by touch; they are invisible and
intangible. They will not weather away or crumble. They cannot be broken or
dissolved or destroyed. These stones of doctrine are imperishable and
indestructible.
These stones of doctrine
existed "before the world was" (D&C 124:38), "from before
the foundation of the world" (D&C 124:41). Christ built His Church
upon them.
Jesus spoke of "the
stone which the builders rejected" (Matthew 21:42). Then the shadow of
apostasy settled over the earth. The line of priesthood authority was broken.
But mankind was not left in total darkness or completely without revelation or
inspiration. The idea that with the Crucifixion of Christ the heavens were
closed and that they opened in the First Vision is not true. The Light of
Christ would be everywhere present to attend the children of God; the Holy Ghost
would visit seeking souls. The prayers of the righteous would not go
unanswered.
The conferring of the gift
of the Holy Ghost must await the restoration of the priesthood and the
dispensation of the fulness of times, when all things would be revealed.
When the fulness of His
gospel was restored, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was built
upon the same foundation stones of doctrine.
Because we learn most
everything through physical senses, teaching intangible doctrines which cannot
be seen or felt becomes very difficult. Jesus, the Master Teacher, taught these
doctrines, and they can be taught in the same way today. It is my purpose to
show you how He, the Master Teacher, taught them.
You can come to understand
spiritual truths as clearly as if these stones of doctrine were as tangible as
granite or flint or marble. Marble will yield to the hands of the sculptor so
that others can see what he sees hidden within the shapeless stone. In like
manner, you can teach others to see - that is, to understand - these
intangible, invisible stones of doctrine.
The way the Savior taught,
and the way you can teach, is both simple and very profound. If you choose a
tangible object as a symbol for a doctrine, you can teach just as He did. A
teacher can associate the doctrine with an object already known, which can be
seen with physical eyes.
Jesus compared faith to a
seed, the tiny mustard seed, which can be seen and touched. He told how if the
seed is nurtured, it can grow and flourish and become a tree. (See Luke
13:19.)
He compared the kingdom of
heaven to an everyday object that can be seen. "The kingdom of
heaven," He said, "is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea,
and gathered of every kind" (Matthew 13:47); and He said, "The
kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man
hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath,
and buyeth that field" (Matthew 13:44).
Christ used as examples, as
symbols, such ordinary things as salt (see Matthew 5:13; Mark 9:49-50; Luke
14:34) and candles (see Matthew 5:15; Mark 4:21; Luke 8:16; 11:33-36;
Revelation 18:23), as rain (see Matthew 7:25-27) and rainbows (see Revelation
4:3; 10:1). The four Gospels are full of such examples. Likewise the Book of
Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price have dozens of
similar references. They are everywhere. That is what a story or a parable is -
a true-to-life example used to teach a principle or a doctrine that is invisible
or intangible.
One time in Matthew, one
time in Luke, three times in the Book of Mormon, and three times in the
Doctrine and Covenants, the Savior spoke of a hen with her chickens (see
Matthew 23:37; Luke 13:34;3 Nephi 10:4-6; D&C 10:65; 29:2; 43:24). Everyone
knows about hens and chickens, even little children.
Now faith is not really
exactly like a seed, nor is the kingdom of heaven exactly like a net or a
treasure or leaven (see Luke 13:21) or "a merchant man, seeking goodly
pearls" (Matthew 13:45). But with these illustrations, Jesus was able to
open the eyes of His disciples - not their natural eyes but the eyes of their
understanding (see Matthew 13:15; John 12:40; Acts 28:27; Ephesians 1:18; 2
Nephi 16:10; D&C 76:12, 19; 88:11; 110:1).
With the eyes of our
understanding, we see things that are spiritual. With our spirits reaching out,
we can touch things that are spiritual and feel them. Then we can see
and we can feel things that are invisible to the physical senses.
Remember, Nephi told his rebellious brothers, who had rejected a message from
an angel, "Ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his
words" (1 Nephi 17:45; emphasis added).
Paul wrote to the
Corinthians that "God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the
Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. . . .
"Which things also we
speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost
teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.
"But the natural man
receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto
him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned" (1
Corinthians 2:10, 13-14).
In modern revelation, Christ
spoke of "the light which shineth, which giveth you light [and] enlighteneth
your eyes, which is the same light that quickeneth your understandings"
(D&C 88:11).
I do not know how to teach
about the Spirit of Christ except to follow what the Lord did when He taught
invisible, intangible truths to His disciples.
To describe the Light of
Christ, I will compare or liken it to the light of the sun. Sunlight is
familiar to everyone; it is everywhere present and can be seen and can be felt.
Life itself depends upon sunlight.
The Light of Christ is like
sunlight. It, too, is everywhere present and given to everyone equally.
Just as darkness must vanish
when the light of the sun appears, so is evil sent fleeing by the Light of
Christ.
There is no darkness in
sunlight. Darkness is subject unto it. The sun can be hidden by clouds or by
the rotation of the earth, but the clouds will disappear, and the earth will
complete its turning.
According to the plan, we
are told that "it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all
things" (2 Nephi 2:11).
Mormon warned that "the
devil . . . persuadeth no man to do good, no, not one; neither do his angels;
neither do they who subject themselves unto him.
"[Now] seeing that ye
know the light by which ye may judge, which light is the light of Christ, see
that ye do not judge wrongfully" (
This Light of Christ, which
gives life, is within you. The evil one will attempt to obscure it. It can be
so clouded with confusion so far as to convince you that it does not even
exist.
Just as sunlight is a
natural disinfectant, the Spirit of Christ can cleanse the spirit.
Every soul, no matter who or
where or when, is a child of God. Our responsibility is to teach that
"there is a spirit in man: and the inspiration of the Almighty giveth them
understanding" (Job 32:8).
President Joseph Fielding
Smith spoke of the teachings of the Holy Ghost and of the Spirit of Christ:
"Every man can receive a manifestation of the Holy Ghost, even when he is
out of the Church, if he is earnestly seeking for the light and for the truth.
The Holy Ghost will come and give the man the testimony he is seeking, and then
withdraw; and the man does not have a claim upon another visit or constant
visits and manifestations from him. He may have the constant guidance of that
other Spirit, the Spirit of Christ." [Doctrines of Salvation, 1:42;
see also Joseph Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel.
Joseph Fielding Smith (1976), 149. ]
The Spirit of Christ is
always there. It never leaves. It cannot leave.
Everyone everywhere already
has the Spirit of Christ, and while the Spirit of the Holy Ghost can visit
anyone, the gift of the Holy Ghost is obtained "by obedience to the
laws and ordinances of the Gospel" (Articles of Faith 1:3), by submitting
to "baptism by immersion for the remission of sins; [and the] laying on of
hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost" (Articles of Faith 1:4). It is not
automatically present like the Spirit of Christ is present. This gift must be
conferred by one holding authority (see Articles of Faith 1:5).
That is what we are
commissioned to do, to foster the Light of Christ, which is within every soul
we meet, and bring souls to the point where the Holy Ghost may visit them. And
then, in due time, they can receive, through the ordinance, the gift of the
Holy Ghost, which is conferred upon every member of the Church.
Once a person has received
that gift of the Holy Ghost and can cultivate it together with the Light of
Christ, which they already have, then the fulness of the gospel is open to
their understanding. The Holy Ghost can even work through the Light of Christ.
[See Doctrines of Salvation, 1:54. ]
The Light of Christ is as
universal as sunlight itself. Wherever there is human life, there is the Spirit
of Christ. Every living soul is possessed of it. It is the sponsor of
everything that is good. It is the inspirer of everything that will bless and
benefit mankind. It nourishes goodness itself.
Mormon taught: "Search
diligently in the light of Christ that ye may know good from evil; and if ye
will lay hold upon every good thing, and condemn it not, ye certainly will be a
child of Christ" (Moroni 7:19).
Everyone knows about
sunlight. When you liken the Spirit of Christ to sunlight, ordinary examples
from your own experiences may come to your mind. These examples are almost
endless. These examples can be understood by little children or by adults, as
the parables of Christ can be understood. It should not be difficult to teach
how revelation can come through Light, even though we do not know exactly how
inspiration works.
Man himself, with all his
limitations, can convey messages through fiber-optic cables. A single tiny
fiber of glass, smaller than a human hair, can carry 40,000 messages at the
same time. These can then be decoded and turned into sight and sound and color,
even motion. Man can do that.
A laser beam, where there is
no wire or fiber at all, can carry 100 billion bits of information in a
second.
If man can do that, why
should we marvel at the promise that the Light of Christ is in all of us and
that the Holy Ghost can visit any of us?
It should not be difficult,
therefore, to understand how revelation from God to His children on earth can
come to all mankind through both the Spirit of Christ and the Holy Ghost.
This Light of Christ is
everywhere in the scriptures. The Doctrine and Covenants is a very rich source
of teaching on the Light of Christ. For example, it speaks of "the light
of truth; which truth shineth. This is the light of Christ. . . . He is in the
sun, and the light of the sun, and the power thereof by which it was made"
(D&C 88:6-7).
Ordinary teachers
responsible to teach the doctrines and to testify of spiritual things have
within their own personal experience everyday things which can be likened unto
things which are spiritual.
Then the Light of Christ can
be ignited by the Spirit of the Holy Ghost, the Comforter. We are told that
then "the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in
my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance,
whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14:26).
President Harold B. Lee
explained: "That light never entirely goes out . . . [speaking of the
Light of Christ] unless we commit the unpardonable sin. Its glow may be so dim
that we can hardly perceive it, but it is there for us to fan into a flame that
shall burn brighter with understanding and with knowledge. Except for that, we
wouldn't be able to achieve. Our missionary work would come to naught."[The
Teachings of Harold B. Lee, ed.
May you prayerfully and
diligently endeavor to comprehend the meaning of these principles, and then
begin to apply them. As you do, then follows the testimony that the gospel of
Jesus Christ is true, that the Restoration of the gospel is a reality, and that
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is "the only true and
living church upon the face of the whole earth" (D&C 1:30). Jesus is
the Christ, the Son of God, the Only Begotten of the Father. And from Him
emanates the Light of Christ to all mankind.
May you who are called as
missionaries or teachers and you who are parents "feast upon the words of
Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should
do" (2 Nephi 32:3). In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
(Moroni 10:17.)
17 And all these
gifts come by the Spirit of Christ; and they come unto every man severally,
according as he will.
The Light of Christ is
power like faith is a power; it leads to spiritual life and away from spiritual
death if it is used properly. (Agency)
The plan of salvation is
given to us to teach us how to be a God.
And to be a God one must learn how to control this power perfectly.
(Ezekiel 12:14-16.)
14 And I will scatter
toward every wind all that are about him to help him, and all his bands;
and I will draw out the sword after them.
15 And they shall know
that I am the LORD, when I shall scatter them among the nations, and
disperse them in the countries.
16 But I will leave a few
men of them from the sword, from the famine, and from the pestilence; that they
may declare all their abominations among the heathen whither they come; and
they shall know that I am the LORD.
Many did not come back to
Symbolic Action as Prophecy in the Old Testament
Donald W. Parry
Donald W. Parry is visiting assistant
professor of Hebrew at
Ancient Israelite religion featured
groups and individuals who expressed themselves with symbolic actions. For
example, Moses and Joshua removed their shoes while standing upon holy ground
(Exodus 3:5; Joshua 5:15); Saul cut up two oxen and sent the pieces throughout
Israel as a warning that individuals who failed to rally around the king would
be similarly destroyed (1 Samuel 11:7); Solomon spread his hands toward heaven
during the dedicatory prayer of the temple (1 Kings 8:22); Elijah divided the
waters of the Jordan River by smiting them with his mantle (2 Kings 2:8);
Elisha cast salt into a spring to heal its bitter waters (2 Kings 2:19-21); and
Abraham took a heifer, a she-goat, and a ram and "divided them in the midst,
and laid each piece one against another" (Gen. 15:10), after which he may
have passed through the two parts (see Jeremiah 34:18). Several Old Testament
prophets, including Abraham, Moses, Ahijah, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and
Ezekiel used such symbolic actions fn to prophesy, without words, of future
events. Their unconventional action, gesture, movement, or posture of itself
may not have had an immediate practical purpose but had symbolic meaning or
metaphoric application. The future action was the typological fulfillment of
the first, original action.
Although the symbolic actions of
prophetic characters of the Old Testament occurred during various gospel
dispensations, within different geographic locations, and under varying
circumstances and contexts, there are commonalities among them. First, a
prophet played a major role in the symbolic actions as prophecy. On one hand,
it was common for the prophet himself to dramatize the prophecy, as was the
case with Melchizedek breaking the bread and blessing the wine (JST Genesis
14:17), Moses casting the tree into the bitter waters (Exodus 15:22-25), or
Jeremiah breaking the clay vessel (Jeremiah 19). On the other hand, the prophet
gave directions to or witnessed a second party who enacted the prophecy, as was
the case with Jeremiah, who watched a potter create two vessels (Jeremiah
18:1-12) and who caused several nations to drink from the wine cup of fury
(Jeremiah 25:15-29).
Second, the prophetic symbolic action
originated from God. In most cases, the scriptural record sets forth in a
straightforward manner that the prophets received direct revelation from God.
Such a revelation was formulated in the texts with one of two common formulaic
expressions or revelatory speech forms—the messenger formula and the revelation
formula. fn "Thus saith the Lord," "For thus saith the Lord God
of
Third, prophetic symbolic actions
include either a ritualistic gesture, a movement, a posture, or a dramatized
act. For example, Joshua stretched a spear toward the city of
Fourth, the dramatized action represents
something other than what is visible to onlookers or participants. For example,
the Lord instructed Ezekiel to perform a certain action, which in turn became a
nonverbal prophecy. On one occasion God told Ezekiel to shave his beard and to
cut the hair of his head with a razor and a knife and divide the cut hair into
three parts. Next God commanded, "Thou shalt burn with fire a third part
[of the hair] in . . . the city . . . and thou shalt take a third part, and
smite about it with a knife: and a third part thou shalt scatter in the
wind" (Ezekiel 5:2). The Lord interpreted these strange acts by drawing
direct parallels between the three portions of Ezekiel's cut hair and the
inhabitants of Jerusalem: "a third part of [the inhabitants of Jerusalem]
shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the
midst of thee; and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and I
will scatter a third part into all the winds" (Ezekiel 5:12). Ezekiel's
symbolic prophetic actions were fulfilled when the Jews were scattered or
destroyed—some were consumed by famine, others by the sword, and still others
were scattered upon the face of the earth.
Other scriptural objects serve as
symbols and representations: Jeremiah's yoke signified bondage (Jeremiah
27-28); Ezekiel's journey from home
symbolized an exile of Israel (Ezekiel 12:1-16); Hosea and his wife
represented Jehovah and unfaithful Israel respectively (Hosea 1; 3:1-5);
Ezekiel's two sticks referred to the Bible and the Book of Mormon (Ezekiel
37:15-28); Jeremiah's book of evil represented the destruction that would come
upon Babylon (Jeremiah 51:58-64); and the serpent of brass pointed to Jesus
Christ and his atonement (Numbers 21:6-9). On
occasion, the prophet himself served as the symbol. Such was the case with
Ezekiel, of whom the Lord explained, "for I have set thee for a sign unto
the house of
1 Kings 11:29-31; Isaiah 20:1-6;
Jeremiah 18:1-12; Ezekiel 4:9-17).
(Thy People Shall Be My
People and Thy God My God: The 22d Annual Sidney B. Sperry Symposium [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1994], 84.)
We had a very
brief outline of chapters 13-15. Bruce
wanted to go deeper into 16 and 20.
The downfall of
(Ezekiel 16:44-51.) – This
is a graphic chapter of the wickedness of both kingdoms, not a pretty picture
44 ¶ Behold, every one
that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, As is
the mother, so is her daughter.
45 Thou art thy
mother's daughter, that lotheth her husband and her children; and thou art
the sister of thy sisters, which lothed their husbands and their children: your
mother was an Hittite, and your father an Amorite.
46 And thine elder sister is
47 Yet hast thou not
walked after their ways, nor done after their abominations: but, as if that
were a very little thing, thou wast corrupted more than they in all
thy ways.
48 As I live, saith
the Lord GOD,
49 Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride,
fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters,
neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.
50 And they were haughty,
and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.
51 Neither hath
If
Verse 46 – map direction
oriented toward the rising sun, east and the setting sun, west. They didn’t know about magnetic north.
East = Forward
>>>> West = Behind >>>> North = Left hand
>>>> South = Right hand
Verse 49 - Pride = Enmity
against God, Fulness of bread, idleness, did not help the poor and the needy
Where much is given, much
is required.
(Ezekiel 16:59-62.) –
Breaking the covenant, yet there is always hope
59 For thus saith the Lord
GOD; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath
in breaking the covenant.
60 ¶ Nevertheless I will
remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish
unto thee an everlasting covenant.
61 Then thou shalt
remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine
elder and thy younger: and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by
thy covenant.
62 And I will establish my
covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD:
Ezekiel's Understanding of
Ezekiel, a priest (Ezek. 1:3), would
have been familiar with passages from the Pentateuch concerning the consequences
of sin against Jehovah that befall lands and peoples. One such passage
explained the curses that would fall upon the Israelites as a consequence for
breaching their covenants with the Lord: "And the Lord will not spare him,
but then the anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoke against that man,
and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and the
Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven." (Deut. 29:20.) It is
likely that Ezekiel perceived the fate of
Ezekiel was familiar with the
figurative usage of
Ezekiel's priestly background and his
writings speak of his knowledge of the literal and figurative nature of this
desolate region. He understood that when his people kept the Lord's
commandments the land would become fertile and the people would prosper.
Ezekiel's prophecy using the water motif signals the commencement of the Edenic
day of restoration.
(Richard D. Draper, ed., A
Witness of Jesus Christ: The 1989 Sperry Symposium on the Old Testament [
(Ezekiel 18:31-32.) – It’s
all about Repentance, turn yourselves and live.
31 ¶ Cast away from you
all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart
and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of
32 For I have no pleasure
in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye.
The tribes of
(Bruce R. McConkie, The Promised
Messiah: The First Coming of Christ [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1978], 610.)
(Ezekiel 20:33-38.) – The sheep know the Shepards
voice.
33 ¶ As I live,
saith the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm,
and with fury poured out, will I rule over you:
34 And I will bring you
out from the people, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are
scattered, with a mighty hand, and with a stretched out arm, and with fury
poured out.
35 And I will bring you
into the wilderness of the people, and there will I plead with you face to
face.
36 Like as I pleaded with
your fathers in the wilderness of the
37 And I will cause you to
pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant:
38 And I will purge out
from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against me: I will bring
them forth out of the country where they sojourn, and they shall not enter into
the
Ezekiel 33-37
December 7, 2006
We quickly skipped through
the chapters about the destruction of
Chapter 24 – Ezekiel’s wife
dies suddenly but he cannot mourn for her, it is a symbol of the destruction of
God's Judgments on His Unfaithful People (Ezek. 22-24)
Ezekiel 22 contains three unrelated
pronouncements against
In the next pronouncement (Ezek.
22:17-22), the inhabitants of
The final pronouncement is against those
individuals and leaders in
Again, in chapter 23, Ezekiel
returned to the harlotry metaphor, already developed in such explicit detail in
chapter 16. Here he presented the allegory of the two sisters, Aholah and
Aholibah, who represent
Ezekiel began chapter 24 with the
allegory of the pot. Here, God commanded Ezekiel to record the date—the ninth
year, the tenth month, and the tenth day of the month (i.e, 10 January 588
B.C.)—whose significance becomes apparent in the following verse, for "the
king of
In the second part of chapter 24, Ezekiel was told that his wife would
die suddenly but that he was not to mourn her. When asked concerning this
peculiar—and, in the light of the importance of mourning rites, highly
inappropriate (cf. Jer. 16:1-7) fn—behavior, Ezekiel was to explain that it was
a symbol for Jerusalem, whose inhabitants and temple would be so suddenly
destroyed that there would be no time for mourning. The sudden death of his
wife and his inability to mourn for her according to custom became a symbol of
the sudden destruction of God's sanctuary in
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies
in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1993], 283.)
Many armies tried to defeat
the city of
The Destruction Of Tyre
by David Padfield
Hiram, king of
In Ezekiel 26, God makes a
proclamation concerning
·
Many
nations would come against
·
The
walls of
·
Dust
would be scraped from her, and she would be left like a bare rock (Ezek. 26:4)
·
·
Nebuchadnezzar,
king of
·
Nebuchadnezzar
would plunder the city (Ezek. 26:9-12)
·
The
stones, timber and soil of
·
The
city would never be rebuilt (Ezek. 26:14)
After the destruction of Jerusalem
and the carrying away of her king Zedekiah into captivity, "Nebuchadnezzar
took all
On his way towards
Alexander was tempted to
bypass the island fortress and continue his march towards
Alexander determined to
build a mole to get his troops from the mainland to the island. The mole is
said to have been at least 200 feet wide. It was constructed from stones and
timber from the old city of
For a while the Tyrians
laughed at Alexander's project. At first they would row boats across the
channel and harangue the Macedonians. Their laughter turned to concern when
they saw the mole was going to be completed. The Tyrians ignited a barge and
drove it into the first mole. The towers on the mole caught fire and several of
Alexander's men lost their lives. Alexander gave orders for the work to
continue, and that the mole itself should be widened and more protective towers
be built.
Alexander was able to obtain
ships from
The seven month siege, from
January to July 332 B.C., was over. "The great city over which Hiram had
once held sway was now utterly destroyed. Her king, Azimilik, and various other
notables, including envoys from
One historian wrote,
"Alexander did far more against
The small southern Lebanese
town of
The inhabitants of
I
WILL BE YOUR GOD (EZEKIEL 25-36)
KENT P. JACKSON
The second half of the book of
Ezekiel begins with a collection of prophecies against foreign nations. Almost
all of
Prophecies against
As is frequently the case, God's
complaint against the nations includes references to how they treated his
covenant people (see Ezek. 28:24-26). Ammon (Ezek. 25:1-7) and
Ezekiel 26 through 28 is dedicated to
the condemnation of one of the chief cities of the ancient Near East.
Chapter 27 continues the prophecy.
Verses 1 through 24 recounts her great prosperity as an economic power of the
ancient world, who’s trading partners came from all over the Mediterranean and
the
In chapter 28 the king of
Prophecies against
Ezekiel 29 through 32 contains a
collection of prophecies of conquest and doom for
Chapter 29 consists of two prophecies
that announce
In some ways, the short prophecy in
Ezekiel 29:17-21 is among the most interesting of the prophecies in the Bible.
Although it foretells the fall of
Nebuchadnezzar apparently attempted
for thirteen years fn (ca. 586-573 B.C.) to conquer
The prophecy in Ezekiel 29:17-21 is
the last-dated passage in the entire book of Ezekiel and appears to be the last
revelation Ezekiel recorded, coming in about 571 B.C. fn It concedes that
Nebuchadnezzar failed to destroy and plunder Tyre as prophesied, but it points
out that he and his warriors would not go away unrewarded. For their efforts
the Lord would give them
Nebuchadnezzar king of
The graphic figure of heads
"rubbed bare" and shoulders "made raw" is "derived
from the burden-bearing laborer who works in bondage," fn and it
represents the efforts expended by the Babylonians in their unsuccessful
attempt to sack Tyre. Where Nebuchadnezzar failed at the task, a later
conqueror succeeded. Alexander the Great, recognizing that extraordinary
measures were needed to bring down
Prophecies against
Ezekiel 30 contains two prophecies of
In chapter 31 the prophet foretold
the destruction of lofty
In the allegory the tree is brought
down by foreign powers: "strangers, the terrible of the nations"
(Ezek. 31:12), who are not identified by name but clearly represent the forces
of
But the message of this chapter is to
Pharaoh and his country, not to the Assyrians, who had already met their fate.
Just as Assyria had arrogated itself above God's creations, so now did
In about 585 B.C., Ezekiel received
from the Lord instructions to take up a lament against the king of
In a revelation that apparently
followed the previous one by two weeks (Ezek. 32:17-32), the Lord informed
Ezekiel what would become of Pharaoh and his forces. He instructed the prophet
to wail for
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies in
Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1993], 286.)
(Ezekiel 33:8-11.) – The
wonderful definition of Repentance
8 When I say unto the
wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to
warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity;
but his blood will I require at thine hand.
9 Nevertheless, if thou
warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he
shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
10 Therefore, O thou son
of man, speak unto the house of
11 Say unto them, As
I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but
that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil
ways; for why will ye die, O house of
The Meaning of
Repentance
Elder Theodore M. Burton
Of the First Quorum of Seventy
Ensign, Aug. 1988, pp. 5-9
The most basic principles of
the gospel are sometimes those least understood. And one of the most
fundamental gospel principles is repentance.
Repentance is a mechanism
for personal growth and development. So fundamental is the principle that the
Lord stressed its importance seventy-one times in the Doctrine and Covenants.
Two of those revelations, one following the other in the Doctrine and
Covenants, are identical and conclude with these words:
"And now, behold, I say
unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to
declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you
may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father." (D&C 15:6; D&C
16:6; italics added.)
Why would the Lord give two
identical revelations and have them published in the Doctrine and Covenants,
one following the other? The Lord is a Master Teacher; he knows the value of
repetition in learning. It may be that these revelations were intended not only
for those to whom they were given, but also for all of us. If these revelations
do indeed apply to you and to me, they help us understand that what is of
greatest worth to each of us is to declare repentance to others and to practice
it ourselves.
Just what is repentance?
Actually, in some ways it is easier to understand what repentance is not than
to understand what it is.
As a General Authority, I
have prepared information for the First Presidency to use in considering
applications to readmit repentant transgressors into the Church and to restore
priesthood and temple blessings. Many times a bishop will write, "I feel
he has suffered enough!" But suffering is not repentance. Suffering comes
from lack of complete repentance. A stake president will write, "I feel he
has been punished enough!" But punishment is not repentance. Punishment
follows disobedience and precedes repentance. A husband will write, "My
wife has confessed everything!" But confession is not repentance.
Confession is an admission of guilt that occurs as repentance begins. A wife
will write, "My husband is filled with remorse!" But remorse is not
repentance. Remorse and sorrow continue because a person has not yet fully
repented. Suffering, punishment, confession, remorse, and sorrow may sometimes
accompany repentance, but they are not repentance. What, then, is repentance?
To find the answer to this
question, we must go to the Old Testament. The Old Testament was originally
written in Hebrew, and the word used in it to refer to the concept of
repentance is shube. We can better understand what shube means by
reading a passage from Ezekiel and inserting the word shube, along with
its English translation. To the "watchmen" appointed to warn
"When I say unto the
wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the
wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood
will I require at thine hand.
"Nevertheless, if thou
warn the wicked of his way to turn from [shube] it; if he do not turn
from [shube] his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast
delivered thy soul. …
"Say unto them, As I
live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but
that the wicked turn from [shube] his way and live." (Ezek.
33:8-11.)
I know of no kinder, sweeter
passage in the Old Testament than those beautiful lines. In reading them, can
you think of a kind, wise, gentle, loving Father in Heaven pleading with you to
shube, or turn back to him--to leave unhappiness, sorrow, regret, and
despair behind and turn back to your Father's family, where you can find
happiness, joy, and acceptance among his other children?
That is the message of the
Old Testament. Prophet after prophet writes of shube--that turning back
to the Lord, where we can be received with joy and rejoicing. The Old Testament
teaches time and again that we must turn from evil and do instead that which is
noble and good. This means that we must not only change our ways, we must
change our very thoughts, which control our actions.
The concept of shube
is also found in the New Testament, which was written in Greek. The Greek
writers used the [page 8] Greek word metaneoeo to refer to repentance. metaneoeo
is a compound word. The first part, meta-, is used as a prefix in our
English vocabulary. It refers to change. The second part of the word metaneoeo
can be spelled various ways. The letter n, for instance, is sometimes
transliterated as pn, and can mean air, the mind, thought, thinking, or
spirit--depending on how it is used.
In the context in which meta-
and -neoeo are used in the New Testament, the word metaneoeo
means a change of mind, thought, or thinking so powerful that it changes one's
very way of life. I think the Greek word metaneoeo is an excellent
synonym for the Hebrew word shube. Both words mean thoroughly changing
or turning from evil to God and righteousness.
Confusion came, however,
when the New Testament was translated from Greek into Latin. Here an
unfortunate choice was made in translation; the Greek word metaneoeo was
translated into the Latin word poenitere. The Latin root poen in that
word is the same root found in our English words punish, penance, penitent, and
repentance. The beautiful meaning of the Hebrew and Greek words was thus
changed in Latin to a meaning that involved hurting, punishing, whipping,
cutting, mutilating, disfiguring, starving, or even torturing! It is no small
wonder, then, that people have come to fear and dread the word repentance,
which they understand to mean repeated or unending punishment.
The meaning of repentance is
not that people be punished, but rather that they change their lives so that
God can help them escape eternal punishment and enter into his rest with joy
and rejoicing. If we have this understanding, our anxiety and fears will be
relieved. Repentance will become a welcome and treasured word in our religious
vocabulary.
We can learn more about the
meaning of repentance from the thirty-third chapter of Ezekiel, where we read,
"If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in
the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he
shall not die." (Ezek. 33:15.)
Let us analyze these three
steps of repentance. The first is commitment--to "restore the
pledge." This is the most difficult step in the repentance process. What
does "restoring the pledge" mean?
To restore or renew a pledge
means to renew one's covenant with the Lord. We must forget all excuses and
recognize fully, exactly, what we have done. We must not say, "If I hadn't
been so angry," "If my parents had only been more strict,"
"If my bishop had only been more understanding," "If my teachers
had only taught me better," "If it hadn't been so dark!" There
are hundreds of such excuses--none of which matters much in the final analysis.
To truly repent, we must
forget all such rationalizations. We must kneel down before God and openly and
honestly admit that what we did was wrong. As we do so, we open our hearts to
our Heavenly Father and commit ourselves completely to him.
To really commit oneself to
God and to changing one's life--and to mean it--is the beginning of repentance.
Our Savior's great commitment to his Father is exemplified best by his terrible
trial in the
Before this experience, he
had always had ready communication with his Father. But now he was left alone
to carry the burden of the world's sins. It was as if the heavens over his head
were made of brass and he couldn't get through!
As he struggled in prayer
and suffered horribly under the strain, he asked that the cup might pass and
that some other path might be found. It is true that he added the words,
"Thy will be done," but there was no answer to his request, and his
soul continued to be filled with anguish.
Three times he pleaded for
release, and all three times the answer was the same. (See Matt. 26:36-44.)
Yet Christ had fully
committed himself to do what he had been appointed to do. He was willing, and
he went forward! Though it cost him tremendous suffering, he had made up his
mind and committed himself to be obedient in every particular, regardless of
the cost.
Our struggles to repent may
cost us agony of mind and body also, but our commitment to our Heavenly Father
to do his will will make repentance possible and bearable for us. In our
repentance, we should remember that the Lord does not punish us for our sins;
he simply withholds his blessings. We punish ourselves. The scriptures tell us
again and again that the wicked are punished by the wicked. A simple
illustration can show how we do this.
Suppose my mother told me
not to touch a hot stove because it would burn me. She would only be stating
the law. Suppose I should forget or deliberately touch that hot stove. I would
be burned. I could cry and complain of my hurt, but who would be responsible
for the hurt I received? Not my mother. Certainly not the hot stove! I would be
responsible. I would have punished myself.
This illustration, however,
disregards the important element of mercy, which I will try to make clear in
discussing a second step in the process of repentance--restitution, or to
"give again that [which we have] robbed." (Ezek. 33:15.) If you have
stolen money or goods, you can repay them--even sizable amounts, in time. But
what if you have robbed yourself of virtue? Is there anything you can do, of
yourself, to restore your virtue? Even if you gave your very life, you could
not restore your virtue. But--perish the thought--does that then mean that it
is useless to attempt restitution by performing significant good works or that
your sin is unforgivable? No!
Jesus Christ has paid for
your sin and has thus satisfied justice. Therefore, he will extend mercy to
you--if you repent. True repentance on your part, [page 9] including a change
in your life-style, enables Christ, in mercy, to forgive your sin.
The more serious the sin,
the greater the effort it takes to repent. But if we work daily at turning
completely to the Lord, we can stand blameless before the Savior. The key is to
allow the Lord to complete the healing process without reopening the wound.
Just as it takes time for a wound of the body to heal, so it takes time for a
wound of the soul to heal.
If I cut myself, for
example, the wound will gradually heal. But as it heals, it may begin to itch,
and if I scratch it, it may open up again and take longer to heal. But there is
a greater danger. If I scratch the wound, it may become infected from the
bacteria on my fingers. I may poison the wound and lose that part of my body or
even my life!
We must allow injuries to
follow their prescribed healing course. If they are serious, we must see a
doctor for skilled help. So it is with injuries to the soul. Allow the injury
to follow its prescribed healing course without "scratching" it
through vain regrets. If the transgression requires ecclesiastical confession,
go to your bishop and get spiritual help. It may hurt as he disinfects the
wound and sews it back together, but it will heal properly that way.
As you undergo the process
of repentance, be patient. Be active with positive, righteous thoughts and
deeds so that you can become happy and productive again.
As long as we dwell on sin
or evil and refuse to forgive ourselves, we will be subject to return again to
our sins. But if we turn from our problems and sins and put them behind us in
both thought and action, we can concentrate on good and positive things. As we
become fully engaged in good causes, sin will no longer be such a great temptation
for us.
Now we come to a third step
of repentance--forsaking sin, or striving to "walk in the statutes of
life, without committing iniquity." (Ezek. 33:15.) We must forsake our
sins, one by one. If we do this, the Lord has promised: "None [not even
one] of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him: he hath
done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live." (Ezek. 33:16.)
In our day, the Lord told
the Prophet Joseph Smith, "Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the
same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more."
How do we know if a man or a
woman has repented of his or her sins? The Lord answers that question in the
next verse: "By this ye may know if a man repenteth of his sins--behold,
he will confess them and forsake them." (D&C 58:42-43.)
Naturally, the confession
that precedes repentance for serious sins should be made to a bishop or stake
president who has the authority to hear such confession. Confessions to
others--particularly confessions repeated in open meetings, unless the sin has
been a public sin requiring public forgiveness--only demean both the confessor
and the hearer. Repenting of serious sins takes time and effort. But whether
the sin is small or great, the final step of repentance--forsaking sin--means
that we do not repeat that transgression.
How grateful we should be
for a kind, wise, loving Savior who will help us overcome our faults, our
mistakes, and our sins. He loves and understands us and is sympathetic to the
fact that we face temptations.
In the Book of Mormon, King
Benjamin explains one way we can show our gratitude to the Lord for his great
mercy and his sacrifice for our sins: "Behold, I tell you these things
that ye may learn wisdom: that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of
your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God." (Mosiah 2:17.)
God's work and glory is to redeem his children. If we participate in redemptive
service to others, we can, in some small measure, repay him for his blessings.
God is merciful; he has
provided a way for us to apply the principle of repentance in our lives and
thus escape the bondage of pain, sorrow, suffering, and despair that comes from
disobedience. After all is said and done, we are God's sons and daughters. And
for those who understand its true meaning, repentance is a beautiful word and a
marvelous refuge.
Zedekiah was
places on the throne 597 BC, 12 years later, he was gone and
(Ezekiel 33:21.)
21 ¶ And it came to pass
in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day
of the month, that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me,
saying, The city is smitten.
Ezekiel was right concerning his
prophesies and the people now realized it.
From here on the prophesies are about the future and a restoration of
the gospel, a return back to the Holy Land
The
Watchman (Ezek. 33)
Chapter 33 repeats themes that were
first introduced in Ezekiel 3:17-21 and 18:20-32. Ezekiel was called to be a
"watchman" for his people, a metaphor that is explained clearly in
33:2-9. A watchman's responsibility was to warn his people of the coming of
invading armies. If he fulfilled his responsibility and warned them, he would
be guiltless if they fell to the sword. But if he failed to warn them, God
would require their blood "at the watchman's hand" (Ezek. 33:6). The
Lord told Ezekiel that his prophetic call carried the same weight of
responsibility. If he warned the people with God's message and they refused to
listen, he would be innocent of the consequences that they would bear. If,
however, he failed to warn them as commanded, God would require their blood at
Ezekiel's hand (Ezek. 33:7-8). Because of this responsibility that comes to
those who are called to serve, Lehi's sons Jacob and Joseph magnified their
callings, lest they "would not be found spotless at the last day"
(Jacob 1:18-19). fn
The Lord cares much less about whom
he should blame for our wrongdoings than that we overcome them and be blessed.
"I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked," he said, "but
that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn ye, turn ye from your evil
ways; for why will ye die, O house of
The last section of chapter 33 (vv. 21-33) begins with the announcement
that
Had the people not been warned? Had
Ezekiel and other prophets not been watchmen to let them know that these
disasters would come? Indeed they had been warned, but their rejection of God's
prophets was one of the causes of their sorrows. As the Lord told Ezekiel,
"they hear thy words, but they will not do them" (Ezek. 33:31).
Because the watchman had raised his voice and the people had not obeyed, they
would carry the full burden of their sins. Ezekiel had foretold the
consequences of their behavior, and when they would be forced to the
realization that his prophecies had come true—as they surely would—then they
would know "that a prophet hath been among them" (Ezek. 33:33).
(Kent P. Jackson, ed., Studies
in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1993], 292.)
Bruce said
he isn’t as interested in the battle chapters as he is in the restoration
chapters.
Read
Ezekiel 34 before reading John 10, they are related. Jesus had Ezekiel 34 in mind when he gave
this declaration of the sheep and he as the Shepherd. He tells those in John, Here I am, I am
literally here, and I need to find my sheep! (3 Nephi 15)
(John 10:1-18.)
1 Verily, verily, I say
unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up
some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
2 But he that entereth in
by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
3 To him the porter
openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name,
and leadeth them out.
4 And when he putteth
forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they
know his voice.
5 And a stranger will they
not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
6 This parable spake Jesus
unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto
them.
7 Then said Jesus unto
them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. – 1st I AM statement
8 All that ever came
before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
9 I am the door: by me if
any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not,
but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have
life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the
sheep. – 2nd I AM statement
12 But he that is an
hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf
coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and
scattereth the sheep.
13 The hireling fleeth,
because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.
14 I am the good shepherd,
and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
15 As the Father knoweth
me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
16 And other sheep I have,
which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my
voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.
17 Therefore doth my
Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again.
18 No man taketh it from
me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power
to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
The Good Shepherd
The scriptures indicate that the
tendency to accept or reject Christ's voice in premortality carries over into
this mortal life, for Christ has said that "whoso cometh not unto me is
under the bondage of sin. And whoso receiveth not my voice is not acquainted
with my voice, and is not of me." (D&C 84:51-52.) The only place we
could have become acquainted with the voice of Christ, before we heard it in
this mortal state, was in our premortal life. Referring to himself as the Good
Shepherd, he said:
He that entereth in by the door is
the shepherd of the sheep. To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his
voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he
putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him:
for they know his voice. And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee
from him: for they know not the voice of strangers. . . .
I am the good shepherd, and know my
sheep, and am known of mine. . . .
But ye believed not, because ye are
not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,
and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never
perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave
them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my
Father's hand. (John 10:2-5, 14, 26-29.)
This metaphor carries an even greater
impression to the mind if one is acquainted with the relationship that existed
between the shepherd and his sheep in ancient biblical times. One observer has
noted:
By day and by night the shepherd is
always with his sheep. . . . This was necessary on account of the exposed
nature of the land, and the presence of danger from wild animals and robbers.
One of the most familiar and beautiful sights of the East is that of the
shepherd leading his sheep to the pasture. . . . He depends upon the sheep to
follow, and they in turn expect him never to leave them. They run after him if
he appears to be escaping from them, and are terrified when he is out of sight,
or any stranger appears instead of him. He calls to them from time to time to
let them know that he is at hand. The sheep listen and continue grazing, but if
any one else tries to produce the same peculiar cries and gutteral sounds, they
look around with a startled air and begin to scatter. . . .
As he is always with them, and so
deeply interested in them, the shepherd comes to know his sheep very
intimately. Many of them have pet names suggested either by the appearance or
character of the particular sheep, or by some incident connected with it. . . .
One day a missionary, meeting a shepherd on one of the wildest parts of the
(Kent P.
Jackson and Robert L. Millet, eds., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 5: The
Gospels [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1986], 329.)
(Ezekiel 34:1-19.) – The
shepeards are not taking care of the sheep and they will be removed.
1 And the word of the LORD
came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, prophesy
against the shepherds of
3 Ye eat the fat, and ye
clothe you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed: but ye feed not the
flock.
4 The diseased have ye not
strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound
up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was
driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and
with cruelty have ye ruled them.
5 And they were scattered,
because there is no shepherd: and they became meat to all the beasts of
the field, when they were scattered.
6 My sheep wandered
through all the mountains, and upon every high hill: yea, my flock was
scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after
them.
7 ¶ Therefore, ye
shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
8 As I live, saith
the Lord GOD, surely because my flock became a prey, and my flock became meat
to every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did
my shepherds search for my flock, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not
my flock;
9 Therefore, O ye
shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
10 Thus saith the Lord
GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at
their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock; neither shall the
shepherds feed themselves any more; for I will deliver my flock from their
mouth, that they may not be meat for them.
11 ¶ For thus saith the
Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, will both search my sheep, and seek them
out.
12 As a shepherd seeketh
out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered;
so will I seek out my sheep, and will deliver them out of all places where they
have been scattered in the cloudy and dark day.
13 And I will bring them
out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to
their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of
14 I will feed them in a
good pasture, and upon the high mountains of
15 I will feed my flock,
and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD.
16 I will seek that which
was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that
which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will
destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.
17 And as for you,
O my flock, thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle,
between the rams and the he goats.
18 Seemeth it a
small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down
with your feet the residue of your pastures? and to have drunk of the deep
waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet?
19 And as for my
flock, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet; and they drink that
which ye have fouled with your feet.
The Good Shepherd and His Flock
(Ezek. 34)
In Ezekiel the powerful metaphor of
sheep and shepherds is developed only in chapter 34 (cf. Jer. 23:1; 31:10;
50:6, 17). The Lord condemns the shepherds of
Nowhere are the shepherds of
These shepherds were not worthy of
their callings, the Lord told Ezekiel, so God himself would become
Behold, I, even I, will both search
my sheep, and seek them out. As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day
that he is among his sheep that are scattered; so will I seek out my sheep, and
will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered in the
cloudy and dark day. And I will bring them out from the people, and gather them
from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon
the mountains of
The message of the gathering of
When Jesus proclaimed himself to be the
"good shepherd" (John 10:11, 14), he was drawing upon the divine
shepherd imagery familiar to the Jews from the Old Testament. Thus he was
saying much more than "Follow me."
In Ezekiel 34:17, the prophet's
metaphor takes a sudden and surprising turn. Though the shepherds will be
condemned for their abuse or neglect of the flock, the sheep themselves are
also accountable. They too will be judged, and the judgment against them will
not be easy. Some of them ate the good pasture and trampled what was left. They
drank the water and dirtied the rest with their feet, leaving those identified
as the Lord's own flock to drink foul water. They pushed away the weaker among
them and "scattered them abroad" (vv. 18-21). The Lord will
intervene: "Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a
prey" (v. 22).
The next passage is a powerful
revelation about the Lord's millennial rule among his people: "I will set
up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he
shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. And I the Lord will be their
God, and my servant David a prince among them" (Ezek. 34:23-24). In
another revelation the Lord said, "David my servant shall be king over
them; and they all shall have one shepherd. . . . And my servant David shall be
their prince for ever" (Ezek. 37:24, 25).
There is no mystery about the identity of the "David"
mentioned here. These passages refer to Jesus Christ, who was a descendant of
David in the flesh and who is and ever will be the true Shepherd and King of
Who will be the second David, the millennial King of
Who then is the "one shepherd," "even my servant
David" in Ezekiel 34:23? Once again, it is the Lord Jesus Christ. "I
am the good shepherd," the Lord proclaimed—a doctrine that is repeated in
many passages (John 10:14; see also Heb. 13:20; 1 Pet. 5:4;
With Christ as Shepherd and King, the day of
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 294.)
Jehovah is
always following the instruction of Heavenly Father He speaks for Him
David =
Jesus Christ this is Millennial. There
isn’t a special person named David in verse 23.
(Doctrine and Covenants
109:55-67.)
55 Remember the kings, the
princes, the nobles, and the great ones of the earth, and all people, and the
churches, all the poor, the needy, and afflicted ones of the earth;
56 That their hearts may
be softened when thy servants shall go out from thy house, O Jehovah, to bear
testimony of thy name; that their prejudices may give way before the truth, and
thy people may obtain favor in the sight of all;
57 That all the ends of
the earth may know that we, thy servants, have heard thy voice, and that thou
hast sent us;
58 That from among all these,
thy servants, the sons of Jacob, may gather out the righteous to build a holy
city to thy name, as thou hast commanded them.
59 We ask thee to appoint
unto
60 Now these words, O
Lord, we have spoken before thee, concerning the revelations and commandments
which thou hast given unto us, who are identified with the Gentiles.
61 But thou knowest that
thou hast a great love for the children of Jacob, who have been scattered upon
the mountains for a long time, in a cloudy and dark day. – A day without light
62 We therefore ask thee
to have mercy upon the children of Jacob, that
63 And the yoke of bondage
may begin to be broken off from the house of David;
64 And the children of
65 And cause that the
remnants of Jacob, who have been cursed and smitten because of their
transgression, be converted from their wild and savage condition to the fulness
of the everlasting gospel; The 10 Tribes
66 That they may lay down
their weapons of bloodshed, and cease their rebellions.
67 And may all the
scattered remnants of
One week later
the keys Joseph prayed for came! (D&C 110)
Joseph is
proclaimed the new Moses. The old Moses
comes to the new Moses and gives him the keys for the gathering. Where do they gather? At the temple where Elias gives the keys of
eternal marriage, then Elijah comes to make the family of God complete, ready
to return to the presence of Heavenly Father.
(Matthew 21:33-46.)
33 ¶ Hear another parable:
There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round
about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to
husbandmen, and went into a far country:
34 And when the time of
the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might
receive the fruits of it.
35 And the husbandmen took
his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.
36 Again, he sent other
servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.
37 But last of all he sent
unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.
38 But when the husbandmen
saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill
him, and let us seize on his inheritance.
39 And they caught him,
and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.
40 When the lord therefore
of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?
41 They say unto him, He
will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard
unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.
42 Jesus saith unto them,
Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the
same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous
in our eyes?
43 Therefore say I unto
you, The
44 And whosoever shall
fall on this stone shall be broken: but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will
grind him to powder.
45 And when the chief
priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of
them.
46 But when they sought to
lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a
prophet.
In the hardness of their hearts and
the bitterness of their souls, we witness the abomination that would precede
the desolation of both the temple and the nation of the Jews. Here within the
very walls of the temple, where every ritual movement had been designed in the
councils of heaven to testify of Christ, and every officiator to personify his
likeness, those so chosen stood in open rebellion to him. To them he spoke in
parables, that their "unrighteousness might be rewarded" to them.
(JST, Matt. 21:34.)
Christ then related the "Parable
of the Wicked Husbandmen," by which those corrupt priests, scribes,
Pharisees, and elders pronounced their own judgment. (Matt. 21:33-44.) The
parable concerns a householder who planted a vineyard, hedged it, dug a
winepress in it, built a tower to protect it, placed it in the trust of
husbandmen, and then left for a distant country. At the time of harvest he sent
servants to receive the fruits of his vineyard, only to have them beaten or
killed in one manner or another. Finally he sent "his son, saying, They
will reverence my son. But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among
themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his
inheritance." (Matt. 21:37-38.) Thus they killed the son.
Christ asked of his antagonists,
"When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto
those husbandmen?" To that they responded, "He will miserably destroy
those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which
shall render him the fruits in their seasons." (Matt. 21:40-41.) By their
own mouths, and that too while acting in their official capacity, those corrupt
"husbandmen" of
At this point Jesus asked them if
they had not read in the scriptures how it was prophesied that the stone
rejected by the builders of the temple would yet be discovered to be the chief
cornerstone. fn (Matt. 21:42; Ps. 118:22.) Again the meaning was clear: Jesus
of Nazareth was announcing himself to be the Chief Cornerstone in his Father's
house and was identifying the spiritually blind and hostile Jewish leaders as
the builders who would reject him, along with their nation, until the time of
his second coming.
Humiliated and angered, these devils
cloaked in piety sought to lay hands on Christ but were prevented by his
followers. (Matt. 21:46.) Away from their presence, Christ spoke plainly to his
disciples, saying, "I am the stone, and those wicked ones reject me. I am
the head of the corner. These Jews shall fall upon me, and shall be broken. And
the
(Kent P.
Jackson and Robert L. Millet, eds., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 5: The
Gospels [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1986], 373.)
(Ezekiel 34:20-31.)
20 ¶ Therefore thus saith
the Lord GOD unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat
cattle and between the lean cattle.
21 Because ye have thrust
with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till
ye have scattered them abroad;
22 Therefore will I save
my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and
cattle.
23 And I will set up one
shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he
shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd.
24 And I the LORD will be
their God, and my servant David a prince among them; I the LORD have spoken it.
25 And I will make with
them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the
land: and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods.
26 And I will make them
and the places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to
come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.
27 And the tree of the
field shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they
shall be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the LORD, when I
have broken the bands of their yoke, and delivered them out of the hand of
those that served themselves of them.
28 And they shall no more
be a prey to the heathen, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but
they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.
29 And I will raise up for
them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the
land, neither bear the shame of the heathen any more.
30 Thus shall they know
that I the LORD their God am with them, and that they, even
the house of
31 And ye my flock, the
flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the
Lord GOD.
Chapter 35
– Esua and Jacob, the Edomites are
A Prophecy against
Chapter 35 would seem to be more at
home among the other oracles against foreign nations in chapters 25 through 32.
No explanation regarding its placement here is given, nor is there a reference
to the date of the revelation. It is a prophecy against
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 297.)
The
destruction by the Lord will be complete; it will be a rampage, a time of
terror for the widked. That time will be
a time of great slaughter that is why the Lord will be dressed in red at the
second coming. It has nothing to do with
Gethsamene. Who fought Christ in the pre
existence, that will finally be destroyed in the end?
(Isaiah 63:1-6.) – Isaiah
sees what Ezekiel will see later
1 Who is this that
cometh from
2 Wherefore art thou
red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat?
3 I have trodden the
winepress alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will
tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be
sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment.
4 For the day of vengeance
is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.
5 And I looked, and there
was none to help; and I wondered that there was none to uphold:
therefore mine own arm brought salvation unto me; and my fury, it upheld me.
6 And I will tread down
the people in mine anger, and make them drunk in my fury, and I will bring down
their strength to the earth.
Notes and Commentary
63:1 Edom/Bozrah. In Hebrew, the
consonants of
dyed garments. The Lord's garments are dyed red or
stained a crimson color.
63:2 red in thine apparel. When
Christ returns, his garments will be red, as John saw: "And he was clothed
with a vesture dipped in blood" (Rev. 19:13; D&C 133:48). The red
clothing symbolizes at least three things: the blood Christ shed in performing
the Atonement (Luke 22:44; D&C 19:18) the blood (or sins) of the wicked
that he took upon himself (blood and sins are equated in Jacob 1:19; see also 1
Pet. 3:18; Alma 33:22; 3 Ne. 11:11) and the blood of the unrepentant wicked he
has slain in his wrath (63:3; Lam. 1:15; D&C 133:48, 50-51). The blood symbolism is repeated here
in the use of the words
treadeth . . . winevat. The Jerusalem Bible reads,
"Yahweh is represented as one who treads the grapes, his garments stained
red. But what he has been treading are the nations, whose blood has spattered
him, and who are represented by
63:3 have trodden the winepress alone. When Christ offered the Atonement in
the
will tread them in mine anger/trample
them in my fury.
Christ has trodden the winepress in offering the Atonement in the
63:4 day of vengeance/year of my redeemed. The Lord is a God of both justice
and mercy. Yet it appears that his blessings will continue far longer (year)
than his punishments (day), at least in relation to this temporal earth
(see commentary on 61:2). The "year of my redeemed" may refer to the
jubilee year, when Israelite slaves were freed (Lev. 25:39-40; Ex. 21:2; Deut.
15:12). When the Lord comes, we will be freed from all the bonds of our enemies
and oppressors.
63:5 there was none to help/mine own arm. Jehovah is the only one who can
bring about the redemption of
63:6 make them drunk in my fury.
He will cause them to drink the cup of his wrath (51:17), just as he himself earlier
had to drink the bitter cup of atonement (3 Ne. 11:11; D&C 19:18).
bring down their strength. Other translations read,
"poured their lifeblood on the ground." The day of vengeance is
finished.
(Donald W.
Parry, Jay A. Parry, and Tina M. Peterson, Understanding Isaiah [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1998], 559.)
The Old
Testament holds the key to the other scriptures. Once the wicked are destroyed then the
restoration can take place. This is why
Ezekiel spends time to write about the wickedness of the neighborhood,
especially chapter 35, this symbolizes Satan and his future destruction.
(Doctrine and Covenants
133:46-53.)
46 And it shall be said:
Who is this that cometh down from God in heaven with dyed garments; yea, from
the regions which are not known, clothed in his glorious apparel, traveling in
the greatness of his strength?
47 And he shall say: I am
he who spake in righteousness, mighty to save.
48 And the Lord shall be
red in his apparel, and his garments like him that treadeth in the wine-vat.
49 And so great shall be
the glory of his presence that the sun shall hide his face in shame, and the
moon shall withhold its light, and the stars shall be hurled from their places.
50 And his voice shall be
heard: I have trodden the wine-press alone, and have brought judgment upon all
people; and none were with me;
51 And I have trampled
them in my fury, and I did tread upon them in mine anger, and their blood have
I sprinkled upon my garments, and stained all my raiment; for this was the day
of vengeance which was in my heart.
52 And now the year of my
redeemed is come; and they shall mention the loving kindness of their Lord, and
all that he has bestowed upon them according to his goodness, and according to
his loving kindness, forever and ever.
53 In all their
afflictions he was afflicted. And the angel of his presence saved them; and in
his love, and in his pity, he redeemed them, and bore them, and carried them
all the days of old;
A New Heart and a New Spirit (Ezek. 36)
The first fifteen verses of Ezekiel
36 contain a prophecy addressed to the mountains, hills, ravines, valleys, and
ruined cities of
In the second revelation in chapter
36 (vv. 16-38), the Lord explained to Ezekiel why he had expelled the house of
To these promises the Lord added the
crowning pronouncement: "Ye shall be my people, and I will be your
God" (Ezek. 36:28). This phrase, in my view, is one of the most
significant statements in the entire Old Testament. It is found frequently, and
it always signifies that the covenant relationship between Jehovah and his
people is intact. fn It shows the fulfillment of the Lord's intention as he
established his covenant with the house of
When the Lord takes back his
repentant people and renews the covenant that bound them to him, he will also
endow them richly with the blessings of the earth. The land will produce as
never before, cities will be built, and desolate areas will be tilled (Ezek.
36:29-38). In that millennial setting, countryside that once lay waste and
desolate will "become like the garden of Eden" (Ezek. 36:35), and, as
Joseph Smith promised, "the earth will be renewed and receive its
paradisiacal glory" (A of F 10).
Notes
Kent P. Jackson is professor of
ancient scripture at
(Kent P.
Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 298.)
(Ezekiel 36:23-28.) –
Sanctified = Rededicated like the Sacrament, Israel needs to be spiritually
reborn to be gathered
23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the
heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall
know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified
in you before their eyes.
24 For I will take you
from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you
into your own land.
25 ¶ Then will I sprinkle
clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from
all your idols, will I cleanse you.
26 A new heart also will I
give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the
stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk
in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
28 And ye shall dwell in
the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be
your God.
Spiritual
rebirth is done by God; the key ordinance to spiritual rebirth is the gift of
the Holy Ghost. You have overcome
spiritual death. Moses 6:64-65! Spiritually alive, you must maintain your
rebirth because you can still spiritually die
There are
two spiritual deaths according to the Book of Mormon. The first spiritual death (Fall of Adam) will
not be overcome in mortality; it is overcome at the resurrection. We can overcome the second death here; the
second spiritual death begins at the age of accountability. (Helaman 14) It requires an active process (Moses 6:57-68)
Spirtual birth is likened to the process of physical birth, a new life.
The Persistence of the
Natural Man
___________________________________________
Though it
is true that that natural man can be "put off" and men become "a
saint" -- or a spiritual man (Mosiah 3:19) -- this does not mean that the
natural man or the flesh is "dead". We must be careful to
recognize the persistence of the natural man. Note the following
statements:
Neal A. Mawell
- Christ’s Atonement, of course, is for super
sinners and the midrange sinners and then good people who make a lot of
mistakes but are not wicked! Each of these acts of drawing upon the
Atonement requires us to put off the natural man. I am persuaded
that so much of taking up the cross daily –- daily, not quarterly or
semiannually –- consists of putting off the natural man (see Mosiah
3:19). Doing this involves some arduous isometrics -– the old man
working against the new spiritual man. That natural man, as you know, will
not go quietly or easily. And even when he is put off, he has a way of
hanging around, hoping to throw his saddle on us once again. (The Holy
Ghost: Glorifying Christ, Ensign, July 2002, p. 56)
- As you pursue your discipleship and observe the
human scene, do not be surprised or unnerved by the natural man’s
relentless push for preeminence and power. (“The Pathway of Discipleship,”
Ensign, Sept. 1998, p. 13)
- Nor does the natural man or the natural woman go
away quietly or easily. Hence the most grinding form of calisthenics we
will ever know involves the individual isometrics required to put off the
natural man. Time and again, the new self is pitted against the stubborn
old self. Sometimes, just when at last we think the job is done, the old
self reminds us that he or she has not fully departed yet. (“Becoming a
Disciple,” Ensign, June 1996, p. 15)
Brigham Young
- As I have told you, your spirit is continually
warring with the flesh; your spirit dictates one way, your flesh suggests
another, and this brings on the combat. (Journal of Discourses,
3:212)
- When we receive the Gospel, a warfare commences
immediately; Paul says, "for I delight in the law of God, after the
inward man," but I see another law in my members warring against the
law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is
in my members." We have to fight continually, as it were, sword in
hand to make the spirit master of the tabernacle, or the flesh subject to
the law of the spirit. If this warfare is not diligently prosecuted, then
the law of sin prevails, and in consequence of this some apostatize from
the truth when crossing the plains, learn to swear instead of to pray,
become high-minded and high tempered instead of learning to be patient and
humble, and when they arrive in these vallies they feel so self-sufficient
that they consider themselves the only ones that are really right; they
are filled with darkness, the authority of the Spirit is not listened to,
and the law of sin and death is the ruling power in their tabernacles. (Journal
of Discourses, 9:287-288)
Spirits
Contaminated Upon Birth
Elder Orson
Pratt
Of the Quorum of the Twelve
“Spirits,
though pure and innocent, before they entered the body, would become
contaminated by entering a fallen tabernacle; not contaminated by their own
sins, but by their connection with a body brought into the world by the fall,
earthly, fallen, imperfect, and corrupt in its nature. A spirit, having
entered such a tabernacle, though it may commit no personal sin, is unfit to
return again into the presence of a holy Being. . .”
(“The Pre-existence of Man,” The Seer, Vol. 1, No. 7, (July, 1853).
Republished by Eugene Wagner,
Awakening – A
realization that we are in trouble
Childlike
belief – In the Lord Jesus Christ
Correct
doctrine – Knowing the way
Faith –
Come to understand the will of God
Repentance
– Adopting the will of God
Baptism –
Covenant to keep the will of God
We have now
covenanted to live the will of God.
Receive the
challenge to receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, spiritual rebirth happens,
(Moses 6:64-65) God gave him the new heart Adam is now spiritually alive.
Teachings
Concerning
Spiritual Rebirth
The Necessity of
Spiritual Rebirth
John 3:1-8
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.
3
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except
a man be born again, he cannot see the
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?
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
6
That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit
is spirit.
7
Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
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.
Moses 6:58-61
58
Therefore I give unto you a commandment, to teach these things freely unto your
children, saying:
59
That by reason of transgression cometh the fall, which fall bringeth death, and
inasmuch as ye were born into the world by water, and blood, and the spirit,
which I have made, and so became of dust a living soul, even so ye must
be born again into the kingdom of heaven, of water, and of the Spirit, and
be cleansed by blood, even the blood of mine Only Begotten; that ye might be
sanctified from all sin, and enjoy the words of eternal life in this world, and
eternal life in the world to come, even immortal glory;
60
For by the water ye keep the commandment; by the Spirit ye are justified, and
by the blood ye are sanctified;
61 Therefore it is given to abide in you; the
record of heaven; the Comforter; the peaceable things of immortal glory; the
truth of all things; that which quickeneth all things, which maketh alive all
things; that which knoweth all things, and hath all power according to wisdom,
mercy, truth, justice, and judgment.
Mosiah 27:25-26
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
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.
Joseph Smith
But
except a man be born again, he cannot see the
Bruce R. McConkie
Such
is the plan of salvation for all men in all ages. Adam fell and brought
death--both temporal death and spiritual death--into the world. The effects of
his fall passed upon all men; all die temporally, and all are subject to
spiritual death. Spiritual death is to die as pertaining to the things of the
Spirit, as pertaining to things of righteousness. If men are to live again as
pertaining to the things of righteousness, they must receive a spiritual
rebirth. (The Mortal Messiah, 1:473)
What Is Spiritual Rebirth?
Moses 6:64-65
64
And it came to pass, when the Lord had spoken with Adam, our father, that Adam
cried unto the Lord, and he was caught away by the Spirit of the Lord, and was
carried down into the water, and was laid under the water, and was brought
forth out of the water.
65
And thus he was baptized, and the Spirit of God descended upon him, and
thus he was born of the Spirit, and became quickened in the inner man. [The
word quicken is defined in the Noah Webster's 1828 An American
Dictionary of the English Language as "To become alive."]
Harold B. Lee
[Quotes Moses 6:65] Now there is a definition of
what it means to be born again. It means to be quickened in the inner man.
That's another way of saying it. (Stand Ye In Holy Places, p.54)
Mosiah 5:7
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.
Harold B. Lee
[Quotes Mosiah 5:7] There's another explanation:
when our hearts are changed through faith on his name, we are born again. (Stand
Ye In Holy Places , p.55)
Mosiah 27:25-29
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
27
I say unto you, unless this be the case, they must be cast off; and this I
know, because I was like to be cast off.
28
Nevertheless, after wandering through much tribulation, repenting nigh unto
death, the Lord in mercy hath seen fit to snatch me out of an everlasting
burning, and I am born of God.
29 My soul hath been redeemed from the
gall of bitterness and bonds of iniquity. I was in the darkest
abyss; but now I behold the marvelous light of God. My soul was
racked with eternal torment; but I am snatched, and my soul is pained no more.
14
And now behold, I ask of you, my brethren of the church, have ye spiritually
been born of God? Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have
ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts?
Bruce R. McConkie
There
is a natural birth, and there is a spiritual birth. The natural birth is to die
as pertaining to premortal life, to leave the heavenly realms where all spirits
dwell in the Divine Presence, and to begin a new life, a mortal life, a life
here on earth. The natural birth creates a natural man, and the natural man is
an enemy to God. In his fallen state he is carnal, sensual, and devilish by
nature. Appetites and passions govern his life and he is alive -- acutely so --
to all that is evil and wicked in the world.
The
spiritual birth comes after the natural birth. It is to die as pertaining to
worldliness and carnality and to become a new creature by the power of the
Spirit. It is to begin a new life, a life in which we bridle our passions and
control our appetites, a life of righteousness, a spiritual life. Whereas we
were in a deep abyss of darkness, now we are alive in Christ and bask in the
shining rays of his everlasting light. Such is the new birth the second birth,
the birth into the household of Christ. (A New Witness for the Articles of
Faith, p.282)
Spiritual
Rebirth Comes Through Ordinances
Joseph Smith
Being born again, comes
by the Spirit of God through ordinances. (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph
Smith, p.162)
Marion G. Romney
One
is born again by actually receiving and experiencing the light and power
inherent in the gift of the Holy Ghost. ("The Light of Christ," Ensign,
May 1977, p. 44.)
John 3:5
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
Harold B. Lee
The
Master's admonition to Nicodemus, who came confessing Jesus as a teacher come
of God, and undoubtedly seeking to know, like so many others who are true
seekers after truth, just what he must do to be saved. He was told that he must
be born again if he would see the
This new birth, then, was
to be accomplished through the medium of baptism by immersion and by the laying
on of hands for the conferring of the Holy Ghost, as the disciples, thereafter as they went out among the
people, administered these sacred ordinances. (Conference Report,
April 1961, p.32)
Moses 6:64-65
64 And it came to pass, when the Lord
had spoken with Adam, our father, that Adam cried unto the Lord, and he was
caught away by the Spirit of the Lord, and was carried down into the water, and
was laid under the water, and was brought forth out of the water.
65 And thus he was
baptized, and the Spirit of God descended upon him, and thus he was
born of the Spirit, and became quickened in the inner man.
Joseph Fielding Smith
- We must receive the gift of the Holy Ghost; we
must be born again; we must have sin and iniquity burned out of our souls
as though by fire; we must gain a new creation by the power of the Holy
Ghost. ("The Plan of Salvation," Ensign, Nov. 1971, p. 5)
- This second death is not, then,
the dissolution or annihilation of both spirit and body, but banishment
from the presence of God and from partaking of the things of
righteousness.In speaking of the transgression of Adam, the Lord has said:
"Wherefore, I, the Lord God, caused that he should be cast out from
the Garden of Eden, from my presence, because of his transgression,
wherein he became spiritually dead, which is the first death, even that
same death which is the last death, which is spiritual, which shall be
pronounced upon the wicked when I shall say: Depart, ye
cursed." The second death is spiritual; it is banishment from
the presence of the Lord. It is similar to the first spiritual death,
which has passed upon all men who have remained unrepentant and who have
not received the gospel. Those who have suffered the first spiritual death
or departure, which is a shutting out from the presence of God, have the
privilege of being redeemed from this death through obedience to the
principles of the gospel. Through baptism and confirmation they are born
again and thus come back into spiritual life, and through their continued
obedience to the end, they shall be made partakers of the blessings of
eternal life in the celestial
Mark E. Petersen
We
receive confirmation by the laying on of hands and are given the gift of the
Holy Ghost. But we must remember that in that ordinance we also receive a
newness of life. If we are sincere, we are literally born again. In a very real
sense we become different and better persons. We receive a new heart. We put away
the man of sin, as Paul describes it, and take upon ourselves the name and the
image of Christ (see Col. 3:9-10). ["The Image of a Church Leader," Ensign,
Aug. 1980, p. 5]
<>
Bruce R. McConkie
- The first death, in point of
time, was spiritual. Spiritual death is to die as pertaining to the things
of the Spirit; it is to die as pertaining to the things of righteousness;
it is to be cast out of the presence of the Lord, in which presence
spirituality and righteousness abound. Adam died this death when he left
- If a man "yields to the
enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh
a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord" (Mosiah 3:19), then
he is born again. His spiritual death ceases. He becomes alive to the
things of the Spirit; he returns to the presence of God because he
receives the gift of the Holy Ghost; and he is alive to the things of
righteousness. He crucifies the old man of sin, becomes a new creature of
the Holy Ghost, and walks in a newness of life. This is what is meant by
being born again. (The Promised Messiah, p.350)
Spiritual Rebirth Is Most Often Gradual Process
Bruce R. McConkie
- Sometimes men are born again miraculously and
suddenly, as was
- Except in miraculous and unusual circumstances,
as with
Merrill J. Bateman
For
most of us, trying to be Christlike is a lifelong process and comes "line
upon line, precept upon precept" (2 Ne. 28:30). Most of us, if faithful,
are baptized "with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites …
were baptized … and they knew it not" (3 Ne. 9:20). In other words,
spiritual rebirth is a gradual process for most individuals. At any point in
time the changes are almost imperceptible; indeed, many of us worry that we are
not becoming more Christlike even though we are. ("Living a
Christ-Centered Life," Ensign, Jan. 1999, p. 7)
What Are the Signs of
Spiritual Rebirth?
See "What Is
Spiritual Rebirth?" Above
George Q. Cannon
We need to be born again, and have new hearts
put in us. There is too much of the old leaven about us. We are not born again
as we should be. Do you not believe that we ought to be born again? Do you not
believe that we should become new creatures in Christ Jesus, under the
influence of the Gospel? All will say, yes, who understand the Gospel. You must
be born again. You must have new desires, new hearts, so to speak, in you. But
what do we see? We see men following the ways of the world just as much as
though they made no pretensions to being Latter-day Saints. Hundreds of people
who are called Latter-day Saints you could not distinguish from the world. They
have the same desires, the same feelings, the same aspirations, the same
passions as the rest of the world. Is this how God wants us to be? No; He wants
us to have new hearts, new desires. He wants us to be a changed people when we
embrace His Gospel, and to be animated by entirely new motives, and have a
faith that will lay hold of the promises of God. (Conference Report,
October 1899, p.50)
Harold B. Lee
To
become converted, according to the scriptures, meant having a change of heart
and the moral character of a person turned from the controlled power of sin
into a righteous life. It meant to "wait patiently on the Lord" until
one's prayers can be answered. . . .
Conversion must mean more than just being a
"card carrying" member of the Church with a tithing receipt, a
membership card, a temple recommend, etc. It means to overcome the tendencies
to criticize and to strive continually to improve inward weaknesses and not
merely the outward appearances. (Conference Report, 1971April, p. 92)
Marion G. Romney
- While conversion may be
accomplished in stages, one is not really converted in the full sense of
the term unless and until he is at heart a new person. Born again is the
scriptural term. In one who is wholly converted, desire for things
inimical to the gospel of Jesus Christ has actually died, and substituted
therefore is a love of God with a fixed and controlling determination to
keep his commandments. (Look to God and Live, p. 109)
- The experience of each individual who is really
born again is similar to this experience of
- Now since eternal life is the
greatest of all the gifts of God, and obtaining it is conditioned upon
being converted and healed, it is vital that we who are seeking eternal
life understand what it means to be converted and healed. Converted means
to turn from one belief or course of action to another. Conversion is a
spiritual and moral change. Converted implies not merely mental acceptance
of Jesus and his teachings but also a motivating faith in him and his
gospel. A faith which works a transformation, an actual change in one's
understanding of life's meaning and in his allegiance to God in interest,
in thought, and in conduct. In one who is really wholly converted, desire
for things contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ has actually died. And
substituted therefore is a love of God, with a fixed and controlling
determination to keep his commandments.
Paul
said that such an one would walk in newness of life. (See Romans 6:4.) Peter
taught that by walking in this newness of life and developing within himself
faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness,
and charity, one becomes a partaker of the divine nature. (See 2 Pet.1:4-7.)
That is to say, he becomes like God. [Area Conference Report (
Dallin H. Oaks
How
can we measure our progress? The scriptures suggest various ways. I will
mention only two.
After
King Benjamin's great sermon, many of his hearers cried out that the Spirit of
the Lord "has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we
have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually" (Mosiah
5:2). If we are losing our desire to do evil, we are progressing toward our
heavenly goal.
The
Apostle Paul said that persons who have received the Spirit of God "have
the mind of Christ" (1 Cor. 2:16). I understand this to mean that persons
who are proceeding toward the needed conversion are beginning to see things as
our Heavenly Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, see them. They are hearing His
voice instead of the voice of the world, and they are doing things in His way
instead of by the ways of the world. ("The Challenge to Become," Ensign,
Nov. 2000, pp. 32-34)
J. Richard Clarke
From
the pages of our missionary journal comes an event repeated often throughout
the missions of the Church. John and Shirley Withers were successful
advertising executives. They were on the fast track, indulging themselves in
worldly pleasures. When contacted by our missionaries, they were impressed by
their clean, sparkling countenances so unlike other young men they had known.
Previous
behavior became incompatible with gospel principles. A [page 10] new set of
priorities and values replaced worldly interests. Alcohol and tobacco habits
became expendable, although with great effort. Modesty became the dress
standard. Prayer, scripture study, Relief Society and priesthood service became
the focus. They were baptized and received the Holy Ghost.
As
Sister Clarke and I, with some of our missionaries, assembled in the
Dramatic Spiritual Manifestations
Not Necessary in Spiritual Rebirth
Harold B. Lee
The
question, then, that sometimes we wrestle with is: Must there always be a
visible, spiritual manifestation before one might be said to be born of the
Spirit? We have some very dramatic incidents in which this is illustrated
including the Apostle Paul's theophany, when he heard and he saw, in his
conversion. And perhaps that experience is only matched by the great conversion
of younger
"For,
said he, I have repented of my sins, and have been redeemed of the Lord; behold
I am born of the Spirit.
"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;"
Then
he describes a little more intimately his experience:
".
. . I ask you, my brethren of the church, have ye spiritually been born of God?
Have ye received his image in your countenances? Have ye experienced this
mighty change in your hearts?
"I
say unto you, ye will know at that day that ye cannot be saved, for there can
no man be saved except his garments are washed white; yea, his garments must be
purified until they are cleansed from all stain, through the blood of him of
whom it has been spoken by our fathers, who should come to redeem his people
from their sins." (
And
then, again, he summarizes and ecstatically tells us about how he felt:
"And
oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filed
with joy as exceeding as was my pain!
"Yea,
I say unto you, my son, that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter
as were my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other
hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was my Joy.
"Yea,
methought I saw, even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne,
surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and
praising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there.
"But
behold, my limbs did receive their strength again, and I stood upon my feet,
and did manifest unto the people that I had been born of God.
"Yea,
and now from that time even until now I have labored without ceasing, that I
might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring them to taste of the
exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God and be
filled with the Holy Ghost." (
There
are some of us who think that that same kind of experience has to be
experienced by everybody, or he can't be saved. I once ran into a very serious
situation where one of our teachers had inflamed some women, in a class he was
teaching, until they almost had the kind of feeling that they had to have some
kind of demonstration or else they hadn't been born of the Spirit.
Another
story that some people who support that idea recite is the conversion of
Lorenzo Snow. President Snow had been a young college student; when he finally
had an intellectual conviction of the truth, he sought for a deep-seated
testimony, which he had not had at his baptism. And so, he reported, he went
out one night to pray. This is how he describes the experience:
"It
was a complete baptism, a tangible immersion in the heavenly principle or
element, the Holy Ghost, and even more real and physical in its effect upon my
system, than the immersion of water. Dispelling forever, as long as reason and
memory last, all possibility of doubt and fear in relation to the fact handed
down to us historically, that the babe of Bethlehem is truly the Son of God;
also communicating knowledge, the same as in apostolic times."
Now,
I repeat, because of some of these dramatic experiences, some of our teachers
jump to the conclusion that one isn't born of the Spirit until he has had some
such dramatic experience. (Stand Ye In Holy Places, p.59-60)
Bruce R. McConkie
Though
there may be miraculous manifestations attending specific instances of
spiritual rebirth, such are in addition to the actual fact of being "born
of the Spirit." When the Holy Ghost falls upon a worthy recipient, it has
the effect of pouring out pure intelligence upon him; all is calm and serene;
the still small voice speaks peace to the spirit within man; and the
sanctifying, cleansing power of the Spirit begins to manifest itself. (Teachings,
pp. 149-150.) [Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 1:142]
The Spiritually Reborn Have Overcome the World
Bruce R. McConkie
Those
who are born of the Spirit thereby -- that is, by virtue of their spiritual
rebirth -- overcome the world. They die as to carnality and evil; they live as
to spirituality and godliness. And it all comes to pass because they have faith
in Christ. "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of
God," John says. Those who are born anew love the Lord and keep his
commandments. "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.
... For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory
that overcometh the world, even our faith." There is no way to overcome
the world except by turning to Christ and his gospel. It is by living the
gospel that men forsake the world and are born again. "Who is he that
overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?"
(A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, p.289)
The
Spiritual Born Again Become
the Sons and Daughters of Christ
Mosiah 5:7
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.
Bruce R. McConkie
Those
who are born again not only live a new life, but they also have a new father.
Their new life is one of righteousness, and their new father is God. They
become the sons of God; or, more particularly, they become the sons and
daughters of Jesus Christ. They bear, ever thereafter, the name of their new
parent; that is, they take upon themselves the name of Christ and become
Christians, not only in word but in very deed. They become by adoption the seed
or offspring of Christ, the children in his family, the members of his
household which is the perfect household of perfect faith. And further: Having
become the sons of God (Christ), they also become joint-heirs with him of the
fulness of the glory of the Father, thus becoming by adoption the sons of God
the Father.
John
tells us that the Lord Jesus, who came in time's meridian unto his own, was
rejected by them. "But as many as received him as their Messiah and
Savior, "to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on his name. (John 1:12.) Speaking of that same meridian day, the
same Lord said in our day: "To as many as received me, gave I power to
become my sons." Be it noted that true believers are not automatically
born to a newness of life by the mere fact of belief alone. That belief and
that acceptance of the Savior gives them power to become the sons of God. And
in our day the divine word continues: "Even so will I give unto as many as
will receive me, power to become my sons." And how are those who receive
the Lord identified? By way of answer, he tells us: "Verily, verily, I say
unto you, he that receiveth my gospel receiveth me; and he that receiveth not
my gospel receiveth not me." (D&C 39:4-5.) Those who have accepted the
fulness of the everlasting gospel as it has come again in our day through the
instrumentality of Joseph Smith have power to become the sons of God; those who
reject this heaven-sent message of salvation reject that Lord whose message it
is and remain outside the Lord's family.
In
addressing a congregation of contrite and penitent Nephites, King Benjamin,
using that simplicity of speech and clarity of expression in which Book of
Mormon prophets so excel, said to his fellow saints: "Because of the
covenant which ye have made ye shall be called the children of Christ, his
sons, and his daughters." They thus gain a new father, and he gains new
children. "For behold, this day he hath spiritually begotten you."
Their new birth is not a natural but a spiritual birth. "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."
Thus
it is that the saints are born of Christ because they have been born of the
Spirit; they are alive in Christ because they enjoy the companionship of the
Spirit, and they are members of his family because they are clean as he is
clean. "And under this head ye are made free" -- being in Christ,
they are free from the bondage of sin -- "and there is no other head
[other than Christ our Head] whereby ye can be made free." Only those who
accept Christ and receive the Spirit can free themselves from the sins of the
world. "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." (Mosiah 5:7-8.)
Those
who receive the Lord Jesus and believe in their hearts that he is the Son of
God by whom salvation comes; those who then covenant in the waters of baptism
to serve him and keep his commandments; those who believe the gospel and are
members of the earthly kingdom -- these are the ones who have power to become his
sons and daughters. Thus they are the ones who take upon themselves his name.
In
our day the divine word from the Lord Jesus commands: "Take upon you the
name of Christ, and speak the truth in soberness. Behold, Jesus Christ is the
name which is given of the Father, and there is none other name given whereby
man can be saved; wherefore, all men must take upon them the name which is
given of the Father, for in that name shall they be called at the last day;
wherefore, if they know not the name by which they are called, they cannot have
place in the kingdom of my Father." (D&C 18:21-25.)
It
was ever thus. Isaiah prophesied of the "seed" of Christ. (Isaiah
53:10.) Abinadi says "his seed" consists of the prophets and saints
who hearken to his word, who believe he will "redeem his people," who
gain "a remission of their sins," and who are thus "heirs of the
Our
theologically gifted friend Paul teaches the doctrine of spiritual rebirth and
of becoming sons and daughters of both the Father and the Son, explaining that
true believers, converted souls, righteous saints, those who are born again,
"walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." To walk after the
manner of the flesh is to live after the manner of the world; to walk after the
manner of the Spirit is to overcome the world and live by the standards of the
gospel. "For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the
flesh" -- they live carnal and evil lives -- but they that are after the
Spirit the things of the Spirit. Theirs is a godly course of conduct. "For
to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: so then they that are in the
flesh cannot please God." The Lord cannot look upon sin with the least
degree of allowance. Those who live after the manner of the flesh are damned;
those who bridle their passions and overcome the world are saved.
As
to the saints of God, Paul says: "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the
Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not
the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." In the full and eternal sense
even in the true church, only those saints who enjoy the companionship of the
Spirit belong to the Lord; they are the only ones who are the Lord's people in
the sense of gaining salvation. "And if Christ be in you, the body is dead
because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the
Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you -- if you have
the companionship of the Holy Ghost -- he that raised up Christ from the dead
shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you."
Ye shall be born again; ye shall become new creatures of the Holy Ghost; your
bodies shall be quickened, shall be made new shall become fit tabernacles in
which the Spirit may dwell. "Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to
the flesh, to live after the flesh." The saints must not live in sin.
"For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the
Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live." Those who live
after the manner of the world are spiritually dead; those who control the
appetites of the flesh and pursue a godly course are alive spiritually.
"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear." Ye are made
free from the bondage of sin through Christ. "But ye have received the
Spirit of adoption [of sonship], whereby we cry, Abba, Father." Abba is an
Aramaic word that means father; the meaning here is that we sense and feel our
newly found relationship with God the Father and hence feel free to address him
in a friendly and familiar way.
"The
Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so
be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together." That
is, because we have been adopted into the family of Christ, because we have
taken his name upon us, and because he has accepted us in full, we are also
accepted by his Father. We become joint-heirs with the Son. We are adopted into
a state of sonship by the Father. Christ is his natural heir, and as adopted
sons, we become joint-heirs, receiving, inheriting, and possessing as does the
Natural Heir. Because we conform "to the image of his Son," we are
also "glorified" with him. (Romans 8:4-30.) And thus in like manner,
the inhabitants of all worlds "are begotten sons and daughters unto
God" the Father through the atonement of Christ the Son. (D&C 76:24.)
[A New Witness for the Articles of Faith, pp. 284-287]
Spiritual Rebith is the Beginning
of Righteousness
Bruce R. McConkie
"How
can these things be?" Nicodemus asked. 'How can the water of baptism, and
the Spirit of the Lord, and the blood of the Only Begotten, constitute a birth
into the kingdom of heaven? How can the serene and calm influence of the
Spirit--the still small voice, as it were--descend, as from nowhere, upon a
human soul?'
"Art
thou a master of
D&C 109:14-15
14
And do thou grant, Holy Father, that all those who shall worship in this house
may be taught words of wisdom out of the best books, and that they may seek
learning even by study, and also by faith, as thou hast said;
15
And that they may grow up in thee, and receive a fulness of the Holy
Ghost . . .
For
At the age of
accountability, I am responsible for the second spiritual death. The Atonement and the ordinances help me
overcome this death. Judgement happens
after resurrection and if I am worthy, I inherit a kingdom of glory, if not I
go to perdition. Helaman 14
Teachings Concerning
Spiritual Death
What is Spiritual Death
Joseph
Fielding Smith
Spiritual death is defined
as a state of spiritual alienation from God--the eternal separation from the
Supreme Being; condemnation to everlasting punishment is also called the second
death. In other words, the second or spiritual death, which is the final
judgment passed upon the wicked, is the same as the first death, banishment
from the presence of the Lord. (Doctrines of Salvation, 2:217)
Bruce
R. McConkie
Spiritual death is to be
cast out of the presence of the Lord, to die as to the things of righteousness,
to die as to the things of the Spirit. Spirit beings as such never die in the
sense of annihilation or in the sense that their spirit bodies are
disorganized; rather, they continue to live to all eternity either as spirits
or as resurrected personages. (Mormon Doctrine, p. 756)
Dallin
H. Oaks
Jesus Christ is also the
life of the world because he has atoned for the sins of the world. By yielding
to temptation, Adam and Eve were [page 65] "cut off from the presence of
the Lord" (Hel. 14:16). In the scriptures this separation is called spiritual
death (see Hel. 14:16; D&C 29:41). ["The Light and Life of the
World," Ensign, Nov. 1987, pp. 64-65]
Russell
M. Nelson
But there is another type of
separation known in scripture as spiritual death. (See 2 Ne. 9:12; Alma 12:16;
Alma 42:9; Hel. 14:16, 18.) It "is defined as a state of spiritual
alienation from God." (Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines of Salvation,
comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols., Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1954-56, 2:217.)
Thus, one can be very much alive physically but dead spiritually.
Spiritual death is more
likely when goals are unbalanced toward things physical. Paul explained this
concept to the Romans: "If ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if
ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live."
(Rom. 8:13.)
If physical death should
strike before moral wrongs have been made right, opportunity for repentance
will have been forfeited. Thus, "the [real] sting of death is sin."
(1 Cor. 15:56.)
Even the Savior cannot save
us in our sins. He will redeem us from our sins, but only upon condition of our
repentance. We are responsible for our own spiritual survival or death. (See
Joseph
F. Smith
- We are called mortal beings because in us are
seeds of death, but in reality we are immortal beings, because there is
also within us the germ of eternal life. Man is a dual being, composed of
the spirit which gives life, force, intelligence and capacity to man, and
the body which is the tenement of the spirit and is suited to its form,
adapted to its necessities, and acts in harmony with it, and to its utmost
capacity yields obedience to the will of the spirit. The two combined
constitute the soul. The body is dependent upon the spirit, and the spirit
during its natural occupancy of the body is subject to the laws which
apply to and govern it in the mortal state. In this natural body are the
seeds of weakness and decay, which, when fully ripened or untimely plucked
up, in the language of scripture, is called "the temporal
death." The spirit is also subject to what is termed in the
scriptures and revelations from God, "spiritual death." The same
as that which befell our first parents, when, through disobedience and
transgression, they became subject to the will of Satan, and were thrust
out from the presence of the Lord and became spiritually dead, which the
Lord says, "is the first death, even that same death which is the
last death, which is spiritual, which shall be pronounced upon the wicked
when I shall say, Depart, ye cursed!" And the Lord further says,
"But behold, I say unto you, that I the Lord God gave unto Adam and
unto his seed that they should not die as to the temporal death, until I
the Lord God should send forth angels to declare unto them repentance and
redemption (from the first death), through faith on the name of mine Only
Begotten Son. And thus did I, the Lord God, appoint unto man the days of
his probation; that by his natural death he might be raised in immortality
unto eternal life, even as many as would believe; and they that believe
not, unto eternal damnation, for they cannot be redeemed from their
spiritual fall, because they repent not." From the natural death,
that is the death of the body, and also from the first death, "which
is spiritual," there is redemption through belief on the name of the
Only Begotten Son, in connection with repentance and obedience to the
ordinances of the gospel, declared by holy angels, for if one
"believe," he must also obey; but from the "second
death," even that same death which is the first death, "which is
spiritual," and from which man may be redeemed through faith and
obedience, and which will again be pronounced upon the wicked when God
shall say, "depart, ye cursed," there is no redemption, so far
as light on this matter has been revealed. (See Doc. and Cov. 29:41-44.)
It is
written that "all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto
men" who receive me and repent; "but the blasphemy against the Holy
Ghost, it shall not be forgiven unto men." If men will not repent and come
unto Christ, through the ordinances of his gospel, they cannot be redeemed from
their spiritual fall, but must remain forever subject to the will of Satan and
the consequent spiritual darkness or death unto which our first parents fell,
subjecting all their posterity thereto, and from which none can be redeemed but
by belief or faith on the name of the Only Begotten Son and obedience to the
laws of God. But, thanks be to the eternal Father, through the merciful
provisions of the gospel, all mankind will have the opportunity of escape, or
deliverance, from this spiritual death, either in time or in eternity, for not
until they are freed from the first can they become subject unto the second
death, still if they repent not "they cannot be redeemed from their
spiritual fall," and will continue subject to the will of Satan, the first
spiritual death, so long as "they repent not, and thereby reject Christ
and his gospel;" but what of those who do believe, repent of their sins,
obey the gospel, enter into its covenants, receive the keys of the Priesthood
and the knowledge of the truth by revelation and the gift of the Holy Ghost,
and afterwards turn away wholly from that light and knowledge? They "become
a law unto themselves," and "will to abide in sin;" of such it
is written, "whoso breaketh this covenant, after he hath received it, and
altogether turneth therefrom, shall not have forgiveness in this world nor in
the world to come." And again, "Thus saith the Lord, concerning all
those who know my power, and have been made partakers thereof, and suffered
themselves, through the power of the devil, to be overcome, and to deny the
truth and defy my power--they are they who are the sons of perdition, of whom I
say that it had been better for them never to have been born, for they are
vessels of wrath, doomed to suffer the wrath of God, with the devil and his
angels in eternity; concerning whom I have said there is no forgiveness in this
world nor in the world to come, having denied the Holy Spirit after having
received it, and having denied the Only Begotten Son of the Father--having
crucified him unto themselves, and put him to an open shame."--Doc. and
Cov. 76:31-35.
Now, there is a difference
between this class and those who simply repent not and reject the gospel in the
flesh. Of these latter it is written, "they shall be brought forth by the
resurrection of the dead, through the triumph and the glory of the Lamb,"
and "shall be redeemed in the due time of the Lord after the sufferings of
his wrath." But of the others it is said, "they shall not be
redeemed," for "they are the only ones on whom the second death shall
have any power." The others, never having been redeemed from the first,
cannot be doomed to the second death, or in other words cannot be made to
suffer eternally the wrath of God, without hope of redemption through
repentance, but must continue to suffer the first death until they repent, and
are redeemed therefrom through the power of the atonement and the gospel of
salvation, thereby being brought to the possession of all the keys and
blessings to which they will be capable of attaining or to which they may be
entitled, through the mercy, justice and power of the everlasting God; or, on
the other hand, forever remain bound in the chains of spiritual darkness,
bondage and banishment from his presence, kingdom and glory. The "temporal
death" is one thing, and the "spiritual death" is another thing.
The body may be dissolved and become extinct as an organism, although the
elements of which it is composed are indestructible or eternal, but I hold it
as self-evident that the spiritual organism is an eternal, immortal being,
destined to enjoy eternal happiness and a fulness of joy, or suffer the wrath of
God, and misery--a just condemnation, eternally. Adam became spiritually dead,
yet he lived to endure it until freed therefrom by the power of the atonement,
through repentance, etc. Those upon whom the second death shall fall will live
to suffer and endure it, but without hope of redemption. The death of the body,
or natural death, is but a temporary circumstance to which all were subjected
through the fall, and from which all will be restored or resurrected by the
power of God, through the atonement of Christ. (Gospel Doctrine,
pp.14-16)
- But I want to speak a word or two in relation to
another death, which is a more terrible death than that of the body. When
Adam, our first parent, partook of the forbidden fruit, transgressed the
law of God, and became subject unto Satan, he was banished from the
presence of God, and was thrust out into outer spiritual darkness. This
was the first death. Yet living, he was dead--dead to God, dead to light
and truth, dead spiritually; cast out from the presence of God; communication
between the Father and the Son was cut off. He was as absolutely thrust
out from the presence of God as was Satan and the hosts that followed him.
That was spiritual death. But the Lord said that he would not suffer Adam
nor his posterity to come to the temporal death until they should have the
means by which they might be redeemed from the first death, which is
spiritual. Therefore angels were sent unto Adam, who taught him the
gospel, and revealed to him the principle by which he could be redeemed
from the first death, and be brought back from banishment and outer
darkness into the marvelous light of the gospel. He was taught faith,
repentance, and baptism for the remission of sins, in the name of Jesus
Christ, who should come in the meridian of time and take away the sin of
the world, and was thus given a chance to be redeemed from the spiritual
death before he should die the temporal death.
Now, all the world today, I am sorry to say, with the
exception of a handful of people who have obeyed the new and everlasting
covenant, are suffering this spiritual death. They are cast out from the
presence of God. They are without God, without gospel truth, and without the
power of redemption; for they know not God nor his gospel. In order that they may
be redeemed and saved from the spiritual death which has spread over the world
like a pall, they must repent of their sins, and be baptized by one having
authority, for the remission of their sins, that they may be born of God. That
is why we want these young men to go out into the world to preach the gospel.
While they themselves understand but little, perhaps, the germ of life is in
them. They have been born again, they have received the gift of the Holy Ghost,
and they have the authority of the holy Priesthood, by which they can
administer in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Though they may know but little in the beginning, they can learn, and as they
learn they can preach, and as they have opportunity they can baptize for the
remission of sins. Therefore, we want them to do their duty at home. We want
them above all things to be pure in heart. (Gospel Doctrine, pp.432-433)
Atonement Overcomes Spiritual Death
Bruce
R. McConkie
To atone is to ransom,
reconcile, expiate, redeem, reclaim, absolve, propitiate, make amends, pay the
penalty. Thus the atonement of Christ is designed to ransom men from the
effects of the fall of Adam in that both spiritual and temporal death are
conquered; their lasting effect is nullified. The spiritual death of the fall
is replaced by the spiritual life of the atonement, in that all who believe and
obey the gospel law gain spiritual or eternal life -- life in the presence of
God where those who enjoy it are alive to things of righteousness or things of
the Spirit. (Mormon Doctrine, p.62)
Children do sin before the
age of eight, they know what is happening, and that is why there is a baptism
for the remission of sins. Great things are required at the hands of their
parents to teach them doctrine. Little
children can learn doctrine!
The more remarkable the
spiritual birth was the greater the spiritual death was, like
Bruce remembers his rebrith
at 17.
(Doctrine and Covenants
29:46-48.) – Being accountable is a process. Yet they are redeemed at death
46 But behold, I say unto
you, that little children are redeemed from the foundation of the world through
mine Only Begotten;
47 Wherefore, they cannot
sin, for power is not given unto Satan to tempt little children, until they begin to become accountable
before me;
48 For it is
given unto them even as I will, according to mine own pleasure, that great things may be required at the
hand of their fathers.
It does not say babysitters, or daycare providers, it is up
to the parents to teach. Protection by
the Atonement up to that age
Teachings of Harold B. Lee cover this in great detai
Baptism by sprinkling combines baptism with washing and
anointing, there was confusion in doctrine as two ordinances were mixed up.
Ezekiel 37 in its context, what is the Lord saying. It is about
The reunification of the North and South kingdoms and the
restoration
Valley = scattered
Unite all of scattered
(Ezekiel 37:1-14.)
1 The hand of the LORD was
upon me, and carried me out in the spirit of the LORD, and set me down in the
midst of the valley which was full of bones,
2 And caused me to pass by
them round about: and, behold, there were very many in the open valley;
and, lo, they were very dry.
3 And he said unto me, Son
of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord GOD, thou knowest.
4 Again he said unto me,
Prophesy upon these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of
the LORD.
5 Thus saith the Lord GOD
unto these bones; Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall
live:
6 And I will lay sinews
upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put
breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
7 So I prophesied as I was
commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a shaking, and
the bones came together, bone to his bone.
8 And when I beheld, lo,
the sinews and the flesh came up upon them, and the skin covered them above:
but there was no breath in them.
9 Then said he unto me,
Prophesy unto the wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the wind, Thus saith
the Lord GOD; Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain,
that they may live.
10 So I prophesied as he
commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon
their feet, an exceeding great army.
11 ¶ Then he said unto me,
Son of man, these bones are the whole house of
12 Therefore prophesy and
say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, O my people, I will open your
graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the
13 And ye shall know that
I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought
you up out of your graves,
14 And shall put my spirit
in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall
ye know that I the LORD have spoken it, and performed it, saith
the LORD.
Elder Nelson’s recent conference address teaches the
gathering on both sides of the veil
The Millennuim will give us 1000 years to be with Christ to
become perfected. What a great day that
will be
The 2nd type is uniting the 2 kingdoms, as latter
day saints we take this out of context, it’s about the restoration, granted we
know it’s the Book of Mormon and the Bible.
(2 Nephi 3:12.)
12 Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of
the loins of Judah shall write; and that which shall be written by the fruit of
thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of
Judah, shall grow together, unto the
confounding of false doctrines and laying down of contentions, and establishing
peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge of their
fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith
the Lord.
We study all of the standard works because they grow together
and teach correct doctrine.
(Ezekiel 37:15-28.) –
Millennial restoration
15 ¶ The word of the LORD
came again unto me, saying,
16 Moreover, thou son of
man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of
Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph,
the stick of Ephraim, and for all the house of Israel his companions:
17 And join them one to
another into one stick; and they shall become one in thine hand.
18 ¶ And when the children
of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not shew us what thou meanest
by these?
19 Say unto them, Thus
saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in
the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his fellows, and will put them
with him, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and
they shall be one in mine hand.
20 ¶ And the sticks whereon
thou writest shall be in thine hand before their eyes.
21 And say unto them, Thus
saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will take the children of
22 And I will make them
one nation in the land upon the mountains of
23 Neither shall they defile
themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor
with any of their transgressions: but I will save them out of all their
dwellingplaces, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they
be my people, and I will be their God.
24 And David my servant shall
be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also
walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.
25 And they shall dwell in
the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have
dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and
their children's children for ever: and my servant David shall be their
prince for ever.
26 Moreover I will make a
covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and
I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of
them for evermore.
27 My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be
their God, and they shall be my people.
28 And the heathen shall
know that I the LORD do sanctify
The
THE LORD IS THERE (EZEKIEL 37-48)
KENT P. JACKSON
When news came to Ezekiel in
Mesopotamia that
The last chapters of Ezekiel are
among the most symbolic, dramatic, and intriguing in all of scripture. As a
result, unfortunately, they have often been misused to create doctrinal and
historical mischief. All Latter-day Saints should realize that no prophecy in
the Old Testament can be fully understood independently of modern revelation. A
careful application of this principle is good insurance against
misinterpretation. Modern revelation provides the perspective and the context that
are necessary for understanding the revelations of the past, making it an
indispensable tool for which we will always be thankful. fn We should have this
ever in mind as we explore Ezekiel's prophecies of things yet to come.
Bones and Sticks (Ezek. 37)
Ezekiel 37 records two highly
symbolic revelations, each of which describes in powerful images the
restoration of the house of
At the beginning of chapter 37,
Ezekiel was shown a vision of a valley full of dry bones. In response to the
Lord's command, he prophesied to the bones that they would come back to life.
With a rattling sound "the bones came together, bone to his bone" (Ezek.
37:7). Tendons, flesh, and skin covered the reassembled bodies in due course,
and "breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet,
an exceeding great army" (Ezek. 37:10).
As is common in Ezekiel's
revelations, the symbolic activity or vision is followed by a clear
interpretation. "These bones are the whole house of
Ezekiel's vision of the dry bones
announced to ancient and modern
The following section of the chapter,
Ezekiel's vision of the uniting of the two sticks (Ezek. 37:15-28), is one of
the Bible's best-known prophecies for Latter-day Saints. But most are aware
only of its secondary message, the joining of scriptural records, and not of
the primary focus of the revelation: the restoration of the house of
As the revelation began, the Lord
commanded Ezekiel to take in hand two "sticks." The Hebrew word
translated "stick," 'es,Notes
has as its primary meanings "tree"
and "wood." fn The most likely meaning in this context is a piece of
wood, a board. One well-known interpretation in the Church proposes that
Ezekiel envisioned a writing board called a "diptych," which
consisted of two pieces of wood hinged together to fold like the covers of a
book. The inside surfaces of the boards were coated with wax, providing a
convenient and reusable writing medium. fn Although this explanation is not
certain, it is reasonable and could well approximate what Ezekiel saw. fn In
any case, the boards in the revelation were symbols meant to represent greater
things, and thus their exact nature is not as significant as the message
conveyed through them.
Ezekiel was commanded to write on the
first board, "Belonging to Judah and the children of
As the revelation continued, Ezekiel
was instructed to place the two boards together in one: "and they shall
become one in thine hand" (Ezek. 37:17). This revelation is one of several
in which the Lord commanded Ezekiel to engage in highly symbolic actions. fn As
"visual aids," they were meant to convey messages of importance to
the house of
As is apparent in Ezekiel 37:21-27,
the central message of Ezekiel's revelation is the restoration of the house of
Our distinctive Latter-day Saint
point of view regarding Ezekiel's sticks came in a revelation to the Prophet
Joseph Smith in August 1830, in which the Lord spoke of Moroni, "whom I
have sent unto you to reveal the Book of Mormon, containing the fulness of my
everlasting gospel, to whom I have committed the keys of the record of the
stick of Ephraim" (D&C 27:5). Ezekiel's visionary stick of Joseph in Ephraim's
hand thus represents Joseph's scriptural record, the Book of Mormon. It follows
therefore that
Ezekiel was not the only prophet who
knew of the coming together of the two scriptural records. Almost a thousand
years earlier, ancient Joseph received a revelation in which he learned of the
joining of the record of his descendants with that of the tribe of
The coming together of the two
records is thus a central event in the restoration of the house of
Other prophets also foretold this
event as the sign of
Mormon, who compiled the record of
Joseph, also saw its publication as a sign of Israel's restoration: "When
the Lord shall see fit, in his wisdom, that these sayings shall come unto the
Gentiles according to his word, then ye may know that the covenant which the
Father hath made with the children of Israel, concerning their restoration to
the lands of their inheritance, is already beginning to be fulfilled" (3
Ne. 29:1; see also vv. 2-9). Because the Bible was already known when the Book
of Mormon was first published in 1830, the appearance of the Book of Mormon
was, in effect, the coming together of the two records—the sign that the
reunion of the branches of the house of
The latter-day restoration of the
house of
Under these circumstances, Ezekiel's
revelation of the reunification of
This is a prophecy of greatest
importance that still has not been fulfilled. But we know who the two nations
are today, and we know what must be done before they will be brought together.
Ezekiel's prophecy of the restoration
of
The restored Israelite nation, in its
several millennial locations, will be
(Kent
P. Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 300.)
Bruce
didn’t want to discuss chapters 38-39 very much. He said it is better to concern ourselves
with the restoration then with what war begins when. Here are some notes from Kent P. Jackson.
Apocalyptic Revelation
There are several sections of the
scriptures in which visions are presented in a highly symbolic revelatory style
called "apocalyptic." fn An understanding of this kind of writing
will enhance our study of the remainder of the book of Ezekiel. Apocalyptic
vision is the mode of revelation in which the observer is withdrawn from the
earthly sphere with its normal circumstances of time and space and is moved, as
it were, into the realm of the divine. In this realm he sees things no longer
from an earthly perspective but from the perspective of the visionary sphere.
Most often what he sees there cannot be described in earthly terms and can only
be characterized with the use of vivid, dramatic symbols, most of which
transcend our understanding of "normal" space, logic, time, and the
rules of science as we understand them. Ezekiel's visions in chapters 1 and 10
are excellent examples of this, as are Daniel's revelations in chapters 7
through 12. fn
Apocalyptic vision is characterized
by what is called "dualism"—the idea of the universal struggle
between the forces of evil and good. In the here-and-now the forces of evil
usually prevail. But there will be an end-of-the-world time in which the forces
of good, God and his chosen Saints, will triumph over the forces of evil, Satan
and his hosts. The victory of right over wrong will not take place as a result
of the natural flow of history. Instead, there will be a dramatic break with
the past, as God and his forces will stop the course of history to defeat the
powers of darkness and bring the world into the final age of peace and glory.
God's ultimate victory is sure; it is predetermined.
This kind of revelation is highly
typological—it abounds in vivid symbols, or "types." The types
frequently are patterns that represent more than one specific thing; often they
represent whole categories. fn Apocalyptic prophecies are "fulfilled"
whenever the categories that are depicted exist. In other words, they can be
"fulfilled" more than once and with different individuals or nations
involved. At the same time, however, they point to a grand and ultimate
fulfillment, on a universal scale, in a last-days setting.
The symbolism in apocalyptic vision
is thus much different from metaphor, the literary imagery that is used so
abundantly throughout the Old Testament. Metaphor is meant to be understood.
For the most part it is easily comprehended by those who are familiar with the
culture, history, language, geography, and social circumstances in which the
scripture arose. fn Apocalyptic vision, in striking contrast, is meant to be
understood fully only with the help of other revelation. The vision usually requires
an angelic interpreter or a companion revelation to unlock its meaning. fn
Joseph Smith taught this principle:
When the prophets speak of seeing
beasts in their visions, they saw the images—types to represent certain things.
And at the same time they received the interpretation as to what those images
or types were designed to represent. I make this broad declaration, that where
God ever gives a vision of an image, or beast, or figure of any kind, he always
holds himself responsible to give a revelation or interpretation of the meaning
thereof, otherwise we are not responsible or accountable for our belief in it.
Don't be afraid of being damned for not knowing the meaning of a vision or
figure where God had not given a revelation or interpretation on the subject.
fn
Nephi was accompanied through the
symbolic world of the vision of the tree of life by a heavenly messenger, who
translated its symbols for him (1 Ne. 8-14). Modern readers can understand its
meaning because of the interpretation the messenger provided. In several other
apocalyptic visions, however, the Lord has not yet seen fit to provide an
interpretation in the scriptures. Thus we must read them with caution and
recognize that we will not fully understand them until the Lord makes their meaning
known.
Gog's Invasion of
Ezekiel 38 and 39 contain a vision
that exhibits some important traits of apocalyptic revelation. fn The vision
depicts an invasion of "
Apocalyptic elements are readily
apparent in this vision, suggesting that it is an apocalyptic scene and not
necessarily a literal transcript of one specific future event. The latter-day
setting of the prophecy seems clear. The Lord's people are called "
In the symbolic vision, Gog, coming
with vast armies from distant unknown lands, sets as his goal the devastation
and plunder of the Lord's people. In apocalyptic fashion, the figure
"Gog" here probably does not represent a real person or nation who
will attack the Saints with military force. Instead, he and his hosts seem to
represent the powers of evil that are arrayed against the Saints, manifested in
a variety of ways, places, and times. Satan is the very embodiment of this evil
and the archenemy of the Lord and his followers. As the vision depicts, the
forces of evil will not be allowed to prevail. With a mighty act so
characteristic of apocalyptic scenes, the Lord himself will intervene to put an
end to evil and its consequences.
When will this prophecy he
"fulfilled"? As stated above, this kind of apocalyptic typology often
represents entire categories rather than specific individuals or events. But
there are enough close parallels between this prophecy and others (both
apocalyptic and predictive), that the time-frame for its fulfillment seems
apparent.
In the period in which we now live,
the gathering of the house of
The Book of Mormon prophet Nephi
recorded a revelation similar to that of Ezekiel, in which he described this
same effort of Satan and his followers to destroy the Saints (1 Ne. 14:11-17).
Whereas Ezekiel used the image of a mysterious "Gog" from the land of
"Magog," Nephi chose the image of a "great whore"—"the
mother of abominations," "the mother of harlots"—to represent
the same things that Ezekiel foretold. As Nephi described it, the Church will
be found "upon all the face of the earth" (1 Ne. 14:12). The forces
of evil will muster their resources "among all the nations of the
Gentiles" in order to "fight against the Lamb of God" (1 Ne.
14:13). But "the power of the Lamb of God" will descend on the Saints
throughout the world, and they will be "armed with righteousness and with
the power of God in great glory" (1 Ne. 14:14). In his wrath, the Lord
will punish the enemies of his people by subjecting them to "wars and
rumors of wars among all the nations and kindreds of the earth" (1 Ne.
14:15; see also v. 16). Nephi's vision in 1 Nephi 14 is thus an additional
witness for what Ezekiel foretold, but more importantly, it enables us to
understand Ezekiel's message. Additional insight from modern revelation is
provided in a passage in the Doctrine and Covenants describing the destruction
of the wicked: "And the great and abominable church, which is the whore of
all the earth, shall be cast down by devouring fire, according as it is spoken
by the mouth of Ezekiel the prophet, who spoke of these things, which have not
come to pass but surely must, as I live, for abominations shall not reign"
(D&C 29:21). fn
Almost all Old Testament prophecy
focuses on these latter-day events: the restoration of the house of
The Envisioned
The last nine chapters of the book of
Ezekiel record another great apocalyptic vision. In it are depicted, among
other things, a temple with its priesthood and sacrifices, the division of the
land among the tribes, and the dimensions of the land and the city.
This vision, received in the
twenty-fifth year of Ezekiel's exile, or 573 B.C., is like nothing else in the
Old Testament. Its apocalyptic nature is evident. As we learn from the
introductory verses, Ezekiel was transported "in the visions of God"
from Babylonia to a "very high mountain" which overlooked
In the vision, Ezekiel's guide gave
the prophet a detailed tour of a temple in
Ezekiel was next brought to the gate
facing east, from which he saw the glory of God approaching the temple. With
radiant light and the roar of rushing waters, the glory of the Lord entered
through the gate where the prophet stood and filled the Lord's house with its
splendor (Ezek. 43:1-5; 44:4). Almost two decades earlier Ezekiel had
experienced a similar apocalyptic vision in which he saw God's glory depart
(Ezek. 9:3; 10:18-19; 11:22-23). In that earlier vision an angelic guide showed
him the temple in its time of wickedness (Ezek. 8-11). In graphic detail he saw
symbolic figures and actions that represented its apostasy and the evil works
that were done in it. Now, years later and after the destruction of the temple
and the exile of the Jews, he saw in striking symbols a vision of the temple in
a purified state. Whereas Ezekiel's first temple vision represented all that
was corrupt and degenerate about
The next stop in Ezekiel's visionary
tour was at the altar, where he was given instructions for the direction of the
priests in their sacrifices (Ezek. 43:13-27). In chapter 44 he learned of the
roles of the priests and the Levites in the temple. Of these, only the
"sons of Zadok" would be allowed to enter the sanctuary (Ezek.
44:15-16). fn Through their actions and their appearance, they would teach the
Lord's people the difference between the "holy" and the
"profane" and "the unclean and the clean" (Ezek. 44:23).
Ezekiel was shown the division of the land and the sacred precinct that would
result from it. The priests and the Levites would each receive an inheritance
25,000 cubits long and 10,000 cubits wide. The sanctuary would be located in
the priests' portion. The property of the city, which would belong to the whole
house of
Ezekiel next learned, in some detail,
of the offerings and holy days that would be observed in the temple. Everything
was to be administered according to a prescribed plan (Ezek. 45:13-46:23).
A new scene of the vision opened as
Ezekiel's guide took him to the entrance of the temple, from which he saw water
flowing from under the threshold toward the east. He and his guide followed the
flow of water and measured its depth along the way. A thousand cubits from the
source it was ankle deep. A thousand cubits farther it was knee deep. After
another thousand it was up to his waist, and after another it was a river, deep
enough to swim in (Ezek. 47:1-5). The water continued its flow to the
The next part of Ezekiel's vision
focuses on the division of the land among the tribes (Ezek. 47:13-48:29). All
thirteen of the tribes are mentioned, and each would receive an inheritance. fn
The list includes Levi, which in Old Testament times did not receive a tribal
allotment but was settled in special cities throughout the territories of the
other tribes. Even non-Israelites would receive an inheritance. Those who would
dwell among the children of
In the last segment of the vision, Ezekiel
learned the names of the gates of the holy city. On each of the four sides of
the city—which would be 4,500 cubits square—there would be three gates, each
one named for one of the tribes (Ezek. 48:30-34). In this case Ephraim and
Manasseh are not mentioned, but one gate is named Joseph and one is named Levi.
A Millennial
It appears that Ezekiel's vision
represents the millennial condition of the house of
As in other apocalyptic visions, the
symbols often are not meant to portray literally the events, people, or things,
but to characterize or idealize them. It seems that such is the case with this
vision. It depicts the future glories of
But the scriptures make it clear that
the Law of Moses and its sacrifices by the shedding of blood were ended with
the atonement of Christ (Alma 34:13-14; Heb. 10:18). Given this fact, it seems
unlikely that a temple for the performance of Mosaic animal offerings will ever
again be built, especially during the Millennium, when there will be no death.
Future temples, both before and after the Second Coming, will presumably be
similar to those with which we are familiar in the Church now, in which
ordinances of the Melchizedek Priesthood will be performed for the living and
the dead. Joseph Smith taught that to make the Restoration complete, "all
things had under the Authority of the Priesthood at any former period shall be
had again." He included the restoration of sacrifice in his discussion, though
not of those sacrifices that were revealed with the Law of Moses. fn Given the
clear message from the scriptures that animal sacrifice ended with Christ (Alma
34:13-14), perhaps we can view the sacrifice of which the Prophet spoke as a
short-term or one-time event in fulfillment of Malachi 3:3 and 4, to signal
that the Levites are again in the covenant and have assumed their rightful
priesthood function in the house of Israel. fn
Ezekiel's vision portrayed the future
temple by means of familiar Old Testament temple images because his readers
would not have recognized or comprehended a temple like ours today. The Lord
communicates with people in their own language and according to their level of
understanding (D&C 1:24). In this vision he taught ancient Jews transcendent
millennial things by using images drawn from their own time and experience. The
design, purpose, and ordinances of modern temples would have made no sense to
them (just as they make no sense to Jews and other Christians today). The real
millennial temple will be much different from its visionary symbol—more
glorious and with a more profound purpose. In it, worthy Saints will enter into
covenants and participate in sacred ordinances—all designed to help them
prepare to enter the presence of God in the highest degree of glory.
Who will build this temple? When? And
where will it stand? Because Ezekiel's immediate ministry was to Jews recently
exiled from their homeland, who had experienced the destruction of their
kingdom, their city, and their temple, it is likely that the scene he witnessed
has its focus in the restoration of
"The Lord Is There"
Other symbols in Ezekiel's vision
convey additional insights. The scene of the division of the land depicts the
restoration of all the tribes of
The vision depicts a river of water
flowing from beneath the temple and bringing life to everything it touches
(Ezek. 47:1-12). Similar scenes are found in Joel 3:18, Zechariah 14:8, and
Revelation 22:1. In the apocalyptic contexts of all three of three of these
passages, the symbolic waters seem to convey the idea of truth, life, and
healing emanating from the Lord's house to fill the world. "Whosoever
drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst," Jesus
said, "but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well
springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:14). In the Millennium, Isaiah
wrote, "the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the
waters cover the sea" (Isa. 11:9). Truth and eternal life will flow freely
in that day, and a literal transformation of the planet will take place as
well: the parched places will become green, the deserts will blossom as a rose
(Isa. 35:1-7), and "the earth will be renewed and receive its paradisiacal
glory" (A of F 10).
In Ezekiel's earlier vision he
witnessed the glory of the Lord leaving the temple, which had become unworthy
of the divine presence (Ezek. 10:18-19; 11:22-23). In this vision of millennial
things he saw it return, this time to usher in a thousand years of Christ's
reign (Ezek. 43:1-5; 44:4). Holiness and glory will be the watchwords in that
day, for they will fill the earth and characterize all that is done in it. As
Zechariah foretold, even the pots and pans and the bells on the horses will be
inscribed with "Holiness unto the Lord" (Zech. 14:20-21), just as our
temples are today. "For the Lord shall be in their midst, and his glory
shall be upon them, and he will be their king and their lawgiver" (D&C
45:59). We look forward with anticipation to the glorious Millennium and hope
to be worthy to be citizens of
Notes
Kent P. Jackson is professor of
ancient scripture at
Footnotes
1. Interestingly, these are the very
topics that
2. In practical terms, this means
that if something seems to be foretold in an Old Testament prophecy that is
nowhere to be found in modern revelation, one should withhold judgment on it,
at the very least. More likely, the passage probably means something other than
one supposes—something that is clearly revealed in modern revelation.
3. Current English-language
translations render the word here in a variety of ways: "stick" (Jewish
Publication Society Bible; Revised Standard Version), "stick of wood"
(New International Version), "leaf of a wooden tablet" (New English
Bible; Revised English Bible).
4. See Keith A. Meservy,
"Ezekiel's Sticks and the Gathering of
5. Meservy's writing board
interpretation, which he proposed originally in the 1970s (Ensign, Sept.
1977, pp. 22-27), is adopted in the footnote to Ezek. 37:16 in the LDS Bible.
6. Some others include Ezek. 2:9-3:4;
4:1-8, 9-17; 5:1-5, 12; 12:3-12, 17-19; 24:16-26.
7. The Lord told ancient Joseph that
the great latter-day seer's ministry would include "convincing them of my
word, which shall have already gone forth among them" (JST Gen. 50:30;2
Ne. 3:11). As the Lord revealed in 1820 when the Church was organized, one
important purpose for the coming forth of the Book of Mormon was to bear
testimony to the truth of the Bible (D&C 20:11; see also 1 Ne. 13:39-40).
The coming together of the records of Joseph and Judah enables each to bear
testimony to the message of the other and both together to bear testimony to
the Lord and his work. In Nephi's words, "they both shall be established
in one" (1 Ne. 13:41).
8. The mere availability of the two
companion records does not necessarily mean that their union is complete. Elder
Boyd K. Packer pointed out in 1982 that the newest editions of the scriptures
are a part of the bringing together of the "sticks" foreseen by
Ezekiel: "The stick or record of Judah—the Old Testament and the New
Testament—and the stick or record of Ephraim—the Book of Mormon, which is
another testament of Jesus Christ—are now woven together in such a way that as
you pore over one you are drawn to the other; as you learn from one you are
enlightened by the other. They are indeed one in our hands" (in Conference
Report, Oct. 1982, p. 75; see also pp. 73-76).
9. For Joseph, see Ezek. 37:16, 19;
Obad. 1:18; Zech. 10:6. For Ephraim, see Isa. 7:2, 5, 8, 9, 17; 11:13; 17:3;
Jer. 7:15; 31:6, 9, 18, 20; Ezek. 37:16, 19; Hosea 4:17; 5:3, 11-14; 6:4, 10;
8:9, 11; 9:3; 10:6, 11; 11:3, 8, 9, 12; Zech. 9:10, 13. It is likely that
several other more ambiguous references to Joseph and Ephraim also refer to the
entire
10. See Kent P. Jackson, "The
Abrahamic Covenant: A Blessing for All People," Ensign, Feb. 1990,
pp. 50-53.
11. The terms "four quarters of
the earth" and "north countries" both represent the various
locations throughout the earth where the house of
12. Because definitions of apocalyptic
literature vary, no universally accepted list exists. D. S. Russell includes
only the book of Daniel from the Old Testament in his list of fully developed
apocalyptic literature; see The Method and Message of Jewish Apocalyptic
(Philadelphia: Westminster, 1976), pp. 36-39. He includes Ezek. 38-39, Zech.,
Joel 3, and Isa. 24-27 in a transitional category that later developed into
full apocalyptic
13. Although they lack the bizarre
imagery of the visions of Ezekiel and Daniel, Lehi's and Nephi's visions of the
tree of life exhibit apocalyptic characteristics. In their visions, Lehi and
later Nephi were transported into a world of symbols. It seems safe to suggest
that the tree, the rod of iron, the great building, and other things they saw
never actually existed except as symbols in the vision (see 1 Ne. 8-14). The
apocalyptic nature of the latter part of the vision is even more apparent. See
Stephen E. Robinson, "Early Christianity and 1 Nephi 13-14," in First
Nephi, The Doctrinal Foundation, ed. M. S. Nyman and C. D. Tate (Provo,
Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1988), pp. 177-91.
14. For example, the scenes depicted
in the tree of life vision did not represent a specific event in the experience
of Lehi's family but a lifelong process by which they chose to follow either
God or the ways of the world.
15. As Nephi wrote, the Jews could
understand the writings of their prophets because they were intimately familiar
with these things (2 Ne. 25:5-6). See Kent P. Jackson, "Nephi and
Isaiah," in Studies in Scripture, Volume Seven: 1 Nephi to
16. An example of the latter is
D&C 77, which interprets passages from John's revelation.
17. Discourse of 8 April 1843,
recorded by William Clayton; Andrew F. Ehat and Lyndon W. Cook, eds., The
Words of Joseph Smith (Provo, Utah: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young
University, 1980), p. 185; punctuation and spelling modernized. Also in Joseph
Smith, Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith
(Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1938), p. 291.
18. Scholars generally see Ezek.
38-48 as not fully developed apocalyptic literature, which they feel is best
manifested in documents from the second century B.C. Instead, Ezek. 38-48 is
called "proto-Apocalyptic," or "the 'stuff' from which
apocalyptic is made." See Russell, pp. 88-91.
19. The destruction of the wicked is
depicted as a sacrificial feast also in Isa. 34:5-8 and Zeph. 1:7.
20. Spencer W. Kimball, The
Teachings of Spencer W. Kimball, ed. Edward L. Kimball (Salt Lake City:
Bookcraft, 1984), pp. 439-40.
21. Footnotes at D&C 29:20-21
identify Ezek. 38-39 as the Ezekiel prophecy referred to in the D&C
passage. Though the wording is not identical, the identification is most likely
correct, as it is the closest thing in Ezekiel to the content of D&C 29:21.
If this is the case, then Gog's battle against
22. The Hebrew that underlies the KJV
phrase "bring again the captivity" means either "bring back from
captivity" or "restore the fortunes."
23. John used the names
"Gog" and "Magog" in his apocalyptic prophecy of the great
battle at the end of the Millennium. In Rev. 20:7-10, "Gog and Magog"
are used to personify those whom Satan will induce to rebel against God in his
final effort to derail God's work. They attack
24. KJV "brass"; more
accurately, bronze.
25. See Ezek. 40:5 and fn. 5c in the
LDS Bible for an explanation of the "long cubits" used in this
vision.
26. Zadok was the high priest during
the reign of King David. The lineage of
27. For a drawing of these divisions,
see Zimmerli, p. 535.
28. New International Version.
29. For a map, see Zimmerli, p. 537.
30. Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught:
"There is only one place under the whole heavens where the keys of temple
building are found. There is only one people who know how to build temples and
what to do in them when they are completed. That people is the Latter-day
Saints" Millennial Messiah (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.,
1982), p. 279.
31. See ibid., pp. 279-80.
32. Of these, it appears that only
burnt offerings predate the Law of Moses. Sin offerings and fellowship were
part of the Mosaic system.
33. Ehat and Cook, p. 42; see also
pp. 43-44.
34. See also Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines
of Salvation, 3 vols., sel. Bruce R. McConkie (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft,
1954-56), 3:93-94; Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon Doctrine, 2d ed. (Salt Lake
City: Bookcraft, 1966), p. 666; The Mortal Messiah, 4 vols. (Salt Lake
City: Deseret Book Co., 1979-81), 1:128.
(Kent
P. Jackson, ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt
Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1993], 307.)
Here are some of Bruce’s writings on the
Vision of the Restored Temple
Ezekiel’s vision of the
corrupted temple was given in 592 B.C. The final Babylonian siege of
“In the visions of God,”
Ezekiel was brought “into the
As Ezekiel was brought to
the mount, he saw a man who glowed like brass with measuring instruments in his
hand (40:3). The man was standing next to a large gate that led into a massive
courtyard complex surrounding another gated wall. This wall enclosed a
wonderfully constructed temple. It was the temple of the Lord restored. What
followed was a vision of the restored temple.
Ezekiel was shown the temple
in a unique way (chs. 40-42) [15].
His angelic ministrant guided him through the temple while measuring and
detailing everything he showed him. The tour of the
Ezekiel was taken through
the east gate into a courtyard called “the outward court.” Within the outer
court yard was another wall surrounding a second courtyard — called “the inner
court” — with three gates facing directly towards the three gates of the outer
courtyard. Like the outer gates, eight steps led up to each of the inner gates.
The inner gates were perfectly aligned with the outer gates so that someone standing
at the entrance of any outer gate could look directly into the center of the
inner courtyard.
The ministrant took Ezekiel
into the inner court, which was perfectly square. In its center — and visible
from any gate — lay the altar of sacrifice (given a full description in ch.
43). Positioned on the edge of the west end of the inner court was the entrance
of the sanctuary or temple proper. Entrance into the sanctuary was up a flight
of ten steps.[16]
The sanctuary consisted of three rooms: a porch or vestibule (Heb., ulam); the
great hall (Heb., hekal), holy place, or temple in KJV; and the most holy place
(Heb., debir). The entrance of each room was narrower than the room before,
suggesting that each room became increasingly more holy.
After viewing the
decorations and furnishings of the sanctuary, the ministrant brought Ezekiel
again into the outer courtyard and measured the rooms of the priests. Once
finished, Ezekiel and the ministrant left through the east gate and measured
the outer wall of the temple complex. The ministrant “measured it by the four
sides: it had a wall round about, five hundred reeds long, and five hundred
broad, to make a separation between the sanctuary and the profane place”
(42:20).
It is hard to interpret the
meaning of the meticulous measuring of every aspect of the temple and its
complex.[17]
But what is sure is that the temple represented to Ezekiel the future restored
temple of the restored
Ezekiel 43
Having viewed the temple,
Ezekiel was brought to the east gate of the temple complex. There he
became a witness of a very important event. He saw “the glory of the God of
Israel [come] from the way of the east” (vs. 2). As he had seen the glory of
God depart from the temple because of the wickedness of the people (Ezek. 11),
he now saw the glory of God return to the future temple.
Ezekiel was brought to the
inner court of the temple complex, where he saw the glory of God return into
the sanctuary and fill the whole temple (vss. 5-6). The symbolism is clear.
With the temple restored in exactness, the glory of the Lord, which had been
driven out because of wickedness, now returned because of gathered
Ezekiel heard a voice
commanding him to declare to the exiled Jews that the Lord would restore the
Son of man,
the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will
dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever, and my holy name, shall
the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their
whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places. In their
setting of their threshold by my thresholds, and their post by my posts, and
the wall between me and them, they have even defiled my holy name by their
abominations that they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine
anger. Now let them put away their whoredom, and the carcases of their kings,
far from me, and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever” (vss. 7-9).
Then Ezekiel was told to
“shew the house [temple] to the house of
When the Lord would set his
hand to restore the kingdom to
After this, Ezekiel was
given a detailed description of the altar of sacrifice, including the
sacrifices to be performed thereon (vss. 13-25). Altars played a central role
in ancient worship. After Adam and Eve were driven from the Garden of Eden,
they built an altar and prayed to God. It was at an altar that they were taught
faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (Moses 5:5-8).
Upon leaving the ark, Noah
and his family built an altar and worshiped God (Gen. 8:20). When Abraham first
entered the promised land, he built an altar and worshiped God (Gen. 12:7).
Wherever he lived in the promised land, he built and altar in order to worship
God (Gen. 12:8; 13:18; 22:9).
When the children of Israel
were brought out of the land of Egypt, Moses built an altar at the base of Mt.
Sinai, and there the children of Israel entered into a covenant with God to be
“an holy nation” (Ex. 19:3-6; 24:4-8). When the children of
In the Church today, altars
also play an important role of our worship of God. The sacrament table is an
altar in which all the sacrifices of the Mosaic law are symbolized in the
ordinance of the sacrament. In the temples, altars are significant in covenant
making and communication with God. [18]
Ezekiel was shown that exact
process by which the altar of sacrifice was to be made ritually pure (vss.
18-26). If the procedure was followed, then the Lord would accept
Ezekiel 44
Ezekiel was then brought to
“the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was
shut.” The Lord explained: “This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened,
and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath
entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut” (vss. 1-2). The closed gate
symbolized “the sanctity of the precinct, particularly the central spine.” But
it “also declares the permanence of [Jehovah’s] residence within the temple.”
Further, “the closed gate
presents a veiled polemic against pagan notions. Among the many activities
involved in the Babylonian New Year festival was the ritual ‘opening of the
gate.’ The sacred gate apparently remained closed to all human traffic except
on the great day of the festival when Marduk [a deity worshiped by the
Babylonians] would exit and later return in procession through it. The closing
of this gate declares on the on hand that [Jehovah] is not dependent on human
arms for residence in the temple. No one, neither well-intentioned worshipers
nor foreign conquerors like Nebuchadrezzar, may enter here. As the sovereign
over
The rest of Ezekiel 44 deals
with the regulations regarding proper worship. A few things should be noted in
these regulations. First, Ezekiel was told, “Son of man, mark well, and behold
with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning
all the ordinances of the house of the LORD, and all the laws thereof; and mark
well the entering in of the house, with every going forth of the sanctuary”
(vs. 5).
In other words, only those
who are worthy may enter the
Second, Ezekiel was shown
that one of the main duties of the priesthood was “to teach my people the
difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the
unclean and the clean” (vs. 23). The duty to teach between the ways of the
world and the ways of God is illustrated in the modern Church through the “For
the Strength of the Youth” pamphlet that should be followed by every member of
the Church, not just the youth. In this wonderful pamphlet, the First
Presidency, have made clear the difference between the sacred and the profane.
Following the principles in this pamphlet will qualify one for entrance into
the temples.
Ezekiel 47
This chapter is divided into
two main sections: living waters flowing from the
“The waters that flow from
the temple have both literal and figurative meaning. The meaning is literal in
the physical sense of the waters’ renewing and fructifying effects on the land.
In the figurative sense they symbolize first the restoration of
With the restoration of
Recall that one of the
promises of the Abrahamic covenant is that all nations of the world would be
blessed with gospel opportunities. One of the purposes of the Lord scattering
Of this, President James E.
Faust has said:
The Church is expanding at a
tremendous rate. We now have stakes of
However,
Manasseh, the other son of Joseph, as well as the other sons of Jacob, have
many descendants in the Church. There may be some come into the Church in our
day who are not of Jacob’s blood lineage. No one need assume that he or she
will be denied any blessing by reason of not being of the blood lineage of
Conclusion
The purpose of Ezekiel’s
ministry was to help the exiled Jews to receive a new heart, and thus qualify
for the blessing of returning to the
References:
1.
See
Gospel Doctrine Lesson 43 in
2.
C.U.
Wolf, “Watchman,” in The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, 4 Vols.
(Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1962), 4:806.
3.
Carely,
The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 51.
4.
The
Hebrew text of Ezekiel 8:3,5 is difficult lending itself to various possible
translations. The text however seems to suggest that the altar and image of
jealousy were located next to the northern city gate which would have been
north of the northern gate of the inner court where Ezekiel was first set down.
Among those who hold this view, see: S. Fish, Ezekiel (London: Soncino, 1985),
p. 42; Carley, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 52; Walther Zimmerli,
Ezekiel 1 (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1979), p. 238. But others (such as
Daniel I. Block, The Book of Ezekiel Chapters 1-24 [
5.
Many
have suggested that the image was the Canaanite fertility goddess, Asherah [see
Carley, The Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, p. 53; Moshe Greenberg, Ezekiel 1-20
(Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1983), p. 168; Fisch, Ezekiel, p. 42]. But
Zimmerli does not think so (Ezekiel 1, pp. 238-239).
6.
High
places with the images of pagan deities were often placed near the gates of
cities (see 2 Kings 23:8) as can be seen, for example, at the Iron Age gates of
Tel Dan [see Avraham Biran, “Dan,” in The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological
Excavations in the Holy Land, 4 Vols. Ephraim Stern, ed. (New York: Simon &
Schuster, 1993),1:323-332; also Avraham Biran, “Sacred Spaces of Standing
Stones, High Places and Cult Objects at Tel Dan,” Biblical Archaeology Review,
Sep/Oct 1998 (Vol. 24 No. 5), pp. 38-45, 70] and Bethsaida (et-Tel) [see Rami
Arav, et al., “Bethsaida Rediscovered,” Biblical Archaeology Review, Jan/Feb
2000 (Vol. 26 No.1), pp. 45-56].
7.
This
corroborates Jeremiah’s testimony wherein he said, “according to the number of
the streets of
8.
For
an excellent discussion of the layout of Solomon’s temple including surrounding
courts, see Victor V. Hurowitz, “Inside Solomon’s Temple,” Bible Review (April
1994), pp. 24-37, 50. For other discussions, see Roland de Vaux, Ancient
Israel: Vol. 2 Religious Institutions (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1961), pp.
312-322; Menahem Haran,
9.
There
is scholarly debate the as to the exact nature of Tammuz (Dumuzi) worship. See,
O.R. Gurney, “Tammuz Reconsidered: Some Recent Developments,” Journal of
Semitic Studies 7 (1962), pp. 142-160; Thorkild Jacbosen, “Toward the Image of
Tammuz,” in Toward the Image of Tammuz and Other Essays on Mesopotamian History
and Culture, ed. W. L. Moran (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard, 1970), pp. 73-103);
Samuel Noah Kramer, The Sacred Marriage Rite (Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana
University Press, 1969), pp. 107-133; Edwin M. Yamauchi, “Tammuz and the
Bible,” Journal of Biblical Literature 84 (1965), pp. 283-290.
10.
Later
rabbis considered the area between the altar and the porch of the temple one of
the most sacred areas in the land. The Mishnah describes “ten degrees of
holiness” beginning with the
11.
The
form shachah is found this verse is mishtachawithem, which is unusual. It
appears to be a participle with a second masculine singlular perfect
sufformative. Some scholars (such as Zimmerli, Ezekiel 1, pp. 221 and Block,
The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 1-24, p. 296, n. 70) assign this to scribal error
feeling the word should be written mishtachawim, the normal rendering of
worship. However, the Rabbis traditionally explained this unusual form as a
compound of mashchithim (they destroy) and mishtachawim (they worship). They
see in the word as it is presently rendered the dual nature of the abomination
being acted out before the Lord: the worship of the sun god would bring about
the destruction of the temple (see Fisch, Ezekiel, p. 45).
12.
Zimmerli,
Ezekiel 1, pp. 243-244.
13.
The
primary use of chamas in the Old Testament is in societal contexts: oppression,
injustice, and false accusation based upon greed. But chamas can be taken to
the point of physical violence and destruction. For a greater understanding of
this word, see H. Haag, “Chamas,” in Theological Dictionary of the Old
Testament. Presently 10 vols. Edited By G. Johannes Botterweck and Helmer
Ringgren (Grand Rapids, Mich: Eerdmans, 1980), 4: 478-487.
14.
President
Marion G. Romney taught that the light of Christ may be experienced in three
phases: first, the light which enlighteneth every man that cometh into the
world; second, the gift of the Holy Ghost; and third, is the second comforter
obtained through the more sure word of prophecy when one’s calling and election
is made sure (see “The Light of Christ,” Ensign [May 1977], pp. 43-45). In
order to obtain the fulness of the light of Christ one must experience all
three phases. These three phases are central to temple worship and are
represented in modern temples through various stages of the endowment. These
three phases can also be seen in the layout of Solomon’s temple. The first
phase may be represented by the area outside of the temple including both outer
and inner courts. The second phase may be represented by the holy place that
housed, among other things, the seven branched candelabra. The third phase may
be represented by the holy of holies with its ark of the covenant.
15.
For
excellent discussion including excellent maps tracing Ezekiel and the
ministrants movements through the
16.
This
is the reading of Septuagint.
17.
For
summary of various interpretations, see John B. Taylor, Ezekiel: An
Introduction and Commentary (Leicester, England: Inter-Varsity Press,
1969), pp. 251-254.
18.
For
the sacrament table as an altar and the altars of the temples, see article on
altars in Encyclopedia of Mormonism, vol. 1.
19.
Block,
The Book of Ezekiel: Chapters 25-48, p. 614.
20.
Fred.
E. Woods, “The Waters Which Make Glad the City of God: The Water Motif of
Ezekiel 47:1-12,” in A Witness of Jesus Christ: The 1989 Sperry Symposium on
the Old Testament (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1990), p. 282.
21.
James
E. Faust, “Priesthood Blessings,” Ensign, Nov. 1995, p. 64.
Ezekiel 40-48
December 14, 2006
D&C 29
– Tells about the great and abominable church, this is the 1st
apocalyptic revelation in our time.
(Doctrine and Covenants
29:8, 21)
8
Wherefore the decree hath gone forth from the Father that they shall be
gathered in unto one place upon the face of this land, to prepare their hearts
and be prepared in all things against the day when tribulation and desolation
are sent forth upon the wicked.
21
And the great and abominable church, which is the whore of all the earth, shall
be cast down by devouring fire, according as it is spoken by the mouth of
Ezekiel the prophet, who spoke of these things, which have not come to pass but
surely must, as I live, for abominations shall not reign.
Gather the
people and prepare them against the tribulation which will come to the
wicked. Ezekiel saw the destruction of
this wicked church by fire, ( 1 Nephi 14 & Ezekiel 38-39)
Ezekiel
38-39 set up chapters 40-48.
Visions of
Nephi
1 Nephi 13
– Restoration of the Gospel
1 Nephi 14
– Our day to the 2nd coming
(1 Nephi 14:9-13.)
9 And it came to pass that
he said unto me: Look, and behold that great and abominable church, which is
the mother of abominations, whose founder is the devil.
10 And he said unto me:
Behold there are save two churches only; the one is the church of the Lamb of
God, and the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not
to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the
mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth.
11 And it came to pass
that I looked and beheld the whore of all the earth, and she sat upon many
waters; and she had dominion over all the earth, among all nations, kindreds,
tongues, and people.
12 And it came to pass
that I beheld the church of the Lamb of God, and its numbers were few, because
of the wickedness and abominations of the whore who sat upon many waters;
nevertheless, I beheld that the church of the Lamb, who were the saints of God,
were also upon all the face of the earth; and their dominions upon the face of
the earth were small, because of the wickedness of the great whore whom I saw.
13 And it came to pass
that I beheld that the great mother of abominations did gather together
multitudes upon the face of all the earth, among all the nations of the
Gentiles, to fight against the Lamb of God.
2 Churches
in the world – 1. Love God and His work,
symbolic of all people who love God
2. Love Satan, collection of evil in the world
Church of the devil is larger then
the church of the Lamb. Good is fighting
against evil.
(1 Nephi 14:14-22.)
14 And it came to pass
that I, Nephi, beheld the power of the Lamb of God, that it descended upon the
saints of the church of the Lamb, and upon the covenant people of the Lord, who
were scattered upon all the face of the earth; and they were armed with
righteousness and with the power of God in great glory.
15 And it came to pass
that I beheld that the wrath of God was poured out upon that great and
abominable church, insomuch that there were wars and rumors of wars among all
the nations and kindreds of the earth.
16 And as there began to
be wars and rumors of wars among all the nations which belonged to the mother
of abominations, the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold, the wrath of God is
upon the mother of harlots; and behold, thou seest all these things—
17 And when the day cometh
that the wrath of God is poured out upon the mother of harlots, which is the
great and abominable church of all the earth, whose founder is the devil, then,
at that day, the work of the Father shall commence, in preparing the way for
the fulfilling of his covenants, which he hath made to his people who are of
the house of Israel.
18 And it came to pass
that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look!
19 And I looked and beheld
a man, and he was dressed in a white robe.
20 And the angel said unto
me: Behold one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
21 Behold, he shall see
and write the remainder of these things; yea, and also many things which have
been.
22 And he shall also write
concerning the end of the world.
The power
of the Lamb of God is upon the saints of the church and upon the covenant people. John writes what Nephi sees in the Book of
Revelation.
(1 Nephi 22:11.) – Nephi
talks about the last days and what will happen to the great and abominable
church
11
Wherefore, the Lord God will proceed to make bare his arm in the eyes of all
the nations, in bringing about his covenants and his gospel unto those who are
of the house of Israel.
D&C
86:1 – Tares = Babylon, Gog and Magog and the Great and Abominable Church
Revelations Concerning Isaiah
(D&C 86 and 113)
KENT P. JACKSON
Many sections in the Doctrine and
Covenants touch on Bible themes and expand both our understanding of the gospel
as well as our understanding of important Bible passages. The words of the
Lord, as spoken to Isaiah, the eighth-century B.C. prophet of Jerusalem, are
reflected in several places in the Doctrine and Covenants. fn Some of the
revelations to the Prophet Joseph Smith deal specifically with Isaianic
prophecies. This study will deal with two such passages, D&C 86:8-11 and
D&C 113, both of which shed considerable light on Isaiah and teach valuable
gospel truths.
A Latter-day Mission
Section 86 of the Doctrine and
Covenants is usually studied for its value in shedding light on Jesus' parable
of the wheat and the tares (Matt. 13:24-30). fn A contribution of equal worth
is the insight that it gives into Isaiah 49, one of the most significant
revelations of the ancient prophet. Isaiah 49 is a prophecy which deals, among
other things, with the role of Ephraim—and perhaps specifically Joseph Smith—in
the latter days. Doctrine and Covenants 86 brings Isaiah's words into their
Latter-day focus. Isaiah wrote: "Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye
people, from far; The Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my
mother hath he made mention of my name. And he hath made my mouth like a sharp
sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft;
in his quiver hath he hid me; And said unto me, Thou art my servant, O Israel,
in whom I will be glorified" (Isa. 49:1-3).
The speaker in this passage is called
Israel, as is evident in v. 3, who explains his calling (v. 1) and certain
manifestations of the divine favor that he has received (v. 2). The Lord called
Israel "my servant . . . in whom I will be glorified." That this act
of glorification would take place later than Isaiah's day is clear from his use
of future tenses throughout the passage. The way in which Israel would glorify
the Lord is specified in vv. 5-6.
Israel pointed out that his labors in
the past had been in vain (v. 4). To this the Lord responded with a powerful
prophecy of more significant labors that lay ahead: "And now, saith the
Lord that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to
him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the
Lord, and my God shall be my strength. And he said, It is a light thing that
thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore
the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles,
that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth" (Isa. 49:5-6).
Israel's assigned task, as specified
in the passage, can be divided into two parts, each one constituting a major
mission to a group of God's children: (1) reestablish Israel and gather it
again to the Lord, and (2) serve as "a light to the Gentiles," to
make salvation available to them.
Joseph Smith and Ephraim
Section 86 of the Doctrine and
Covenants was revealed to Joseph Smith in December of 1832, only two and
one-half years after the organization of the Church. It is one of many
revelations that grew out of the Prophet's study of the Bible. In the era in
which these revelations were given, heaven-sent communications were unfolding
the role that the young prophet and the young Church were to play in
accomplishing the Lord's purposes. Perhaps Joseph had never considered the fact
that he might have been mentioned in scripture by biblical prophets.
Nonetheless he certainly knew by this time that the infant latter-day Church
was the kingdom of God and that its continued success was sure. Doctrine and
Covenants 86:8-11 made known yet other truths that brought greater emphasis to
the mission of the Prophet and his work. Among other things, it brought to
light the fact that Joseph Smith and his fellow workers of the lineage of
ancient Joseph were the fulfillment of the great revelation recorded in Isaiah
49. It seems, in fact, reasonable to conclude that the "Israel"
mentioned in Isaiah's prophecy refers to the specific tribe that was to preside
in the last days—the tribe of Ephraim. At the head of that tribe—and presiding
under the Lord's direction over latter-day Israel—stands the Prophet Joseph
Smith. Isaiah 49 speaks of him and of the church that was restored through his
service.
A few brief comments regarding some
key phrases in Isaiah's words will enable us to understand the prophecy and its
fulfillment.
"Called me from the womb"
(v. 1): From the
days of the Patriarchs, ancient Joseph and his descendants had been singled out
to stand at the head of the house of Israel (see Gen. 37:5-11; 48:13-20; 49:26;
Deut. 33:16-17). This was their foreordained calling. An important part of that
calling included the challenge to be saviors of their brethren of Israel, just
as their forefather Joseph had been a temporal savior in ancient times.
Jeremiah prophesied concerning Ephraim's role in the latter-day gathering. As
presiding tribe, it would be he who would announce to all that the time of the
gathering and return had come (Jer. 31:6).
"In the shadow of his hand hath
he hid me" (v. 2):
At the same time that Joseph's father, Jacob, pronounced the blessing of
presidency on Joseph and his posterity, he prophesied that the government would
be in the hands of the tribe of Judah (Gen. 49:8-10). This was fulfilled in the
kingship of David and his descendants, and it will be fulfilled to its fullest
measure in the millennial kingship of the Lord Jesus Christ. The descendants of
Joseph never ruled over the house of Israel, in spite of the fact that they
inherited from their ancestor the keys of presidency. Moreover, we have no
record that Ephraim ever had the blessings of the gospel from the time of its
ancient apostasy to the time of the Restoration. Ephraim's presidency over
Israel was to be realized in the last days. With the calling of Joseph Smith, a
descendant of Ephraim, the tribe to which he belonged took its rightful
position at the head of the family of Israel. Foreordained to a great
latter-day service, Joseph's children—both of Ephraim and of Manasseh—have accepted
their calling to bring the blessings of the gospel to their brethren.
"A polished shaft . . . in his
quiver" (v. 2):
Joseph Smith himself provided an interpretation that may show the fulfillment
of this scripture: "I am like a huge, rough stone rolling down from a high
mountain; and the only polishing I get is when some corner gets rubbed off by
coming in contact with something else . . . all hell knocking off a corner here
and a corner there. Thus I will become a smooth and polished shaft in the quiver
of the Almighty." fn Thus Joseph Smith viewed himself as a polished shaft
in the Lord's quiver, perhaps in direct fulfillment of Isaiah's words.
"To bring Jacob again to
him" (v. 5), "to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the
preserved of Israel" (v. 6): As has been discussed already, it was the commission of the
birthright children of Joseph to bring about the gathering of Israel in the
last days. Ephraim's leader, Joseph Smith, was the one to whom the keys of the
gathering were restored (D&C 110:11), fn and it will be under the authority
of those keys that the gathering will continue. Jeremiah explained that it
would be "the watchmen upon the mount Ephraim" that would cry,
"Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion unto the Lord our God" (Jer. 31:6).
In modern revelation the Lord has affirmed that "they who are in the north
countries" will return and receive their blessings under the hand of
"the children of Ephraim" (D&C 133:26-34). Today it is, with
extremely few exceptions, the children of Ephraim and his brother Manasseh—who
constitute the Lord's Church—who are taking the gospel message to the scattered
remnants of Israel and who thus are gathering their brethren.
"A light to the Gentiles"
(v. 6): Nephi and
others taught how the great blessings of the last days would be made available
not only to the house of Israel, but to the Gentiles as well (see 1 Ne.
22:8-11). Indeed, the gospel is to be taken by Ephraim and his brethren in the
dispensation of the fulness of times to all people (see JS-M 31; D&C
42:58). Once again, the tribe of Ephraim and Joseph Smith stand out as the main
participants in this work. In the fullest sense, Jesus Christ is the
"light"—not only to the Gentiles, but to all nations. The Church
today has a commission to bear his message; thus it reflects his light.
"A Savior Unto My People"
Section 86 (vv. 8-11) clarifies
Isaiah's prophecy and identifies Joseph Smith and his co-workers of the tribes
of Joseph—the members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints—as the
fulfillment of these words from Isaiah. These are they "with whom the
priesthood hath continued through the lineage of [their] fathers—For [they] are
lawful heirs, according to the flesh, and have been hid from the world with
Christ in God" (D&C 86:8-9). Having been foreordained long ago to this
calling, and having inherited it through lineal descent, Ephraim's children now
are no longer "hid from the world" (D&C 86:9) "in the shadow
of [the Lord's] hand" but are at the forefront of the Lord's work in the last
days: to restore scattered Israel to the covenant blessings, and to bring the
message of the gospel to the Gentiles. The Lord concluded his revelation to
Joseph and the Church: "Therefore, blessed are ye if ye continue in my
goodness, a light unto the Gentiles, and through this priesthood, a savior unto
my people Israel" (D&C 86:11).
(Robert L.
Millet and Kent P. Jackson, eds., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 1: The Doctrine
and Covenants [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1989], 326.)
(Doctrine and Covenants
88:87.) – Natural disasters happen, the gospel will go to all the world
87
For not many days hence and the earth shall tremble and reel to and fro as a
drunken man; and the sun shall hide his face, and shall refuse to give light;
and the moon shall be bathed in blood; and the stars shall become exceedingly
angry, and shall cast themselves down as a fig that falleth from off a
fig-tree.
(Doctrine and Covenants
88:92-94.) – 2nd Coming and the destruction of the wicked
92 And angels shall fly
through the midst of heaven, crying with a loud voice, sounding the trump of
God, saying: Prepare ye, prepare ye, O inhabitants of the earth; for the
judgment of our God is come. Behold, and lo, the Bridegroom cometh; go ye out
to meet him.
93 And immediately there
shall appear a great sign in heaven, and all people shall see it together.
94 And another angel shall
sound his trump, saying: That great church, the mother of abominations, that
made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, that persecuteth
the saints of God, that shed their blood—she who sitteth upon many waters, and
upon the islands of the sea—behold, she is the tares of the earth; she is bound
in bundles; her bands are made strong, no man can loose them; therefore, she is
ready to be burned. And he shall sound his trump both long and loud, and all
nations shall hear it.
D&C
38-39 – More wickedness in the nations of the earth.
Ezekiel
38-39-40– These are figurative writings, yet wickedness will be completely
destroyed at the 2nd Coming.
A New Temple
See Ezekiel 40 through 44 for partial
blueprints and description of services in the temple.
"I am returned to Jerusalem with
mercies: my house shall be built in it, saith the Lord of hosts" (Zech.
1:16).
"Thus speaketh the Lord of
hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up
out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord" (Zech.
6:12-15).
"For it is ordained that in
Zion, and in her stakes, and in Jerusalem, those places which I have appointed
for refuge, shall be the places for your baptisms for your dead. And again,
verily I say unto you, how shall your washings be acceptable unto me, except ye
perform them in a house which you have built to my name?" (D&C
124:36-37).
"What was the object of
gathering the Jews, or the people of God in any age of the world? The main
object was to build unto the Lord a house whereby He could reveal unto His
people the ordinances of His house and the glories of His kingdom, and teach
the people the way of salvation; for there are certain ordinances and
principles that, when they are taught and practiced, must be done in a place or
house built for that purpose" (Smith, History of the Church,
5:423).
"I remember, some time ago,
having a conversation with Baron Rothschild, a Jew. I was showing him the
temple here [Salt Lake City], and said he,—'Elder Taylor, what do you mean by
this temple? What is the object of it? Why are you building it?' Said I 'Your
fathers had among them prophets, who revealed to them the mind and will of God;
we have among us prophets who reveal to us the mind and will of God, as they
did. One of your prophets said—'The Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to
his temple; but who may abide the day of his coming? . . . ' 'Now . . . will you
point me out a place on the face of the earth where God has a Temple?' Said he,
'I do not know of any. . . . Do you consider that this is that temple?' 'No,
sir, it is not.' 'Well, what is this temple for?' Said I, 'The Lord has told us
to build this temple so that we may administer therein baptisms for our dead .
. . 8and also to perform some of the sacred matrimonial alliances and covenants
that we believe in, that are rejected by the world generally, but which are
among the purest, most exalting and ennobling principles that God ever revealed
to man.' 'Well, then this is not our temple?' 'No, but . . . you will build a
Temple, for the Lord has shown us, among other things, that you Jews have quite
a role to perform in the latter days, and that all the things spoken by your
old prophets will be fulfilled, that you will be gathered to old Jerusalem, and
that you will build a temple there; and when you build that temple, and the
time has arrived, "the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple"'"
(John Taylor, in Journal of Discourses, 18:199-200).
Nations Battle against the Jews
See Ezekiel 38-39. Though called by
Ezekiel the battle of Gog and Magog, the usual title for this conflict is the
battle of Armageddon. This name originated with the site of Har Megiddo,
the mount or tel of Megiddo, a fortress city at the western end of the Jezreel
Valley where many famous battles were fought in antiquity and which gives its
name to the future battle to end this world's history.
"I will also gather all nations,
and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with
them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered
among the nations, and parted my land. . . . Multitudes, multitudes in the
valley of decision: for the day of the Lord is near in the valley of
decision" (Joel 3:2, 14).
"In that day shall there be a
great mourning in Jerusalem, as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of
Megiddon" (Zech. 12:11).
"For I will gather all nations
against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses
rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into
captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
"Then shall the Lord go forth,
and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
"And his feet shall stand in
that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and
the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and
toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the
mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
"And ye shall flee to the valley
of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea,
ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah
king of Judah: and the Lord my God shall come, and all the saints with thee. .
. .
"And this shall be the plague
wherewith the Lord will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem;
Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes
shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their
mouth. . . .
"And Judah also shall fight at
Jerusalem; and the wealth of all the heathen round about shall be gathered
together, gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance" (Zech.
14:2-14).
"And he gathered them together
into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon" (Rev. 16:16).
"For then, in those days, shall
be great tribulation on the Jews, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, such
as was not before sent upon Israel, of God, since the beginning of their
kingdom until this time; no, nor ever shall be sent again upon Israel. All
things which have befallen them are only the beginning of the sorrows which
shall come upon them. And except those days should be shortened, there should
none of their flesh be saved; but for the elect's sake, according to the
covenant, those days shall be shortened. Behold, these things I have spoken
unto you concerning the Jews" (JS-M 1:18-21).
"He will gather up millions upon
millions of people into the valleys around about Jerusalem in order to destroy
the Jews after they have gathered. How will the Devil do this? He will perform
miracles to do it. The Bible says the kings of the earth and the great ones
will be deceived by these false miracles. . . . What will they do? Gather them
up to battle unto the great day of God Almighty. Where? Into the valley of
Armageddon" (Orson Pratt, in Journal of Discourses, 7:188-89).
The Causes and Description of Armageddon
"Armageddon is a holy war. In it
men will blaspheme God. They will be in rebellion against Jehovah. The armies
that face each other will have opposing philosophies of life. It will be
religious instincts that cause them to assemble to the battle." (McConkie,
Millennial Messiah, 398).
"There will be political
overtones, of course. Wars are fought by nations, which are political entities.
But the underlying causes and the moving power in the hearts of men will be
their views of religious issues" (McConkie, Millennial Messiah,
478).
"Armageddon is the hill of the
valley of Megiddo west of Jordan on the plain Jezreel. And Armageddon is the
place where the final war will be fought, meaning, as we suppose, that it will
be the focal point of a worldwide conflict, and also that as a place of ancient
warfare, it will be a symbol of the conflict that will be raging in many
nations and on many battlefronts. . . .
" . . . All nations are at war;
some are attacking Jerusalem and others are defending the once holy city. She
is the political prize. Three world religions claim her—Christianity, Islam,
and Judaism. Emotion and fanaticism run high. . . .
"'And it shall come to pass,
that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and
die; but the third shall be left therein.' This is Israel of whom he speaks.
These are the armies who are defending Jerusalem and whose cause, in the
eternal sense, is just. Two-thirds of them shall die.
"'And I will bring the third
part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try
them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will
say, it is my people: and they shall say, the Lord is my God.' (Zech. 13:8-9.)
We repeat: It is a religious war. The forces of antichrist are seeking to
destroy freedom and liberty and right; they seek to deny men the right to
worship the Lord; they are the enemies of God. The one-third who remain in the
land of Israel are the Lord's people" (McConkie, Millennial Messiah,
464-66).
"'And again shall the
abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet be fulfilled.' That
which once happened to Jerusalem and its inhabitants shall happen again. . . .
"'And when ye shall see
Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh
. . .'
"'Then let them which are in
Judah flee to the mountains; and let them that are in the midst of it depart
out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto.' Is this the
way the saints shall be saved in the last days when two-thirds of the
inhabitants shall be cut off and die and only one-third be left: If more than a
million were put to the sword in A.D. 70, how great shall be the slaughter when
atomic bombs are used?" (McConkie, Millennial Messiah, 473).
"The kings of the earth and of
the whole world will gather to fight the battle of that great day of God
Almighty. Their command center will be at Armageddon, overlooking the valley of
Megiddo. All nations will be gathered against Jerusalem. Two hundred thousand
thousand warriors and more—two hundred million men of arms and more—shall come
forth to conquer or die on the plains of Esdraelon and in all the nations of
the earth.
" . . . This war will be a
religious war. . . .
" . . . We do not speculate as
to what nations are involved in these wars. It is well known that the United
States and Great Britain and the Anglo-Saxon peoples have traditionally been
linked together in causes designed to promote freedom and guarantee the rights
of man. It is also well known that there are other nations, ruled by a godless
communistic power, that have traditionally fought to enslave rather than to
free men. It is fruitless to try and name nations and set forth alliances that
are to be" (McConkie, Millennial Messiah, 476-77).
(David B.
Galbraith, D. Kelly Ogden, and Andrew C. Skinner, Jerusalem: The Eternal
City [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1996], 527.)
Visions of
Ezekiel:
- Jerusalem destroyed
- Israel’s restoration
- Wickedness is gone from the
earth
- What Jerusalem will be like in
a world without sin
Ezekiel is
a priest in the temple, he is familiar with the workings of the temple in
Jerusalem but is not familiar with God’s own temple, it is clean, pure and right.
He is taken
away in a vision to a high mountain and sees everything pointing to the center
of the temple, the Holy of Holies, he sees God and His ways. Temples were not set up this way in the
ancient world. Symbolism is all over
this. God is at the center of His
people.
Ezekiel
41-42 – Shows how everything is set up.
Chapter 42 shows perfect measurements for a square, that seperates the
holy from evil (sacred from the profane of the world). There is a clear distinction between holy and
unholy. The temple is clearly holy so
God can return, remember earlier He left and went to the Mt. of Olives because
of the unholiness inside the temple.
(Ezekiel 43:1-5.)
1 Afterward he brought me
to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east:
2 And, behold, the glory
of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was
like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.
3 And it was
according to the appearance of the vision which I saw, even according to
the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city: and the visions were
like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face.
4 And the glory of the
LORD came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward
the east.
5 So the spirit took me
up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of the LORD
filled the house.
God came
into the house by the east gate, the glory of the Lord filled the house because
the wickedness had been destroyed (Ezekiel 38-39).
(Ezekiel 43:7.) –
Millennial time period, the temple is not to be defiled anymore. Wicked have been consumed
7
¶ And he said unto me, Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the
soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for
ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither
they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in
their high places.
Ezekiel
knows what is to come in the future but we must be undefiled in order to
prepare for this. The people who
returned were disillusioned because they thought Ezekiel’s revelations were for
them rather then the 2nd coming.
But they were not clean themselves when they returned.
Ezekiel 43
– The people need to start becoming more holy.
For us, Jackson Co. temple has not been built, so this applies to us
also. We must become undefiled
ourselves.
Ezekiel
44-46 – Everything is being done correctly, priesthood is also done correctly.
(Ezekiel
47:1-12.)
1 Afterward he brought me
again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the
threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward
the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house,
at the south side of the altar.
2 Then brought he me out
of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the
utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters
on the right side.
3 And when the man that
had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits,
and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ancles.
4 Again he measured a
thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the
knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were
to the loins.
5 Afterward he measured a
thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters
were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.
6 ¶ And he said unto me, Son
of man, hast thou seen this? Then he brought me, and caused me to return
to the brink of the river.
7 Now when I had returned,
behold, at the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side
and on the other.
8 Then said he unto me,
These waters issue out toward the east country, and go down into the desert,
and go into the sea: which being brought forth into the sea, the waters
shall be healed.
9 And it shall come to
pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the
rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of
fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and
every thing shall live whither the river cometh.
10 And it shall come to
pass, that the fishers shall stand upon it from En-gedi even unto
En-eglaim; they shall be a place to spread forth nets; their fish shall
be according to their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many.
11 But the miry places
thereof and the marishes thereof shall not be healed; they shall be given to
salt.
12 And by the river upon
the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat,
whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it
shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they
issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the
leaf thereof for medicine.
The Waters Which Make Glad the City
of God: The Water Motif of Ezekiel 47:1-12
Fred E. Woods, Brigham Young
University
This paper focuses on the meaning of
the water motif of Ezek. 47:1Ezekiel 47:1-12. I will begin by giving you my own
translation of this passage. fn
"1. And he brought me to the
entrance of the temple, and behold water went out from under the threshold of
the temple eastward, for the front of the temple was facing eastward. And water
descended underneath on the right side of the temple, south of the altar.
"2. And he brought me out
through the north gate round the outside to the outside gate which faces east
and the water trickled from the right side.
"3. And the man came out to the
east with the measuring line in his hand and he measured a thousand cubits more
and allowed me to pass through the water up to the ankles.
"4. And he measured a thousand
cubits more and allowed me to pass through the water up to the knees. And he
measured a thousand cubits more and he let me pass through water up to the
loins.
"5. And he measured a thousand
cubits more a river which I could no longer pass through, for the water had
raised, water to swim in, and a river which could no longer be passed through.
"6. And he said to me: Have you
seen, Son of man? fn And he brought me back to the bank of the river.
"7. When I came back, there were
on the bank of the river many trees on each side.
"8. And he said to me: These
waters go out to the eastern region and flow down into the Arabah and come to
the sea, into the bitter, salty waters and the waters will become fresh.
"9. And it will be that all
living creatures which swarm there where the streams reach will live. And the
fish will be very numerous because these waters reach there, and they will be
healed and where the river reaches, everything will live.
"10. And fishermen will stand by
it; from En-gedi until En-eglaim nets will be spread out to dry. Of many kinds
will its fish be, like the fish of the great sea, very numerous.
"11. But its swamps and its
marshes will not be healed; they will be used for salt. fn
"12. And by the river upon its
banks grow every kind of tree for food. And their leaves do not wither, nor
does their fruit cease and it will bear new fruit according to its months
because their water flows out of the temple and their fruit is used for food
and their leaves for healing."
The waters that flow from the temple
have both literal and figurative meaning. The meaning is literal in the
physical sense of the waters' renewing and fructifying effects on the land. In
the figurative sense they symbolize first the restoration of Israel as a land
and a people, eventually including the entire earth. At the same time, they are
figurative for the voice, presence, power, and pedagogy of Jehovah, which flows
down from heaven as revelation to renew and sanctify man. Ezekiel uses the
imagery of trees as a symbol of mankind. Just as the waters cause the trees to
grow, so hearkening to the voice of Jehovah causes mankind to grow. Thus the
relationship between God and man is symbolized by the water-tree motif.
Perhaps the Garden of Eden was the
genesis of this motif. Just as those Edenic waters flowed through the Garden,
so shall water flow from the temple to renew the earth to its paradisiacal
state. At that millennial day Jehovah's voice will also flow to all mankind who
will then say, "There is a river, the streams thereof shall make glad the
city of God." (Ps. 46:4.)
Historical Geography of Dead Sea Region
It is important to describe the
desolate region around the Dead Sea accurately to allow full appreciation of
the miraculous fructifying and healing effects of the temple waters. The Dead
Sea is located in an area known as the Arabah or the sea of Arabah. (Deut.
3:17; 4:49.) In Hebrew the word carabhah is used to describe a remote
desert region. fn Certainly that word is an understatement when applied to the
forbidding wasteland of the Arabah. The biblical geographer George Adam Smith
writes: "Perhaps there is no region of our earth where Nature and History
have more cruelly conspired, where so tragic a drama has obtained so awful a
theatre." fn
This desolate area encompasses the
deep depression of the Jordan Rift from the Sea of Galilee to the Gulf of
Akabah. The Dead Sea lies not only at the lowest elevation of this great
depression but also, in fact, at the lowest land area on the surface of the
earth, dropping to 1,275 feet below sea level. fn About the Dead Sea itself,
George Adam Smith commented, "The history of the Dead Sea opens with Sodom
and Gomorrah, and may be said to close with the Massacre of Masada." fn
It is surprising to learn in Genesis
13:10 that this desolate land known as the Arabah was once a very fertile area.
The verbal root of Arabah, c-r-b, can mean "to be sweet" or
"pleasing." fn Genesis 13:10 indicates that it was pleasing to the
eyes of Lot: "And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all the plain of
Jordan, that it was well watered every where, before the Lord destroyed Sodom
and Gomorrah, even as the garden of the Lord." fn Yet the Lord sent fire
and sulphur to utterly destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and its inhabitants (Gen.
19:24-25, 28.) as a punishment for their grievous sins. (Gen. 18:20; 19:13.)
This desolate condition is not to remain. Ezekiel states, "And the
desolate land will be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that
passed by. And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the
garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced,
and are inhabited." (Ezek. 36:34-35.) fn Hence, in the geographic history
of the Dead Sea region it begins as a well-watered garden, is then destroyed by
fire and sulphur as a consequence of sin, and will be restored to its Edenic
state. The extent of Ezekiel's awareness of these things is revealed in that
portion of his writing under investigation here.
Ezekiel's Understanding of Dead Sea Symbolism
Ezekiel, a priest (Ezek. 1:3), would
have been familiar with passages from the Pentateuch concerning the
consequences of sin against Jehovah that befall lands and peoples. One such
passage explained the curses that would fall upon the Israelites as a consequence
for breaching their covenants with the Lord: "And the Lord will not spare
him, but then the anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoke against that
man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and
the Lord shall blot out his name from under heaven." (Deut. 29:20.) It is
likely that Ezekiel perceived the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah as a type for
rebellious Israel. Another passage that reflects the geographic cursing of
Israel as a result of broken covenants is found in Deuteronomy: "And that
the whole land thereof is [sulphur], and salt, and burning, that it is not
sown, nor beareth, nor any grass groweth therein, like the [destruction] of
Sodom, and Gomorrah." (Deut. 29:23.)
Ezekiel was familiar with the
figurative usage of Sodom and Gomorrah as symbols of both wickedness and
desolation. The Lord compares the wickedness of Jerusalem to that of Sodom:
"As I live, saith the Lord God, [your sister Sodom] hath not done, she nor
her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters." (Ezek. 16:48.)
The Lord consequently declares to Jerusalem that "I will even deal with
thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the
covenant." (Ezek. 16:59.) Yet he promises, "I will remember my covenant
with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an
everlasting covenant." (Ezek. 16:60.) Among these covenants was the
promise that the land that lay desolate would once again become like the Garden
of Eden. (Ezek. 36:34-35.)
Ezekiel's priestly background and his
writings speak of his knowledge of the literal and figurative nature of this
desolate region. He understood that when his people kept the Lord's
commandments the land would become fertile and the people would prosper.
Ezekiel's prophecy using the water motif signals the commencement of the Edenic
day of restoration.
The Garden of Eden
The etymology of the Hebrew word Eden
is uncertain. It may be related to the Sumerian word edinu, which
denotes either "wilderness" or "flatland." fn The
Septuagint interpreted the word from the root of the Hebrew verb cdn,
"to delight," and thus translated the "garden of Eden" as
"the garden of delight." This interpretation was the basis for the
traditional view of the Garden of Eden as paradise. fn
Eden is cited as a location or a
condition fourteen times in the Old Testament. It is used six times both in
Genesis and in Ezekiel and once each in Joel and Isaiah. fn Nicholas Wyatt
notes that the references after the book of Genesis are given after the
scattering of Israel, indicating that these prophets use Eden to suggest the
notion of a return to a restored condition or an Edenic land. fn
Ezekiel uses the word Eden as
many times as the book of Genesis does. This usage gives preliminary support to
the proposal that the water motif of Ezekiel is based upon the Garden of Eden
theme. That prototype reference in Genesis 2:8-10 states:
"And the Lord God planted a
garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
"And out of the ground made the
Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food;
the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of
good and evil.
"And a river went out of Eden to
water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four
heads."
The source of this river may have
been the underground waters known in biblical Hebrew as tehom, which is
translated as the "deep." These waters symbolize both life-giving
power and the chaotic waters of destruction that existed before the Creation.
These waters are first mentioned in Genesis 1:2: "And the earth was
without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the [tehom].
And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." In his Near
Eastern studies of temple typology, John Lundquist states that "the temple
is often associated with the waters of life which flow from a spring within the
building itself. . . . The reason such springs exist in temples is that they
were perceived as the primeval waters of creation." fn
The waters that issue forth from the
threshold of Ezekiel's temple appear to represent the waters of creation.
Herbert May states, "Since it was not fed by tributaries, it must have
been the deep [tehom] which was the source of the river of life which flowed
from beneath the threshold of Ezekiel's temple." fn I suggest the tehom
is not only the source for the river in the Garden of Eden but may also be the
source of the waters that flow from Ezekiel's temple.
Figurative Meaning of Water in Ezekiel's Motif
Ezekiel 47:1 provides the basis for
the figurative meaning of the temple waters: "Afterward he brought me
again unto the door of the house; and behold, waters issued out from under the
threshold of the house eastward." The Hebrew word translated "threshold"
is miptan. It is mentioned eight times in the Old Testament. Five of the
eight instances are in the book of Ezekiel. (See Ezek. 9:3; 10:4, 18; 46:2;
Ezek. 47:147:1.) From Ezekiel 9:3 and 10:4 we learn that the glory of the Lord
appeared first where the cherubim protected the ark of the covenant and then
extended to the threshold of the temple. The miptan (threshold) is thus
the place where the presence of Jehovah is first experienced by the person
entering the temple. When Joseph Smith dedicated the first latter-day temple in
Kirtland, he prayed to God that "all people who shall enter upon the threshold
of the Lord's house may feel thy power." (D&C 109:13.)
The water that issues forth from
Jehovah's presence thus represents the podium of his power, glory, and divine
attributes, suggesting figurative implications for Ezekiel's water motif.
Ezekiel 47:12 emphasizes that these waters have fructifying and special healing
power because the "waters . . . issued out of the sanctuary." This
water embodies Jehovah's power and his divine attributes because it flows from
the podium of his power.
Several passages from the Old
Testament support this concept. Among these is Jeremiah 2:13, wherein the Lord
declares: "For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me
the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns,
that can hold no water." A similar passage from Isaiah states,
"Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of
salvation." (Isa. 12:3.) The psalmist adds in reference to the Lord,
"with thee is the fountain of life." (Ps. 36:9.) These references
illustrate a clear understanding and use of water by Old Testament prophets as
a figurative symbol of Jehovah's power and presence.
Ezekiel also symbolically describes
Jehovah's voice in terms of water. In his first vision he describes the voice
of the Almighty as the sound of great waters. (Ezek. 1:24.) In his last vision
he states that "his voice was like a noise of many waters." (Ezek.
43:2.) That is the same extended vision in which Ezekiel saw the waters flowing
from the temple. Clearly the waters that flow from Jehovah's presence symbolize
his voice and might. The psalmist writes this beautiful passage: "The
voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the Lord is
upon many waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is
full of majesty." (Ps. 29:3-4.) As a whole these passages indicate that
the waters that flow from Ezekiel's temple figuratively represent Jehovah and
his various divine attributes.
Ezekiel's Use of the Edenic Garden and Trees
Ezekiel referred to Eden far more
often than any other prophet. That in itself suggests that the Edenic theme
influences much of his writing. In her dissertation entitled "Garden As a
Symbol of Sacred Space," Susan Carol Walter Lau helps us understand
Ezekiel's use of the garden and of the trees in Eden.
Ezekiel first uses the imagery of
Eden in his prophecy of doom against Tyre and its king. (See Ezek. 28.) Lau
proposes that Ezekiel uses the king of Tyre as a type of Adam. fn The king,
like Adam, had been blessed to be living in a place that is likened to Eden.
Ezekiel 28:13 states: "Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God." But
like Adam, the king of Tyre was forced to withdraw from the garden as a
consequence of sin: "Thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as
profane out of the mountain of God." (Ezek. 28:16; compare Gen. 3:17, 23.)
Interestingly, the sanctuary of Eden
appears to be located in the holy mountain of God. Ezekiel 28:14 and 16 are the
only verses in the entire Old Testament that allude to the Garden of Eden being
on a holy mountain. Lau suggests that "this probably reflects some 'Zion
theology' on Ezekiel's part, which seeks in some way to identify the original Garden
with Mt. Zion in Jerusalem." fn In fact, Mircea Eliade views the Garden of
Eden as the prototype of later temples in Israel as well as of other Near
Eastern cultures. fn If we view the temple of Ezekiel with that concept in
mind, we can see there is a correlation with water. Just as there was water
flowing to the east to provide life for the Garden of Eden, so also waters flow
to the east to re-create a garden of God. fn
The Water-Tree Motif
The second series of references to
Eden in the book of Ezekiel appears four times in chapter 31. (See vv. 8-9, 16,
18.) Each time the trees of Eden are the salient feature, and in every case
they symbolize kings and kingdoms. Ezekiel uses a great cedar in Lebanon as a
symbol for Pharaoh and the kingdoms of Assyria and Egypt. It is revealing to
compare Ezekiel's characterization of Pharaoh as a great tree with Daniel's
figurative use of King Nebuchadnezzar as a mighty tree. (Dan. 4:10-26.) Each of
these trees was the largest in its location, and both were brought down low.
(Ezek. 31:10-13; Dan. 4:10-12, 23-25.) Ezekiel uses this same motif in
describing the king of Tyre. (Ezek. 28.) In all three of these cases, the
rulers were brought down because they were lifted up in the pride of their
hearts. (Compare Ezek. 28:17; 31:10-11 with Dan. 4:22, 27.)
Ezekiel 31:4 notes that it was water
that made these trees mighty. In specific reference to the kingdoms of Assyria
and Egypt as well as to Pharaoh this verse states, "The waters made him
great, the deep set him up on high with her rivers running round about his
plants, and sent out her little rivers unto all the trees of the field."
The trees that were lifted up did not understand the source of their greatness
and so, eventually, they fell. Ezekiel's lesson is clear. The water represents
the power of Jehovah. These foreign people would not acknowledge Jehovah as
their creator and their sustainer of life. Therefore, once they accomplished
his divine purpose, they were left to themselves and died.
Ezekiel also uses the water-tree
motif to refer to Israel. In Ezekiel 15 Jerusalem and her inhabitants are
referred to as a useless vine tree that will be burned. In Ezekiel 19:10 Israel
is likened unto a vine that is "planted by the waters: she was fruitful
and full of branches by reason of many waters." Ezekiel 19:11-12 instructs
us that Israel too was lifted up in pride and is therefore cast down to the
ground, where her fruit dried up. Ezekiel 19:13 states concerning Israel:
"And now she is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty
ground." The result is that there is "no strong rod to be a scepter
to rule." (Ezek. 19:14.) Walter Zimmerli views this vine as the Davidic
house, which has had its royal roots transplanted into a desolate garden
through the exile. fn They, like the foreign kings and kingdoms, also forgot
that it was the water (Jehovah) that made them fruitful.
In Ezekiel 17:22-24 we read of a high
tree that is made low and also of a low tree that will be exalted. As in the
case of Ezekiel 31:1-9, this tree seems to represent the kingdom of Israel.
Ezekiel continues his water-tree
motif as a symbol of the relationship between God and man in Ezek. 47:1Ezekiel
47:1-12. There are numerous trees on both sides of the river of water:
"And by the river upon its banks grow every kind of tree for food. And
their leaves do not wither, nor does their fruit cease and it will bear new
fruit according to its months because their water flows out of the temple and
their fruit is used for food and their leaves for healing." (Ezek. 47:12.)
The water spoken of here is both literal and figurative. The fruit trees, I
suggest, are not only fruit trees but are a figure of righteous men who produce
good works that will heal the nations. Speaking messianically, Isaiah uses this
symbolism when he refers to men as potential "trees of
righteousness." (Isa. 61:3.) fn
In the book of Revelation we see the
same water-tree motif used by John the Revelator. John appears to have been
highly influenced by Ezekiel's writings. fn The water motif of Ezekiel serves
as a bridge between the waters of Eden and the pure river in the book of
Revelation that restores again paradise. fn The influence of Ezekiel on John
culminates in Revelation 22:1-3: "And he shewed me a pure river of water
of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.
In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there
the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit
every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
And there shall be no more curse: but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall
be in it; and his servants shall serve him."
The similarity between John and
Ezekiel is clear. In both Revelation and Ezekiel waters flow from the throne of
God to create a river that causes trees to flourish. From these trees comes the
healing of nations. I suggest that this healing of nations is accomplished by
righteous men (represented by the trees) who share the knowledge of the gospel
(in the Millennium) and thus plant anew the seedlings of potentially righteous
men, bearers of good works. (See Jacob 5:74.) fn Joseph Fielding Smith stated,
"The gospel will be taught far more intensely and with greater power
during the millennium, until all the inhabitants of the earth shall embrace
it." fn
The water-tree relationship may
indeed have its origin in the Garden of Eden. George Widengren suggests there
is a "connection between water and tree, between temple basin and sacred
grove, which clearly reflects the Water of Life and Tree of Life in paradise
[or Garden of Eden]." fn In Genesis 2:9 we learn that from the ground of
the Garden of Eden "made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant
to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the
garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil." fn It is imperative
that we remember that the gardener who planted and watered these trees was, in
fact, the Lord. He is the same gardener who, in a figurative sense, plants trees
(men) besides Ezekiel's waters. These waters symbolize Jehovah and produce
fruit (works) and leaves (power) to heal (save a nation), both physically and
spiritually. The figurative message, then, is that Jehovah places man in a
position to drink from his divine knowledge and thereby men can strengthen
themselves and others.
The symbolic description of the
relationship between God and man replete in Ezekiel's motif appears in various
passages in the Old Testament. Jeremiah 17:7-8 reads, "Blessed is the man
that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a
tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and
shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be
careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit."
The psalmist remarks concerning the man who does not walk in the ways of the
ungodly, "And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that
bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and
whatever he doeth will prosper." (Ps. 1:3.) fn Psalms 92:12-13 states:
"The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a
cedar in Lebanon. Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish
in the courts of our God." The psalmist also informs us that the house of
the Lord had its beams laid in the waters of creation; so too, Ezekiel's
temple. (Ps. 104:3; Ezek. 47:1Ezek. 47:1.) Perhaps Ezekiel, like Isaiah, looked
forward to the day when men would turn again to the living water of Jehovah and
become "trees of righteousness" (Isa. 61:3) and when "the trees
of the field [would] clap their hands." (Isa. 55:12.)
Further Attestation of Israel's Restoration in Ezekiel
The consistent theme concerning the
restoration of Israel as a land and as a people is richly demonstrated in the
book of Ezekiel. The following selected passages serve to support this point.
In relation to this restored condition the Lord declares the following:
"And I will make them and the
places round about my hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down
in his season; there shall be showers of blessing. fn And the tree of the field
shall yield her fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall
be safe in their land, and shall know that I am the Lord." (Ezek.
34:26-27.)
Note, too, Ezekiel 36:25, where the
Lord states, "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be
clean." The Lord then tells Israel that he will give her a new heart and
spirit. (Ezek. 36:26-27.) Israel is told her trees will be multiplied and her
cities will be rebuilt. (Ezek. 36:30, 33.) The people in her borders will say,
"This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden."
(Ezek. 36:35.)
In Ezekiel 37, Ezekiel is shown in
vision a valley of dry bones. This vision implies a dual symbolism of the
restoration of Israel and her inhabitants in both a temporal and spiritual way.
In verse 12 the Lord says, "I will open your graves, and cause you to come
up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel." fn The last
nine chapters of Ezekiel, 40-48, contain a vision focusing on the construction
of a latter-day temple and the theme of restoration. fn
Comparative Passages to Ezekiel 47:1-12
Two other Old Testament authors refer
to precisely the same event that Ezekiel describes in Ezekiel 47:1-12. Joel and
Zechariah verify Ezekiel's theme and at the same time shed additional light on
the motif. Joel 3:18 states, "And it shall come to pass in that day, that
the mountains shall drop fn down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk,
and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come
forth of the house of the Lord, and shall water the valley of Shittim." fn
Contrasting Ezekiel's motif with this verse, we learn that whereas Ezekiel
speaks of but one large river, Joel notes that all the river beds in Judah will
be full of water. The word for fountain here is cyan. The word denotes a
fresh underground source, which may be related to the tehom, or deep. The
book of Joel reflects the same theme as the book of Ezekiel concerning the
restoration of Israel as a people and the renewing of the land. Joel 2:3
informs us that the land will become again like the "garden of Eden,"
but not before a traumatic desolation takes place. This desolation is described
in Joel 1:9-12, 20, where the people are cut off from the temple, the land laid
waste, and the rivers dried up. Yet we find in Joel 2:21-22 that the Lord tells
Israel: "Fear not, O Land; be glad and rejoice: for the Lord will do great
things. Be not afraid . . . for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for
the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their
strength." Joel 2:23 states, "Rejoice in the Lord your God: for he
hath given you the former rain." fn This passage is equally convincing
evidence that the land will be renewed and the people will be restored and come
to a knowledge of the source of their fruitful condition.
The other passages that refer
directly to Ezekiel's water motif are Zechariah 13:1 and 14:8. Zechariah 13:1
states: "In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of
David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness."
The word here translated as "fountain" is maqor, which is a
fountain or underwater spring; this word means the same thing as yan in
Joel 3:18.
Zechariah 14:8 sheds additional light
on the reference to fountain in Zechariah 13:1. The passage states,
"And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from
Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the
hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be." fn The fountain seems to
be caused by a great earthquake that takes place when the Lord stands upon the
mount of Olives. (Zech. 14:4-5.) That this water is literal can be supported by
the Prophet Joseph Smith's prophecy: "Judah must return, Jerusalem must be
rebuilt, and the temple, and water come out from under the temple, and the
waters of the Dead Sea be healed . . . before the Son of Man will make His
appearance." fn This fountain beneath the temple will turn into a river
flowing to the east and the west. (Zech. 14:1.) This reference illuminates Ezekiel
47:1-12. It seems that the river in Ezekiel's vision flows not only to the Dead
Sea but also to the Mediterranean Sea. The extension of the waters of this
river, which go beyond Israel's boundaries, and the additional directional flow
may be interpreted here in a figurative sense to symbolize not only the
restoration of all the land of Israel but the entire earth as well.
It is important to recognize that the
word for "river" used in Ezekiel 47:4-12 is nahal. The word nahal
is a key word in this chapter. In Ezekiel 47:13-14, 2-23 we learn that when the
waters issued forth, the tribes of Israel as well as non-Israelite people
receive an inheritance on the earth. The word for "inheritance" is nahalah.
Both nahal and nahalah come from the Hebrew root n-h-l,
meaning to "possess" or to "inherit." fn The author appears
to be using a deliberate play on words. By this means he indicates that when
the river comes forth, so will the fruitful inheritance. One scholar suggested,
"The return of paradise, apparently at present limited to Palestine, is of
its very nature a universal event embracing the whole world. So we may take it
for granted without further demonstration that Palestine is a part that stands
for the whole." fn The tenth article of faith states, "the earth will
be renewed and receive its paradisiacal glory." Elder Bruce R. McConkie
interpreted this phrase to mean that the earth "will return to the edenic
terrestrial state which existed when the Lord God finished the creative
enterprise." fn The earth will be transfigured to its Edenic state.
(D&C 63:21.) Speaking of that edenic day, Isaiah 35:6-7 states, "In
the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the
parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: in
the habitation of dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and
rushes."
Elder McConkie then adds: "We do
not doubt that this is temporal, for the deserts of this old earth, in its
fallen and barren state, shall become the gardens and flowering fields of the
new earth in the millennial day. But it is also spiritual, for the latter-day
revelations says: 'And in the barren deserts there shall come forth pools of
living water; and the parched ground shall no longer be a thirsty land.' In
that day all Israel shall drink from streams of living water, streams that flow
direct from the great Fountain Head, streams filled with the words of eternal
life of which men may drink and never thirst more." fn
In that day of transfiguration, the
righteous will receive their inheritance upon the paradisiacal earth. (D&C
63:20.)
A universal renewal of the earth
appears to have its origin in the waters of the Garden of Eden. In Genesis
2:10-14 we read of the river of Eden, which divided into four different rivers
and flowed in four different directions. Lau explains that there have been many
attempts to try to specify the literal historical and geographical designations
of these four rivers with little success. fn She prefers to consider these
rivers in a symbolic way. Lau states, "If we pursue this line of thinking,
the rivers might be seen as representing the four directions of geographical
space." fn With respect to these four rivers Gerhard von Rad suggests that
"the number 'four' circumscribes the entire world." fn
Additional contextual evidence from
Zechariah suggests that this universal application is plausible. Zechariah
14:8-9 informs us that "in that day, [when] living waters shall go out
from Jerusalem. . . . the Lord shall be king over all the earth: in that day
shall there be one Lord, and his name one." This passage lends credence to
the idea of a universal renewal of the earth because the Lord is said to be
reigning not just over the land of Israel but over the entire globe. Modern-day
revelation also informs us that when Christ appears to usher in the Millennium,
"he shall stand upon the mount of Olivet. . . . And he shall utter his
voice . . . and his voice shall be heard among all people. And it shall be a
voice as the voice of many waters." (D&C 133:20-22.) These references
shed additional light on Ezekiel's water motif in helping us to understand that
the restoration can be applied to the land and people of all the earth. In its
renewed condition all the earth and its inhabitants are flooded with the
knowledge of the Lord. In Jeremiah 31:34 the Lord declares that in the
millennial day, "They shall all know me, from the least of them unto the
greatest." Isaiah 11:9 states, "The earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." Habakkuk 2:14 states,
"For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the
Lord, as the waters cover the sea." Joseph Smith commented on the kind of
knowledge in the Millennium when he stated that the Lord would "turn to
them a pure language, and the earth will be filled with sacred knowledge, as
the waters cover the great deep." fn Joseph Fielding Smith stated,
"If the knowledge of the Lord covers the earth as the waters do the sea,
then it must be universally received." fn
Conclusion
The Garden of Eden served as the
foundation for Ezekiel's water motif. The term "waters" has both a
literal and a figurative use. The prophecies used here will find literal
fulfillment as life-giving water, indeed, flows from Jehovah's temple in the
last days. But there will also be a fulfillment of the symbolic aspect as
Israel and then eventually all the earth and its inhabitants are renewed
through the life-giving powers of their millennial King.
Specific examples of the relationship
between God and man verified the proposal that the water motif of Ezekiel was
both figurative and literal for the restoration of Israel. It further
symbolized the renewal of the land. Thus, water represents the commencement of
the millennial day when the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord.
For the present, these living waters bear witness of their Creator, who is
Jehovah, even the Lord Jesus Christ. As he told the woman of Samaria,
"Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never
thirst." (John 4:14.) At the Feast of Tabernacles the Lord also declared,
"If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. He that believeth on
me . . . out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." (John
7:37-38.)
Jehovah promises yesterday, today,
and forever that "I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods
upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon
thine offspring." (Isa. 44:3.) The invitation is clear: "Every one
that thirsteth, come ye to the waters." (Isa. 55:1.) fn As we draw water
from the Source of salvation, who is Christ, we will concur with the psalmist,
who declared, "There is a river, the streams whereof . . . make glad the
city of God." (Ps. 46:4.)
Footnotes
1. Except for Ezekiel 47:1-12, all
other biblical references in this paper cite the King James Version unless
otherwise indicated.
2. The Hebrew words translated
"Son of man" are ben adam. This phrase is used to
indicate one man or, collectively, all mankind. The phrase as used in Ezekiel
47:6 may indicate that the Lord is not talking only to Ezekiel but through
Ezekiel to all the descendants of Father Adam. (See Even-Shoshan 1981:14.)
3. Eichrodt (1970:581) suggests that
verse 11 is a gloss. He contends that this passage is used to justify the
important industry of salt. May (1956:328) agrees that the scriptural passage
is being used to justify exploiting the mineral salts of the Dead Sea. Zimmerli
(1979: vol. 2:514) states, "The thoroughness of this transformation
frightened a later writer who was aware of the possibility of the extraction of
salt from the Dead Sea. So he added the observation that the swamps and pools
of the sea . . . 'keep their salt water for the extraction of salt.' "
Thus we have a unanimous agreement from these authors, and I also concede that
verse 11 was an addition to the text.
4. William Reed, in Interpreter's
Dictionary of the Bible, 5 vols. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1982),
1:828-29.
5. George Adam Smith, Historical
Geography of the Holy Land (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1897), p. 499.
6. Yohanan Aharoni, The Land of
the Bible: A Historical Geography, trans. A. F. Rainey (Philadelphia:
Westminster Press, 1979), p. 21.
7. Smith, Historical Geography,
p. 499.
8. Brown, Driver, and Briggs, A
Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (Oxford: Clarendon Press,
1951), p. 787, for discussion concerning this root.
9. The phrase "the garden of the
Lord" implies that it is like the Garden of Eden. See Genesis 2:8, which
states that the Lord planted a garden in Eden.
10. Isaiah 51:3 further clarifies
this understanding: "For the Lord shall comfort Zion: he will comfort all
her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert
like the garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein,
thanksgiving, and the voice of melody."
11. Brevard S. Childs, "Eden,
Garden of," in The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, 2:22-23.
12. Ibid., 2:22.
13. Even-Shoshan, A New
Concordance, p. 835.
14. Nicolas Wyatt, "Interpreting
the Creation and Fall Story in Genesis 2-3," Zeitscrift fur die
Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 93 (1981): 13.
15. John M. Lundquist, The Temple
in Antiquity, ed. Truman G. Madsen (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1984), p.
66.
16. Hebert G. May, "Some Cosmic
Connotations of Mayim Rabbim, Many Waters," The Journal of Biblical
Literature 74 (1955): 21. The Mishna (Parah III: 3) explains that the
temple was built upon the tehom.
17. Susan C. W. Lau, "Garden As
a Symbol of Sacred Space" (PhD. diss., University of Pittsburgh, 1981),
pp. 200-201.
18. Ibid., p. 202.
19. Mircea Eliade, Patterns in
Comparative Religion (New York: American Library, 1958), p. 282.
20. The association of these waters
with the east may reflect messianic overtones.
21. Walter Zimmerli, Ezekiel: A
Commentary on the Book of the Prophet Ezekiel, 2 vols. (Philadelphia:
Fortress Press, 1979), 1:397-98.
22. Isaiah also used the image of the
tree in a figurative sense when he spoke of the age of people in the
Millennium. He prophesied that "the child shall die an hundred years old .
. . for as the days of a tree are the days of my people." (Isa. 65:20, 2;
see also D&C 101:30, which reiterates this same idea.
23. Out of sixty-five New Testament
references from Ezekiel, forty-eight are mentioned in the book of Revelation.
LaSor, Hubbard, and Bush, Old Testament Survey: The Message, Form, and
Background of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans
Publishing Co., 1985), p. 478.
24. Lau, "Garden," p. 207.
25. Righteous men are represented by
the image of a tree in the following passages: in Zechariah 3 and 4 Joshua and
Zerubbabel are likened unto two olive trees; in Revelation 11:3-4 two
latter-day witnesses are likened unto olive trees; in D&C 77:15 these
witnesses are identified as prophets sent to the Jewish nation in the day of
restoration. Elder Bruce R. McConkie stated, "No doubt they will be
members of the Council of the Twelve or of the First Presidency of the
Church." (Doctrinal New Testament Commentary [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1973], 3:510.)
26. Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines
of Salvation, comp. Bruce R. McConkie, 3 vols. (Salt Lake City: Deseret
Book Co., 1976), 3:64.
27. George Widengren, "Early
Hebrew Myths and Their Interpretation," in Myth, Ritual and Kingship,
ed. S. H. Hooke (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1953), p. 168.
28. For further understanding of the
tree of knowledge and the tree of life, see Child's article, "Tree of
Knowledge, Tree of Life" in Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible,
4:695-97.
29. See also D&C 97:9, where this
same motif is beautifully attested in modern-day revelation.
30. The Hebrew word translated
"blessing" is berakah. The Hebrew word for a pool of water is berekah.
Both of these nouns are derived from the same Hebrew verbal root b-r-k,
meaning "to bless" or "to kneel." This usage implies a
connection between water and blessing. See Brown, Driver, and Briggs, Hebrew
and English Lexicon, pp. 138-40, for complete references to these words.
31. The word "grave" here
may also denote exile. Some view this in connection with the resurrection from
the grave. Other scholars reject this notion and consider it a later addition.
(May 1956:269.) I interpret this passage as both a literal and a spiritual
restoration of the land and people of Israel.
32. The restoration theme of the land
of Israel and her people is frequently attested in the book of Isaiah. (See,
for example, Isa. 27:3; 30:25, 28; 35:6-7; 41:18.)
33. The Hebrew verbal root meaning to
drop or drip is n-t-p. It is often used in a figurative sense to denote
prophetic discourse or divine tutelage. See, for example, Amos 7:16 and
especially Ezekiel 21:2. I suggest that Joel 3:18 implies this symbolic concept
of divine instruction.
34. The milk that flows from the
hills is not meant to be taken literally. It is probably a figurative
reflection of Exodus 3:8, which refers to Israel as a land flowing with milk
and honey. The wine dropping on the hills is probably also figurative. Both the
elements of milk and wine are used as hyperbole to reflect the fertility of the
land of Israel.
35. The Hebrew word for "former
rain" is moreh, which is also the same word for
"teacher." The verbal root of this noun is y-r-h, meaning to
throw or shoot. In the 3.m.s. hiphil form yoreh, it means to give
instruction or to give drink. (See, for example, Hosea 6:3; 10:12.) The noun torah
is also constructed from this same root. (See Brown, Driver, and Briggs, Hebrew
and English Lexicon, for a further discussion of the root y-r-h. The
word "moderately" in the KJV may be a mistranslation. This word was
translated from the Hebrew word tsedaqah, and means righteousness (Brown,
Driver, and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon, p. 842.) With the Hebrew
preposition li attached to it, as in Joel 2:23 of the Hebrew Bible, the
word could be translated "in regards to righteousness." This phrase
combined with the Hebrew word moreh is hamoreh litsedaqah, which
can be interpreted as the "teacher/early rain in regard to
righteousness." This combination again suggests that water is used as an
image of instruction or blessing.
36. The "former sea" can
also be translated as the Eastern Sea and the Dead Sea (Brown, Driver, and
Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon, p. 870.) The "hinder sea"
can also be translated Western Sea and refers to the Mediterranean Sea. (Brown,
Driver, and Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, p.
30.)
37. Joseph Smith, Teachings of the
Prophet Joseph Smith, sel. Joseph Fielding Smith (Salt Lake City: Deseret
Book Co., 1976), p. 286.
38. See Brown, Driver, and Briggs, Hebrew
and English Lexicon, p. 635-36.
39. Walter Eichrodt, Ezekiel: A
Commentary (London: SCM Press Ltd., 1966), p. 585.
40. Bruce R. McConkie, Mormon
Doctrine, 2d ed. (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1976), p. 494.
41. Bruce R. McConkie, The
Millennial Messiah (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1982), p. 328.
42. Lau, "Garden," p. 161;
however, Latter-day Saints should be aware that Joseph Smith did reveal that
the location of the Garden of Eden was in Jackson County, Missouri. See Doctrines
of Salvation, 3:74; and Journal of Discourses, 10:235; 11:336-37.
43. Lau, "Garden," p. 161.
44. Gerhard von Rad, Genesis: A
Commentary (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1972), p. 79.
45. Joseph Smith, Teachings,
p. 93.
46. Joseph Fielding Smith, Doctrines,
3:65.
47. James Kugel in his book, The
Idea of Biblical Poetry, provides some illuminating information to this
passage in Isaiah. He informs us that many times, as in Isaiah 55:1, the
midrashist says that "the word water is used where it obviously means not
water but something like Torah or Divine Learning. . . . We must therefore be careful
to consider this other meaning of water whenever it appears in scripture; even
here where actual water seems to fit the text, perhaps we ought to understand
Torah." Latter-day Saints can find more credible evidence for this passage
from Isaiah in the Book of Mormon. In 2 Nephi 9:50-51,Jacob interprets this
verse as an invitation to "come unto the Holy One of Israel." In this
way people are invited not only to come unto the Law but, more importantly, to
come unto the Lawgiver, who is Christ.
(Richard D.
Draper, ed., A Witness of Jesus Christ: The 1989 Sperry Symposium on the Old
Testament [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1990], 281.)
Zechariah
14 – His concluding prophesy, the 2nd coming
(Zechariah 14:1-11.)
1 Behold, the day of the
LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.
2 For I will gather all
nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the
houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into
captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
3 Then shall the LORD go
forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.
4 ¶ And his feet shall
stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on
the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the
east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and
half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the
south.
5 And ye shall flee to
the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto
Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the
days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all
the saints with thee.
6 And it shall come to
pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark:
7 But it shall be one day
which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it shall come to
pass, that at evening time it shall be light.
8 And it shall be in that
day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward
the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter
shall it be.
9 And the LORD shall be
king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.
10 All the land shall be
turned as a plain from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem: and it shall be
lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of
the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananeel unto
the king's winepresses.
11 And men shall
dwell in it, and there shall be no more utter destruction; but Jerusalem shall
be safely inhabited.
The Worldwide Rule of Zion's King
(Zech. 9-14)
The visions discussed above were not
the last of those seen by Zechariah. The second portion of his book records
further details concerning the coming of the Messiah. Looking to a future day,
the prophet saw judgment poured out against those who would fight against the
Lord's chosen people (Zech. 9:1-8), and the witnessed the coming of Zion's king
(Zech. 9:9-17). Before that day, however, he saw that Israel must be gathered.
Using the symbols of shepherding, he envisioned the summons of scattered Israel
(Zech. 10:1-12) and the wail of the shepherds, Israel's leaders, as they
realize that they were greatly responsible for her loss (Zech. 11:1-3). Finally
would come the purification of Jerusalem (Zech. 12:1-14), the cleansing of her
lands of false prophecy (Zech. 13:1-6), and the separation of the wicked from
the righteous (Zech. 13:7-9). Zechariah concluded his prophecy with the
glorious vision of the coming of the Lord, who will rout his foes and dwell in
glory within the holy city (Zech. 14:1-21). "In that day," he wrote,
even the bells on the horses and the mundane pots and pans of Jerusalem would
be consecrated to the Lord's service (Zech. 14:20-21). And all of God's
children will be invited to the millennial feast (Zech. 14:16, 21).
Some Specific Prophecies of the Coming Messiah
In the breadth of his vision, the prophet
alluded to events associated with both the first and the second comings of the
Messiah. It seems well to conclude this discussion with specific mention of two
of the former and one of the latter.
In chapter 9 Zechariah taught of the
coming of the great king, not in glory with armies, but meek and humble, riding
on a donkey colt, a symbol of royalty but expressing the Lord's essential
peaceableness. fn This prophecy clearly describes the first coming of the Lord
as a man of peace and blessing and foreshadows his triumphal entry into
Jerusalem, which many of his followers saw as a fulfillment of this prophecy
(see Matt. 21:4-5; John 12:14-16). fn But the fulfillment was not complete with
that event alone, because the larger context of the passage is millennial (see
Zech. 9:10). Like many messianic prophecies in the Old Testament, this one
foresees both Christ's first and second comings.
In chapter 11 Zechariah presented the
allegory of the good shepherd who tries to save the sheep but because of opposition
cannot do it. Finally, he quits in anger, breaks his two staves, and demands
his wages. He is paid the sum of thirty pieces of silver. These he throws down
before the potter inside the Lord's house, in testimony before Jehovah of his
wrongs and rejection. This allegory reflects the rejection of the true shepherd
who was sold for thirty pieces of silver and delivered over to false brethren.
This betrayer's ransom later bought a potter's field (Matt. 27:7-10).
Looking to the Second Coming, the
prophet described the participation of the great King in a battle for the holy
city (Zech. 12:1-4; 14:1-5). As nations mount against the covenant people, the
Lord himself will intervene. He shall stand upon the Mount of Olives, which
shall be split in two. His people shall rush to him in the newly formed valley
and there learn his true identity. Amid tears of sorrow and rejoicing, they
will acknowledge him as their Lord and King (cf. D&C 45:48-53; 133:20, 35).
At that time he will subdue all enemies, and the earth shall rest under his
divine power. Little wonder Zechariah rejoiced in the testimony of his King and
worked so diligently to bring his people to him.
Richard D. Draper is assistant
professor of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University.
(Kent P. Jackson,
ed., Studies in Scripture, Vol. 4: 1 Kings to Malachi [Salt Lake City:
Deseret Book Co., 1993], 357.)
All nations
are against Jerusalem to battle. The
Book of Mormon speaks of the final war as a battle between good and evil.
Christ
stands on the Mt. of Olives, it is symbolic of cutting the covenant, east and
west. When Christ comes it will be a
time period of light and truth.
Feast of
Tabernacles was like our Christmas season, light and water were critical to the
ceremonies. The candelabras were placed
on the 4 corners of the temple, the light was very bright, like a reenactment
of Christ coming in light and glory.
This assembly was represented as the
first proper observance of the festival since Joshua (Nehemiah 8:17). Actually,
the first company of Jews returning from Babylon had celebrated Sukkot by
building an altar and making burnt offerings (Ezra 3:1-6). But enemies hindered
the rebuilding of the Temple. About 520 b.c., encouraged by the prophecies of
Haggai and Zechariah, the Jews resumed work on the Temple (Ezra 4:24-5:1). One
of Haggai's prophecies was given on the first day of Sukkot (Haggai 2:1-9),
evidently in memory of Solomon's Temple. Much of the prophecy of Zechariah
deals with the future restoration of the monarchy at the time of Sukkot. These
are, in effect, messianic prophecies, some of which were fulfilled by Jesus at
his first coming, while others will be fulfilled when he returns to Jerusalem.
For example, coming seated on an ass (9:9), the blood of the covenant (9:11),
the blowing of the trumpet (9:14), and the new wine (9:15-16). In Zechariah
9:16, we read that "in that day" the Lord shall save. There is
mention of clouds and of rains (10:1) and a threat to smite horses (9:10; 12:4;
14:15), reminiscent of the Paragraph of the King. There is also mention of the
tents of Judah (12:7; 14:15). Each family is apart (12:12-14). A new fountain,
to accompany the rains, is to come forth from the Temple (13:1; 14:8). A
covenant will be made with the Lord's people (13:9), and Jerusalem will then be
cut in half by the enemy (14:2; the two bodies of people at Sukkot?—cf. Mosiah
25:1-4). But the Lord will defeat Israel's enemies (14:3). At the critical
moment, he will appear to reign on earth as King (14:9, 16-17; cf. the crown in
9:16). The Feast of Tabernacles will be celebrated (14:16, 18-19), along with
sacrifices (14:20-21). Those who do not come to celebrate the feast and make
covenant with God will not receive the promised rains (14:17). Jesus'
hesitation to attend the Sukkot festival in Jerusalem (John 7:1-13) was perhaps
because the time for his coming in glory was not yet (John 7:6). His first
coming in triumph was just before Passover (on what has come to be known as
"Palm Sunday"), and his second will be at Sukkot. When, at length, he
did attend the Sukkot festival, Jesus spoke of the "living water"
(John 7:37-38), probably an allusion to the water poured on the altar during
the festival (cf. Zechariah 13:1; Zech.14:8; Ezekiel 47:1-12). There are other
allusions to Sukkot in statements made by Jesus at that time.
(John M.
Lundquist and Stephen D. Ricks, eds., By Study and Also by Faith: Essays in
Honor of Hugh W. Nibley on the Occasion of His Eightieth Birthday, 27 March
1990, 2 vols. [Salt Lake City and Provo: Deseret Book Co., Foundation for
Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1990], 2: .)
John 7-9 –
The Feast of Tabernacles. Christ
controls the living water which is the gift of the Holy Ghost which no one has
received yet (Acts 2). We receive the
living water by coming to Christ.
(John 7:38-39.)
38 He that believeth on
me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water.
39 (But this spake he of
the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Ghost
was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)
Christ said
he is the light of the world, they don’t have to wait for the Millennium for
this gift, they can have it now by the gift of the Holy Ghost.
(John 8:12.)
12
¶ Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he
that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
John 7-9 in Light
of the Feast of Tabernacles
Bruce Satterfield
Department of Religious Education,
Brigham Young University - Idaho
[Publised in The
Testimony of John the Beloved: the 1998 Sperry Symposium on the New Testament.
Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1998, pp. 249-265)
One of several themes woven
through the gospel of John is that Christ is the fulfilment of ancient Israel's
sacred times (e.g., the Sabbath, the feasts of Passover and Tabernacles, etc).
For John, these sacred times, which were an important part of New Testament
Judaism, were types and shadows of Christ and his role as savior and redeemer
of the world. This theme is a central aspect of John 7-9. In these chapters,
John apprizes his reader of the Savior's activities during the Feast of
Tabernacles, or Sukkoth, as it is known in Hebrew.
The Feast of Tabernacles was
one of the three feasts commanded by the Lord that all males should annually
attend (Ex. 23:17; 34:23) and what Josephus calls the "most holy and most
eminent" of the three feasts of the Hebrews.(1)
Understanding how Christ was the fulfilment of this most important feast is
intimately connected with the feast itself. However, as is often the case in
scripture, John assumes the reader is already aware of the activities
associated with the Feast of Tabernacles and therefore no details of the feast
are given. John only tells of the movements and sayings of Christ in connection
with the feast. But as Raymond Brown has said, in order to understand what the
Savior said during John 7-9 "one must have an intimate knowledge of the
celebration of the Tabernacles."(2)
The focus of the following
pages will be to provide that "intimate knowledge" of the Feast of
Tabernacles that Brown spoke of in order to reveal how that sacred time was
meant to be a type and shadow of the Savior. To arrive at this, the feast will
be examined through both Biblical and Rabbinical sources. It will then be
possible to examine John 7-9 in light of the Feast of Tabernacles background
noting the impact of Jesus' sayings upon his listeners.
The Feast of Tabernacles
background has already been the subject of scholarly discussion (mainly
non-LDS). However, it is felt that many in the LDS community are not familiar
with or do not have access to this essential background. Therefore, it seems
appropriate that this information be made available to them.
Sources
There are two major sources
available that aid our understanding of how the Feast of Tabernacles was
practiced during the second temple period: (1) Biblical, (2) Rabbinical or
Jewish writings. Biblical legislation regarding the feast are found in the five
books of Moses (Ex. 23:14-17; 34:22,23; Leviticus 23:33-44; Numbers 29:12-40;
Deuteronomy 16:13-17), and Nehemiah (8:13-18). Added to the Biblical
legislation are various descriptions of the Feast of Tabernacles found in
Rabbinical writings. These are important to consider because by the time of
Christ there were several additional developments that had become part of the
activities associated with the feast. Familiarity with these developments is
essential in understanding John 7-9. Our only source for these additional
activities are found in the Rabbinical writings. Chief among these writings is
the legislation found in the Mishnah and Talmud.(3)
Though these regulations were codified years after the destruction of the
second temple and present an idealized picture of the customs associated with
the Feast of Tabernacles, much of what the Rabbis have said still seems to be
applicable.
Feast of Tabernacles, One
of Three Temple Feasts
After the children of Israel
were freed from Egyptian bondage and led by Moses to Mt. Sinai, the Lord had
Moses prepare Israel to enter into a covenant with him in order to make of them
"a peculiar treasure unto [the Lord] above all people" (see Exodus
19). The initial covenant Israel entered into included this command:
"Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year . . . Three times
in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD" (Exodus
23:14,17). The three feasts became known as the Feast of Passover, the Feast of
Weeks (often called the feast of Pentecost), and the Feast of Tabernacles.
The central activities of
the feasts were located in the Temple with priests in charge. This is apparent
from the injunction that all "males shall appear before the Lord
GOD." Though no word for temple or sanctuary is used in this command, the phrase
"before the Lord" has reference to a temple or sanctuary. Regarding
this, Menahem Haran states: "In general, any cultic activity to which the
biblical text applies the formula 'before the Lord' can be considered an
indication of the existence of a temple at the site, since this expression
stems from the basic conception of the temple as a divine dwelling place and
actually belongs to the temple's technical terminology."(4)
That these feasts were to be held at a temple can be seen in the name given to
the first sanctuary of the Israelites. What is called in the King James
Version, "the Tabernacle," is in Hebrew named ohel mo'ed,
meaning "tent of meeting" or "tent of feasts." Of this,
Roland de Vaux wrote:
Against [the] background of
daily, weekly and monthly worship, the great annual feasts stood out in relief.
The general word for a 'feast' is mo'ed: the term means a fixed place or
a fixed time--a rendezvous--and the desert Tent was called 'ohel mo'ed
or 'The Tent of Meeting'. Thus the word came to mean a meeting or an assembly,
and finally an assembly or meeting to celebrate a feast.(5)
Though the Lord commanded
that all males should come to the temple during these three feasts, it appears
that at least during the second temple period, often the whole family
participated in the worship associated with the feasts (see Luke 2:41-50).
In light of how modern
temples are used, it seems clear that these feasts were intended to be teaching
experiences in which Israel would be reminded of past events and taught of
future events. Further, this would be a time to renew covenants made with God.
The Feast of Passover reminded Israel of their exodus from Egyptian bondage and
the triumph of God over idolatry (see Exodus 12:12). It also was to remind them
of the future coming of the Messiah who would free them from spiritual bondage.
The Feast of Weeks or Pentecost reminded Israel of the law God gave to Israel
at Mt. Sinai in the third month following their exodus from Egypt.(6)
It also foreshadowed the giving of the higher law at a future time.(7)
The Feast of Tabernacles recalled Israel's wandering in the wilderness for
forty years and their eventual arrival into the promised land, Israel's
permanent home. It also anticipated the future coming of the Messiah.
Feast of Tabernacle Customs
Length of the Feast
From Leviticus (23:33-44),
we learn that the feast was to be held for seven days. The first day was to be
a "holy convocation"; the Hebrew is mikra kodesh which means a
holy summons. "It stresses the summons to an assembly where Israel, in a
state of special holiness, is called to fulfil its sacred functions. Holy
convocations were central aspects of each of the three great Feasts and the Day
of Atonement. They were days of rest, like the sabbath, and in later times were
known as sabbaths."(8)
An additional "holy convocation" was to be called after the seven
days were complete making the feast a total of eight days.(9)
The eighth day was referred to as the "great day of the feast" (John
7:37).
Dwelling in Booths
We are also told in
Leviticus that the Israelites were to build booths or small huts outside of
their houses. During the seven days of the feast they were to live in the
booths so that their "generations may know that I made the children of
Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt"
(Lev. 23:43). It is from these booths (the Hebrew is Sukkoth) that the
Feast of Tabernacles receives its name. These booths were to remind Israel that
their forefathers lived in tents during the wilderness journey and did so until
they came into the promised land where they dwelt in permanent houses. Living
in booths may have also reminded Israel that mortality is not the final and
permanent resting place for mankind. Just as Israel was brought to a promised
land for a permanent home, God's children will be brought into their final
resting place only during the millennial reign of the Messiah.
The booths were generally of
modest size, at least three walls and roof, and had to be outside. They could
be placed in a courtyard or on the roof of a house.(10)
In Nehemiah 8:16, we are told that when the Feast of Tabernacles was
reinstituted after the return of the Jews from Babylonian exile, the Jews set
up their booths in a number of different places: "every one upon the roof
of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and
in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim."
Rabbinical writings tell us that those traveling some distances were exempt
from living in booths if they so desired (see Talmud Sukkah 26a).
Water Drawing Ceremony
A statement made by Rabbi
Joshua ben Hanania in the Talmud regarding the Feast of Tabernacles states:
"The first hour was
occupied with the daily morning sacrifice; from there we proceeded to prayers;
from there we proceeded to the additional sacrifice, then the prayers to the
additional sacrifice, then to the House of Study, then the eating and drinking,
then the afternoon prayer, then the daily evening sacrifice, and after that the
Rejoicing at the place of the Water-Drawing all night." (Talmud Sukkah
53a.)
In this description, the
order of events of an average day during the Feast of Tabernacles is revealed,
albeit incomplete, as will now be shown.
The day began with the
normal daily morning burnt offering. However, during the Feast of Tabernacles a
rite was added to the daily burnt offering called the water-drawing ceremony.
During the preparation of the burnt offering,(11)
a procession of priests with the accompaniment of flute playing and singing
wended their way from the temple down to the Pool of Siloam where a priest
filled a golden flask with water while a choir repeated Isa. 12:3: "with
joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation" (see Mishnah Sukkah
4:9; 5:1; Talmud Sukkah 48b). The Pool of Siloam was a collecting pool for the
spring Gihon, the major water supply for Jerusalem. The Jews referred to water
from springs or streams fit for drinking as "living water." Living
water was considered the most superior form of water for ritual purification.(12)
The priests returned to the
temple via the Water Gate, a gate on the south side of the wall immediately
surrounding the temple within the court of Gentiles.(13)
Arriving at the Water Gate a blast was made on a shofar, the Hebrew word
for ram's horn. The shofar was a signaling instrument used to announce
major events such as the beginning of the Sabbath, new moons, the death of a
notable, or warned of approaching danger. In this case, the shofar
announced the beginning of the Feast of Tabernacles which began with the
water-drawing ceremony.
When the procession of
priests and Levites returned from the pool of Siloam, they were met by pilgrims
who had come to the Temple Mount. Each pilgrim brought with them a lulab,
which consisted of a tree branch in one hand and a citron in the other (Mishnah
3:1-7). The lulab was to be waved while the morning sacrifice was being offered
with the special water libation. The waving of the lulab was a Biblical
injunction: "And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly
trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of
the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days"
(Leviticus 23:40).
Upon the blasting of the shofar,
the group moved towards the altar of sacrifice located in the Court of the
Priests which surrounded the temple. The priest with the golden flask filled
with water ascended the altar and prepared to pour the libation on the morning
burnt offering. While doing this, the procession that had followed the priest
would circle the altar.
It appears that pilgrims
joined in with the priests who were circling the altar.(14)
However, this is a matter of debate. George MacRae seems to suggest that this
procession was of priests alone.(16)
But an incident mentioned in the Mishnah may suggest otherwise. Mishnah Sukkah
4:9 tells us that after the water was poured into the Silver Bowl, it was said
to the officiating priest: "Raise thy hand!" The reason for saying
this was that "on one occasion [a Sadducean priest] poured over his
feet" the water (for the Sadducees did not hold to this tradition). This
so outraged the pilgrims that "all the people pelted him with their
citrons." This suggests that if the pilgrims were not in the procession
itself they were at least close enough for them to be able to pelt the priest.
The only logical places would be the court of the priests itself or perhaps in
the court of the Israelites though the latter seems less likely due to its
size.(17)
Whether walking around the
altar or observing the procession, the following was said by the pilgrims while
waving(18)
their lulabs: "We beseech Thee, O Eternal, save us, we pray"
(Mishnah Sukkah 3:9; see also 4:5). The priest who had charge of pouring the
water then offered the water libation with a wine libation into two silver
bowls on the south-west corner of the altar.
The water-drawing ceremony
proceeded in this manner every day of the feast except on the seventh day when
the priests (and pilgrims?) circled the altar seven times instead of just once
(Mishnah Sukkah 4:5). The circumambulation of the altar seven times ended the
water-drawing ritual. It was not performed on the eighth day (Mishnah Sukkah
4:1, 5),(19)
though it appears that a prayer for rain was given on the eighth day (Talmud
Taanith 2a-3a).
The Lighting Ceremony
According to the chronicle
outlined by Rabbi Joshua ben Hanania quoted earlier, following the
water-drawing ceremony there was an "additional sacrifice." According
to Numbers 29:12-40, in addition to the daily morning and evening burnt
offering required by the law of Moses,(20)
there were additional sacrifices to be made during the Feast of Tabernacles. On
the first day of the feast there was to be offered 13 young bullocks, 2 rams,
14 lambs of the first year, and one kid for a sin offering. On the second day
of the feast, there was to be offered the same offerings except instead of 13
young bullocks there was only to be offered 12. On the third day the offerings
were again the same with the exception of the bullocks. Only 11 were offered.
This declination of bullocks continued until the seventh day when 7 bullocks were
offered (the other sacrifices remaining the same). Then a change occurred on
the eighth day. One bullock was offered with one ram, seven lambs and one kid
for a sin offering. The account concludes with this injunction: "These
things ye shall do unto the Lord in your set feast, beside your vows, and your
freewill offerings, for your burnt offerings, and for your meat offerings, and
for your drink offerings and for your peace offerings."
Upon the conclusion of the
"additional sacrifice," the pilgrims would have opportunity to
present their individual offerings, such as expressing personal devotion to God
(through the burnt offering) or those associated with the cleansing of severe
impurities (through the sin offering). This was a time of great rejoicing and
singing including the singing of the complete Hallel or Psalms 113-118 (Mishnah
Sukkah 4:8).(21)
When the personal offerings were completed, the afternoon burnt offering was
performed.(22)
Normally, upon the
conclusion of the afternoon burnt offering, probably around sunset, the gates
of the temple would be closed.(23)
However on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles the gates were left opened
so that all might participate in the final rite of the day, the lighting
ceremony. This occasion proved to be a most joyous and festive observance. From
the Mishnah (Sukkah 5:2-3) we are told that "At the close of the first
Holyday" the priests would descend from the Court of the Israelites to the
Court of Women.(24)
In the court four huge candelabra were placed, each "with four golden
bowls at their tops and four ladders to each one." Each candelabra were
fifty cubits in height. Wicks made "from the worn-out drawers and girdles
of the priests" were placed in each bowl and lit. It is said that
"there was no courtyard in Jerusalem that was not lit up with the
light" which came from these candelabras.
The rest of the night was
spent in joyous activities in the Court of Women. Mishnah Sukkah 5:4 says:
Pious men and men of good
deeds used to dance before them (the candelabra) with burning torches in their
hands and sang before them songs and praises. And the Levites on harps, and on
lyres, and with cymbals, and with trumpets and with other instruments of music
without number upon the fifteen steps leading down from the court of the
Israelites to the Women's Court, corresponding to the Fifteen Songs of Ascent
in the Psalms [Psalms 120-134]; upon them the Levites used to stand with
musical instruments and sing hymns.
The festivities surrounding
the illumination rite concluded the festival day. However, it is not clear
whether or not the illumination rite was done every night, or whether the
lights simply remained lit during the whole feast.
The Messianic Nature of
the Feast
Both the water drawing
ceremony and the lighting of the candelabra were additional aspects of the
feast not found in Biblical legislation.(25)
Nevertheless, they had apparently become part of the ceremonies of the feast to
portray the future messianic age. We learn this from the fact that as part of
the ceremonies associated with the Feast of Tabernacles, Zechariah 14, a
messianic chapter, was read to all the people. Talmud Megillah 31a says:
"On the first day of Tabernacles we read the section of the festivals in
Leviticus, and for haftarah [a section from the prophetic books recited
after the reading from the Pentateuch on Sabbaths and Holy-days], Behold a
day cometh for the Lord (Zech.14)."
What is the connection
between Zechariah 14 and the Feast of Tabernacles? Chapter fourteen describes
the time when "the day of the Lord cometh." At a time when "all
nations" have gathered against Jerusalem, the Lord will return and save
his people by standing upon the Mount of Olives which shall "cleave in the
midst thereof toward the east and the toward the west" providing a way to
escape through the valley created. Having saved his people, the Lord insists
that "every one that is left of all the nations which came against
Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of
hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles" (vs. 16). Failure to keep this
command would result in the rains failing (see vs.s 17-19). This is the first
Biblical association of rain with the festival. But as George MacRae has said,
"the fact that it was celebrated at the end of the harvest and immediately
before the autumnal rainy season, we can well imagine that the petition for
rain is as old as the feast itself."(26)
With the coming of the Lord,
the messianic age is inaugurated. Zechariah points out two important aspects
associated with the messianic age. The first is perpetual light. In Zechariah
14:6-7, describing the day when the Lord comes, it says: "And it shall
come to pass in that day, that the light shall not be clear, nor dark: but it
shall be one day which shall be known to the LORD, not day, nor night: but it
shall come to pass, that at evening time it shall be light." The second
characteristic of the messianic age is akin to rain, that of water. Zechariah
says: "And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from
Jerusalem" (Zech. 14:8).(27)
It seems safe to assume that by the reading of Zechariah 14 during the feast
the application of these messianic features to the Feast of Tabernacles was
commonplace among the people.
From the foregoing, it is
possible to see that the two features of the messianic age described by
Zechariah in chapter 14 were made an important part of the Feast of Tabernacles
ceremonies. The water-drawing ceremony is the compliment of the living water
flowing from Jerusalem in 14:8. The lighting of the huge candelabra is the
symbolic counterpart of the continuous day found in 14:6-7.
Zechariah 14 gives us
further insight into the meaning of the lighting ceremony. When the Messiah
comes, inaugurating the messianic age, he will be the light of all the world,
not just the Jews. This is perhaps why four candelabra were used in the
lighting ceremony. Four is often a symbolic number representing geographical
completeness. This is because their are four corners of the world. Thus, the
lighting of the four candelabra would have symbolized that light would be given
to all the world through the coming Messiah. This would have been emphasized
further by the fact that each candelabra had four bowls.(28)
JESUS AND THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES
Jesus and the Living
Waters
It is in this setting that we
find Jesus in John 7-9. We are told in John 7:14 that Jesus arrived midway
through the feast.(29)
His first few days at the temple were filled with confrontations concerning the
authority of his teachings (John 7: 15-36). Then on "the last day, that
great day of the feast," Jesus "stood" and issued this
challenge: "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that
believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers
of living water" (John 7:37-38). Then John added, "But this spake he
of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive" (John 7:39).
That is, the Holy Ghost which is given to those who come unto Christ brings life
to their souls.
The impact of this challenge
is lost unless one understands the water-drawing ceremony of the Feast of
Tabernacles as described in these pages. Having daily drawn water from the Pool
of Siloam, then pouring it on the morning offering while shouting, "Save
us Lord," the absence of the water-drawing ceremony on the eighth day
would have been profound. Hence, on the day when living water was not drawn
from the spring, and only a prayer for rain was offered--a day that perhaps symbolized
Israel's dependence upon God for water that sustains life--the Savior declared
that if any thirst, they should come to him for living waters. However,
the water he offered was not for physical but spiritual survival. His water was
the cleansing and sustaining influence of the Holy Ghost necessary for the
salvation of the souls of mankind. Interestingly enough, the Jerusalem Talmud(30)
states that the Jews understood the water drawing ceremony to be symbolic of
the Holy Ghost: "Why is the name of it called, The drawing out of water?
Because of the pouring out of the Holy Spirit, according to what is said: 'With
joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation.'"(31)
Thus the prayers of the priests and pilgrims attending the Feast of Tabernacles
had been answered . . .but not in the way they had expected!(32)
Jesus is the Light of the
World
On the day following the
Savior's challenge to come to him for living water, the Savior was once again
at the temple teaching. While in the Court of Women,(33)
the Savior declared to the multitude, "I am the light of the world: he
that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of
life" (John 8:12). Could there be any doubt in the minds of his listeners
as to what he was claiming? In the very place where the huge candelabras were
lit giving light to "every courtyard in Jerusalem," symbolizing the
continuous light given to all the world during the messianic age, Jesus
proclaimed that he was that light.(34)
Not only the light of Jerusalem, but of all the world. Even Jewish tradition
held that God gives man light.(35)
It is obvious that he was claiming to be the Messiah in their own hearing.
To give credence to His
claim, the Savior demonstrated his power to give light to the world through a
miracle that is recorded only by John. In John 9:1-7, the story of a man born
blind follows on the heals of the Feast of the Tabernacles. The story begins
when Jesus "saw a man which was blind from his birth." When asked
why, the Savior responded "that the works of God should be made manifest
in him." Then he said, "I must work the works of him that sent me,
while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work. As long as I am in the
world, I am the light of the world." Upon that "he spat on the ground,
and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed the eyes of the blind man with
the clay, and said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam." The man did
exactly what he was told. After he had washed his eyes in the same pool that
the priest had drawn water as part of the water drawing ceremony of the Feast
of Tabernacles, he came out seeing.
Two major symbols of the
Feast of Tabernacles, water and light, were present in the miracle. By spiting
onto the ground, Jesus demonstrated that indeed the living waters or the Spirit
of the Holy Ghost which can give man light does indeed come from Him, for
"out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38).
This is further emphasized by the washing of the waters in the pool of Siloam
which symbolized the Holy Ghost.
Conclusion
It is undeniable that Jesus'
statements during the Feast of Tabernacles are highlighted by the feast itself.
The Savior chose a sacred time of the year when the Jews looked forward with
great rejoicing through ritual action to the coming of the Messiah. Through the
instrumentality of the feast, Jesus declared that he was the promised Messiah;
that he was the literal fulfillment of everything promised in the Feast of
Tabernacles. It is clear from the hostile reactions of the Jews that they saw
it this way, supposing that by so doing he was speaking blasphemy (John
7:30,32,44-53; 8:59).
References
1. The Antiquities of the
Jews, 8.4.1. See also George W. MacRae, "The Meaning and Evolution of
the Feast of Tabernacles," The Catholic Biblical Quarterly 22, no.3
(1960): 251.
2. Raymond E. Brown, The
Gospel According to John. Anchor Bible Series Vol. 29 (Garden City, NY:
Doubleday, 1983), 326.
3. During the second temple
period, many Jews (including the Pharisees) followed an oral interpretation of
the written law of Moses found in Exodus through Deuteronomy. This is often
referred to as the "oral law." In the New Testament, the oral law is
called the tradition of the elders" (Matthew 15:2; Mark 7:3,5). In the second
century A. D., the oral tradition was reduced to writing and systematically
organized by Rabbi Judah the Prince. It is called the Mishnah. The Mishnah is
grouped into six orders, which in turn are divided into sixty-three treatises
called tractates.
Over time, the Rabbis held
many debates concerning the Mishnah. The records and minutes of these debates
were added to the Mishnah. This compilation has become known as the Talmud.
There were two different groups of Rabbis that produced a Talmud: a group in
Babylon and a group in Jerusalem. The Babylonian Talmud is the most commonly
used of the two Talmuds. It has been translated in several languages. The
Jerusalem Talmud is not often used and is only found in Hebrew. (For a complete
discussion of the history of the Mishnah and Talmud, see Isaac Unterman, The
Talmud: An Analytical Guide to its History and Teachings, [New York: Bloch,
1952].)
In this paper, all
references to the Talmud refer to the Babylonian Talmud unless otherwise
stated. Further, in this paper, I will follow MacRae's thinking who states:
"We shall not be concerned with the dating of the Mishnah; there is no
doubt that at least some of the precepts in it go back long before the final
crystallization of the written form. It would be idle also to be deterred by
the fact that many of the legal prescriptions are meaningless in view of the
destruction of the Temple. As far as the feast is concerned, the Mishnah
presents an idealized picture of the Temple ritual but also the necessary
information for the proper observance of them elsewhere" ("The
Meaning and Evolution of the Feast of Tabernacles," 270-271).
4. Menahem Haran, Temples
and Temple Service in Ancient Israel (Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns.
1985; Originally published: Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1978), 26.
5. Roland de Vaux, Ancient
Israel: Vol. 2 Religious Institutions (New York: McGraw-Hill,1965), 470.
6. Talmud Pesahim 68b states
that the Feast of Weeks commemorated "the day on which the Torah was
given." See also Talmud Meglillah 31a and The Book of Jubilees 1:1;
6:17-19. This is not only the view of ancient Judaism, but modern Jewry as
well. Writing of this feast, Rabbi Hayim Halevy Donin states: "Shavuot
[Heb. for feast of Weeks] commemorates the awesome event experienced by the
children of Israel seven weeks after their exodus from Egypt when they camped
at the foot of Mt. Sinai somewhere in the Sinai Peninsula. This event was the
Revelation, when God's will was revealed to Israel. It marked the declaration
of the Ten Commandments" (Hayim Halvey Donin, To be a Jew [New
York: Basic Books, 1972], 239).
7. It should be remembered
that as a result of rebellion, the law Israel ultimately received at Mt. Sinai
was the law of Moses, which was only preparatory for the higher law that would
be given later. The law of Moses functioned through the authority of the lesser
or Aaronic Priesthood. The higher law promised would function under the
authority of the higher or Melchizedek Priesthood. It would include the
ordinances associated with that priesthood, the first of which is the laying on
of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. The reception of the gift of the Holy
Ghost was given on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 1-2), an appropriate time to
demonstrate that the higher law had been given by God to Israel.
8. J. C. Rylaarsdam,
"Convocation, Holy," in Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible,
4 Vols. (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1962), 1:678-679.
9. In the Talmud the eighth
day is actually considered a separate festival (see Sukkah 48a).
10. See Talmud Shabbath 154b
and Louis Ginzberg, The Legends of the Jews 7 Vols. (Philadephia: The
Jewish Publication Society of America, 1913), 4:405. Roofs were generally flat
with a staircase ascending from the outside and were used for a variety of
reasons.
11. The Mishnah describes
the rite of the burnt offering as being performed in four parts with each part
being determined by lot. The first lot was the clearing of the ashes from the
Altar (Yoma 2:2; Tamid 1:4). The ashes were cleared from the Altar "at
cockcrow or close to it, either before or after it" but during "the
Festivals at the first watch" for "before cockcrow time drew near the
Forecourt was already filled with Israelites" (Yoma 1:8). Josephus tells
us that the temple gates which were normally kept closed until morning were
opened at midnight during festivals (The Antiquities of the Jews,
18.2.2). The second lot determined "who should slaughter, who should toss
blood, (and) who should remove the ashes from the Inner Altar, (and) who should
clear away the ashes from the Candlestick, (and) who should take up the limbs
[of the burnt offering] to the Altar-slope" (Yoma 2:3; see also Tamid
3:1). The animal could not be slaughtered before dawn, therefore, the Captain
of the Temple (sagan ha kohanim) said to one, "Go forth and see if
the time has arrived for slaughtering." The priest went to a high point of
the temple to see if the light of morning lit up the east "as far as
Hebron." If so the animal could be slaughtered (Yoma 3:1; see also Tamid
3:2-7). The third lot determined who would offer the incense upon the
Inner-Altar (Yoma 2:4; Tamid 5:2-6:3). The fourth lot determined which priests
would offer the burnt offering on the Altar (Yoma 2:5; Tamid 4:3). For detailed
descriptions concerning the offering of the morning and evening burnt offering
(the Tamid) see Shmuel Safrai, Ritual in "Temple," Encyclopedia
Judaica (Jerusalem: Keter, 1971): Vol 15:974-977; Shmuel Safrai, Daily
whole-offerings in "The Temple," in The Jewish People in the First
Century, 2 Vols. (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1987), 2:887-890; Aaron Rothkoff,
Second Temple Period in "Sacrifice," Encyclopedia Judaica
(Jerusalem: Keter, 1971): Vol 14: 607-609; and Emil Schurer, A History of
the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ. A new version, revised and
edited by Geza Vermes, Ferges Millar, and Matthew Black. 2 Vols. (Edinburg:
T&T Clark, 1973), 2: 299-308.
12. According to Mishnah
Mikvaoth 1:1: "There are six grades among ritual baths, in ascending order
of superiority." These are (1) water in cisterns, (2) water of rain
drippings, (3) mikvehs, (4) wells, (5) salty water or hot water from a spring,
and (6) living water (Mikvaoth 1:1-8). Only "living water" could be
used in the purification of lepers (Lev. 14:5) and the defilement caused by
dead corpses (Num. 19:17).
13. The main sources for a
description of the temple come from the Mishnah and Josephus. But there is
discrepancy in the different accounts. According to Middoth 1:4-5 and Josephus Antiquities
of the Jews 15.11.5, there are seven gates into the Court of the Priests
including the Nicanor gate (which does not actually open into the Court of
Priests but into the Court of the Israelites). In Middoth 2:6, Shekalim 6:3 and
Josephus' The Wars of the Jews 5.5.2, eight gates are mentioned not
including the Nicanor gate. Most scholars accept the smaller number placing the
Water Gate as the third gate from the west on the southern side of the Court of
the Priests. This would place it close to the laver (see Shmuel Safrai and
Michael Avi-Yona, "Temple," Encyclopaedia Judaica,
15:962-967).
14. It is Safrai's belief
that the people were involved in the procession itself. Says he:
"The people
participated in all the rites of the Feast of Tabernacles and, with the
exception of the water-libation which was performed by a priest or the high
priest, their role in Temple rites and customs was equal to that of the
priests. They surrounded the altar with palm-branches and with willow, which
is, of course, the essence of the water-libation ceremonies . . . All the people
participated in the procession around the altar, (from which they were barred
during the rest of the year) with the palm-branch.(15)
15. Safrai,
"Temple," in The Jewish People of the First Century,
2:894-895." "" -
16. George W. McCrae,
"The Meaning and Evolution of the Feast of Tabernacles," 272.
17. This is the view of J.
C. Rylaarsdam who describes this scene in this manner: "The water was
brought up in solemn fashion with the blowing of the shofar at the city gate.
The pilgrims, singing the Hallel and carrying their lulabs, witnessed the
circumambulation of the altar by the priestly procession and waving their
lulabs, joined in the great cry: 'Save us, we beseech thee, O LORD'"
("Booths, Feast of," in Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible,
4 Vols. [Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon, 1962], 1:456).
18. Mishnah Sukkah 3:9 says:
"And where do they wave?--At the beginning and end of Give thanks unto
the Eternal and at We beseech Thee, O Eternal, save us, we pray;
this is the view of the School of Hillel. The School of Shammai says, Also at We
beseech Thee, O Eternal, send us prosperity, we pray."
19. In the Talmud, there is
a debate about how often the water-drawing rite was done as well as when it was
performed last in the feast (see Taanith 2a-3a). However, the Mishnah, which
consists of earlier Rabbinical writings, suggests that the last day the
water-drawing ritual was performed was the seventh day (Sukkah 4:1; but see Rabbi
Judah's comments in Sukkah 4:9). This agrees with Biblical legislation that
requires the waving of the lulab, a ritual performed during the pouring
of the water on the altar, for seven days (see Leviticus 23:40).
20. See Exodus 29:38-42 and
Numbers 28:2-4.
21. See Safrai, Ritual in
"Temple," Encylopedia Judaica, 982.
22. Mishnah Pesachim 5:1
says: "The daily burnt-offering was slaughtered at the eighth hour and a
half and offered up at the ninth hour and a half." However, it is not
clear whether the time on this was strictly held during the Feast of
Tabernacles.
23. See Safrai, Ritual in
"Temple," in Encylopedia Judaica, 15:976.
24. From Talmudic sources it
appears that "the place of the Water-Drawing" is in the Court of the
Women. Talmud Sukkah 53a tells of the rejoicing that took place after the
lighting of the huge candelabra's which Mishnah Sukkah 5:2 says took place in
the Court of Women. Yet Talmud Sukkah 53a speaks of this place as "the
place of Water-Drawing." In a note on Mishnah Sukkah 5:1, Philip Backman
suggests the reason for this name was because there was a "well, in the
Women's Forecourt, from which the water was drawn for libation on Sukkoth"
(Backman, Mishnayoth, 2:341). However, Raymond Brown says of this place:
"In connection with the water ceremonies at the feast of Tabernacles, the
Jerusalem Talmud (Sukkah 55a) says that the part of the temple precincts
traversed during the procession with the water was called the 'Place of
Drawing,' because from there 'they drew the holy spirit' (also Midrash Rabbah
lxx 8 on Gen xxix 1)" (Brown, The Gospel According to John. The
Anchor Bible, v. 29, 329).
25. The Rabbi's believed
that these traditions were given at Mt. Sinai but only passed down orally. See
Lightfoot, A Commentary on the New Testament from the Talmud and Hebraica,
3:322.
26. MacRae, "The
Meaning and Evolution of the Feast of Tabernacles," 269. The association
of the Feast of Tabernacles with rain is well known from Mishnaic times. The
tractate Ta'anith, which deals with special fasts that are called for due to
continued drought, begins with the statement: "From what time should they
begin to mention the Power of Rain? R. Eliezer says, From the first
Holyday day of the Festival of Tabernacles; R. Joshua says, From the last
Holyday day of the Festival of Tabernacles" (1:1).
27. cf. Ps. 46:4; 65:9; Isa.
8:6; Jer. 2:13; Ezek. 47:1-12; Joel 3:18; Rev. 22:1-2. On this, Brown comments
thus: "The fountain of waters that overflows from Jerusalem . . . can be
interpreted against the background of abundant rain sent by God during
Tabernacles" (Brown, The Gospel According to John. The Anchor
Bible, v. 29, 327). Joyce Baldwin interprets this verse in this way: "The
dream of an abundant water supply in Jerusalem will become fact. Instead of the
spring Gihon, which supplied water that 'flowed gently' to become the Siloam
brook (Isa. 8:6), and was never really adequate for the city's needs, rivers
independent of seasonal rainfall would rise in Jerusalem, to flow constantly to
east and west until they reached the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean"
(Joyce Baldwin, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. Vol. 24, Tyndale Old
Testament Commentaries [London: Tyndale, 1972], 203).
28. Numerology is an
important aspect of Jewish thought. Numbers like 3, 4, and 7 represented
wholeness or completeness. Three because the number three has a beginning, a
middle, and an end. Four because there are four corners of the world. Seven
because the world was created in seven days. To emphasize the completeness of
something, often the number was multiplied by itself: 3 x 3, 4 x 4, or 7 x 7.
29. The reason for his late
arrival seems to be due to the pressure of his non-believing brothers who
wished him to go to the feast simply to perform miracles. Brown sees this as a
temptation faced by the Savior similar to the account in Matthew (4:1-11) and
Luke (4:1-13) where the Savior is tempted to display his power by jumping from
the pinnacle of the temple (see Brown, The Gospel According to John. The
Anchor Bible, v. 29, 308 for complete discussion). Therefore, the Savior delays
his departure to the feast so that it is clear that his reasons for being there
are not to display his power.
30. See note 3.
31. Jerusalem Talmud Sukkah
55a, quoted from Morris, The Gospel According to John, 421; see also
F.F. Bruce, The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1983),
182, 187 n.13; John Lightfoot, A Commentary on the New Testament from the
Talmud and Hebraica 4 Vols. (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1979), 3:322-323.
32. The theme of Christ as the
living waters permeates the gospel of John wherein is recorded several
incidences that occurred during the ministry of Christ that revolve around
water. For example, John records the story of the Savior offering living water
to the woman of Samaria who was drawing water from a well. To her, he said:
"Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever
drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water
that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into
everlasting life" (John 4:13-14). That Christ has the power to give this
living water is demonstrated through two stories that evidence Christ's power
over water: the marriage at Cana where Christ turned water turn to wine (John
2:1-11) and the Savior's walking on water (John 615-21). To dramatize the point
further, John, alone, records the piercing of the Savior's side while upon the
cross. In that account it is said the when the soldiers were breaking the legs
of the three who were crucified, they saw that the Savior was already dead
"and they brake not his legs: but one of the soldiers with a spear pierced
his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water" (John
19:33-34; emphasis added). John's point is clear. The living waters do come from
the Savior.
In view of this, the reader
of John's gospel is stunned to discover that while on the cross the Savior
cried out, "I thirst" (John 19:28), a statement only recorded by
John. He to whom all must go to receive "living waters" so they may
"never thirst" again (John 4:14), now thirsted! This pathetic
statement reveals that while on the cross, the Savior, in bearing our sins,
infirmities, fears, guilt, and remorse, had "descended below all
things" that he might comprehend "all things" (D&C 88:6).
Thus, he became like "the poor and needy" who "seek water, and
there is none" (Isaiah 41:17). He had become like us, lost, alone, and
thirsty. In this condition, the Savior gained the compassion and mercy needed
to bring the living waters to those who seek it.
33. John 8:20 tells us that
he was in the treasury, which is the Court of the Women.
34. J. H. Bernard sees the
lighting of the candelabras as a possible background behind Jesus' saying, but
offers another possible reason: "But Philo's account of the Feast of
Tabernacles would furnish an equally plausible explanation. He says that this
feast is held at the autumnal equinox, in order that the world (kosmos)
may be full, not only by day but also by night, of the all-beautiful light (tou
pagkalou photos), as at this season there is no twilight (de septen.
24) . . . The passage of Philo shows, however, that the Feast of Tabernacles
suggested the idea of light to some minds" (J. H. Bernard, A
Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel According to St. John, 2
Vols. The New International Critical Commentary [Edinburgh: T&T
Clark,1985], 2:291).
35. See for example, Psalms
27:1, Isa. 60:19. "The later Rabbis applied the thought to the Messiah:
'Light is the Name of Messiah,' they said" (Bernard, A Critical and
Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel According to St. John, 2:292).
The
Millennium is proceeded by people who are righteous who usher in the 2nd
coming. We must destroy Babylon in our
own lives, rid our homes and lives of worldliness NOW. That’s what it means to come unto Christ.
John tells
of Christ being the one who fulfilled sacred places and sacred times, He is the
Messianic one who has been foretold for centuries. We must have Christ’s life and light.
Jeremiah
did his calling well. Both Jeremiah and
Ezekiel saw the restoration and the 2nd coming.
The Old
Testament is the 1st witness of Christ and also shows the
destruction of the wicked.
Study and
understand the character and mercy and patience of God at its best throughout
the Old Testament. The Old Testament is
the foundation for all of the other standard works.
God really is kind
and loving