Hardcore Prophets Predict Utter Destruction
Book of Mormon Notes - Saturday, May 25, 2024, Ether 11
Com was a good king. We honor him in our .com age. One of the reasons why he was such a good king is that he protected the prophets who fled to him when they were rejected and persecuted by the people:
And there came also in the days of Com many prophets, and prophesied of the destruction of that great people except they should repent, and turn unto the Lord, and forsake their murders and wickedness.
And it came to pass that the prophets were rejected by the people, and they fled unto Com for protection, for the people sought to destroy them.
And they prophesied unto Com many things; and he was blessed in all the remainder of his days. (Ether 11:1-3)
From this snippet of Jaredite history we learn that how we treat the Lord’s servants matters greatly. The Lord in His great mercy sends prophets to preach repentance, to turn us to the Lord, to help us to forsake sin, and to lead us unto salvation and eternal life. Destruction, even the destruction of a very great people, is the result when people reject, persecute, and kill the prophets. However, if we, like Com, protect the prophets and receive their teachings, then we too may be blessed all the remainder of our days. If we receive the teachings of the prophets, than they can prophesy many things unto us. If we receive the Lord and His servants, the Lord gives us more (see e.g. D&C 84).
It is interesting that the Lord sent many prophets unto the wicked Jaredites during the reign of the righteous King Com. Just one prophet would not do. These Jaredites needed many prophets. I think that we also need many prophets today. We need as many prophets as possible to counteract the thick and dense fogs of evil, wickedness, ignorance, complacency, and deception that plague our modern societies. Oddly enough, I haven’t heard many prophets lately prophecy of the destruction of this great people (i.e. the people of the United States) except they should repent, and turn to the Lord, and forsake their murders and wickedness. Why not?
This is a question that often perplexes many people, including myself. Yes, the prophets preach faith in Christ unto repentance. Yes, there have been prophets who have given ample warnings in talks and in proclamations. I’m not a prophet, except in the sense that I have a testimony of Jesus Christ and His Gospel. But I’ll go ahead and prophecy the same thing that the Jaredite prophets prophesied unto the wicked people during the reign of the righteous King Com: I prophesy, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, that except this great people of the United States repent, turn unto the Lord, and forsake their murders and wickedness, then utter destruction will inevitably follow. After my study of the rise and fall of the Nephites and the rise and fall of the Jaredites, I feel confident that the same pattern applies particularly to the rise and fall of the United States, unless we repent and turn to the Lord.
I was thinking about Moroni this morning. As Moroni neared the completion of his abridgment of the record of the Jaredites, a record of the rise and fall of the Jaredites, I imagine what it must have been like to survive the complete destruction of his own people while writing about the complete destruction of the Jaredites. Ether, Mormon, and Moroni are prophets who have a lot to teach us about the time in which we now live because they knew what it was like to live during a time of prophesied destruction. As sad as it was, the destruction wasn’t a surprise to them. Nephi and many subsequent Book of Mormon prophets foresaw the destruction of the Nephites. Mormon and Moroni knew these prophesies well. Ether knew the prophecies of the Jaredite prophets well. As sad as it was, he was not surprised when the Jaredites were completely destroyed.
To be honest, I think that we need more hardcore prophets like the prophets in the time of Jarom:
And it came to pass that the prophets of the Lord did threaten the people of Nephi, according to the word of God, that if they did not keep the commandments, but should fall into transgression, they should be destroyed from off the face of the land.
Wherefore, the prophets, and the priests, and the teachers, did labor diligently, exhorting with all long-suffering the people to diligence; teaching the law of Moses, and the intent for which it was given; persuading them to look forward unto the Messiah, and believe in him to come as though he already was. And after this manner did they teach them.
And it came to pass that by so doing they kept them from being destroyed upon the face of the land; for they did prick their hearts with the word, continually stirring them up unto repentance. (Jarom 1:10-12)
To be honest, I think we also need more hardcore prophets like those in the time of Jarom’s father Enos:
And there were exceedingly many prophets among us. And the people were a stiffnecked people, hard to understand.
And there was nothing save it was exceeding harshness, preaching and prophesying of wars, and contentions, and destructions, and continually reminding them of death, and the duration of eternity, and the judgments and the power of God, and all these things—stirring them up continually to keep them in the fear of the Lord. I say there was nothing short of these things, and exceedingly great plainness of speech, would keep them from going down speedily to destruction. And after this manner do I write concerning them. (Enos 1:23)
The Jaredite prophets during the reign of King Com were like these hardcore prophets. They threatened the people according to the word of God. Despite their love, plainness of speech, threatening, diligence, long suffering, persuasion, harshness, and reminders of death, eternity, and the power of God, the Jaredites rejected and persecuted the prophets, and they fled to King Com for protection. In his ripe old age, King Com begat Shiblom who reigned in his stead. Shiblom’s brother rebelled against him and provoked a terrible war. Even worse than that, Shiblom’s brother wielded political power against the prophets:
And it came to pass that the brother of Shiblom caused that all the prophets who prophesied of the destruction of the people should be put to death; (Ether 11:5)
The attempt to silence prophets by killing them is a sure path to destruction. Sure enough, as sure as night follows day, calamity follows the persecution of the Lord’s prophets:
And there was great calamity in all the land, for they had testified that a great curse should come upon the land, and also upon the people, and that there should be a great destruction among them, such an one as never had been upon the face of the earth, and their bones should become as heaps of earth upon the face of the land except they should repent of their wickedness. (Ether 11:6)
Notice how specific and accurate this prophecy was. As we continue our study of the fall of the Jaredites, we can remember how these prophets prophesied of a great destruction, such an one as never had been upon the face of the earth, and that the Jaredite bones should become as heaps of earth upon the face of the land. In Mormon’s abridgment of the large plates of Nephi, we’ve already seen evidence of the fulfillment of this prophecy:
It also spake a few words concerning his fathers. And his first parents came out from the tower, at the time the Lord confounded the language of the people; and the severity of the Lord fell upon them according to his judgments, which are just; and their bones lay scattered in the land northward. (Omni 1:22)
And they were lost in the wilderness for the space of many days, yet they were diligent, and found not the land of Zarahemla but returned to this land, having traveled in a land among many waters, having discovered a land which was covered with bones of men, and of beasts, and was also covered with ruins of buildings of every kind, having discovered a land which had been peopled with a people who were as numerous as the hosts of Israel. (Mosiah 8:8)
Nevertheless, they did find a land which had been peopled; yea, a land which was covered with dry bones; yea, a land which had been peopled and which had been destroyed; and they, having supposed it to be the land of Zarahemla, returned to the land of Nephi, having arrived in the borders of the land not many days before the coming of Ammon.
And they brought a record with them, even a record of the people whose bones they had found; and it was engraven on plates of ore. (Mosiah 21:26-27)
And now no part of the land was desolate, save it were for timber; but because of the greatness of the destruction of the people who had before inhabited the land it was called desolate. (Helaman 3:6)
How did the wicked Jaredites during the reign of the good King Com and his son Shiblom respond to the prophets’ loving and patient invitations to repent? Not too well:
And they hearkened not unto the voice of the Lord, because of their wicked combinations; wherefore, there began to be wars and contentions in all the land, and also many famines and pestilences, insomuch that there was a great destruction, such an one as never had been known upon the face of the earth; and all this came to pass in the days of Shiblom. (Ether 11:7)
What is it about the wicked combinations that prevented these Jaredites from hearkening unto the voice of the Lord? I suspect that the wicked Jaredites trusted so much in their own power and wealth because of their secret combinations that they considered themselves to be invincible. I suspect that they had also been deceived to the extent that they thought that the devil to whom they subjected themselves would help them. As we know from the story of Korihor, the devil never supports those who follow him:
And thus we see the end of him who perverteth the ways of the Lord; and thus we see that the devil will not support his children at the last day, but doth speedily drag them down to hell. (Alma 30:60)
Nevertheless, after famines, pestilences, wars, contentions, and great destructions, the people began to repent. As is ever the case, our Lord Jesus Christ always shows mercy toward the truly penitent.
Shiblom was slain. Seth - whom I suppose was the brother of Shiblom - was brought into captivity. Seth’s son Ahah reigned in wickedness in his stead, and then Ahah’s son Ethem also reigned in wickedness after him. Mercifully and patiently, the Lord again sent prophets among the Jaredites:
And it came to pass that in the days of Ethem there came many prophets, and prophesied again unto the people; yea, they did prophesy that the Lord would utterly destroy them from off the face of the earth except they repented of their iniquities. (Ether 11:12)
I like these hardcore prophets. They didn’t hold back. They threatened the people. They prophesied that the Lord would utterly destroy them from off the face of the earth except they repented of their iniquities.
What was the wicked Jaredites’ reaction to the prophets during the reign of the wicked king Ethem? As with many previous generations of Jaredites, these wicked Jaredites hardened their hearts would not hearken unto their words. As a result, the prophets mourned and withdrew from among the people.
Could it be that we are now at a point when the prophets are mourning and withdrawing from the people? Could that be the reason why there seems to be less and less of the fire and brimstone speeches and warnings against secret combinations a la Ezra Taft Benson that we need? Possibly.
Ethem reigned in wickedness, as did his son Moron. One of the greatest sentences in all of scripture is in this chapter of the Book of Ether: “And it came to pass that Moron did reign in his stead; and Moron did that which was wicked before the Lord.” (Ether 11:14) Don’t be a Moron.
The next verse describes something that may be happening right now, or may soon happen in modern America. Consider the reaction of the people when they begin to awaken to their awful situation, and notice how powerful demagogues use the crises to their own advantage:
And it came to pass that there arose a rebellion among the people, because of that secret combination which was built up to get power and gain; and there arose a mighty man among them in iniquity, and gave battle unto Moron, in which he did overthrow the half of the kingdom; and he did maintain the half of the kingdom for many years.
And it came to pass that Moron did overthrow him, and did obtain the kingdom again.
And it came to pass that there arose another mighty man; and he was a descendant of the brother of Jared.
And it came to pass that he did overthrow Moron and obtain the kingdom; wherefore, Moron dwelt in captivity all the remainder of his days; and he begat Coriantor. (Ether 11:15-19)
These tumultuous times among the Jaredites remind me so much of politics in the 21st century. The Tea Party followed by America First Always Trumpers and perhaps a full-blown rebellion seem to me like the inevitable reactions of American citizens who are fed up with oppression by self-appointed elites. As more and more people awaken to our awful situation and understand the secret combination that has been built up among us to get power and gain, a massive rebellion of the people could arise. In some ways, I see the rise of Trump as the rise of a mighty man in iniquity, a demagogue who seized power in a crisis to give battle unto the “Morons” of our time, including Hillary Clinton and now the supreme “Moron,” Joe Biden. Trump won in 2016, just like the mighty man in iniquity prevailed over Moron. But then Moron (think Joe Biden) prevailed over Trump in 2020. Now someone needs to overthrow the “Moron” Joe Biden again. It would also be a good idea to put Biden into prison, or captivity, as well as the other criminals and conspirators who have been destroying our country over the past several decades, including the Clintons, the Obamas, the Bushes, and so forth.
Moron’s son Coriantor dwelt in captivity all his days. Once again, patiently and mercifully, the Lord sent hardcore prophets among the Jaredites with very precise and meaningful prophecies:
And in the days of Coriantor there also came many prophets, and prophesied of great and marvelous things, and cried repentance unto the people, and except they should repent the Lord God would execute judgment against them to their utter destruction;
And that the Lord God would send or bring forth another people to possess the land, by his power, after the manner by which he brought their fathers. (Ether 11:20-21)
As we know from the rest of the Book of Mormon that we have already studied, the Jaredites refused to repent, and the Lord brought the Lehites and the Mulekites to possess the Promised Land, by His power, after the manner by which He brought the Jaredites. This is the Lord’s pattern. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Lord employs this same pattern among the modern wicked Gentiles in the United States of America, unless we repent. The Lord brought the pilgrims and the early American colonists by His power to possess the Promised Land, and the Lord certainly has power to sweep away the wicked and bring forth another people to possess the land, perhaps more Latinos, and perhaps the Chinese. I don’t know. The point is that unless we repent, things will get just as ugly for us as they were for the Jaredites.
How did the wicked Jaredites respond to the Lord’s loving, merciful, and patient invitation from the prophets to repent? Not too well. Once again, they rejected all the words of the prophets, because of their secret society and wicked abominations. They were ripening for destruction, just as we in modern America are now ripening for destruction, unless we repent.
After he begot the great prophet Ether, Coriantor died after having dwelt in captivity all his days. Who was this great prophet Ether? Let’s find out as we continue our study of Moroni’s abridgment of his great book.