LeGrand L. Baker

 

 Alma 12:12-14 code words:  (part one) “The Negative Confession”¹

12  And Amulek hath spoken plainly concerning death, and being raised from this mortality to a state of immortality, and being brought before the bar of God, to be judged according to our works.

13  Then if our hearts have been hardened, yea, if we have hardened our hearts against the word, insomuch that it has not been found in us, then will our state be awful, for then we shall be condemned.

14  For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us; and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the mountains to fall upon us to hide us from his presence (Alma 12:12-14 ).

The power of Alma’s words came from his and Zeezrom’s understanding of some of the most sobering truths that they had been taught during their Nephite temple drama.²  That connection becomes even more clear to us when we remember that only a short time later, in the same speech, Alma reviewed the entire drama using some of this same language he used here. He said,

30 …God conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan of redemption…and this he made known unto them according to their faith and repentance and their holy works (Alma 12:12-14 ).³

As elsewhere in the Book of Mormon, “faith” is covenant (pistis) just as it is in the New Testament and, in this context, “holy works” are the validating ordinances, just as in many places of the New Testament.⁴  If in verse 14 “works” means the same as it does in verse 30, then Alma’s words “all our works will condemn us” are about Zeezrom’s violation of the sanctity of his sacred ordinances. If that is so, then a hardened heart is about those qualities of one’s inner Self which initiates evil deeds, rather than being just about the deeds themselves.

In Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord we demonstrated that the psalms were the liturgy of the Nephite temple drama just as they had been the text of the temple service used while Solomon’s Temple was in operation.⁵ That being so, if one is to know the ancient temple drama as Alma and Zeezrom understood it, one must know the psalms.

Psalm 26 shows the criterion for the final judgment and may have been the one to which Alma was referring when he confronted Zeezrom. It is the one that most vividly expresses the tensions of the juxtaposition between our thoughts and our actions and their impact on our final judgment.

During the temple drama the king was symbolically killed by his enemies. He remained in the underworld for three days while the Savior’s body was in its tomb. Then, in the temple drama, Jehovah himself went down into the underworld and rescued the king from the clutches of death and hell. This was surely one of the most dramatic and one of the most pivotal junctures of the Nephite temple experience.⁶  Psalm 26 expresses the tensions of that moment.

The psalms contain much of the liturgy of the Israelite temple drama. However, their present arrangement gives us no context for knowing how they fit into the story and they have no stage directions to show how they were performed.⁷ That being so, it is reasonable that we look to some of the main events of other ancient rites to help understand the intent and use of some of the Israelite psalms. We can do that because the pre-exilic Israelite drama was a version of an even older temple service. Apostate variations of that original can be found all over the ancient world.⁸ Latter-day Saints understand that in the scriptures we have sufficient evidence that priesthood powers and the temple rites and covenants predated the flood and reached back to the “the reign of Adam.”

26  Pharaoh, being a righteous man, established his kingdom and judged his people wisely and justly all his days, seeking earnestly to imitate that order established by the fathers in the first generations, in the days of the first patriarchal reign, even in the reign of Adam, and also of Noah, his father, who blessed him with the blessings of the earth, and with the blessings of wisdom, but cursed him as pertaining to the Priesthood (Abraham 1:26).

Hugh Nibley has firmly established that “the Egyptian endowment” and the pre-exilic Israelite temple rites were near enough alike that we may assert that they came from the same original source. Therefore, the Egyptian version can help us discover some of the lost contexts, stage directions, and the uses of the psalms in the Israelite drama.

The Egyptians believed that their brief life on this earth was only one phase of their progress through eternity: for the soul lives forever and cannot die.

For that reason, their temple rites showed that an Egyptian’s next juncture in his eternal journey, the final judgment after his mortal death, was one of his most critical crossroads. It would determine his status during in the rest of his eternal existence. At that judgment he must perform all the rites correctly and answer the questions with precision.

The Egyptian Book of the Dead was a funerary text used to provide instruction to one’s soul in the afterlife. It was a guide book that contained reminders of the things one must do and say as he approached his final judgment. After that judgment there were only two options: life with the gods or misery in the underworld. Therefore, his soul needed this crib sheet because if he did not get it right he could not pass through the gate that led to the home of the gods.

Among the instructions given in the Book of the Dead were the words he should say to insure a positive final judgment. They included his Negative Confessions, which were not confessions at all but declarations of his innocence.

Hugh Nibley describes the importance of the Negative Confessions in his The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri: An Egyptian Endowment.

            The Candidate Is Challenged. This is a form of the famous “Negative Confession” of the Book of the Dead.}a{ The  Challenge at the Gate is a familiar  form and aspect of initiation rites the world over.}b{ Here the candidate  is challenged at seven gates, matching “the seven gates through which the solar bark passes” in the Book of the Dead.}c{⁹

Drioton holds that the “Negative Confession” bears  the marks of an initiation rite so strongly that it would  seem to be the production of a religious cult ]temple service[ that  flourished along with the Essenes, having “only a brief  and late existence in Egyptian religion.”}d{ Nagel finds that the declarations of the  Negative Confession as found in his “Breathing” text,  Louvre}e{ are “strictly moral,”}f{ and F. de Cenival comes still closer to home in calling attention to the resemblance of the Negative Confession situation  to certain examinations of members conducted by  Egyptian temple associations, which in turn remind him  of the initiation process in the “Manual of Discipline” of  the Dead Sea Scrolls.}g{¹⁰

The object of the  dead is here the double one of getting out of the place where he is and passing into a better one; hence the gate  to heaven when it is open is the gate of hell when it is  shut, or, as Hornung notes, the gate marks the transition  between “spheres on this side and on the other side,” and  so corresponds to the horizon between the upper and  lower worlds.}h{ The word for “gate” in our  text denotes not just a barrier but rather a passageway  )Torweg(, “a section of the Underworld, the centerpoint  of which is formed by the gate )sba( of the horizon.”}i{  The gate is the natural place to stop and challenge  anyone. The designation of the official barriers as “the  Gate of the Place of Truth”}j{ indicates the gate as a place of testing, of trial: “I  will not open to you says the door, unless you tell me my  name!”}k{ ¹¹

The common symbolism is brought out in the Zohar: “The Gate of Psalm 24:2 refers to the supernatural grades  )lit. steps( by and through which alone a knowledge of the Almighty is possible to man, and without which a man could not communicate with God.” }l{¹²

Those concepts were also understood by the Nephites. Jacob reminded his audience about the importance of that gate when, in his sermon at the temple, he reviewed parts of the Nephite drama and urged the people to keep the covenants they made.

41  O then, my beloved brethren, come unto the Lord, the Holy One.  Remember that his paths are righteous.  Behold, the way for man is narrow, but it lieth in a straight course before him, and the keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name. ¹³

42  And whoso knocketh, to him will he open; and the wise, and the learned, and they that are rich, who are puffed up because of their learning, and their wisdom, and their riches—yea, they are they whom he despiseth; and save they shall cast these things away, and consider themselves fools before God, and come down in the depths of humility, he will not open unto them (2 Nephi 9:41-42).

Psalm 26 is an excellent example of a Negative Confession, however, Alma did not treat it as a Negative Confession but rather he turned it on its head and used its ideas as an accusation. The psalm is not about what one had done so much as it is about one’s thoughts and attitudes. It is filled with ancient temple connotations and code words. For example: Walk— to “walk in the ways of the Lord” is to keep one’s covenants and honor one’s ordinances. Trust— like pistis (faith) in the New Testament, trust can only be sure when there is a contract or covenant already in place.¹⁴

Another is: I shall not slide…My foot standeth in an even place. Having one’s feet firmly established is also about priesthood worthiness, as in this exaltation from Isaiah:

13  Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; for the feet of those who are in the east shall be established;¹⁵  and break forth into singing, O mountains; for they shall be smitten no more; for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted (1 Nephi 21:13).

It is similarly expressed in this prayer:

5  Hold up my goings in thy paths, that my footsteps slip not.

6  I have called upon thee, for thou wilt hear me, O God: incline thine ear unto me, and hear my speech (Psalms 17:5-6).¹⁶

We find that idea expressed twice in Psalm 26: “I have walked in mine integrity… therefore I shall not slide,” and “My foot standeth in an even place.”

The psalm begins with the acknowledgment that the candidate is now anticipating he final judgment.

1  Judge me, O Lord; for I have walked in mine integrity: I have trusted also in the Lord; therefore I shall not slide.

2  Examine me, O Lord, and prove me; try my reins [mind] and my heart.

3  For thy lovingkindness [hesed] is before mine eyes: and I have walked in thy truth.

Those assertions of his worthiness are followed by his Negative Confession:

4  I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers.

5  I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked.

Further assertions of his worthiness:

6  I will wash mine hands in innocency: so will I compass¹⁷ thine altar, O Lord:

7  That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works.

8  Lord, I have loved the habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth.

The anticipated response to his Negative Confession and his expectation of redemption:

9  Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men:

10  In whose hands is mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes.

11  But as for me, I will walk in mine integrity: redeem me, and be merciful unto me.

12  My foot standeth in an even place: in the congregations will I bless the Lord (Psalms 26:1-12).

We return now to the pre-exilic Israelite drama while Jehovah was in the spirit world before his resurrection. It is similar to the event when the Egyptian rites portray a time, after one is dead, when he must stand at “the  Gate of the Place of Truth.”

During days 4, 5, and 6 of the 8-day Israelite temple drama, while the king remained in the world of the dead, the drama focused on the life and Atonement of the Savior, then on his mission among the dead, and finally on his resurrection.

During those days, while the king waited in the Underworld for Jehovah to rescue him, the people who were outside among the living prayed for the king’s restoration to life. Psalm 20 was a plea that the Lord would save “his anointed [the king]” and an expression of assurance that Jehovah “will hear him [the king] from his [Jehovah’s] holy heaven with the saving strength of his right hand.” The people understood that the king was not yet permanently dead. For, as they prayed for his deliverance, they also prayed that he would find encouragement through their faith. Psalm 20 concludes, “Save, Lord: let the king hear us when we call.” In Psalm 13, from the Underworld, the young king joined the plea:

1 How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?

2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul,

having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;

4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.

5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.

6 I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me (Psalm 13:1-6).

Jehovah did act in the king’s behalf. He asserted his royal prerogatives and descended into the Underworld to save the earthly king. It would have been at this place and time in the Israelite drama that the king approached “the gate of truth, testing, and of trial.” Therefore, this would be when he would have recited his Negative Confession.

By reversing the concepts of the Negative Confession and reminding Zeezrom that he had failed to keep his covenants, Alma focused his argument on the assurance of Zeezrom’s current prospect of an eternal doom. Or, in other words, Alma assures him of damnation because of his arrogance.

It was to reinforce the truth that Zeezrom was bound by his own covenants to keep the assertions of that Negative Confession that Alma reminded him that on the day of our final judgment, “our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us.” Then, almost immediately thereafter in the same speech, Alma gave him a recap of the entire drama:

28  And after God had appointed that these things should come unto man, behold, then he saw that it was expedient that man should know concerning the things whereof he had appointed unto them;

29  Therefore he sent angels to converse with them, who caused men to behold of his glory.

30  And they began from that time forth to call on his name; therefore God conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan of redemption, which had been prepared from the foundation of the world; and this he made known unto them according to their faith and repentance and their holy works.

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—

32  Therefore God gave unto them commandments, after having made known unto them the plan of redemption, that they should not do evil, the penalty thereof being a second death, which was an everlasting death as to things pertaining unto righteousness; for on such the plan of redemption could have no power, for the works of justice could not be destroyed, according to the supreme goodness of God.

33  But God did call on men, in the name of his Son, (this being the plan of redemption which was laid) saying: If ye will repent and harden not your hearts, then will I have mercy upon you, through mine Only Begotten Son;

34  Therefore, whosoever repenteth, and hardeneth not his heart, he shall have claim on mercy through mine Only Begotten Son, unto a remission of his sins; and these shall enter into my rest (Alma 12:28-34).

FOOTNOTES  FOR PART ONE,  NEGATIVE CONFESSION

     ¹  I owe a special thanks to my friend and editor Alex Criddle for his assistance with this chapter.

     ²  We can be quite sure that Zeezrom was completely conversant with the covenants and rites of the Nephite temple drama. There are two reasons. First, if that were that not so there would have been no point in Alma’s using them as the basis of his arguments. The second is the intensity of Zeezrom’s repentance (Alma 14:6, 15:3-11).

     ³A similar idea with the same kind of priesthood connotation is in the beginning of Mormon’s letter to his son Moroni,

2  My beloved son, Moroni, I rejoice exceedingly that your Lord Jesus Christ hath been mindful of you, and hath called you to his ministry, and to his holy work (Moroni 8:2).

     ⁴ James says “faith (pistis) without works is dead.” The ordinances are the validation of the covenant just as a signature is the validation of a contract. A covenant is dead because without the validating ordinances it is not binding on anybody (James 2:17, 20, and 26).

     ⁵ LeGrand L. Baker and Stephen D. Ricks, Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord? The Psalms in Israel’s Temple Worship In the Old Testament and In the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Eborn Books), first edition, 2009, second (paperback) edition, 2011.

The first half of our book uses the psalms to reconstruct much of the ancient Israelite temple drama. The second half shows that every major sermon in the Book of Mormon cites their temple experience. My reference to “the Nephite temple drama” is based on the conclusions of our book.

     ⁶   For a discussion of psalm 22 and Jehovah’s rescuing the king from death see Baker and Ricks, “Act 2, Scene 7: Jehovah Conquers Death and Hell,” Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition, 415-44; second (paperback) edition, 300-23.

     ⁷  Reading them is like reading Hamlet without stage directions, having only the dialog to discover who is speaking and to whom. That is what we did in Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord to reconstruct the scenes of the drama. While some are questionable, some impossible, others are surprisingly easy

     ⁸   Giorgio de Santillana and Hertha von Dechend. Hamlet’s Mill: An Essay on Myth and the Frame of Time (Boston, Gambit, 1969).

     ⁹   Hugh Nibley, The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri: An Egyptian Endowment (Salt Lake City, Deseret Book, 1975), 217.

NOTE:  Nibley often puts citations in parentheses within his text. This works fine for the book but tends to clutter our short quotes. I have included them in alphabetical rather than numerical order in brackets in the footnotes to lessen that clutter.

{a}  B.D., Ch. 125.

{b} See the  vivid passage in Zohar, Vayera 1036.

{c} B.D., Ch. 144,  and Section II of the Two Ways (Lesko, Two Ways, p. 45).

     ¹⁰  Hugh Nibley, The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri, 219.

{d} Neg. Conf., pp.  559, 563-64.

{e} # 3292.5

{f}  BIFAO, 29:87f.,5

{g} F. de Cenival, REHR, pp. 17f.

     ¹¹   Hugh Nibley, The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri, 211-12.

{h}  Amduat, II, 4.

{i} Ibid.,  p. 5; cf. Gardiner, JEA, 4:147; K. Sethe, ZA, 67:115-17.

{j} A. Piankoff, An. Serc.,  49:137.

{k} B.D. Ch. 125, in De Buck, Reading Book, p. 121.

     ¹²   Hugh Nibley, The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri, 211-12.

{l} Zohar, I; Vayera, 103b.

     ¹³

This reminds one of Nibley’s quote where the god declares, “I  will not open to you says the door, unless you tell me my  name!”  (Bold added, Fn. # k)

     ¹⁴   Baker and Ricks, “Meaning of ‘Faith’—Pistis,” Who Shall Ascend into the Hill of the Lord, first edition,  1007-25; second (paperback) edition. 697-710.

Also in my Alma, vol. 2, the chapter called “Alma 32:17-43—The Multiple Meanings of Faith.”

     ¹⁵  The words in bold have been removed by ancient editors from our Isaiah 49.

     ¹⁶ Other places are: Psalms 18:32-33 with Habakkuk 3:19; Isaiah 52:7-8; Psalms 17:5-6, 37:31, 56:13, and 66:8-10.

     ¹⁷  Strong # 5437: “to revolve, surround, or border; used in various applications, literally and figuratively:… be about on every side.”

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Alma 12:12-15, LeGrand Baker, Some code words in Alma 12

Alma 12:12-15
12 And Amulek hath spoken plainly concerning death, and being raised from this mortality to a state of immortality, and being brought before the bar of God, to be judged according to our works.
13 Then if our hearts have been hardened, yea, if we have hardened our hearts against the word, insomuch that it has not been found in us, then will our state be awful, for then we shall be condemned.
14 For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us; and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the mountains to fall upon us to hide us from his presence.
15 But this cannot be; we must come forth and stand before him in his glory, and in his power, and in his might, majesty, and dominion, and acknowledge to our everlasting shame that all his judgments are just; that he is just in all his works, and that he is merciful unto the children of men, and that he has all power to save every man that believeth on his name and bringeth forth fruit meet for repentance.

By this time the exchange we are reading has become a very private—and a very personal—conversation between Zeezrom and Alma. Everyone who is standing about can hear the words, but not not everyone can hear their intent.

Alma has just explained to Zeezrom that the “mysteries” are sacred, and must be discussed with great care, and then only when it is appropriate to do so. That caution also teaches us that what we are about to read is sacred. Alma continued:

12  And Amulek hath spoken plainly concerning death, and being raised from this mortality to a state of immortality, [Amulek had just explained that everyone will be resurrected] and being brought before the bar of God, to be judged

That judgement, we have learned, will occur after the resurrection. Which suggests that the final judgement is more of a conformation of a self-established reality, than it is something like passing out the final test scores and grades.

according to our works.

“Works” is an important word in this context. It is used here the same way James uses it in the New Testament when he says “faith without works is dead.” Faith is pistis (the visible evidences or tokens of the covenants, just as Paul said it is). “Works,” for James, meant the ordinances. (That is why Luther wanted to remove James from the New Testament. The Catholics had a monopoly on the ordinances, and Luther didn’t like the idea that they were necessary.) Latter on in our chapter, Alma will clarify his meaning by calling them “holy works,” and pointing out that they are an important teaching tool that God uses to instruct us about how to come into his presence.

13  Then if our hearts have been hardened,

The heart is the cosmic center of a human being. It is the seat of one’s emotions and one’s intellect. In the verses immediately preceding these, Alma has defined a hardened heart as one that chooses not to know and understand the “mysteries.”

13b  yea, if we have hardened our hearts against the word, insomuch that it has not been found in us, then will our state be awful, for then we shall be condemned.

Alma has also just defined “the chains of hell” as the condition of one who has chosen to not know the mysteries.

14   For our words will condemn us, yea, all our works will condemn us; we shall not be found spotless; and our thoughts will also condemn us;

While it is possible that this is simply a generic observation, it is more likely, given the context of what Alma is talking about, that the words, works, and thoughts are specific, and relate to one’s willingness or unwillingness to understand and fully participate in the “mysteries.”

and in this awful state we shall not dare to look up to our God; and we would fain be glad if we could command the rocks and the mountains to fall upon us to hide us from his presence.

This entire discussion, from Alma’s point of view, has been and will continue to be is about preparing oneself to come into the presence of God (see my note on the meaning of redeem of a couple weeks ago). Alma assures/warns Zeezrom that ultimately he will be brought into the presence of the Saviour to be judged—that is not the issue. The issue is whether that redemption will be a joyful or a fearful experience. Alma has just said it might be really scary.

15   But this cannot be; we must come forth and stand before him in his glory, and in his power, and in his might, majesty, and dominion, and acknowledge to our everlasting shame that all his judgments are just; that he is just in all his works, and that he is merciful unto the children of men,

While the Saviour’s atonement and his mercy enables us to repent and become clean

(holy and without spot), in the final judgement, it is not mercy that will save us. We are saved by the laws of justice. Mercy —here and now— enables us to repent and become clean, and if we become clean, then justice enables us to enter— and remain—in the presence of God. But if we do not avail ourselves of the blessings of mercy in this life, and do not become clean, then justice insists we must ultimately reside someplace where God is not. Mercy cannot bring the unclean into the Celestial Kingdom, because mercy cannot rob justice. The last part of the sentence tells it all:

and that he has all power to save every man that believeth on his name and bringeth forth fruit meet [appropriate] for repentance.

Even the Saviour’s power to save is qualified. Alma does not say “and that he has all power to save every man”—and stop there. Rather he adds two qualifications that one must have in order to enable the saving powers of the atonement: “[1] that believeth on his name and [2] bringeth forth fruit meet [appropriate] for repentance.

Alma’s message is one that is repeated so often in the scriptures: God’s purpose is to save his children, but he will not insist they be saved, and he will not bring them kicking and screaming into heaven.

Alma 12:9-11, LeGrand Baker – knowing when to tell

Alma 12:9-11
9 And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, saying: It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him.
10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.
11 And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this is what is meant by the chains of hell.

There is an eternal principle in these verses that is so important that it constitutes one of the corner stones upon which every individual must anchor the temple of his own salvation. The principle is this: When a conversation is about sacred things, it is not the understanding of the teacher, but rather it is the understanding of the learner that controls the conversation. The teacher is “under a strict command” to say nothing that the learner cannot comprehend as truth. The teacher can only know that if the Holy Ghost gives insights into the what and how the learner understands. If the teacher were to control the conversation based only on what he thinks the other ought to learn, he would violate a sacred trust and abdicate his own right to know. But if he listens as the Spirit enables him to commune with the soul of the learner, then he lets the background —but more especially the aptitude and desires— of the learner dictate the breath and depth of the conversation. When that happens, both the learner and the teacher are blessed.

One of the marks of the written words of a true prophet, is that they that may be read and understood by anyone who reads them, but —like a sacred code— they also carry a special meaning to those who know or seek to know. Thus, the secrets are revealed to only those who have a right to know, and the those same secrets that are hidden from the foundation of the world” remain hidden still. Alma explained,

10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; (v.10)

As I have commented elsewhere, in the ancient world the “heart” was the cosmic center of the human body. It was considered to be the seat of both one’s intellect and one’s emotions. A hardened heart is one that is inflexible: it can not expand to embrace new emotional or academic truths. Consequently both its unbending opinions and its emotional prejudices are rooted in the same rigid rationale. A person who cultivates such a heart renders himself incapable of accepting, assimilating —even of understanding— sacred truth, as Alma explained,

11 And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this [not knowing the mysteries] is what is meant by the chains of hell. (v. 11)

Alma contrasted that debilitation with the freedom of one who “will not harden his heart”— a characteristic which Ezekiel describes most eloquently with this promise from the Lord:

19And 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. (Ezekiel 11:19-20)

Alma’s characterization is like Ezekiel’s, but even more explicit:

and, to him [who “will not harden his heart”] is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.

I suppose “in full” really means “in full.” The Prophet Joseph explained the same principle. He said,

The reason we do not have the secrets of the Lord revealed unto us, is because we do not keep them but reveal them; we do not keep our own secrets, but reveal our difficulties to the world, even to our enemies, then how would we keep the secrets of the Lord? (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 194.)

Then Joseph added a sentence that carries no presumption, but that is the very key to his power as a prophet, and to his unbounded knowledge of the mysteries of God. He said simply, “I can keep a secret till Doomsday.”

There is a reason why one must not speak out of turn. It is the same reason why it is possible “to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.” And it is the same reason why the “mysteries of godliness” are and “have been hid from the foundation of the world.” The reason is that the mysteries of God can only be taught by the Spirit of God. If one tries to teach or to learn them any other way, their simple and profound truths become lost in the entanglement of speculation and falsehood.

There is only one who can teach ordinary people eternal truth, and that teacher is the Holy Ghost. However, there are often important agents that facilitate his teaching. The first of these agents is the words of the prophets, whether spoken or written—whether ancient or contemporary. The words stimulate one’s mind, so that the Spirit may teach their true meanings—and this is important: Those meanings are always and only about one’s Self and one’s relationship with the Saviour. Let me explain: The Spirit may testify that Joseph Smith was and is a true prophet, but the impact of that testimony is only incidentally about the Prophet Joseph. One’s testimony of the Prophet is always an enhancement of one’s understanding of the gospel—of the Saviour—of one’s Self—of one’s eternal relationships with others. That is equally true of one’s testimony of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon, or of any principle that it teaches. The object of those principles—and of all of the mysteries of godliness— is to help one define one’s Self in terms of the Saviour and his atonement. As that happens, one’s soul expands to embrace all of God’s children—charity becomes the driving force of one’s being, and living the law of consecration becomes its quiet, spontaneous, powerful manifestation. When the thoughts and actions of one’s heart is charity, then, as truth was the stimulus behind the charity, so ever increasing access to truth is the most important personal product of that same charity— and so it goes in a grand and never-ending spiral— until one knows, and loves, all things..

Some of the other agents that facilitate our understand by opening our minds to new insights that the Spirit can teach and confirm, are the ordinances and covenants of the priesthood; our own experiences and our ability to repent, to experience empathy, and also to rejoice; and the dear family members and friends who open the scriptures to our understanding, and who are wise and kind enough to patiently let us taste their meanings as we will, and digest them in our own time.

The reason the mysteries are hidden and remain hidden, is that (notwithstanding the persistence—even the love—of those who would wish us to learn)— is that the whole burden of the ability to know, and of the responsibility of knowing, rests upon one’s Self. There is only one course that leads to a knowledge of the mysteries of God. The Saviour explained:

6 Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.
7 Ask, and it shall be given unto you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.
8 For every one that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened….
11 If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father who is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? (3 Nephi 14:6-8, 11)

If one asks, seeks, knocks, listens, and speaks only as one is instructed by the Spirit to speak, then the only limit placed on one’s knowing is one’s ability and willingness to assimilate what one is given to know.

Alma 12:7-8, LeGrand Baker, Zeezrom’s response

Alma 12:7-8
7 Now when Alma had spoken these words, Zeezrom began to tremble more exceedingly, for he was convinced more and more of the power of God; and he was also convinced that Alma and Amulek had a knowledge of him, for he was convinced that they knew the thoughts and intents of his heart; for power was given unto them that they might know of these things according to the spirit of prophecy.
8 And Zeezrom began to inquire of them diligently, that he might know more concerning the kingdom of God. And he said unto Alma: What does this mean which Amulek hath spoken concerning the resurrection of the dead, that all shall rise from the dead, both the just and the unjust, and are brought to stand before God to be judged according to their works? (Alma 12:7-8)

Ordinary people cannot know what another person is thinking. However, the Spirit can make one privy to other people’s thoughts. Since Mormon was not there, it is very unlikely that he, as the historian, knew such intimate details of the story unless he had access to a more full account of Zeezrom’s testimony than what he has given us. That is very likely. It is also possible that Mormon is reminding us of the message in a psalm that was sung during the Feast of Tabernacles temple drama:

11 The Lord knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity. {1}
12 Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of thy law; (Psalms 94:11-12)

That is a two edged statement, for it not only tells us what God knows, but it also tells us what God does with what he knows. As in the case of Zeezrom, he teaches, initiates experiences, and helps us to understand. He does this in accordancee with covenants we and He made together before the foundation of the world.

Whenever our pre-mortal covenants are mentioned in the scriptures, there is also the promise that the Lord will insure that we have sufficient ability and opportunity to fulfill those covenants. That promise is always given to the prophets during a sode experience. As, for example, in the case of Jeremiah, the Lord said,

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. (Jeremiah 1:5-10)

But not only do the prophets have this promise of unfettered opportunity for success, but each of us has a similar promise. Isaiah wrote of that promise when he addressed, in prophecy, those of us who were to come in the last days to assist in the gathering of Israel. Speaking in first person, representing those who were assigned to participate in the gathering of Israel, he wrote,

1 And again: Hearken, O ye house of Israel, … the Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. [covenant]
2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword [the word of God is priesthood power {2}]; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me [ordination], and made me a polished shaft [anointing {3}]; in his quiver hath he hid me;
3 And said unto me [the assignment]: Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified….
5 And now, saith the Lord—that formed me from the womb that I should 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.
6 And he said: It is a light thing that thou shouldst 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 ends of the earth. (1 Nephi 21:1-6)

One of the phrases that is most relevant to our purpose here is, “in his quiver hath he hid me.” The prophets are not hidden. They make their pronouncements for all to hear. It is the ordinary people who go about the business of living and keeping their covenants who are hidden from the world. Isaiah may well have been referring to a similar promise in the 31st Psalm.

19 Oh how great is thy goodness, which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee; which thou hast wrought for them that trust in thee before the sons of men!
20 Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues. (Psalms 31:18-20)

One of the best examples of this promise is in the first chapter of Ephesians, where Paul says

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings [pre-mortal blessings] in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love…
11 In whom [the Father] also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
12 That we should be to the praise of his glory [the Father], who first trusted in Christ.
13 In whom [the Saviour] ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory. (See Ephesians 1:1-23)

Paul goes on to explain that our having been “sealed by the holy Spirit of promise” was a guarantee that we will have the power to fulfill our covenants, unless we choose not to do so.

Another Old Testament example is the 45th Psalm which was enacted as a part of the drama’s depiction of events in the Council in Heaven.

The blessing given to the king and queen in Psalm 45 was extended by implication to all the people who participated in the Feast of Tabernacles drama:

The blessing was given to the person designated to become king of Israel. He was promised wonderful things, concluding with a promise of invulnerability that is couched in military phrases.

3 Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty.
4 And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach thee terrible things.
5 Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; whereby the people fall under thee.
The blessing to the queen, his wife, is essentially the same without the military connotations.
10 Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father’s house;
11 So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him.
12 And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift [shows obeisance]; even the rich among the people shall intreat thy favour. [the queen will be a judge among her people]

Neither of those blessings include anything about their future family. That blessing was reserved until the couple join each other in the last two verses of the psalm.

16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth.
17 I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore shall the people praise thee for ever and ever.[eternal marriage] (Psalms 45:1-17)

Psalm 82 is another psalm that represented events that took place during the Council in Heaven.

The first verse is a narrator explaining what is happening on the stage.

1 God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
Then the Father gives instructions to the members of the Council in Heaven:
2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked?
3 Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy.
4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.
5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course.
6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High.
7 But ye shall die like [other] men, and fall [in battle] like one of the princes.

The members of the Council respond: {4}

8 Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations. (Psalms 82:1-8)

In each of those scriptural discussions of our pre-mortal covenants and fore-ordinations, there is the promise that the Lord will divert anything that would prevent us from doing what we came to this earth to do. For the enormous majority of us, that means our quietly expending our resources and our energies to support the growth of the Kingdom. What God will not do is force us to obey.

In our story, the two men who face each other in this debate are excellent examples of that principle. Alma had been told by an angel that he must either repent or suffer the pains of hell—that is, the angel gave Alma the option, but it was Alma who made the choice. Now Zeezrom is having a similar experience—but it is Alma, rather than an angel, who is delivering the ultimatum.

Both men responded the same way. They chose to suffer the pains of repentance rather than the pains of hell—but they could have chosen not to repent, gone about life as before, and refused to believe what the consequence would be. We do not have much information about Zeezrom immediately after this experience, except that it nearly killed him. Alma blessed him to recover his health, and he was baptized. (Alma 15) Later he was a missionary companion to Alma and Amulek. (Alma 31:6, 30)

Not all of us will have as dramatic a conversion experience as these two men, but many latter-day converts have had as complete a change in the direction their lives were going. For each of us, throughout our life’s experience, we remain free to do and believe what we will. In our egotism we tend to equate “truth” with whatever we choose to believe, and “falsehood” with whatever we do not choose to believe. But truth is truth, and is independent of our belief. Whether we believe a true thing or not does not impact its validity, but our believing or not believing sets the course of our lives. Embracing truth brings freedom—absolute freedom—for it unites our power with the blessings God has given us that we can succeed in our earthly mission. Embracing and defending a falsehood restricts our ability to know, uses up our energy to become, and leaves our covenant responsibilities, and their attendant blessing unfulfilled.

In the end, each one of us will have to say, as Alma and Zeezrom were able to testify, that the Lord gave us all the opportunities requisite for our knowing and keeping our eternal covenants.

– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –

ENDNOTES

{1} Paul’s paraphrase of this psalm might almost be read as a commentary on Zeezrom’s thinking.

18 Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you seemeth to be wise in this world, let him become a fool, that he may be wise.
19 For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He taketh the wise in their own craftiness.
20 And again, The Lord knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain. (1 Corinthians 3:18-21)

{2} In Paul’s description of the whole armor of God, we find “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:17)

{3} An arrow is polished with olive oil to keep it from warping.

{4} The phrase, “arise, O God” as translated in the King James Version reads, in the Hebrew, “arise O elohim (plural, gods).” (One stands to make a covenant, as in 2 Kings 23:1-3) The word “elohim” is the proper name for the Father of the Gods, and it is also the plural form for “ordinary” gods. An example is in the first verse of our psalm, which reads, “God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.” Both “God” and “gods” are translated from the same Hebrew word, “elohim.” The last verse of Psalm 82 would be more internally consistent if its translation showed that it was spoken by the Father to the members of the Council, so that it reads, “Arise, O gods, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.” When read that way, that last verse becomes the covenant that comes at the conclusion of the instructions the Father gives to the members of the Council—and a covenant with the promise of success.

Alma 12:5-6, LeGrand Baker, the power of an embrace

Alma 12:5-6
5  Now this was a plan of thine adversary, and he hath exercised his power in thee. Now I would that ye should remember that what I say unto thee I say unto all.
6  And behold I say unto you all that this was a snare of the adversary, which he has laid to catch this people, that he might bring you into subjection unto him, that he might encircle you about with his chains, that he might chain you down to everlasting destruction, according to the power of his captivity.

I was only seven years old when my Grandpa Baker died, and I have only one short memory of him. There is some other recollection of the circumstances surrounding the incident, but they are memories of the context of the event, and not really of my Grandpa himself. The year was 1945 He and Grandma lived on their ranch in Boulder, Utah, far from any good doctors. Grandpa was very ill, and had come to stay with us while he saw a doctor here. The doctor put him in the hospital, and he died there. The circumstances surrounding my memory of him are these: He was sitting on a chair in our living room, and he motioned for me to come to him. When I did, he lifted me up and sat me on his lap. I remember those things, but they do not really count as memory of him. The single thing I remember about him is how I felt when I sat on his lap. He wrapped his arms around me and held me up tight against his chest—and I was encompassed in his love. I felt his love for me, and I knew that I was truly, truly loved. That hug—and the warm feeling that went all the way through my young body as I sat there enwrapped in his arms— is my only memory of the reality of my Grandpa. The memory does not fade. Whenever I think of him, or see his picture, I re-experience the overwhelming warmth of that embrace.

That seems so right to me. If I could have chosen to retain only one memory of my Grandpa, the one I would have chosen would have been the beauty of his embrace. Similarly, if I could choose to leave only one memory to my family and to my friends, that memory would be a hug.

An honest, heartfelt hug is much more than just a symbol of love. It is the way we take other people into ourselves—the way we may offer ourselves to them—an invitation to make each a part of the other’s being. The greatest of all human powers may be found in a tender, meaningful embrace. The scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon, frequently celebrate the magnitude of a similar, but eternal, embrace.

One of the most beautiful testimony of the Saviour recorded anywhere in the scriptures is this reflection spoken by Lehi: “But behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love.” (2 Nephi 1:15)

The Lord promised a similar blessing to Oliver Cowdery,

20 Behold, thou art Oliver, and I have spoken unto thee because of thy desires; therefore treasure up these words in thy heart. Be faithful and diligent in keeping the commandments of God, and I will encircle thee in the arms of my love.
21 Behold, I am Jesus Christ, the Son of God. (D&C 6:20-21)

The people we hug become a part of us. That is most true of the Saviour, just as Lehi said, for it projects its loving kindness into the eternities. It is an encounter with pure love, and it is above all things, the most powerful, most liberating, and most precious.

I called attention to my Grandpa’s hug and to the scriptural testimonies of the Saviour’s embrace in order to show the sharp contrast between an embrace of love and the chains of hell that Alma described to Zeezrom. Alma did not speak of loving, tender, outstretched, beckoning arms, but rather of “a snare of the adversary, which he has laid to catch this people, that he might bring you into subjection unto him, that he might encircle you about with his chains, that he might chain you down to everlasting destruction, according to the power of his captivity.”

The prospects of the confining, restricting, damning encirclement with which Alma forewarned Zeezrom are as real a possibility as is an embrace of love. That was Alma’s message to his antagonists.

In the remainder of chapter 12, Alma drives home that contrast by describing the eternal implications of our keeping— or our not keeping— the covenants we make with God. He says that if we keep our covenants, then the expanse of eternity will open to our view and present us with limitless possibilities. But, on the other hand, if we choose not to keep our covenants, then that view of eternity will implode upon us, and its power will turn from a freedom to act according to our own wills, to the impotency of our having surrendered our wills to the devil, and letting him use the power of our personalities to accomplish his purposes.

What Alma will tell us, in this and the following chapter, is that we cannot avoid an eternal embrace, but we can choose whom we will embrace, and whose power we will assimilate into ourselves when we do.

Alma 13:3-5, LeGrand Baker, the origins of our personalities

Alma 13:3-5
3 And this is the manner after which they were ordained——being called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God, on account of their exceeding faith and good works; in the first place being left to choose good or evil; therefore they having chosen good, and exercising exceedingly great faith, are called with a holy calling, yea, with that holy calling which was prepared with, and according to, a preparatory redemption for such.
4 And thus they have been called to this holy calling on account of their faith, while others would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of their hearts and blindness of their minds, while, if it had not been for this they might have had as great privilege as their brethren.
5 Or in fine, in the first place they were on the same standing with their brethren; thus this holy calling being prepared from the foundation of the world for such as would not harden their hearts, being in and through the atonement of the Only Begotten Son, who was prepared –

Perhaps more than any other passages of scripture, Alma chapters 12 and 13 give us a clear window through we can discover our eternal natures. We have spent all summer on Alma 12, and that should not be a surprise. Hugh Nibley said, “This is the hardest chapter in the Book of Mormon. It’s the one that separates us farthest from the world. It’s the [twelfth] chapter of Alma, where the gospel plan is given.” (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: FARMS], p. 330.)

Chapter 13 is not much simpler. It is about the origin of our personalities.

To show how I read that to be so, let me go through verse 3 again, with a slightly different emphisis from last week, then try to tie the ideas in that verse into the ideas in the two verses that follow it.

Abraham 3-5 tells about the Father’s spirit children (called the “noble and great ones” in ch.3, and “the gods” in chapters 4 and 5) who created the earth, while Alma 12-13 tells about the Father’s spirit children (called “his children in chapter 13) who were ordained to teach the unorganized intelligences about the atonement. Of those members of the Council, Abraham wrote, “God saw these souls that they were good.” Alma was much more explicit:

And this is the manner after which they were ordained – being called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God,

Alma then says that “foreknowledge” was God’s ability to project what he knew about their past into what he knew about their future—that is God’s knowledge of them in sacred time. God knew their works in the past; he knew their integrity, and he knew their future. Therefore, these “children,” —

“being called and prepared from the foundation of the world according to the foreknowledge of God, on account of their exceeding faith and good works;”

That says that because of their faith (pistis – making and keeping covenants) – and good works (in James, Paul, throughout the Book of Mormon and many other places in the scriptures, “works” refer to ordinances.), that they were called and prepared. That should come as no surprise, because that is always the criteria God uses. The surprise may come in the next phrase which answers the question, When?

“in the first place being left to choose good or evil;”

The phrase “in the first place” has one of two meanings: either it is a colloquial expression that is just stuck in there and simply means “early on,” or it means precisely what it says: “in the first place.” If it is only a colloquialism one can make the chapter mean almost anything one wishes. However if it does mean “in the first place,” then these statements describe the attributes of noble and great ones when they were still intelligences. It tells why and how they qualified to be among the earliest spirit children born to our heavenly parents. In this chapter, the phrase, “in the first place” is used twice. I take them to mean exactly what they say: in the first place – as intelligences. Meaning that from “before the beginning” (the Lord’s words to Enoch) they were free to choose good or evil –

“therefore they [as intelligences] having chosen good, and exercising exceedingly great faith [in Christ and his atonement],”

In this verse these “children” are described as having “exceeding faith and good works” and “exercising exceedingly great faith.” If “faith” simply means belief, then that speaks highly of their conviction. However, if “faith” means the same as pistis – tokens of covenants – that helps us understand how truly great these luminaries must have been. Alma says that they –

“are called with a holy calling, yea, with that holy calling which was prepared with, and according to, a preparatory redemption for such.”

“Preparatory redemption” is another key phrase which helps us determine the time this was happening. “Redemption” is coming into the presence of God. In terms of this life, to be redeemed is to be brought back into his presence. (Ether 3:13-14, Helaman 14:17, 2 Nephi 2:2-4, 2 Nephi 1:15). The final redemption is being brought into the Celestial Kingdom where one may reside with God.

“Preparatory redemption” does not mean “preparing for a redemption,” it means a redemption which prepares one for something else – a redemption that is “preparatory.” In this case it would be that redemption that brought those intelligences into God’s presence the first time—being born as spirit children to our heavenly Parents. It is preparatory because it is not permanent.

We had to leave their presence again when we come into this world. Later, when we return to stay, that will be a permanent redemption. What we do in this world to prepare for that is what Alma called, in chapter 12, “the plan of redemption.”

So the first redemption, when we became spirit children was “preparatory” because there we were taught to come here and instructed about what we must do here to obtain the blessings of an eternal redemption.

4 And thus they [the “children” – members of the Council] have been called to this holy calling on account of their faith [in Christ], while others [intelligences who were not members of the Council] would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of their hearts

That phrase, “the hardness of their hearts,” had just been very carefully defined by Alma, so there could be no question in Zeezrom’s mind what it meant. In chapter 12 Alma said,

9 …It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God [“Mysteries” is the same is sode, and may refer to a real sode experience the prophets receive when they return, in vision, to the Council, or it may to the this-world version of a sode experience that the ancient Israelites received during the Feast of Tabernacles temple drama]; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to the heed and diligence which they give unto him.
10 And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.
11 And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction. Now this [choosing to not know the mysteries] is what is meant by the chains of hell. (Alma 12:9-11)

Alma said,

4 And thus they have been called to this holy calling on account of their faith, while others would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of their heartsand blindness of their minds, while, if it had not been for this [their refusal to know] they [the “people”— those who were not yet “children”] might have had as great privilege as their brethren [those who are the “children”].

Understanding that verse, in the full context of the atonement, may be the most important concept in the scriptures—certainly the most relevant for each of us to understand one’s Self. For, as the next verse makes it clear, the noble and great ones were not noble and great because they had some special advantages, but “on account of their exceeding faith and good works” – because of the way they exercised their free agency, their advancement as intelligences was an entirely individual matter. (Abraham 3:18-21 teaches that same thing.)

5a. Or in fine, in the first place [“In the first place” – when they were intelligences] they [the “people”] were on the same standing with their brethren [the “children”];

That is, at some point in time—in the first place—before the very beginning—in our very distant past—the intelligences whom Alma identifies as the “people” were on the same standing as the intelligences whom he identifies as “the children.” In the first place, there was nothing arbitrary about the selection of who would be the noble and great ones. They were not noble and great because they were the among the first to be born to our Heavenly Parents, but they were among the first to be born to our Heavenly Parents because as intelligences they had become noble and great.

5b thus this holy calling [the ordination mentioned in verse one] being prepared from the foundation of the world [that phrase always means at or before the Council in Heaven] for such as would not harden their hearts [when they were intelligences], [This priesthood calling] being in and through the atonement of the Only Begotten Son, who was prepared –

If I read that correctly it says that in the very beginnings of our beginning we were free to choose. Those who chose to have faith in Christ and follow him did so; those who chose to do it to the degree that it seemed convenient, did so; those who chose not to, did not do so. To accept that notion, one must also accept the idea that the atonement reaches back forever—is infinite and eternal. For if intelligences were free to make decisions, there must have also been a way provided that would enable them to correct bad decisions, thus the need for repentance, thus the need for the atonement. I accept that as truth. But in my imagination, I cannot conceive of our origin being so two dimensional as to simply assert that one only accepted Christ or not accept him. My notion is that by the time one had matured sufficiently as an “intelligence” to be ready to be born a child in the world of the spirits, one had not only developed one’s inclination to love the Lord and his children; but one had also fully, or very nearly fully, developed the whole complex system of preferences and non-preferences that we call personality. I suppose also, that all the other attributes of personality were subsets of the most important one, which was (still is) charity – one’s love for our Father and his children.

The first commandment is to Love the Lord. The second is to love your neighbor. If our this-physical-life experience was designed to see if we will love in an environment that is not conducive to love, then it was designed very well indeed. The farmer who beats his dogs and horses, and is cruel to his wife and children, is, at his core, not substantially different from the tyrant who over-taxes his people and oppresses them with unjust laws. Similarly the impoverished housewife who feeds the hungry neighbor child is not substantially different from the middle class Latter-day Saint Relief Society sister who looks after her ill neighbor because she chooses to rather than because she feels it is her duty. It seems to me that earth’s experience was designed, not just to show if we will obey, but to show why we obeyed before we came here. That is, to give us sufficient opportunity in this dark and lonely world to confirm to ourselves and all creation whether we obeyed in the spirit world because we knew which side our bread was buttered on, or whether we obeyed because we truly love the Lord and love his children.

In the Gospel of John, the beloved disciple, quotes the Saviour as saying,

34 A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.
35 By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. (John 13: 34-35)

This does not imply that the command to love one another was never given before that time. In his letters John explains that the commandment is eternal, but is “new” because it is renewed in this world, but it was first given in the pre-mortal existence. He used the phrase, “from the beginning” four times in these few verses. (In D&C 132, the phrase “new and everlasting covenant” has the same connotation.)

4 He that saith, I know him [God], and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.
6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
7 Brethren, I write no new commandment unto you, but an old commandment which ye had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which ye have heard from the beginning.
8 Again, a new commandment I write unto you, which thing is true in him and in you: because the darkness is past, and the true light now shineth.
9 He that saith he is in the light, and hateth his brother, is in darkness even until now.
10 He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him. (1 John 2: 4-10)

and

1 The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth;
2 For the truth’s sake, which dwelleth in us, and shall be with us for ever.
3 Grace be with you, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
4 I rejoiced greatly that I found of thy children walking in truth, as we have received a commandment from the Father.
5 And now I beseech thee, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment unto thee, but that which we had from the beginning, that we love one another.
6 And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it. (2 John 1: 1-6)

If the object of our earth life experience was designed to that end, then human and individual history takes on a whole new meaning. Whether in the extreme of poverty and in utter obscurity, or in great wealth and reputation—or somewhere in between – the purpose of life is the same for everyone – only the specific assignments are different – in this life and, I suppose, in the spirit world which follows. Since “where much is given, much is required” is a true principle, for the rich and the poor, the well educated and the ill-educated, the opportunities for doing good in this life (and/or in the next), are ultimately worked out on a level playing field.

An example is one of the most moving autobiographies I have ever read. Martha Cox’s parents were among the first settlers in St. George, Utah. All of her life she was very poor. Near the end of her autobiography she wrote something like this: “I have always been grateful to the Lord that I had no money. I have noticed that rich people cannot give to poor people without the poor people being reluctant to accept, because they think the rich people are being condescending. But I have always been so poor that I could help whomever I wished, and they were always able to accept whatever I had to give.” (Im sorry I don’t have the exact quote. A typescript of her autobiography is at BYU library: Martha Cragun Cox, 1852-1932. MSS SC 319.)

I believe that one’s love for God and his children—one’s charity (in combination with other personality attributes), and one’s priesthood authority as they are described as a single unit in Abraham 1:2-4, and whose history is described in Alma 13, constitute the ‘law of one’s own being.’ (As I consider it, I think that the phrase “priesthood authority” is the right concept, but as we use the words, probably not the right phrase – though I have no idea what a better one would be. Considering the grand sweep and eternal scope of Abraham’s statements, I think the concept is far too big for our gender oriented phrase “priesthood authority” to say all that is necessary to say. But as I observed, I haven’t the foggiest idea what a better phrase would be.)

Alma 12:3, LeGrand Baker, “but thou hast lied unto God.”

Now Zeezrom, seeing that thou hast been taken in thy lying and craftiness, for thou hast not lied unto men only but thou hast lied unto God; for behold, he knows all thy thoughts, and thou seest that thy thoughts are made known unto us by his Spirit; (Alma 12:3)

I remember, as a boy reading the account of this interchange between Alma and Zeezrom, that I was rather ill-impressed by the logic of it. The reason was that in my naivety, it seemed to me that Alma was simply stating the obvious, so I could not understand why Zeezrom was so deeply moved by such a simple argument. However, now that I am old, I see things I did not see then. I understand that the impact did not come from the simplicity of the argument, but rather from the power of the simplicity. The indictment in those words, “for thou hast not lied unto men only but thou hast lied unto God,” are an invitation to walk through the gates of hell. It was the reality of the invitation that struck Zeezrom to the core of his being.

As a boy, I believed God knows and understands everything. So I saw Alma’s statement, “for behold, he knows all thy thoughts,” as simply an expression of the obvious. But as a boy, I had no concept of a covenantal relationship with God that requires the undeviating rectitude of our actions— but an even greater integrity of our attitudes.

The alternative to keeping one’s covenants is a spiritual disintegration —a profoundly withering, devastating effect on the soul’s capacity to know truth and do good. (Beginning with verse 9 in this chapter, Alma explains how and why that is so.)

The reason that one’s not keeping one’s covenants is so spiritually, emotionally, and mentally debilitating is easy to discover. One cannot lie to God without first lying about one’s Self to one’s Self—squeezing one’s Self in a vice of contradictions. In order for one to accept the lie, one must create an artificial Self to replace the one that is consistent with the eternal law of one’s own being. That is easily accomplished, because the lie distorts one’s memory of one’s Self, and redirects one’s attention from seeking the happiness offered by integrity and love for others, to seeking happiness by building the self-image that can sustain—and be sustained by—perpetuating and justifying a mask that has become the face of the lie. As the person behind the facade assumes the characteristics of the veneer he tries to project as his reality, the result is a kind of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde relationship, where the inner self becomes first subservient, then completely dominated, and ultimately supplanted by the shell that pretends to be the Self.

The dominant personality has become like a meaningless facade—like a termite infested building with a new brick face to present only the pretense of stability— and like the proverbial tree that looks strong on the outside, but is rotten on the inside. Eventually the tree collapses upon itself because the outer shell can no longer hold up the height, weight, and “surpassing beauty” of the tree’s rich green foliage. So the shell implodes, and foliage turns brown and dies.

When one chooses to cease keeping the covenants he has made with God, there are two ways that open to him as alternatives. They appear on the outside to be different, but to the inner consequence they are the same.

One may try to demonstrate the correctness of his choice by seeking to show that the covenants were never valid. Such people often try to justify their actions by asserting that the covenants themselves were a fraud. The idea seems to be that their own part of the covenant is void because when the covenants were made God was off somewhere else. Elder Maxwell once discussed this phenomena:

     The Prophet Joseph spoke of how apostates often bring severe persecutions upon their former friends and associates. “When once that light which was in them is taken from them they become as much darkened as they were previously enlightened, and then, no marvel, if all their power should be enlisted against the truth, and they, Judas like, seek the destruction of those who were their greatest benefactors. (HC 2:23.)
     Strange, how often defectors leave the Church, but they cannot leave it alone!”   (Neal A. Maxwell, All These Things Shall Give Thee Experience [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1979], 108.) (Italics in original.)

Jeremiah described these sorts of apostates, and intertwined his description of their actions with his own understanding of the waters of life.

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. (Jeremiah 2:11-13)

The Lord used that same kind of analogy when he said to the Prophet Joseph,

22  And now, verily I say unto you, that as I said that I would make known my will unto you, behold I will make it known unto you, not by the way of commandment, for there are many who observe not to keep my commandments.
23  But unto him that keepeth my commandments I will give the mysteries of my kingdom, and the same shall be in him a well of living water, springing up unto everlasting life. (D&C 63:20-26)

The other way to lie to God is to remain “active” in the Church, while selectively keeping the convenient covenants and covertly disregarding the others. As time passes, the disregarded will grow in strength and numbers, and the poor ill-defined self will be swallowed up in a morass of duplicity. The Saviour described that kind of apostasy.

27  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.
28  Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. (Matthew 23:25-31)

The result is not different for those who openly rebel and those whose rebellion is a quiet subversion.

Each of us tend to look upon our Self with a prejudiced eye, having a too-intimate relation with our own imperfections. Those who do not wish to project a counterfeit of themselves, seek to uncover the sterling nature of their own reality. “But how?” one asks. “How can I judge myself when I have no one to compare the real me to? The only criterion of judgement I have is the way others appear to me to be. How can I use their public persona as a measure by which to judge the private me?”

There is a way, but it requires some honesty. Yet, if applied, its return will be greater honesty. One of the surest ways to self-judge whether one is being true to the law of one’s own being is to observe one’s Self, and ask: “How much wiggle room do I need in order to be content with the notion that I am keeping all of the necessary covenants?” The answer will reveal that the wiggle room may be a problem, but if some of the covenants are thought of as unnecessary, that is a problem indeed!

If the question is asked often enough, and with real intent, the question’s own relevance will shrink until it has no pretense to hide, and therefore no more meaning. The answer will become, “Oh, I mostly just go about being myself— I keep my covenants with an unassuming rectitude that is as unconscious as breath, and as clean as charity, and as free as happiness?” When that is the answer, one has become free of self-disparagement, because one’s Self has come to be in perfect accord with the eternal law of one’s own being.