Beware the Mormon Endowment

            The corporate Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints teaches its members that one of their ultimate goals in life is to enter into one of its temples, after passing a worthiness exam, and participate in the ordinances thereof. The four main ordinances are baptisms for the dead, the initiatory ordinance of washing and anointing, the endowment, and marriages/sealings of couples and families for time and all eternity; the latter three performed for both the living and the dead. While teens and young adults are able to receive “limited” recommends to participate in baptisms, the church’s primary focus is for adults to participate in the endowment. However, the endowment as it stands in the church today is not only not based on revealed, canonized scripture, but every aspect of the temple endowment is warned against in the scriptures.

The Scriptural Endowment

            The word “endowment” only appears five times in the scriptures, and all five of them are in the Doctrine and Covenants. The word “endowed” appears seven times; again all in the D&C. Section 105 is the first one that contains a combination of the two. Given on June 22, 1834 to the men of Zion’s Camp, the Lord says the following in verses 9-12: “Therefore, in consequence of the transgressions of my people, it is expedient in me that mine elders should wait for a little season for the redemption of Zion—That they themselves may be prepared, and that my people may be taught more perfectly, and have experience, and know more perfectly concerning their duty, and the things which I require at their hands. And this cannot be brought to pass until mine elders are endowed with power from on high. For behold, I have prepared a great endowment and blessing to be poured out upon them, inasmuch as they are faithful and continue in humility before me.” (Emphasis added.)

            Verses 18 and 33 also mention an endowment, “But inasmuch as there are those who have hearkened unto my words, I have prepared a blessing and an endowment for them, if they continue faithful.” and “Verily I say unto you, it is expedient in me that the first elders of my church should receive their endowment from on high in my house, which I have commanded to be built unto my name in the land of Kirtland.”

            Verse 12 refers to the baptized elders. Verse 18 refers to those not yet baptized. And verse 33 refers to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery, the first and second elders of the church, as setting the example in receiving the Lord’s endowment after the completion of the Kirtland temple. While the verses in this section refer to the fact that the Lord had prepared an endowment for those who had been baptized, there’s no explanation as to exactly what the endowment was at that time.

            To better understand what the Lord defines as His endowment, we need to fast-forward to the Lord’s acceptance of the Kirtland temple in Section 110:9, “Yea the hearts of thousands and tens of thousands shall greatly rejoice in consequence of the blessings which shall be poured out, and the endowment with which my servants have been endowed in this house.” Here the Lord is speaking in past tense regarding the promised endowment and is saying that his servants have already been endowed. This revelation took place only a week after the dedication of the Kirtland temple and we know of nothing resembling the current temple Endowment taking place therein. Therefore, what did the Lord refer to? The connecting piece is found in Joseph Smith’s preface of the Section, “In the afternoon, I assisted the other Presidents in distributing the Lord’s Supper to the Church, receiving it from the Twelve, whose privilege it was to officiate at the sacred desk this day. After having performed this service to my brethren, I retired to the pulpit, the veils being dropped, and bowed myself, with Oliver Cowdery, in solemn and silent prayer. After rising from prayer, the following vision was opened to both of us” (History of the Church, 2:435).

            In short, Joseph Smith received the vision after he and the other Presidents partook of the Sacrament. What is the promise given in the Sacramental prayer? “…that they may always have his Spirit to be with them.” Or, think of the promise this way, “…that the Spirit may endow them with power from on high.” It really is that simple! The Lord promises those who have been baptized and renew their covenants by partaking the Sacrament that they will be endowed by the power of His Spirit to always be with them!

            For the sake of completeness, the final mention of “endowment” in the D&C is in Section 124:39, “Therefore, verily I say unto you, that your anointings, and your washings, and your baptisms for the dead, and your solemn assemblies, and your memorials for your sacrifices by the sons of Levi, and for your oracles in your most holy places wherein you receive conversations, and your statutes and judgments, for the beginning of the revelations and foundation of Zion, and for the glory, honor, and endowment of all her municipals, are ordained by the ordinance of my holy house, which my people are always commanded to build unto my holy name.” What is the ordinance of the temple that the Lord told the saints to perform in Nauvoo? Baptism for the dead.

            Even if people disagree with my conclusion of what the Lord’s scriptural endowment is for the baptized members of the church, we can also see that there is absolutely nothing mentioning a new name, garments of the holy priesthood, signs and tokens, and secretive oaths and covenants taken within a special ceremony. Because of the lack of any sort of mention of the above, members cannot verify if the current Endowment is truly of God or not and the information of its origination is being withheld by the leaders. However, a search of the scriptures will reveal what they have to say about each aspect of the current Endowment.

The New Name

            The “new name” is given to a person as a precursor to the actual Endowment itself. Within the temple, a person is told to never reveal his or her new name until a specific time and place. That new name is also the name of one of the accompanying signs and tokens learned and received during the Endowment. Even after the ordinance is complete, the person is told to safeguard and never reveal the new name, but to always remember it. Here’s the problem: Everyone who goes through the temple that day is given the same new name for each of the men and women, so there is no individuality in the process.

            Who was the first to receive a new name after being born into a physical body in the scriptures? The answer is found in Moses 5:31, “And Cain said: Truly I am Mahan, the master of this great secret, that I may murder and get gain. Wherefore Cain was called Master Mahan, and he gloried in his wickedness.” That’s right; Cain received the new name of Mahan after swearing a blood oath with Satan in secrecy, also meaning that his new name was to be kept secret as the narrative continues to refer to him as Cain for the remained of his story.

            There are two other examples of people receiving new names in the scriptures: Abram to Abraham and Jacob to Israel. Both of these men received their new names by the Lord and, the more important point, they did not keep their new names secret. Thus we see that the pattern of receiving a new name within the temple more closely follows that of Satan’s than of God’s.

The “Garments of the Holy Priesthood”

            Mormons get a lot of flak for their “sacred underwear” that they have to start wearing about going through the temple. A person isn’t clothed in the garments until after the washing and anointing of the initiatory ordinance; but the garment is considered a part of the Endowment due to its comparison with the coat of skins given to Adam and Eve as a shield and protection. The scriptures themselves don’t say anything directly regarding something like the garment, but the connection can be made more easily after reading the statement in the First Presidency Letter of November 5, 1996 that the garment is, “an outward expression of an inner commitment.” Or, in other words, wearing the garment is an outward mark or token to separate the members of the church from everyone else in the world.

            This raises a warning flag based upon the pattern established in the scriptures. In the Old Testament, Cain was the one marked with a curse for his murder of Abel. And in the Book of Mormon, the Nephites were the ones who remained pure and white while the Lamanites were marked with dark skin and even splinter groups from the Nephites marked themselves according to their own pattern. Alma 2:4, 6-10 explains the pattern of the Lord marking people outwardly, “And the Amlicites were distinguished from the Nephites, for they had marked themselves with red in their foreheads after the manner of the Lamanites; nevertheless they had not shorn their heads like unto the Lamanites. … And the skins of the Lamanites were dark, according to the mark which was set upon their fathers, which was a curse upon them because of their transgression and their rebellion against their brethren, who consisted of Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph, and Sam, who were just and holy men. And their brethren sought to destroy them, therefore they were cursed; and the Lord God set a mark upon them, yea, upon Laman and Lemuel, and also the sons of Ishmael, and Ishmaelitish women. And this was done that their seed might be distinguished from the seed of their brethren, that thereby the Lord God might preserve his people, that they might not mix and believe in incorrect traditions which would prove their destruction. And it came to pass that whosoever did mingle his seed with that of the Lamanites did bring the same curse upon his seed. Therefore, whosoever suffered himself to be led away by the Lamanites was called under that head, and there was a mark set upon him.”

            Because the Lord is pure and holy, that is how he distinguishes His people: through their pure hearts regardless of their skin colors or previous markings. However, those people who reject the Lord’s covenants end up marking themselves outwardly. The garments themselves would not be a problem, other than the fear and control surrounding their continual use, if they were made of plain cloth and the notion of their protection was symbolic much like Paul’s definition of the armor of God, because baptized members are promised the keys of the ministering of angels and thus protection from guardian angels. However, the notion that the garments and the markings on them themselves will be the protection against spiritual and physical harm is the problem because those markings are Masonic, rather than scriptural in origin.

The Signs and Tokens

            Before I go into an elaboration on the various signs and tokens learned and exchanged within the temple, there’s one issue that I need to address. Members are told to explain that these signs and tokens are “sacred” and that they should never be revealed to anyone outside of the temple. The problem is that they are still kept secret from those who haven’t been through the temple. Once again, numerous sacred ordinances are outlined within the scriptures for all to see, but the members still respect them in order to not trifle with sacred things as directed. Anything that is not to be revealed except to the same people within closed walls is a secret, plain and simple.

            With that explanation out of the way, here’s what the Book of Mormon says about secret signs and tokens in Helaman 6:22, “And it came to pass that they did have their signs, yea, their secret signs, and their secret words; and this that they might distinguish a brother who had entered into the covenant, that whatsoever wickedness his brother should do he should not be injured by his brother, nor by those who did belong to his band, who had taken this covenant.” The people referred to in this verse are the Gadianton robbers. In short, secret signs, tokens and names (including new names) are associated with secret combinations in the scriptures.

            Where did the temple Endowment signs and tokens come from since there’s nothing regarding them in the scriptures? Non-Mormons will refer to the common argument that Joseph Smith stole the Endowment from a high-level Masonic ritual. These arguments are correct. There are also common photos of Gordon B. Hinckley and Thomas S. Monson exchanging one of the Masonic/temple token handshakes with Dick Cheney and George W. Bush, both of whom have openly admitted to being members of secret societies.

Presidents of the church openly giving one of the temple tokens to government leaders.

             Finally, the tokens are not as secret as the church will admit given that published magazine articles have featured the exact same token handshakes as part of the use of chi in martial arts, as shown below:

The Oaths

            The first secret combination between Cain and Satan was established thusly in Moses 5:29, “And Satan said unto Cain: Swear unto me by thy throat, and if thou tell it thou shalt die; and swear thy brethren by their heads, and by the living God, that they tell it not; for if they tell it, they shall surely die; and this that thy father may not know it; and this day I will deliver thy brother Abel into thine hands.” The Book of Mormon reiterates these same oaths being taken by secret combinations established within both the Jaredite and Nephite societies.

            When a person experiences the current Endowment, they perform similar oaths after being told that they will be delivered to Satan’s power if they divulge any of the temple’s secrets. Also prior to 1990, people were also required to pantomime their own ritualistic suicide of slitting their throats, cutting out their hearts, and removing their bowels in order to mimic the suffering of their lives to be taken should they violated those oaths. There is also one particular temple oath that engages into the practice of idolatry by having the members consecrate all of their time, talents and energies to “the church” and not to God, thus violating the directive of the first two of the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20:3-5.

            This is the practice that most blatantly violates the scriptures, for Jesus Christ clearly taught both the Jews and the Nephites, “And again it is written, thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths; But verily, verily, I say unto you, swear not at all; neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; Nor by the earth, for it is his footstool; Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair black or white; But let your communication be Yea, yea; Nay, nay; for whatsoever cometh of more than these is evil.” (Emphasis added.)

Conclusion

            Based upon the Lord’s definition of endowment from the Doctrine and Covenants and the warnings against what currently takes place within the temple Endowment ceremony, we can not only conclude that the Endowment is not of God, but is used to deceive Mormons into joining themselves into a secret combination that infiltrated the church in its early days and altered what the Lord prescribed to be done with His holy house.

            The Lord warned in D&C 124:47-48, “And it shall come to pass that if you build a house unto my name, and do not do the things that I say, I will not perform the oath which I make unto you, neither fulfil the promises which ye expect at my hands, saith the Lord. For instead of blessings, ye, by your own works, bring cursings, wrath, indignation, and judgments upon your own heads, by your follies, and by all your abominations, which you practise before me, saith the Lord.” Because the church does not what the Lord has said, every temple it has built after the one in Kirtland is cursed and ripe for destruction due to the blatant mockery of God’s established pattern of openness, no secrets, and the sole teaching of repentance and baptism as the only saving ordinances with more or less coming of evil.

            As there is no scriptural evidence in favor of the current Endowment, the members of the church have every right to refuse to recognize it as a legitimate ordinance. D&C Section 26 states that all things within the church are to be done with the common consent of the members. Thus those members have every right to demand a full accounting of what the leaders, past and present, have kept secret from them. If the church leaders do not come forward to confess and repent of their unjust actions in deceiving the members in this way, they will have no choice but to be exposed and cut off in a manner very similar to the promised destruction of the cursed temples wherein there will not be left one stone upon another that shall not be thrown down.

What Mormon 8 Tells Us

            In my previous post I explained how 2 Nephi 28 is directed at the corrupt leadership of the LDS Church, or rather the corporation that pretends to be the Lord’s restored church. One cannot deny that Nephi was incredibly direct in his statements once one realizes just how applicable the fulfillments of each are in our day. However, Nephi wasn’t the only one to condemn the actions of the corrupt leadership in our day. Prior to his decision to include the Jaredite record and some other writings, Moroni felt that his words that comprise Mormon chapters 8 and 9 would be his farewell message to the world prior to the coming forth of the Book of Mormon.

            I also mentioned in my previous post that this chapter is the one that fully explains the condemnation that has rested upon the church for the majority of its existence since 1832. As such, let’s dig in.

Mormon 8

 1 Behold I, Moroni, do finish the record of my father, Mormon. Behold, I have but few things to write, which things I have been commanded by my father.

            Moroni spends less time introducing himself here than mentioning that he has been given an assignment to fulfill his father, Mormon’s, final wish. He goes on to explain why beginning in verse 3.

 2 And now it came to pass that after the great and tremendous battle at Cumorah, behold, the Nephites who had escaped into the country southward were hunted by the Lamanites, until they were all destroyed.

            It should be noted that, at this point, the distinction of the names of Nephites and Lamanites no longer refers to descendants of Nephi and Laman, respectively. 4 Nephi 37 and 38 explain that the true believers and worshippers of Christ were the Nephites while the Lamanites were those who rejected the gospel as taught by the resurrected Jesus Christ. This distinction lasted until after the destruction of the Nephites as described above.

            Also in regards to the battle at Cumorah: it is indeed the same hill Cumorah that Moroni led Joseph Smith to in order to retrieve the gold plates. Ancient American magazine provides numerous evidences and discoveries that the Nephite nation may well have been the Hopewell civilization rather than the people living in Mesoamerica as the church has claimed for the past 100 years but has failed to provide convincing evidence of the claim. Joseph Smith stated through inspiration that the Nephite city of Manti was located in current-day Randolph County, Missouri and that the River Sidon is the Mississippi River. As the Nephites retreated from the advancing Lamanite armies, they headed northeast towards current-day New York and Cumorah.

 3 And my father also was killed by them, and I even remain alone to write the sad tale of the destruction of my people. But behold, they are gone, and I fulfil the commandment of my father. And whether they will slay me, I know not.

            Moroni doesn’t say how he survived but I surmise that he did not go into the battle where Mormon died. He needed to stay alive to act as a special witness of the destruction of the Nephites in accordance of Nephi’s original vision and prophecy that the Nephites would be utterly destroyed by the time 400 years after the resurrected Jesus Christ’s appearance to the “other sheep” on the American continent (John 10:16).

 4 Therefore I will write and hide up the records in the earth; and whither I go it mattereth not.

            At this point Moroni’s ambition is to finish up what he’s been commanded to do and be ready to live or die under any circumstance. He doesn’t know what will happen, but he’s satisfied in knowing that he’s completed his mission.

 5 Behold, my father hath made this record, and he hath written the intent thereof. And behold, I would write it also if I had room upon the plates, but I have not; and ore I have none, for I am alone. My father hath been slain in battle, and all my kinsfolk, and I have not friends nor whither to go; and how long the Lord will suffer that I may live I know not.

            Moroni is acting as Mormon’s second witness to Mormon’s work of abridging the large plates of Nephi onto the gold plates. Unfortunately, he simply did not have the means to expand the record very much for the simple reason that doing so would have alerted his presence and location to the Lamanites. As much as he says that it didn’t matter what happened to him, he still wanted to live.

 6 Behold, four hundred years have passed away since the coming of our Lord and Savior.

            This is Moroni’s full witness statement of the fulfillment of Nephi’s original prophecy.

 7 And behold, the Lamanites have hunted my people, the Nephites, down from city to city and from place to place, even until they are no more; and great has been their fall; yea, great and marvelous is the destruction of my people, the Nephites.

            At this point the Nephites no longer had a prayer. This was a parallel of the destruction of the city of Ammonihah back in the time of Alma the younger as the Nephites had become prideful to the point of believing they were invincible. But once the Lamanites scattered their armies and came upon small Nephite settlements, they left no survivors.

 8 And behold, it is the hand of the Lord which hath done it. And behold also, the Lamanites are at war one with another; and the whole face of this land is one continual round of murder and bloodshed; and no one knoweth the end of the war.

            Once again, Moroni is pointing out the fulfillment of prophecy as the Lord promised Mormon that vengeance was His and the Nephites had crossed beyond the point of no return. The Lamanites weren’t satiated simply with the destruction of their enemies, so they turned against each other to determine who was the strongest. However, Moroni does not mention one particular thing: The Gadianton robbers were alive and well at this point so the war may well have been the Lamanites vs. the Gadiantons.

 9 And now, behold, I say no more concerning them, for there are none save it be the Lamanites and robbers that do exist upon the face of the land.

            Moroni didn’t know what would happen in regards to the end of that war but dropped the subject because he still had to deliver his father’s message on what little room he had remaining on the plates.

 10 And there are none that do know the true God save it be the disciples of Jesus, who did tarry in the land until the wickedness of the people was so great that the Lord would not suffer them to remain with the people; and whether they be upon the face of the land no man knoweth.

            Why did the Lord take the Three Nephites away? Because the Nephites were so beyond the point of no return that even Christ Himself would have been rejected had He been among them. The Three were surrogates of Jesus Christ due to the miracles they performed and the words they taught. But the Lord, knowing the extraordinary hard-heartedness of the people, knew that such wicked people did not even deserve the time of day from Him. 

 11 But behold, my father and I have seen them, and they have ministered unto us.

            Yet another second witness statement from Moroni.

 12 And whoso receiveth this record, and shall not condemn it because of the imperfections which are in it, the same shall know of greater things than these. Behold, I am Moroni; and were it possible, I would make all things known unto you.

            The original Book of Mormon has numerous spelling and grammatical mistakes, but it is still the translation that the Lord personally approved of in D&C 27. Those who receive the record in their heart will not judge the imperfections as a “learned man” would and will be blessed with greater things due to their desire for spiritual truth. Moroni is telling people here to focus on the pure message contained in the Book rather than worrying about mistakes in the writing or translation process after its restoration. Those who do will experience situations much like Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdery did when, after they baptized each other following the appearance of John the Baptist, the spirit of God rested upon them and the mysteries of the scriptures were revealed to them. In the final sentence, Moroni is again lamenting that he simply does not have the means to tell us more on his own.

 13 Behold, I make an end of speaking concerning this people. I am the son of Mormon, and my father was a descendant of Nephi.

            Moroni’s finally gotten around to giving a full introduction of himself to the reader now that he has finished delivering his father’s message about witnessing the destruction of the Nephites. From this point on, Moroni’s words are his own.

 14 And I am the same who hideth up this record unto the Lord; the plates thereof are of no worth, because of the commandment of the Lord. For he truly saith that no one shall have them to get gain; but the record thereof is of great worth; and whoso shall bring it to light, him will the Lord bless.

            We can reflect that it took Joseph Smith four years of repenting before Moroni allowed Joseph to receive the plates because his mind wandered into greed due to the gold value of the plates and because he failed to honor a woman, Emma, as a foreordained witness.  If anyone had ever tried to sell the plates, either that person would have been struck down or no one would have dared to buy them knowing full well the dangers to themselves from other greedy men. The exact importance of the record to God is further explained in the next verse.

 15 For none can have power to bring it to light save it be given him of God; for God wills that it shall be done with an eye single to his glory, or the welfare of the ancient and long dispersed covenant people of the Lord.

            The Lord had guardian angels watching over the hill Cumorah during the entire time between Moroni’s final farewells until Joseph Smith was led to retrieve the plates. If anyone who had not been called of God tried to retrieve the plates, he would have been killed or deterred.

 16 And blessed be he that shall bring this thing to light; for it shall be brought out of darkness unto light, according to the word of God; yea, it shall be brought out of the earth, and it shall shine forth out of darkness, and come unto the knowledge of the people; and it shall be done by the power of God.

            Despite the fact that the Book of Mormon has been translated and is available today, this verse has not yet been fulfilled! The Book of Mormon has indeed been brought out of the earth, but its “coming to light” does not simply refer to the fact that it is translated and available for people to read as it has not yet “come unto the knowledge of the people”. The reason why is the answer to why the Mormon Church is under condemnation. That answer will be given in the proceeding verses, but Moroni first gives a stern warning against those who will reject the Book of Mormon entirely for various frivolous reasons.

 17 And if there be faults they be the faults of a man. But behold, we know no fault; nevertheless God knoweth all things; therefore, he that condemneth, let him be aware lest he shall be in danger of hell fire.

            Moroni knew that he and his father were human, and that whoever translated the record would be human, so there was no guarantee that there wouldn’t be flaws of any kind. Moroni also admits that even he and Mormon very well could have made a mistake in the abridgement process, but from what they knew, they had done well.

God Himself has testified of the truthfulness of the Book of Mormon. If anyone wants to try and challenge that, they get to take it up with God.

 18 And he that saith: Show unto me, or ye shall be smitten—let him beware lest he commandeth that which is forbidden of the Lord.

            Why is it forbidden? Men do not have any right to give that kind of a commandment to another man. 

 19 For behold, the same that judgeth rashly shall be judged rashly again; for according to his works shall his wages be; therefore, he that smiteth shall be smitten again, of the Lord.

           Those who attempt to challenge God and His will are only given the same in return. They have their reward.

 20 Behold what the scripture says—man shall not smite, neither shall he judge; for judgment is mine, saith the Lord, and vengeance is mine also, and I will repay.

            The final portion of the sentence is a word-for-word quotation of what the Lord told Mormon after the Nephites had hammered the final nail into their society’s coffin in Mormon 3:15. Yet again Moroni is acting in his role as a second witness to these things.

 21 And he that shall breathe out wrath and strifes against the work of the Lord, and against the covenant people of the Lord who are the house of Israel, and shall say: We will destroy the work of the Lord, and the Lord will not remember his covenant which he hath made unto the house of Israel—the same is in danger to be hewn down and cast into the fire;

            Moroni is using this portion to teach a valuable lesson on the potential consequences of misusing free agency. If agency didn’t exist, such an action by those who he is describing here wouldn’t even be possible. There is more to this verse, but I’ve saved that explanation for the conclusion.

 22 For the eternal purposes of the Lord shall roll on, until all his promises shall be fulfilled.

            The Lord re-states this in D&C 1:38.

 23 Search the prophecies of Isaiah. Behold, I cannot write them. Yea, behold I say unto you, that those saints who have gone before me, who have possessed this land, shall cry, yea, even from the dust will they cry unto the Lord; and as the Lord liveth he will remember the covenant which he hath made with them.

            Once again, another second witness statement as the resurrected Jesus Christ told the Nephites to search the prophecies of Isaiah first and foremost. He is also reassuring those who have gone on before him that the word of the Lord will not pass away.

 24 And he knoweth their prayers, that they were in behalf of their brethren. And he knoweth their faith, for in his name could they remove mountains; and in his name could they cause the earth to shake; and by the power of his word did they cause prisons to tumble to the earth; yea, even the fiery furnace could not harm them, neither wild beasts nor poisonous serpents, because of the power of his word.

            While Moroni doesn’t name names, he is referring to people like the brother of Jared, Moses, Alma, Amulek, Nephi and Lehi the sons of Helaman, the Three Nephites and many others. These same promises are made available to all saints today as well upon the condition of their faithfulness.

 25 And behold, their prayers were also in behalf of him that the Lord should suffer to bring these things forth.

            The Lord specifically told Enos that He had already promised his father, Jacob, that He would preserve the records for the sake of the Lamanites. There is no doubt that everyone who the records were entrusted with had the same attitude that they’d be able to preserve them until the end.

 26 And no one need say they shall not come, for they surely shall, for the Lord hath spoken it; for out of the earth shall they come, by the hand of the Lord, and none can stay it; and it shall come in a day when it shall be said that miracles are done away; and it shall come even as if one should speak from the dead.

            Moroni is now beginning to reach the similar points that Nephi made back in 2 Nephi 28. However, he is not simply talking about the coming forth of the translation of the Book of Mormon itself, but he is referring to what he said in verse 16 about it being brought forth into the light because the conditions described in the following verses simply were not happening in the world at the time. 

 27 And it shall come in a day when the blood of saints shall cry unto the Lord, because of secret combinations and the works of darkness.

            See 2 Nephi 26:22 and 2 Nephi 28:9 for Nephi’s prophecy of these secret combinations and works of darkness. Remember that these things are taking place within the church itself against the pure followers of Christ.

 28 Yea, it shall come in a day when the power of God shall be denied, and churches become defiled and be lifted up in the pride of their hearts; yea, even in a day when leaders of churches and teachers shall rise in the pride of their hearts, even to the envying of them who belong to their churches.

            See my comments for 2 Nephi 28:3-5.

 29 Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be heard of fires, and tempests, and vapors of smoke in foreign lands;

            This past decade alone has seen some of the greatest and most powerful natural disasters in history. The 2004 earthquake in Indonesia, Hurricane Katrina, and the 2011 earthquake in Japan are some of the more notable examples. However, there have been countless others all over the world that simply do not get the same amount of media coverage. One has to actively search for such information.

 30 And there shall also be heard of wars, rumors of wars, and earthquakes in divers places.

            Since the United States began its aerial assault on Afghanistan in October 2001, it has been in a state of constant warfare in the Middle East while many politicians and lawyers today are calling not only for an escalation of these ways, but also new attacks/fronts/wars in other areas. The church is silent on such issues despite the directive in D&C 98 to renounce war and proclaim peace. Church members are led to believe that offensive invasions of foreign nations are a way to “open” the countries for missionary work contrary to the teachings of the Book of Mormon. This also doesn’t even begin to cover the skirmishes that countless other countries are involved in right now either.

 31 Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be great pollutions upon the face of the earth; there shall be murders, and robbing, and lying, and deceivings, and whoredoms, and all manner of abominations; when there shall be many who will say, Do this, or do that, and it mattereth not, for the Lord will uphold such at the last day. But wo unto such, for they are in the gall of bitterness and in the bonds of iniquity.

            See my comments for 2 Nephi 28:8-9.

 32 Yea, it shall come in a day when there shall be churches built up that shall say: Come unto me, and for your money you shall be forgiven of your sins.

            While Nephi did not mention priestcraft 2 Nephi 28, he did say this about it in 2 Nephi 26:29, “He commandeth that there shall be no priestcrafts; for, behold, priestcrafts are that men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain and praise of the world; but they seek not the welfare of Zion.” However, remember that this is not directed at Christian faiths in general, but at the corporate LDS church and the splinter groups created after Joseph Smith’s death.

            The corporate church literally holds its members’ salvation for ransom in the form of needing to be a full tithe payer in order to “be found worthy” of holding a temple recommend. People who do not or cannot pay a full tithe are judged as “unfaithful,” despite the fact that the members have absolutely no idea exactly what their tithes are being used for. They are told to trust in the arm of flesh in regards to these tithing funds and that they will be blessed in doing so.

 33 O ye wicked and perverse and stiffnecked people, why have ye built up churches unto yourselves to get gain? Why have ye transfigured the holy word of God, that ye might bring damnation upon your souls? Behold, look ye unto the revelations of God; for behold, the time cometh at that day when all these things must be fulfilled.

            Moroni has stopped talking about the time wherein the Book of Mormon will come to light and is now directing his words solely at the members of the restored church. We already know that it is run by bankers, businessmen, lawyers, doctors, and used car salesmen in order to bring in as much money as possible. But the second question is the more important one: Why have ye transfigured the holy word of God, that ye might bring damnation upon your souls? In 1837, the Book of Mormon received a second printing, but the text had been altered with over 3,000 significant, unauthorized changes that not only altered the identity of God, but also fulfilled Nephi’s prophecy of the plain and precious truths being removed from both the Bible and Book of Mormon!

            The unauthorized alteration to the Book of Mormon from its pure translated form is the greatest single reason why the LDS church is cursed by God! This is nothing compared to the condemnation for “treating lightly” the message in the Book of Mormon in 1832. The record and message of the Book of Mormon cannot “come to light” as described in verse 16 until the church repents and returns to the original 1830 version or until God makes known someone who has been called from outside of the hierarchy to restore the original version and let the church condemn itself!

 34 Behold, the Lord hath shown unto me great and marvelous things concerning that which must shortly come, at that day when these things shall come forth among you.

            Here Moroni partially refers to the prophesied cleansing of the church. I went into detail on that in a recent post. The other part refers to great and wonderful miracles and events that we currently can’t even conceive of.

 35 Behold, I speak unto you as if ye were present, and yet ye are not. But behold, Jesus Christ hath shown you unto me, and I know your doing.

            We need to imagine this as if Moroni was the sole speaker at a General Conference. He speaks to both the members and the leaders in the same degree. He not only saw the growth of the church, but also its corruption and cleansing. He saw how the corrupt leaders will try to hide their actions, but also how they’ll ultimately fail in doing so.

 36 And I know that ye do walk in the pride of your hearts; and there are none save a few only who do not lift themselves up in the pride of their hearts, unto the wearing of very fine apparel, unto envying, and strifes, and malice, and persecutions, and all manner of iniquities; and your churches, yea, even every one, have become polluted because of the pride of your hearts.

            See my comments for 2 Nephi 28:11-14.

 37 For behold, ye do love money, and your substance, and your fine apparel, and the adorning of your churches, more than ye love the poor and the needy, the sick and the afflicted.

The church is more focused on maintaining its image than actually doing God’s will! The “brethren” will not act like the prophets of the Book of Mormon and Old Testament because it will not only turn the people of the world against the church, it will hurt the church financially in terms of its investments and monetary dealings. Rather than “the prophet” dealing with affairs related to the church, it is done through a public relations department while the church leaders spend money on pet projects rather than helping the poor and the needy.

 38 O ye pollutions, ye hypocrites, ye teachers, who sell yourselves for that which will canker, why have ye polluted the holy church of God? Why are ye ashamed to take upon you the name of Christ? Why do ye not think that greater is the value of an endless happiness than that misery which never dies—because of the praise of the world?

Hypocrisy is the practice that Jesus Christ condemned the most. He absolutely hated the actions of the Pharisees for their complete and utter hypocrisy. Moroni is condemning the same hypocritical actions of the church leaders today because they care more about their money and their positions rather than becoming true Christ-like people and actually serving the members! Not only that, the October 2011 General Conference proves that the leaders do not preach the gospel, but rather their own message of blind obedience and prophet worship while making a mockery of God’s commandments to love God and love they neighbor with everything else branching out from there.

 39 Why do ye adorn yourselves with that which hath no life, and yet suffer the hungry, and the needy, and the naked, and the sick and the afflicted to pass by you, and notice them not?

            This is essentially a repeat of verse 37 done in question form and not only does it add emphasis to the wrongful actions, it is also a question that the corrupt leaders will be forced to answer at the judgment bar of God.

 40 Yea, why do ye build up your secret abominations to get gain, and cause that widows should mourn before the Lord, and also orphans to mourn before the Lord, and also the blood of their fathers and their husbands to cry unto the Lord from the ground, for vengeance upon your heads?

            Sins of omission are far worse than sins of commission. Corrupt leaders truly do not understand how much of a burden leadership is. Not only are they held responsible for their own actions, but for the wicked actions of a people that they fail to properly teach. In short: The sins of the people are held on the leaders’ heads because the leaders failed to accomplish their assigned missions. The Lord will have His vengeance for the people that corrupt leaders have wronged and failed.

 41 Behold, the sword of vengeance hangeth over you; and the time soon cometh that he avengeth the blood of the saints upon you, for he will not suffer their cries any longer.

            This final verse isn’t as nice as the final verse in 2 Nephi 28. Moroni is reminding the corrupt people that the time they have left to repent is quickly running out. In fact, Moroni makes no mention of the fact that they do have time left to repent because he has just witnessed the destruction of his unrepentant people.

Conclusion

            As we can see, both Nephi and Moroni did not hold back in warning the church members today of the absolute wrongdoings and corruption that they foresaw. To “treat lightly’ the message of the Book of Mormon is to fail to recognize the true application of the verses and prophecies within these two chapters as well as the rest of the book as a whole. Why did the prophets in the Book warn so much about priestcraft and secret combinations? Because they saw that the same practices and people would infiltrate the restored church. If these things weren’t prophesied to happen, then Mormon would not have included them in his abridgement because we already know how much he lamented the fact that he couldn’t even include 1% of the entire record.

            D&C 26 states that the church members are the ones who are truly in charge of the direction that the church takes. Until they awaken to the current situation in regards to the corrupt leadership and repent of their own prideful actions that have allowed the leaders to get away with what they’ve done, nothing will change and the church will remain cursed because of these things. Fortunately, the actions of the church leaders in regards to political affairs and other prospects that they have no business being involved with are causing multitudes of saints to start asking questions and, no matter what the corrupt leaders try to do to “reign in” such actions, the corruption will fall. How do I know this? See verses 21 and 22. Once people begin to realize just who the Book of Mormon was written for and exactly what it is warning about, the message becomes clear as day and does its role in setting people free.

What 2 Nephi 28 Tells Us

            The collective membership of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has been cursed for the majority of the church’s existence. The Lord first warned the church that it was under his condemnation for treating lightly the message contained in the Book of Mormon in 1832 (See D&C 84:54-58). Ezra Taft Benson reminded the church of this condemnation in 1989 and Gordon B. Hinckley challenged the members to all read the Book of Mormon again in 2005. However, that curse still has not been rescinded and with good reason: The church does not understand the warnings contained in the book or recognize that the warnings are specific for all Mormons.

            As many members will agree, the book was written for our day, but that is not all; because the records in the book focus on the Lord’s covenant people in the last days, they are also warning the people to not fall into the same traps that the Nephites did. These include polygamy, idolatry, pride, the taking of oaths, the unrighteous influence of lawyers and attorneys, the dangers of wicked rulers, the Lord’s stance on offensive wars, and many others. But the main theme I wish to focus on this time is the collective warnings in 2 Nephi 28 and Mormon 8 wherein Nephi and Moroni warn about the conditions of churches in the last days. The official church interpretation assumes that these churches refer to other Christian faiths, but the writers in the Book of Mormon paid almost no attention to them. Since the book was written to, for and about the Lord’s restored church, it is warning us about what would happen to that same church.

            In order to help the readers to better understand just how the warnings in these two chapters apply to the Mormon Church and not necessarily other Christian faiths, I will proceed to do a verse-by-verse commentary of the two chapters. Due to the lengths of each chapter, I’ll be separating the commentaries into two posts.

2 Nephi 28

 1 And now, behold, my brethren, I have spoken unto you, according as the Spirit hath constrained me; wherefore, I know that they must surely come to pass.

            While indirect, this is the first reference in the Book of Mormon that applies the teaching in D&C 100:6, “For it shall be given you in the very hour, yea, in the very moment, what ye shall say,” as Nephi is teaching his people exactly what the spirit tells him at that very moment. His brother Jacob and Samuel the Lamanite specifically mention this application later on. Also as Nephi has just finished quoting Isaiah, he is adding his second witness to Isaiah’s words.

 2 And the things which shall be written out of the book shall be of great worth unto the children of men, and especially unto our seed, which is a remnant of the house of Israel.

            Of course “the book” refers to the coming forth of the Book of Mormon as that is the prophecy from Isaiah that Nephi just quoted. It will be a great worth to the children of men due to its teachings of God and teaching the descendants of the Lamanites that they are of the house of Israel as Mormon later says in Mormon 7:2. However, because of free agency there would be no guarantee that the Lamanites would accept the record. When Joseph Smith sent Oliver Cowdery, Parley P. Pratt and others on a mission to the Lamanites, they had more success in Kirtland, Ohio than with the Native Americans.

 3 For it shall come to pass in that day that the churches which are built up, and not unto the Lord, when the one shall say unto the other: Behold, I, I am the Lord’s; and the others shall say: I, I am the Lord’s; and thus shall every one say that hath built up churches, and not unto the Lord—

            Here is the first instance wherein reading at face value will cause one to interpret these churches as other Christian faiths who were claiming to be the Lord’s true church at the time of Joseph Smith’s first vision. However, the wording implies that the churches won’t be built up until after “that day” of the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. The Catholics, Protestants, Baptists, Methodists, etc. all already existed prior to that time. The alternate interpretation of this relates to the various split branches of the Church of Christ after Joseph Smith’s death. The Utah branch, the Strangites, the Reorganized Church, and numerous others all claim to be the Lord’s church.  However the foundations of their claims all stem from the original succession crisis after Joseph Smith’s death and not from the desire to keep the baptized members united under the order established by God.

 4 And they shall contend one with another; and their priests shall contend one with another, and they shall teach with their learning, and deny the Holy Ghost, which giveth utterance.

Just in the recent October 2011 General Conference, M. Russell Ballard supported this notion by denying any relationship to the Fundamentalist LDS church while laying claim that the Utah LDS church was the “one true” church. Conference time is also a wonderful example wherein the church leaders “teach with their learning, and deny the Holy Ghost,” as every talk must be pre-approved and heavily edited well in advance. The talks are not given by the spirit but, for most of the speakers, are read from a teleprompter while the messages themselves are often the speakers glorifying themselves over their worldly accomplishments.

This is also very prevalent in weekly church meetings as well. Lessons are dictated by a manual written through a top-down correlation process and teaching by the spirit is heavily discouraged. In some cases, Sacrament Meeting talks are no better as not only are people given assigned topics, but in many cases those topics/talks end up just being re-hashed versions of recent Conference talks.

 5 And they deny the power of God, the Holy One of Israel; and they say unto the people: Hearken unto us, and hear ye our precept; for behold there is no God today, for the Lord and the Redeemer hath done his work, and he hath given his power unto men;

            I’m going to be blunt: The church members worship “the brethren” as gods. The members believe that the church leaders hold all of the power and authority of God in their hands while discounting God themselves. The members believe in the philosophy of “the prophet will never lead you astray” and that all of the brethren are “prophets, seers and revelators” despite having never shown the fruits of such callings or the fact that the Apostle Paul taught that an apostle is greater than a prophet.

 6 Behold, hearken ye unto my precept; if they shall say there is a miracle wrought by the hand of the Lord, believe it not; for this day he is not a God of miracles; he hath done his work.

The first part of the sentence refers back to the learned man telling people to only listen to him. The members rely on the church leaders to tell them what to do for everything and, when engaged in conversation, will tell people that their opinion on something is based on “what the leaders have said on the issue.” The members also believe that the words of the brethren spoken over the pulpit are not only revelation or scripture, but automatically supersede any previous revelation despite Joseph Smith’s teaching that true revelation will never contradict a previous revelation. Members are also told to never seek for information from anything outside of “official” church channels.

The rest of the sentence refers to the fact that the gifts of the spirit are no longer manifest within the church. Early church history is full of records of members and apostles healing the sick, casting out devils, Parley P. Pratt restoring sight to a blind lady, and even accounts of raising the dead. Accounts of these miracles are not given today because they simply no longer happen. The spirit of the Lord is not with the LDS church!

There is also one more connotation to this verse that relates back to the members believing that only the church leaders can perform miracles based on their elite positions. If someone called of God was to perform a miracle by the spirit, the membership would claim that he is a deceiver simply for the reason that he comes from outside of the established church hierarchy. Abinadi and Samuel the Lamanite proved themselves to be called of God because the entire hierarchy at the time was corrupt and someone from outside needed to call them to repentance.

 7 Yea, and there shall be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us.

            The church’s teachings towards the members do not focus on the doctrine taught by Christ: repent and be baptized. Members are kept pacified with various ward activities and other events such as camps, pioneer treks, and parades that showcase the wealth, grandeur and pride of the corporate church without actually spreading the gospel or preaching Christ’s doctrine. The members of the church are making the same mistakes that the Jews at the time of Jesus Christ did: they believe that they, as the covenant people, are infallible and the Lord will always side with them regardless of their own wickedness. In addition, the church keeps members so busy with callings, assignments, and obligatory meetings that the people do not contemplate the teachings and meaning of the scriptures and become puffed up in all that they do. The carrot of earning a “calling and election made sure” reward from fallible leaders, causes members to also be lulled into false security. 

 8 And there shall also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear God—he will justify in committing a little sin; yea, lie a little, take the advantage of one because of his words, dig a pit for thy neighbor; there is no harm in this; and do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty, God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the kingdom of God.

            This is one of the LDS “scripture masteries” that gets touted in seminary. Of course the official interpretation is that the church believes that other faiths and the world will use methods of deceit and false doctrines to lure people away from the gospel or that people will be saved by just professing to believe in Jesus. Of course while people have these kinds of attitudes in the world today, the church needs to look inward on the matter. We have the responsibility and the liability.  And we have been warned since these words apply directly and specifically to us.

            Throughout church history there have been numerous incidents wherein the leadership taught the membership to disregard their original values in a manner of the ends justifying the means. Some of these are the more-commonly known ideas of “lying for the Lord,” blood atonement, and members being encouraged to report the sins of their neighbors. However there are lesser-known practices that are just coming to light such as the church’s participation in the MKUltra mind control program, satanic ritual abuse of children, and other abominations that Nephi foresaw and led him to name the corporate church as the most great and abominable church. The following verses explain why this is the case.

 9 Yea, and there shall be many which shall teach after this manner, false and vain and foolish doctrines, and shall be puffed up in their hearts, and shall seek deep to hide their counsels from the Lord; and their works shall be in the dark.

            This is Nephi’s roundabout way of saying that those who teach these doctrines can be considered to be a part of secret combinations that the Book of Mormon warns so heavily about. In fact, Nephi has already said that secret combinations will exist in the latter days back in 2 Nephi 26:22—and his brother Jacob mentioned them even before that in 2 Nephi 9:9. The corrupt leaders and teachers know what they have done, but they will not come forth and repent of those things. This is because a corrupt leadership that is exposed can try to rally the blindly obedient to side with them, whereas if they came forth and truly confessed, their followers would abandon them and their legacy would be shattered. 

Due to the deceit of the corrupt leaders, members have foolishly taken oaths of secrecy as required in all LDS Temples. This violates the teachings of Christ as he taught us to never take an oath as it comes from evil. Preemptive false teachings and indoctrination inflate egos with the sacredness of the temples. No one dares to question the LDS Temple Masonic rituals, complete with secret handshakes, names, blood oaths, and penalties of death to “suffer my life to be taken” if the secrets are told. The pantomimed actions of slitting the throats, cutting out the hearts and intestines were taken out in 1990 but remain, hidden as penalties still “assumed” today. The vanity of being called to be “gods and goddesses, priests and priestesses” certainly fosters this blind obedience and foolishness. These are, of course, actual quotes from the LDS temple ceremony.

 10 And the blood of the saints shall cry from the ground against them.

            By “saints” Nephi refers to the true followers of Christ that the corrupt church has wronged or even killed in its crusade to maintain the facade over their works of darkness as described in verse 9.  

One example of this comes with the pure words of Ann Eliza Young speaking to us from the dust in her 1875 witnessed account of her life in polygamy as one of Brigham Young’s wives.  Ann Eliza Young wrote, Wife No. 19 or The Story of a Life in Bondage, and despite her ordeal, defended the goodness of the early church before the infiltration of polygamy and the secret combinations of Masonry.  Ann’s words confirm the evil teachings of Blood Atonement which mocks the atonement of Christ and the “abomination” of polygamy (Jacob 2:23-24, 3) which never made any woman happy as expounded over the pulpit by both Jedidiah Grant and Brigham Young (Journal of Discourses, 4:49-51, 215-221). 

 11 Yea, they have all gone out of the way; they have become corrupted.

            All means all. There are no exceptions to what Nephi says here. Thus it’s safe to say that the LDS church is just as corrupt as any other established religion. He goes on to further explain why in verse 12.

 12 Because of pride, and because of false teachers, and false doctrine, their churches have become corrupted, and their churches are lifted up; because of pride they are puffed up.

            In 1989, Ezra Taft Benson delivered his famous talk on pride. While there are numerous types of pride, the most dangerous of course is the form in which one person feels that they are entitled to have more than the next person. This can be due to wealth, belongings, birth, church position or social status. While the members of the church are prideful in knowing they are of the “one true” church of God, it is again the corrupt leadership and its own pride in being part of the “elite hierarchy” that is the main problem.

Because the leadership is literally placed on a pedestal, there is no doubt that the leaders have big egos in relation to being where they are. According to D. Michael Quinn, David O. McKay absolutely reveled in his “celebrity” status. Even though the leaders are supposed to be the servants, they have flaunted their supposed authority and expected menial tasks of the membership multiple times. This can range from the general authorities expecting preferential treatment at Mormon-run businesses to expecting the members to all stand for them when they enter a room. And if the “brethren” aren’t shown the proper respect, they will retaliate.

 13 They rob the poor because of their fine sanctuaries; they rob the poor because of their fine clothing; and they persecute the meek and the poor in heart, because in their pride they are puffed up.

            Members are expected to pay a full tithe on all of their income regardless of their financial positions, and then aren’t told exactly what that money is used for. This money is used to build chapels, temples, great and spacious buildings, commercial enterprises, and currently a $3+ billion mall in downtown Salt Lake City. Despite the claim to not have a paid clergy, the general authorities each have a “living allowance” paid for by the members despite the fact that they are paid board members/chairmen of companies and have active stock portfolios even after being called. Those members who can’t pay a full tithe are, of course, shunned and told they are “not faithful enough.”

 14 They wear stiff necks and high heads; yea, and because of pride, and wickedness, and abominations, and whoredoms, they have all gone astray save it be a few, who are the humble followers of Christ; nevertheless, they are led, that in many instances they do err because they are taught by the precepts of men.

            A friend of mine said that the stiff necks come from wearing overly-tight neckties and having to look down on the “lowly” church members as they preach from their high places. However, I believe the common necktie is the “flaxen cord” in 2 Nephi 26:22 as the standard dress code for all church leaders and member males is the suit and tie uniform of the world. However, as Nephi says here, there are a few within the corrupt church who are true followers of Christ, but are ignorantly deceived due to the influence of the corrupt leaders above them. It is ironic that in the LDS temple endowment, Satan tells Adam that his religion consists of “the philosophies of men mingled with scripture” and yet this is very much what Nephi implies that is causing the followers of Christ within the church to err.

 15 O the wise, and the learned, and the rich, that are puffed up in the pride of their hearts, and all those who preach false doctrines, and all those who commit whoredoms, and pervert the right way of the Lord, wo, wo, wo be unto them, saith the Lord God Almighty, for they shall be thrust down to hell!

            At this point Nephi stops his elaboration of the conditions of the corrupt church in the last days to tell the people exactly what they can expect from their works of darkness. Interestingly enough, the list of preaching false doctrine, committing whoredoms, and perverting the right way of the Lord are all part of the list of follies and abominations that the LDS church as a whole needs to repent of: masonry, polygamy and altering the Book of Mormon. By saying “wo” three times, he is delivering maximum condemnation to those who are a part of the corruption. 

 16 Wo unto them that turn aside the just for a thing of naught and revile against that which is good, and say that it is of no worth! For the day shall come that the Lord God will speedily visit the inhabitants of the earth; and in that day that they are fully ripe in iniquity they shall perish.

            The first sentence in the verse of course casts condemnation upon those people who reject those who are truth seekers that seek to bring justice upon the corrupt leadership. But, again, because those truth seekers aren’t part of the established hierarchy, they are ignored. Not only are they ignored, but often times cast out, ostracized, slandered, even targeted and labeled as “apostates.” The second sentence in the verse of course refers to the Lord taking action against those who don’t repent, but the Lord will also bide His time in doing so in order to make sure that those who are guilty have been given enough rope to hang themselves.

 17 But behold, if the inhabitants of the earth shall repent of their wickedness and abominations they shall not be destroyed, saith the Lord of Hosts.

            Whereas the Lord will give the unrepentant enough rope to hang themselves with when the time is right, He also always have a window of escape open and available to those who do come and repent.

 18 But behold, that great and abominable church, the whore of all the earth, must tumble to the earth, and great must be the fall thereof.

            Because the corrupt corporate LDS church is the most great and abominable church and the whore of all the earth- as evidenced by their actions through what Nephi said they’ve done in the preceding verses- what he’s saying now is that it is damned beyond repentance. Even if all of the leaders come forth and repent, that will not change the fact that they have committed numerous grievous sins and, in many cases, it is impossible for them to repent because they have no way of making proper restitution to those they’ve wronged simply because many of those people are already dead. When the truth of the corruption of the corporate LDS church comes to light for everyone to see, it will be one of the biggest shake-ups in history.

 19 For the kingdom of the devil must shake, and they which belong to it must needs be stirred up unto repentance, or the devil will grasp them with his everlasting chains, and they be stirred up to anger, and perish;

            When Lucifer- who was Heavenly Mother aka “Father of all lies”- rebelled, she sought to overthrow God and usurp His honor, which is His power (D&C 29:36), and for that she was cast out. Despite that, Lucifer has established numerous false gods to call the people to follow them and they will be saved. Those who follow such teachings and practices are those who consist of “the kingdom of the devil.” And the LDS church is a part of it due to its message of, “follow the prophet, he will not lead you astray,” or in other words, the prophet will save you. The LDS church worships Lucifer!

            When church members begin to wake up and realize just how much the corrupt church has deceived them, often for their entire lives, many of them will cast the church and the gospel aside and end up in the muddy waters of Lehi and Nephi’s vision of the tree of life while those who do wake up but do not throw the baby out with the bath water (i.e.: those who reject the corrupt leadership while still holding to the iron rod) are those who are fully stirred up to repentance. Meanwhile, those who do not awaken at all are the ones still living in deception will be the ones grasped in the devil’s everlasting chains.

20 For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.

            Lucifer knows that she will be bound during the Millennium and she is not going to take it lightly. I often tell people that Lucifer’s war against Heavenly Father and His followers is the biggest temper tantrum of eternity as it is still ongoing today. Lucifer will do everything to make a last stand and try to gain one final hurrah before the secrets that she has influenced are exposed and truth is shouted from the rooftops, leaving her bound and unable to take any sort of action.

 21 And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.

            This has been the theme of every General Conference for as long as I can remember. The speakers love to tout the church’s growth and accomplishments while failing to remind them that the church has been cursed for the majority of its existence after the first Restoration. Thus the members are not made aware of the deceit that they live in and are worshipping Lucifer for as long as they do not take action to wake themselves up.  

 22 And behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none—and thus he whispereth in their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains, from whence there is no deliverance.

This goes back to what I said regarding the church’s attitude about the ends justifying the means of the leaders’ actions. There are seriously leaders and members within the church who believe that, so long as they are doing what is titled “God’s work,” then they are immune from the consequences of their actions. Meanwhile, Lucifer watches them commit those sins and laughs heartily, knowing she has got them wrapped around her finger.

It should also be noted that federal agencies such as the FBI and CIA love to hire Mormons that have graduated from BYU for the sole purpose that those new recruits will be blindly obedient so long as they believe that they’re doing God’s work. Several church members have also been responsible for some of the most harmful attacks on the civil rights and liberties of Americans in the past decade. The most harmful of these is no doubt the legalization of torture written by church member Judge Jay Bybee and other Mormons in prominent government positions.

 23 Yea, they are grasped with death, and hell; and death, and hell, and the devil, and all that have been seized therewith must stand before the throne of God, and be judged according to their works, from whence they must go into the place prepared for them, even a lake of fire and brimstone, which is endless torment.

            Nephi is being plain and simple here in regards to what awaits those who do not wake up from the deceit of the corrupt church and repent. The Lord will hold them accountable for not seeking His truth and allowing themselves to be lead away; because omission is worse than commission. With the information of the truth readily found for those who seek it, God will not excuse those who do not search simply because “the prophet” said not to. Nephi says more on that in verses 26 and 31.

 24 Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!

            To all church members: Do not allow yourselves to become complacent and think that everything is well with the church! Here Nephi is plainly pronouncing woe upon those with that attitude, because of the circumstances that the members are placed in as explained in the previous few verses.

 25 Wo be unto him that crieth: All is well!

            Gordon B. Hinckley literally fulfilled this scripture in his April 1996 conference talk. The actual words of him saying, “All is well in Zion,” were subsequently edited out of the printed and video versions of the talks. However, many witnesses, including Karen Davis, distinctly remember hearing him say that and the spirit telling them that Hinckley had just fulfilled this verse. In fact, after Gordon B. Hinckley proclaimed the prophetic words of “all is well in Zion” a careful cover-up occurred through video tape and Ensign editing. (You may research another example of this LDS editing phenomena with the significantly altered talk of Seventy member Ronald E. Poelman in the October General Conference of 1984 on http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-religion/2600407/posts. However, in Poelman’s case, he was not fulfilling this sort of scripture but rather actually telling the truth that the rest of the brethren didn’t want people to hear.) 

And while the words are no longer literally spoken in General Conferences, the church leaders instill the sense that “All is well” upon the church members. And the members, because they are blindly obedient, believe what they are told simply because “the brethren” said so.

 26 Yea, wo be unto him that hearkeneth unto the precepts of men, and denieth the power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost!

            This is a call of condemnation upon those who hearken to the voice of “the prophet” rather than the spirit of God. This is also a chiasm that refers back to verses 5 and 6, thus nothing more needs to be said on the matter.

 27 Yea, wo be unto him that saith: We have received, and we need no more!

            Church members basically refuse to accept anything new unless it comes through the official church channels. Members have been told to stay away from reading the Dead Sea Scrolls, Nag Hammadi scriptures, and other ancient records that have come forth and been translated. I believe that when Lehi’s prophesy of the brass plates coming forth is fulfilled, they will be found by someone outside of the church hierarchy and the church members will reject them for that very reason.

 28 And in fine, wo unto all those who tremble, and are angry because of the truth of God! For behold, he that is built upon the rock receiveth it with gladness; and he that is built upon a sandy foundation trembleth lest he shall fall.

            Here Nephi is speaking to those members who are in the muddy waters. Because not only have they escaped the great and spacious building, they still spurn those who hold to the iron rod. What’s important here is that those in the muddy waters will be angry with both sides because of their own unsure, or sandy, foundation. However, they still do have the opportunity to repent and climb back up to hold to the rod. Finally, those who have always had the pure gospel of Christ as their foundation will be those who awaken to the corrupt church’s deception and receive the truth with gladness rather than anger.

 29 Wo be unto him that shall say: We have received the word of God, and we need no more of the word of God, for we have enough!

            Not only does this refer back to verse 27, but it also carries the attitude of the “All is well in Zion” spoken of by church leaders in Conference. Members are actually content with hearing the same messages repeated over and over every six months without anything new being presented or- God forbid- revealed through the Spirit.

 30 For behold, thus saith the Lord God: I will give unto the children of men line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little; and blessed are those who hearken unto my precepts, and lend an ear unto my counsel, for they shall learn wisdom; for unto him that receiveth I will give more; and from them that shall say, We have enough, from them shall be taken away even that which they have.

            We as humans simply cannot handle too great an influx of information at once. I have even told people that if I had encountered Steve and Karen Davis even a few months before I did (December 2010), I also would have rejected what they’ve taught me as “apostate,” but I had met with other people who were also asking questions and I was able to prepare to receive even more knowledge and, even more importantly, witness their fruits!

This has been God’s approach to teaching people from the beginning: allow them to learn at their own pace, in their own language, and to the degree of their own understanding. Those who hearken to the teachings and continue to search will receive more while those who refuse to learn more are not only damned, but their talents and knowledge will be taken away.

 31 Cursed is he that putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm, or shall hearken unto the precepts of men, save their precepts shall be given by the power of the Holy Ghost.

            Nephi makes it plain and simple here: Do not listen to “the prophet” or “the brethren” simply because of their hierarchical positions within the church. If any church leader teaches anything contradictory to established scripture and revelation, they are false witnesses and need to be called to repentance. We can only trust their words if they are given by the power of the Holy Ghost and, more importantly, we receive a second witness of their messages.

 32 Wo be unto the Gentiles, saith the Lord God of Hosts! For notwithstanding I shall lengthen out mine arm unto them from day to day, they will deny me; nevertheless, I will be merciful unto them, saith the Lord God, if they will repent and come unto me; for mine arm is lengthened out all the day long, saith the Lord God of Hosts.

            Who are the Gentiles? They are those for whom the Book of Mormon was written. They are those who have been deceived by Lucifer and have fallen into her trap of worshipping her through a dissolved corporation that pretends to be the Lord’s church and thus they will deny the one, true God. They are the members of the church! Nevertheless, Nephi’s final sentence is reassuring in that he is once again reminding the people that while the Lord has given everyone ample time to hang themselves with their own rope, there is always a window open for repentance. He will not stop reaching out to anyone until the day is over and it is His hope that those who wake up to their awful situation will take that outstretched hand.

Conclusion

            I do not claim to be a scholar, but I am a truth seeker and one of those who have erred due to the precepts of men as described in verse 14. I relied heavily on spiritual guidance as I read and re-read this chapter. Every single time I did so I could feel the interpretations of each verse coming into my head. However, I have indeed mentioned numerous specifics examples of the church’s involvement in numerous abominations based upon my own knowledge and research. I invite those who read this to do their own research on the claims I’ve made and seek the answers for themselves. Much of what I learned came from the treasure trove of hidden knowledge at http://www.mormonstruth.org and its various sister sites, but the most comprehensive and extended information can be found there as a starting point.

            While Mormon 8 is a longer chapter in terms of the number of verses, the portion that deals with the conditions of the corrupt church today is only covered near the end. Nonetheless it is the second witness to Nephi’s words in this chapter and my next post/essay will be my commentary for it because of one great important question that Moroni asks to the church; one that offers the other half of the explanation as to why the church has been cursed by God for treating lightly the Book of Mormon.