From Feast upon the Word (http://feastupontheword.org). Copyright, Feast upon the Word.
The Book of Mormon > Ether > Chapter 3
Questions
- In verse 15 the Lord has shown himself unto the brother of Jared and he says that this is the first time he has shown himself because in the past "never has man believed in me as thou hast." What does this mean? Hadn't previous prophets seen the Lord?
Lexical notes
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Exegesis
Verse 13
"Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall." The wording here suggests that some knowledge on the brother of Jared's part is, at least in some sense, the cause (not a result) of the Lord manifesting himself to the brother of Jared (cf. "because of the knowledge of this man" in v. 19). The knowledge being referred to here seems to be given in verse 12 where the brother of Jared declares that he knows the Lords speaks (only) truth. It is this knowledge that seems to be what causes the brother of Jared to be redeemed from the fall. Logically, this seems to be an incomplete explanation, there is an assumption that seems to be missing or at least implicit, an assumption that the Lord has told or is telling the brother of Jared that he will be redeemed. This gap in the logic of the account is particularly striking in the context of another curiousity starting in verse 11, namely that the Lord promises to speak, but then shows himself before speaking. That this manifestation of the Lord occurs before the speaking that was promised in a way that effectively interrupts the logic of the Lord's promise to speak seems to double the Lord's speaking itself: the declaration of the brother of Jared's redeemed state is declared before a full explanation of that state is offered. This pattern may also be followed by Moroni himself: he interrupts the narrative in verse 17 before he has finished giving it.
Related links
Verse 15
- Jackson article. In BYU Studies v. 30(3), Kent Jackson has an article entitled "Never Have I Showed Myself unto Man": A Suggestion for Understanding Ether 1:15a". Jackson first summarizes earlier attempts to explain the presumably problematic "never" in this verse: Joseph Fielding Smith and Bruce R. McConkie emphasizing the degree of revelation; Sperry's emphasis on "man" meaning "unbelieving man"; Ludlow's emphasis on "had" meaning the Brother of Jared's faith compelled Christ to show himself;. Then Jackson proposes that what is unique about this appearance is that Jehovah is revealing himself in his role as Jesus Christ, the Son rather than in his role as Father like in other revelations to previous prophets/patriarchs.
