Ether 1:33-2:25

The Book of Mormon > Ether > Chapters 1b-6 > Verses 1:33-2:7
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Outline and brief summary

The relationship of verses 1:33-2:7 to the rest of chapters 1b-6 is discussed at Chapters 1b-6. Verses 1:33-2:7 can be outlined as follows:

I. Jaredites are established in the land, Jared & Brother (1b-6)

A. Land journey (1:33-2:7)

a. questions about traveling to a land of promise (34-40)

b. preparations for the land journey (1:41-2:4)

c. Lord leads Jaredites toward promised land (4-7)

Detailed discussion

Verse 1:34

In verse 34 Jared goes to his brother to have him petition the Lord not to have their language confounded. It seems that Jared turns to his brother because Jared believes that if his brother prays, they are more likely to have their petition granted. Within the scriptures the phrase "favored of the Lord" is consistently used in the context of righteousness. The suggestion is that Jared believes his brother's petition will be answered because his brother has been righteous, maybe more righteous than he has been.

Verses 1:36-40

Note that Jared demonstrates much faith in his brother. Jared believes and trusts his brother, knowing that he has special contact with God. This may be an example of the gift described in D&C 46:14: "To others it is given to believe on their words...".

Verses 2:1-5

The development of this plot (the Brother of Jared building ships with the help of the Lord) is a series of petitionary prayers finally answered by divine self-revelation. The Brother of Jared seems to be concerned with building a more-or-less comfortable vessel. The answer he gets is a more-or-less comfortable vessel, and to see the finger of the Lord, and ultimately to have the veil removed.

Questions for further study and reflection

Highly Favored of the Lord

• Given the context it seems that the phrase "highly favored of the Lord" means someone that the Lord blesses. This is consistent with the way the phrase is used in the rest of the scriptures. Within the scriptures this exact phrase is only used in the Book of Mormon, though related phrases are found in the Bible. For example, the angel Gabriel tells Mary that she is "highly favoured," presumably of the Lord (Luke 1:28) and the same angel tells Daniel that he is "greatly beloved," which could also be translated "highly favored" (Daniel 9:23). The phrase is consistently related to righteousness: when people are righteous the Lord favors them; when they are not righteous they are not favored. For examples, see the scripture search results for the phrase "favored of the Lord."

Verse 1:33

• This verse mentions the scattering of the people after they had been confounded at the tower. Why is it that the Lord, whenever he is upset with His people he scatters them? Is there a specific reason? What effect is this supposed to have on the scattered people?

Verse 1:34

• The brother of Jared is a central figure in the first chapters of Ether. He was, presumably, the spiritual leader and described as "a man highly favored of the Lord" (vs. 34). Why is he known to us, through The Book of Mormon, primarily in relation to his brother?

• Why is the actual name of the Brother of Jared not given in the scriptures?

Verse 1:36

• Why does Jared always ask his brother to seek guidance from the Lord, rather than seeking it himself?

Additional resources

• Deseret in verse 2:3 - See Kevin Barney's article here for discussion of the origins of the word deseret and its meaning of "bee." Barney summarizes the Webb-Nibley theory (deseret means "to be red" in Egyptian but is a reference to the king of Lower Egypt; the Egyptian word for bee is also believed to be a reference to the king of Lower Egypt, hence the connection), then mentions some reservations about this theory, and then proposes a new Semitic theory (dbrh = bee; there is good evidence for evolution of the final consonant from h to t and the b may be related to dbsh which means honey). On ancient Near Eastern apiculture, see Ronan James Head at BCC Papers.

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