BofM Part 7: Repentance, Restoration, and Covenants

Another gem from Hugh Nibley: 

“The Book of Mormon is tough; it thrives on investigation; you may kick it around like a football, as many have done, and I promise you it will wear you out long before you ever make a dent in it.”  — Hugh Nibley, 1952 (CWHN Vol. 5, p. 153)

What's shocking to consider in light of the modern day technology, and modern tools is that Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon in a matter of weeks without any of them. Doing the majority of the work in something around a 70 working day time period. This is nothing short of shocking, and the book deserves our careful attention. I think it took Oliver Cowdery longer to copy the book for the printer's manuscript than it did for Joseph to dictate the entire book. It's not a work of man, it's a work of God.

Repentance

Returning to something covered in parts 1-3, unbeknownst to many members of the LDS church is that the Book of Mormon being utilized has textual errors which provoked condemnation by the Lord in 1832.

Earlier in part 3 of this series I mentioned an independent effort that went about preparing a new set of scriptures, faithful to the original, and including all Joseph Smiths edits that are available. This act of repentance resulted in a set of scriptures more true to the restoration and God's intent than any set previously published.  The RE edition of the Book of Mormon is the most accurate Book of Mormon available in print. The foundational text used as the basis for this edition was Joseph Smith’s last personally-updated version (1840).  And then updated with every available edit made by Joseph verbal or written.  

As part of the above mentioned scripture recovery effort, corrections were provided by revelation:  As explained in the preface to the Book of Mormon RE edition: 

The Lord has also directed that several passages in the Book of Mormon be clarified, as explained by Denver Snuffer in an email dated 10 April, 2017:

I had a troubled night. Apparently, although Joseph’s work was directed by the Lord, in some of the details there remained ambiguities and Joseph did not live long enough to be able to correct them.

It is still my position that I have no right to change anything Joseph did (nor do we or the people have any right to do so). However, from last night it is apparent that the Lord has retained the right to correct (and therefore change) anything.

I have been reminded again that I ought to fear the Lord, and not man. Therefore I am providing changes to the text of several passages that we are expected to include….

Almost all changes to the Book of Mormon are made to quotes from the Lord. I assume He knows what He meant, and therefore can clarify for us what He intended to communicate.

I know of no way to justify these other than to say: they came from the Lord. Had Joseph lived long enough, he would have taken care of these.

I do not know if these are the only edit changes we will receive through direct revelation. I also do not know if we are going to succeed in recovering a body of scriptures which He will ultimately approve as His authorized finished text. It is possible this only means that He wants us to have a better text and knows we won’t make these changes unless He directs them to be made.

I have learned a great deal from participating in this effort. It is a godly effort and I am grateful for being involved. But I personally feel entirely unequal to this effort and I am now left to wonder how many other errors we will leave in place, despite our very best efforts.

The standard for scriptures should be perfection. Nothing less than perfection can be the goal. I have been reminded again that I am not that.

It is also obvious that what has been left to us from Joseph’s work is far less than a perfect preservation of what Joseph received from the Lord. Now I realize that Joseph’s work on the texts was also never finished. In this world perfection will elude us, even if we earnestly labor for it.

Those changes are found in the following passages:

• Alma 16:37
• 3 Nephi 7:3
• 3 Nephi 9:5
• Ether 1:12
• Ether 1:13

Condemnation Removed

These acts of repentance resulted in renewed communication and removal of condemnation. 

From the Answer to Prayer for Covenant.

“And I, the Lord your God, will be with you and will never forsake you, and I will lead you in the path which will bring peace to you in the troubling season now fast approaching. I will raise you up and protect you, abide with you, and gather you in due time, and this shall be a land of promise to you as your inheritance from me. The earth will yield its increase, and you will flourish upon the mountains and upon the hills, and the wicked will not come against you because the fear of the Lord will be with you. I will visit my house, which the remnant of my people shall build, and I will dwell therein, to be among you, and no one will need to say, Know ye the Lord, for you all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. I will teach you things that have been hidden from the foundation of the world and your understanding will reach unto Heaven. And you shall be called the children of the Most High God, and I will preserve you against the harvest. And the angels sent to harvest the world will gather the wicked into bundles to be burned, but will pass over you as my peculiar treasure.” (T&C 158:12-18.)

As mentioned in a prior post no one had ever accepted the Book of Mormon as a covenant until a group of believers did so September 2017 in Boise Idaho. We have to receive it as a covenant because God only works to bring people into His good graces by covenants. Without covenants we cannot participate in what the Lord sets out.

Modern Language

During the week of July 9th 2017, The Prayer for Covenant was given which itself was given by revelation.  It's now T&C 156 and it speaks about the language of our scriptures.  Beginning in paragraph 11:

We have also determined to update some words that were in use and understood by earlier people, but whose meaning has been lost or so changed as to render the language foreign to modern usage. We ask for your approval to update the wording so as to clarify the language for modern readers.

On July 14th 2017, the response to the Prayer for Covenant (T&C 157) says this beginning in paragraph 15:

Conspiracies have corrupted the records, beginning among the Jews, and again following the time of my apostles, and yet again following the time of Joseph and Hyrum. As you have labored with the records you have witnessed the alterations and insertions, and your effort to recover them pleases me and is of great worth. You may remove the brackets from your record, as I accept your clarifications, and you are permitted to proceed to the end with your plan to update language to select a current vocabulary, but take care not to change meaning — and if you cannot resolve the meaning, either petition me again or retain the former words. Nevertheless, you labor with an incomplete text.

That permission to proceed to the end with updating language and caution not to change meaning ultimately resulted in the Lord providing Covenant of Christ as a modern English text to guide us.  Covenantofchrist.org.  Both the Book of Mormon AND Covenant of Christ are now scripture.  

I've studied this new volume and it's a gift from above.  One thing that has been personally impactful to me have been the language of the ordinances and Christ's doctrine.  The modern language of these sections has been particular meaningful and helpful in my personal worship and study.  

Continued Repentance

Had the RE edition of the scriptures not been produced, and that step of repentance not taken, it seems to me that this new volume with modern language would not have been available. With the offering of the Covenant in 2017, the Lord in his kindness removed the condemnation in place since 1832. But as stated in the “Condemnation Removed” blog post: “The Lord’s favor can still be rejected and we can provoke our own condemnation.”

While we may have recovered the words of the Book of Mormon themselves—i.e. what they “say”, because of the archaic language, there yet remains difficulties with the archaic nature of the text. Which can impede comprehension, and thus impede being able to “do” according to what it says. Until now!  

This new volume offers opportunity for better comprehension to readers of all economic, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds. It's intended for anyone interested, in language of the common man. To the end that we can all improve our ability to not only say, but to comprehend and then do according to what the Lord has said.  This effort encourages us all to leave behind a hard heart, archaic language associated with a hard heart, and light treatment of this covenant book.