Book of Mormon Feast
A Library Tour through Ether 12-13
Ether 12
1 And it came to pass that the days of Ether were in the days of Coriantumr; and Coriantumr was king over all the land.
2 And Ether was a prophet of the Lord; wherefore Ether came forth in the days of Coriantumr, and began to prophesy unto the people, for he could not be restrained because of the Spirit of the Lord which was in him.
3 For he did cry from the morning, even until the going down of the sun, exhorting
the people to believe in God unto repentance lest they should be destroyed, saying
unto them that by faith all things are fulfilled -
4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God.
5 And it came to pass that Ether did prophesy great and marvelous things unto the people, which they did not believe, because they saw them not.
6 And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.
7 For it was by faith that Christ showed himself unto our fathers, after he had risen from the dead; and he showed not himself unto them until after they had faith in him; wherefore, it must needs be that some had faith in him, for he showed himself not unto the world.
8 But because of the faith of men he has shown himself unto the world, and glorified the name of the Father, and prepared a way that thereby others might be partakers of the heavenly gift, that they might hope for those things which they have not seen.
9 Wherefore, ye may also have hope, and be partakers of the gift, if ye will but have faith.
10 Behold it was by faith that they of old were called after the holy order of God.
11 Wherefore, by faith was the law of Moses given. But in the gift of his Son hath God prepared a more excellent way; and it is by faith that it hath been fulfilled.
12 For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; wherefore, he showed not himself until after their faith.
13 Behold, it was the faith of Alma and Amulek that caused the prison to tumble to the earth.
14 Behold, it was the faith of Nephi and Lehi that wrought the change upon the Lamanites, that they were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost.
15 Behold, it was the faith of Ammon and his brethren which wrought so great a miracle among the Lamanites.
16 Yea, and even all they who wrought miracles wrought them by faith, even those who were before Christ and also those who were after.
17 And it was by faith that the three disciples obtained a promise that they should not taste of death; and they obtained not the promise until after their faith.
18 And neither at any time hath any wrought miracles until after their faith; wherefore they first believed in the Son of God.
19 And there were many whose faith was so exceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from within the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith, and they were glad.
20 And behold, we have seen in this record that one of these was the brother of Jared; for so great was his faith in God, that when God put forth his finger he could not hide it from the sight of the brother of Jared, because of his word which he had spoken unto him, which word he had obtained by faith.
21 And after the brother of Jared had beheld the finger of the Lord, because of the promise which the brother of Jared had obtained by faith, the Lord could not withhold anything from his sight; wherefore he showed him all things, for he could no longer be kept without the veil.
22 And it is by faith that my fathers have obtained the promise that these things should come unto their brethren through the Gentiles; therefore the Lord hath commanded me, yea, even Jesus Christ.
23 And I said unto him: Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, because of our weakness in writing; for Lord thou hast made us mighty in word by faith, but thou hast not made us mighty in writing; for thou hast made all this people that they could speak much, because of the Holy Ghost which thou hast given them;
24 And thou hast made us that we could write but little, because of the awkwardness of our hands. Behold, thou hast not made us mighty in writing like unto the brother of Jared, for thou madest him that the things which he wrote were mighty even as thou art, unto the overpowering of man to read them.
25 Thou hast also made our words powerful and great, even that we cannot write them; wherefore, when we write we behold our weakness, and stumble because of the placing of our words; and I fear lest the Gentiles shall mock at our words.
26 And when I had said this, the Lord spake unto me, saying: Fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness;
27 And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness.
I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.
Life Lessons from the Book of Mormon.
Jack B. Christianson & K. Douglas Bassett
Chapter 8 – Changing Weaknesses to Strengths is a wonderful chapter. It includes
several illuminating quotes from general authorities, and two gripping accounts of
the Lord helping people turn their weaknesses to strengths. By the end of the chapter
you’ll be rooting for these individuals, and praising 
God for his careful plan for
each of us.
28 Behold, I will show unto the Gentiles their weakness and I will show unto them
that faith, hope and charity bringeth unto me -
29 And I, Moroni, having heard these words, was comforted, and said: O Lord, thy righteous will be done, for I know that thou workest unto the children of men according to their faith;
30 For the brother of Jared said unto the mountain Zerin, Remove -
The Holy Qur’an – Another Testament of Restored Truth
by Jonathan K. Crockett
Quoted from the book:
XIII:27 The Unbelievers say: Why is not a Sign sent down to him from his Lord?
Say: “Truly Allah leaveth to stray whom He will; but He guideth to Himself those
who turn to Him in penitence,-
XIII:30 Thus have We sent thee amongst the People before whom long since have other Peoples gone and passed away; in order that thou mightiest rehearse unto them what We sent down unto thee by inspiration; yet do they reject Him, the Most Gracious! Say: “He is my Lord! There is no god but He! On Him is my trust, and to Him do I turn!”
XIII:31 If there were a Qur’an with which mountains were moved, or the earth were cloven asunder, or the dead were made to speak, this would be the one! But, truly, the Command is with Allah in all things! Do not the Believers know, that, had Allah so willed, He could have guided all mankind to the Right? But the Unbelievers – never will disaster cease to seize them for their ill deeds, or to settle close to their homes, until the promise of Allah come to pass, for verily, Allah will not fail in His promise.
XIII:36 Those to whom We have given the Book rejoice at what hath been revealed unto thee; but there are among the clans those who reject a part thereof. Say: “I am commanded to worship Allah, and not to join partners with Him. Unto Him do I call, and unto Him is my return.”
XIII:38 We did sent messengers before thee, and appointed for them wives and children; and it was never the part of a messenger to bring a Sign except as Allah permitted or commanded. For each period is an appointment.
XIII:39 Allah doth blot out or confirm what he pleaseth: with Him is the Mother of the Book.
XIII:40 Whether We shall show thee within thy life-
XIII:41 See they not that We gradually reduce the land from its outlying borders? Where Allah commands, there is none to put back His command: and He is swift in calling to account.
XIII:43 The Unbelievers say: “No messenger art thou.” Say: “Enough for a witness between me and you is Allah, and such as have knowledge of the Book.”
The Book of Mormon, the calling of other prophets, and the restoration of the Church
of Jesus Christ seem to be key points in ‘Al-
Verse 27 shows that the Unbelievers are waiting for specific Signs. Verse 43 shows that they reject Muhammad because he has not brought forth those Signs. Verse 38 shows that the Signs are brought forth only in the appropriate time and verse 40 shows that only part of the prophecies, if any, would come to pass in Muhammad’s time. To understand what prophecies that Muhammad and his people (the Believers and Unbelievers alike) were waiting for to be fulfilled, we need only read the rest of the verses. Verse 30 gives the example which is reiterated throughout the Qur’an of chosen people who have “passed away,” showing, as explained before, the cycle of apostasy and restoration.
Verse 31 is key . . .
“A Qur’an with which mountains were moved!” Notice that “. . . mountains were moved”
is written in the past tense. In Matthew 17:20 and Luke 17:6 Jesus mentions that
if a person only had the faith of a mustard seed he could move mountains. Only in
the Book of Mormon can scripture be found wherein mountains could be or were actually
moved. It is a Qur’an with which mountains were moved. Jacob 4:6-
Note that this is not counting the movements of the mountains that are recorded in the Book of Mormon at the time of Christ’s death in Jerusalem. That will be included in the explanation to follow.
“If there were a Qur’an with which . . . the earth were cloven asunder!”
At the time of Christ’s death there were great upheavals in the land where the Book of Mormon was written. 3 Nephi 8
“If there were a Qur’an with which . . . the dead were made to speak.”
God sent angels to restore the truth. One of those angels brought forth the Book of Mormon which was written by prophets of old and was given to the prophet Joseph Smith. The voices of these prophets, who have long since passed away, speak to us and guide us. Moroni 10:27
“If there were a Qur’an. . . this would be the one!”
Verse 31 also contains other insights. It says the Believers know that if God has so wished it He could have already guided all mankind to do right, brought mankind under one religion in truth. However, since He has given us our free agency, we must choose. But there is only One Truth. It also states that disaster would continue to befall mankind for their deeds until all of the Promises of the Lord come to pass. And God will not fail in His promise. This is referring to all of His promises, the complete restoration of all truth, another prophet, more scripture and all of His other promises until the Day of Judgment.
Verse 36 shows tht one must accept all written scripture and cannot reject any part of it.
The trinity and the reasons that Muhammad was so concerned with it have already been discussed in great detail. People were worshiping partners instead of the One God. To prevent this he wrote in various places that God has no partners, and such is the case in verses 33 and 36. However, I would make a note that there are places that Muhammad left Signs for “men of understanding” that God/Allah did have partners, and that there is a Trinity, but that we should only worship God the Father. Verses 30, 36, 37, 38, 40 and 41 are no exceptions where the words “We. . . Us. . .” and “Our” are repeatedly used, in essence confirming the existence of a Godhead.
Since all of these verses are talking about the Signs, revelations, and prophecies
that had not yet come to pass, it is important to note verses 38-
XIII:38 “For each period is an appointment.” Messengers are sent and for each period there is an appointment. Likewise, a prophet or Messenger cannot bring forth or fulfill a prophecy unless it is appointed to him in his time to do so. Therefore each prophecy also has a term appointed.
Verse 39 says that with God is “the Mother of the Book.”
Since the previous verses refer to the Book of Mormon, and verse 40 refers to the partial fulfillment of what had been promised then, in context, the “Book” mentioned here must refer to the Book of Mormon as well. The Book, all scripture, comes down from God. We know that the revelations given to Joseph Smith were guarded by God until their appointed term when they were brought forth and given or revealed to him.
Verse 40 shows that within Muhammad’s lifetime only part, if any, of the promises, prophecies and revelations given to him would come to pass or be accomplished. One of those many prophecies was to bring together the people of the earth and make it so that when the complete truth was restored it could be given to all people.
Verse 41 shows one of the Signs preceding the Restoration of the Fullness of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. “See they not that We gradually reduce the land from its outlying borders?” Communication between the different people was becoming more common. New lands were being discovered which would lead to the eventual discovery and settlement of the Americas where the Restoration would be brought to pass; where the Book of Mormon would be revealed and given to the promised prophet spoken of in the Qur’an; where another chosen people who were true Christians would come forth and follow a prophet; and the chain of Prophets who would be able to teach the entire world including the descendants of Muhammad and his people as promised by the Lord.
31 For thus didst thou manifest thyself unto thy disciples; for after they had faith, and did speak in thy name, thou didst show thyself unto them in great power.
32 And I also remember that thou hast said that thou hast prepared a house for man, yea, even among the mansions of thy Father, in which man might have a more excellent hope; wherefore man must hope, or he cannot receive an inheritance in the place which thou hast prepared.
33 And again, I remember that thou hast said that thou hast loved the world, even unto the laying down of thy life for the world, that thou mightest take it again to prepare a place for the children of men.
34 And now I know that this love which thou hast had for the children of men is charity; wherefore, except men shall have charity they cannot inherit that place which thou hast prepared in the mansions of thy Father.
35 Wherefore, I know by this thing which thou hast said, that if the Gentiles have not charity, because of our weakness, that thou wilt prove them, and take away their talent, yea, even that which they have received, and give unto them who shall have more abundantly.
36 And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord that he would give unto the Gentiles grace, that they might have charity.
37 And it came to pass that the Lord said unto me: If they have not charity it mattereth not unto thee, thou hast been faithful; wherefore, thy garments shall be made clean. And because thou hast seen thy weakness thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father.
38 And now I, Moroni, bid farewell unto the Gentiles, yea, and also unto my brethren
whom I love, until we shall meet before the judgment-
39 And then shall ye know that I have seen Jesus, and that he hath talked with me face to face, and that he told me in plain humility, even as a man telleth another in mine own language, concerning these things;
40 And only a few have I written, because of my weakness in writing.
41 And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen.
Ether 13
1 And now I, Moroni, proceed to finish my record concerning the destruction of the people of whom I have been writing.
2 For behold, they rejected all the words of Ether; for he truly told them of all things, from the beginning of man; and that after the waters had receded from off the face of this land it became a choice land above all other lands, a chosen land of the Lord; wherefore the Lord would have that all men should serve him who dwell upon the face thereof;
3 And that it was the place of the New Jerusalem, which should come down out of heaven, and the holy sanctuary of the Lord.
4 Behold, Ether saw the days of Christ, and he spake concerning a New Jerusalem upon this land.
5 And he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence
Lehi should come -
6 And that a New Jerusalem should be built upon this land, unto the remnant of the seed of Joseph, for which things there has been a type.
7 For as Joseph brought his father down into the land of Egypt, even so he died there; wherefore, the Lord brought a remnant of the seed of Joseph out of the land of Jerusalem, that he might be merciful unto the seed of Joseph that they should perish not, even as he was merciful unto the father of Joseph that he should perish not.
8 Wherefore, the remnant of the house of Joseph shall be built upon this land; and it shall be a land of their inheritance; and they shall build up a holy city unto the Lord, like unto the Jerusalem of old; and they shall no more be confounded, until the end come when the earth shall pass away.
9 And there shall be a new heaven and a new earth; and they shall be like unto the old save the old have passed away, and all things have become new.
10 And then cometh the New Jerusalem; and blessed are they who dwell therein, for it is they whose garments are white through the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who are numbered among the remnant of the seed of Joseph, who were of the house of Israel.
11 And then also cometh the Jerusalem of old; and the inhabitants thereof, blessed are they, for they have been washed in the blood of the Lamb; and they are they who were scattered and gathered in from the four quarters of the earth, and from the north countries, and are partakers of the fulfilling of the covenant which God made with their father, Abraham.
12 And when these things come, bringeth to pass the scripture which saith, there are they who were first, who shall be last; and there are they who were last, who shall be first.
13 And I was about to write more, but I am forbidden; but great and marvelous were the prophecies of Ether; but they esteemed him as naught, and cast him out; and he hid himself in the cavity of a rock by day, and by night he went forth viewing the things which should come upon the people.
14 And as he dwelt in the cavity of a rock he made the remainder of his record, viewing the destructions which came upon the people, by night.
15 And it came to pass that in that same year in which he was cast out from among the people there began to be a great war among the people, for there were many who rose up, who were mighty men, and sought to destroy Coriantumr by their secret plans of wickedness, of which hath been spoken.
16 And now Coriantumr, having studied, himself, in all the arts of war and all the cunning of the world, wherefore he gave battle unto them who sought to destroy him.
17 But he repented not, neither his fair sons nor daughters; neither the fair sons and daughters of Cohor; neither the fair sons and daughters of Corihor; and in fine, there were none of the fair sons and daughters upon the face of the whole earth who repented of their sins.
18 Wherefore, it came to pass that in the first year that Ether dwelt in the cavity of a rock, there were many people who were slain by the sword of those secret combinations, fighting against Coriantumr that they might obtain the kingdom.
19 And it came to pass that the sons of Coriantumr fought much and bled much.
20 And in the second year the word of the Lord came to Ether, that he should go and
prophesy unto Coriantumr that, if he would repent, and all his household, the Lord
would give unto him his kingdom and spare the people -
21 Otherwise they should be destroyed, and all his household save it were himself. And he should only live to see the fulfilling of the prophecies which had been spoken concerning another people receiving the land for their inheritance; and Coriantumr should receive a burial by them; and every soul should be destroyed save it were Coriantumr.
22 And it came to pass that Coriantumr repented not, neither his household, neither the people; and the wars ceased not; and they sought to kill Ether, but he fled from before them and hid again in the cavity of the rock.
23 And it came to pass that there arose up Shared, and he also gave battle unto Coriantumr; and he did beat him, insomuch that in the third year he did bring him into captivity.
24 And the sons of Coriantumr, in the fourth year, did beat Shared, and did obtain the kingdom again unto their father.
25 Now there began to be a war upon all the face of the land, every man with his band fighting for that which he desired.
26 And there were robbers, and in fine, all manner of wickedness upon all the face of the land.
27 And it came to pass that Coriantumr was exceedingly angry with Shared, and he went against him with his armies to battle; and they did meet in great anger, and they did meet in the valley of Gilgal; and the battle became exceedingly sore.
28 And it came to pass that Shared fought against him for the space of three days. And it came to pass that Coriantumr beat him, and did pursue him until he came to the plains of Heshlon.
29 And it came to pass that Shared gave him battle again upon the plains; and behold, he did beat Coriantumr, and drove him back again to the valley of Gilgal.
30 And Coriantumr gave Shared battle again in the valley of Gilgal, in which he beat Shared and slew him.
31 And Shared wounded Coriantumr in his thigh, that he did not go to battle again for the space of two years, in which time all the people upon the face of the land were shedding blood, and there was none to restrain them.