Mormon 1:1 And now I, Mormon, make a record of the things which I
have both seen and heard
Before we discuss Mormon’s
personal record, we should note that this verse marks an important transition
from Mormon’s role as abridger to personal historian. Mormon’s greatest
accomplishment was that he had abridged the Large Plates of Nephi from the days
of Lehi to his own (WofM 1:3,9). The portion of this record that we have today
(Mosiah to 4 Nephi) spans a time period of over 450 years. For his prophetic
condensing, editorializing, and admonishing, we will always be grateful.
Apparently, this great work was accomplished prior to writing his own history
as evidenced by the smooth transition from 4 Nephi to Mormon.
Furthermore, we learn from
the Words of Mormon that Mormon’s work on the abridgement and his personal
history took place just before the final battle of 385 AD (See Mormon 6:6 and
WofM 1:1). This places his age over 70 and demonstrates his perspective as he
abridges the record. Mormon is writing the words we know as the Book of Mormon
after collecting all the wisdom of age and experience. He commonly includes
stories of the Gadiantons because he has already seen the role the Gadiantons
played in the final destruction of his people (Mormon 1:18). He is fatalistic
about the Nephites, not just because he knows of prophecies concerning their
destruction, but because he has already witnessed almost all of their
destruction. We found the same pattern in the life of Nephi, who began writing
the record we know as 1 and 2 Nephi long after many events had already
transpired—as late as 569 BC (2 Ne 5:28-30).
Jeffrey R. Holland
“In
one of the loneliest scenes in scriptural history, a silent, war-weary soldier
looked out across time and the unspeakable tragedy his family and followers
faced. Mormon, the man destined before the world was formed to abridge and
summarize the Nephite story—and in so doing to have his name forever
immortalized with this additional testament of Jesus Christ—surveyed the
casualties of a nation that had turned from the Lord. As sobering as the
account is, it does not give a full account of all the sin and sadness Mormon
had seen. Indeed, such an account probably would have been impossible to
record.” (Christ and the New Covenant, p. 317)
Mormon 1:2 I perceive that thou art a sober child
Ammaron’s spiritual
perceptiveness is amazing. While others saw in Mormon a ten-year old boy,
Ammoron saw a future prophet and guardian of the plates. While others may have
discounted him, Ammaron acknowledged him as a sober child, quick to observe—a
youth whose pre-mortal intelligence was already evident.
Jeffrey R. Holland
“We
know that ‘every man who has a calling to minister to the inhabitants of the
world was ordained to that very purpose’ in his premortal existence. (Teachings
of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 365.) Perhaps that call has an effect on
those men even in their earliest mortal years, for Mormon was recognized by his
predecessor Ammaron as being ‘a sober child’
and one ‘quick to observe.’ (Morm. 1:2.)” (Ensign, Mar. 1978, “Mormon:
The Man & The Book”)
Gordon B. Hinckley
“The
book which we have today, this sacred and marvelous testament of Christ,
resulted from Mormon’s faithfulness in meeting that assignment…Never discount
the importance of a 10-year-old.” (Church News, 10/22/88)
Mormon 1:3 a hill which shall be called Shim
The hill Shim was located in
the land northward. Hugh Nibley taught that Shim means north or the land
northward (Teachings of the Book of Mormon, Lecture 104, p. 192). It was in
the area the Nephites referred to as Desolation, or the area that the Jaredites
had inhabited (Alma 22:30). Although the hill Shim and the hill Cumorah are not
the same, Moroni tells us that these two famous hills were not too far apart, wherefore Omer departed out of the land with his family,
and traveled many days, and came over and passed by the hill of Shim, and came
over by the place where the Nephites were destroyed (Ether 9:3).
Mormon 1:4 ye shall engrave on the plates of Nephi all the things
that ye have observed concerning this people
Mormon did as he was
commanded. At the age of 24 he retrieved the plates of Nephi and began to
record in great detail the wickedness and destruction of his people. This is
according to the pattern established long ago—that the record on the Large
Plates of Nephi would be extensive, including both secular and ecclesiastical
history. Accordingly, Mormon wrote an extensive history. What we have now
(Mormon 1-7) is a condensed version of this more complete record This we learn
from the following, behold I had gone according to
the word of Ammaron, and taken the plates of Nephi, and did make a record
according to the words of Ammaron. And upon the plates of Nephi I did make a
full account of all the wickedness and abominations; but upon these plates I
did forbear to make a full account of their wickedness and abominations,
for behold, a continual scene of wickedness and abominations has been before
mine eyes ever since I have been sufficient to behold the ways of man (Mormon
2:17-8, italics added). In essence, Mormon spares all the gory details, but he
has recorded them in a larger record on the plates of Nephi.
Mormon 1:6-7 I, being eleven years old, was carried by my father
into…the land of Zarahemla
Hugh Nibley
“He
was eleven years old, and he was taken by his father to a land southward to
Zarahemla-the big city, the big capital. He was impressed as a little kid, he
says. The land was covered with buildings, and he [had] never seen anything
like that. ‘The people were as numerous almost, as
it were the sand of the sea.’ Now this is important for the Book of
Mormon, you see. We talk about such vast numbers-well, we’ll see what vast
numbers are. When they gather all their forces for a big war down here, how
many do they have in the army? Thirty thousand-that’s just one division (v.
11). In our army 27,000 would make a division. He calls that as numerous as the
sands of the sea. Well, as an eleven-year-old, he’s impressed. You’d be
impressed with these things. So we have to be very careful and not be
simplistic when we read the Book of Mormon. When this kid tells us that people
in Zarahemla were as numerous as the sands of the sea, how many hundred
trillion people are there? It doesn’t mean that at all. It’s a metaphor here,
as it were the sands of the sea.” (Teachings of the Book of Mormon, Lecture
104, p. 192-3)
Mormon 1:14 there were no gifts from the Lord, and the Holy Ghost did
not come upon any
Mormon must have been
thinking about this time period when he included the following in an epistle to
Moroni:
‘…have angels ceased to
appear unto the children of men? Or has he withheld the power of the Holy Ghost
from them?…if these things have ceased wo be unto the children of men, for it
is because of unbelief and all is vain….then has faith ceased also; and awful
is the state of man’ (Moroni 7:36-8).
Hugh Nibley
“It
is not surprising that their personal experience of things led both Mormon and
his son to embrace a completely pessimistic view of the world…True, ‘awful is the state of man’ only if ‘faith has ceased’—but faith has ceased! If men
insist that there is no redemption, then, sure enough, ‘they
are as though there had been no redemption made’ (Moroni 7:38-39). ‘If these things have ceased,’ says Moroni speaking
of gifts of the Spirit (Moroni 7:37), ‘wo be unto
the children of men, for it is because of unbelief, and all is vain.’
This is no mere figure of speech; if faith fulfills its own prophecies so does
unbelief, and those who insist that all is vain are quite right; if men reject
the gospel they will find everywhere powerful confirmation for their unbelief,
and undeniable evidence to support their contention that the human predicament
is hopeless.” (Since Cumorah, p. 401)
Joseph Smith
“Have
not the pride, high-mindedness, and unbelief of the Gentiles, provoked the Holy
One of Israel to withdraw His Holy Spirit from them, and send forth His
judgments to scourge them for their wickedness? This is certainly the case…The
Lord declared to His servants, some eighteen months since [the Church was
organized], that He was then withdrawing His Spirit from the earth (See DC 1);
and we can see that such is the fact, for not only the churches are dwindling
away, but there are no conversions, or but very few: and this is not all, the
governments of the earth are thrown into confusion and division; and Destruction,
to the eye of the spiritual beholder, seems to be written by the finger of an
invisible hand, in large capitals, upon almost every thing we behold.” (History
of the Church, 1:314)
Mormon 1:15 being fifteen years of age…I was visited of the Lord
Mormon had his own Sacred
Grove experience. At the age of fifteen, the Lord made it clear to him that he
was no ordinary teenager. This is according to the Lord’s pattern. He often
calls prophets while in their youth. Such was the case with Joseph Smith,
Nephi, Jacob, Enoch, Samuel, and others (see JS-H 1:7, 1 Ne 2:16, 2 Ne 2:4,
Moses 6:31, and 1 Sam 3:1-10). One can only imagine how such an experience
would have molded the behavior and broadened the perspective of an already
sober youth.
“There
must be something significant . . . concerning the stage of life one goes
through at the age of about 14. Mormon’s awakening to spiritual matters at
about this age foreshadows a similar awakening at a similar age by the young
Joseph Smith, who would translate Mormon’s record. . . . Similarly, through
modern-day prophets, the Lord has specified 12 as the age when worthy young men
of His Church can receive the Aaronic Priesthood. What all of this seems to
suggest is a heightened spiritual sense experienced at about this age -
something that conscientious parents of young teenagers would do well to keep
in mind.” (E.D. Clark & R. S. Clark, Fathers and Sons in the Book of
Mormon, as taken from Church News, 10/24/92)
Mormon 1:16 I did endeavor to preach unto this people, but my mouth
was shut
Jeffrey R. Holland
“The
maturing Mormon, by then fifteen years of age, stood beyond the sinfulness
around him and rose above the despair of his time. Consequently, he ‘was visited of the Lord, and tasted and knew of the
goodness of Jesus,’ trying valiantly to preach to his people. But as God
occasionally does when those with so much light reject it, Mormon literally had
his mouth shut. He was forbidden to preach to a nation that had wilfully
rebelled against their God. These people had rejected the miracles and messages
delivered them by the three translated Nephite disciples, who had now also been
silenced in their ministry and been taken from the nation to whom they had been
sent.
“Remaining
among those people but silenced in his testimony.” (Christ And The New
Covenant, p. 318)
Sterling W. Sill
“Mormon
had to be restrained in his desire to preach the gospel…Most of us have to be
coaxed and begged and reminded to do our duty. Mormon had to be held back.” (quoted in
Daniel Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon, p. 298)