Ether 8:8 the daughter of Jared…thought to devise a plan whereby she
could redeem the kingdom unto her father
While the brother of Jared
goes down in Book of Mormon history as a prophet of unparalleled faith, the daughter
of Jared (though a different Jared) must be forever remembered for her wicked
and devious plan. This story is one of the best examples of how secret
combinations work. But Moroni is careful not to tell too much. And now I, Moroni, do not write the manner of their oaths
and combinations (Ether 8:20) because he does not want us to use the
Book of Mormon for evil purposes as the daughter of Jared had done with the record which [her] fathers
brought across the great deep.
Ether 8:9 an account concerning them of old, that they by their
secret plans did obtain kingdoms and great glory
As the Nephites carried with
them the brass plates of Laban, so the Jaredites carried an ancient record, but
Moroni’s abridgment does not tell us much about this record. We know that it
must have contained the story of Creation, the Garden, and the Fall (Ether
1:3-4). Apparently, it also contained an account of secret plans and
combinations. Likely, this record was a lot more extensive than the few
chapters we have in Genesis. It probably included a more comprehensive account
of the story of Cain as it appears in Moses 2:25-32:
‘(the word of the Lord to Cain) And it shall be said in time to come—That these
abominations were had from Cain; for he rejected the greater counsel which was
had from God; and this is a cursing which I will put upon thee, except thou
repent.
And Cain was wroth, and
listened not any more to the voice of the Lord…
And Satan said unto
Cain: Swear unto me by thy throat, and if thou tell it thou shalt die; and
swear thy brethren by their heads, and by the living God, that they tell it
not; for if they tell it, they shall surely die; and this that thy father may
not know it; and this day I will deliver thy brother Abel into thine hands.
And Satan sware unto
Cain that he would do according to his commands. And all these things were done
in secret.
And Cain said: Truly I
am Mahan, the master of this great secret, that I may murder and get gain.
Wherefore Cain was called Master Mahan, and he gloried in his wickedness.
And Cain went into the
field, and Cain talked with Abel, his brother. And it came to pass that while
they were in the field, Cain rose up against Abel, his brother, and slew him.
Here is a record of how the
secret combinations, certified by an oath, were established on the earth. But
it does not explain how these were used to obtain kingdoms
and great glory as the daughter of Jared suggests. Obviously, their
record was a lot more comprehensive than what we have today.
Orson Pratt
“Did
they come upon this great western hemisphere without a knowledge of God? No.
Without any written record? No….the Jaredites did not come here without a
record of the things from the days of Adam, down; they had it with them. They
kept it with them, and multiplied copies in the midst of their nation.” (Journal
of Discourses, 16:52)
Ether 8:10-11 let my father send for Akish…and I will dance before him
One cannot help but see some
similarities between the story of Akish and the story of Salome. Salome, whose
name is not mentioned in the Bible but is recorded by Josephus (see Bible
Dictionary), was the daughter of Herodias who had illegally married Herod. She
and her mother devised a plan to get John the Baptist killed. Like the plan of
the daughter of Jared, it involved a dance designed to please Herod and company
(see Matt 14:3-12). Hereby, we learn how wicked women wield power over weak
men. “The daughter of Jared used her beauty and charm to evil purpose…Jared’s
daughter is described as ‘exceedingly expert’ (Ether 8:8);
her plan involved no armies, but was quite effective in bringing destruction to
many…Her success in enticing Akish led to the downfall not only of her
grandfather and father, but to the destruction of her people. In preparing
Jared’s daughter’s dowry—the severed head of her grandfather the king—Akish
restored the practice of secret combinations and blood oaths. Here, beauty and
skillful manipulation of others brought death and evil. “(Camille S. Williams
& Donna Lee Brown, Ensign, Jan. 1992, “Ordinary People in the Book
of Mormon”)
Today, the practice
continues but finds its expression in the huge industries of strip dancing,
pornography, and prostitution.
Hugh Nibley
“There
is one tale of intrigue in the book of Ether that presents very ancient and
widespread (though but recently discovered) parallels. That is the story of
Jared's daughter…Historically, the whole point of this story is that it is
highly unoriginal. It is supposed to be. The damsel asks her father if he has
read ‘the record’ and refers him to a
particular account therein describing how ‘they of
old . . . did obtain kingdoms (v. 9).’
In accordance with this she then outlines a course of action which makes it
clear just what the ‘account’ was about. It dealt with a pattern of action (for
‘kingdoms’ is in the plural) in which a princess dances before a romantic
stranger, wins his heart, and induces him to behead the ruling king, marry her,
and mount the throne. The sinister daughter of Jared works the plan for all it
is worth…
“This
is indeed a strange and terrible tradition of throne succession, yet there is
no better attested tradition in the early world than the ritual of the dancing princess
(represented by the salme priestess of the Babylonians, hence the name
Salome) who wins the heart of a stranger and induces him to marry her, behead
the old king, and mount the throne. I once collected a huge dossier on this
awful woman…You find out all about the sordid triangle of the old king, the
challenger, and the dancing beauty from Frazer, Jane Harrison, Altheim, B.
Schweitzer, Farnell, and any number of folklorists. The thing to note
especially is that there actually seems to have been a succession rite of great
antiquity that followed this pattern…the episode of the dancing princess is at
all times essentially a ritual, and the name of Salome (in reference to
Herodias’ daughter) is perhaps no accident, for her story is anything but
unique. Certainly the book of Ether is on the soundest possible ground in
attributing the behavior of the daughter of Jared to the inspiration of ritual
texts—secret directories on the art of deposing an aging king. The Jaredite
version, incidentally, is quite different from the Salome story of the Bible,
but is identical with many earlier accounts that have come down to us in the
oldest records of civilization.” (Lehi In The Desert & The World Of The
Jaredites, p. 212-13)
Ether 8:14 they all sware unto him, by the God of heaven, and also by
the heavens, and also by the earth and by their heads
Satan’s wicked oaths are
full of deceitful irony. Of course, he does not have them swear “by the devil
and also by his despicable underworld and also by his loathesome disembodied
helpers.” Who would want to swear by such a miserable lot? No, it sounds much
better if you swear by wonderful things like God and heaven. Yet, those who
enter these secret combinations will never be with God nor will they ever
experience heaven. Of his own people, Mormon commented on this irony by saying,
they had sworn by all that had been forbidden them
(Mormon 3:14). See also commentary for 3 Ne 12:34.
Ether 8:14 whoso should divulge whatsoever thing Akish made known
unto them, the same should lose his life
“All
associations with rituals and signs of recognition not made public are not
criminal, nor condemnable. Only those which, behind a veil of secrecy commit
crimes and formulate plans against their fellows, the legally established
state, or any lawfully existing institution. Such societies are the enemies of
mankind.” (Reynolds
and Sjodahl, Commentary on the Book of Mormon, vol. 6, p. 131)
If we are to correctly
identify secret combinations, we must know what constitutes a secret combination.
Ether 8 instructs us that:
For
a more comprehensive list, see commentary for Helaman 6:18.
Ether 8:19 the Lord [doth not] will
that man should shed blood
Boyd K. Packer
“Every
time physical conditions are met, conception will take place, whether in
wedlock or out. Once a life is conceived, to destroy that life, even before
birth, is a major transgression, save conception results from rape, the
mother’s life hangs in the balance, or the life of the unborn is certified to
be hopeless. We do not know all about when a spirit enters the body, but we do
know that life, in any form, is very precious. While we are given the power to
generate life and commanded to do so, we have no license to destroy it. ‘For the Lord … in all things hath forbidden it, from the
beginning of man’ (Ether 8:19). And the commandment given at Sinai was
renewed in this dispensation: ‘Thou shalt not kill’
(Exodus 20:13; see also 2 Nephi 9:35) ‘nor do
anything like unto it’ (D&C 59:6).” (The Things of the Soul,
p. 108)
Ether 8:19-21 secret combinations…have caused the destruction of this
people
Ezra Taft Benson
“But
the greatest handbook for freedom in this fight against evil is the Book of
Mormon…This most correct book on earth states that the downfall of two great
American civilizations came as a result of secret conspiracies whose desire was
to overthrow the freedom of the people. ‘And they
have caused the destruction of this people of whom I am now speaking,’
says Moroni, ‘and also the destruction of the people
of Nephi.’ (Ether 8:21.)
“Now
undoubtedly Moroni could have pointed out many factors that led to the
destruction of the people, but notice how he singled out the secret
combinations, just as the Church today could point out many threats to peace,
prosperity, and the spread of God’s work, but it has singled out the greatest
threat as the godless conspiracy. There is no conspiracy theory in the Book of
Mormon —it is a conspiracy fact.
“Then
Moroni speaks to us in this day and says, ‘Wherefore,
the Lord commandeth you, when ye shall see these things come among you that ye
shall awake to a sense of your awful situation, because of this secret
combination which shall be among you’ (Ether 8:14.)
“The
Book of Mormon further warns that ‘whatsoever nation
shall uphold such secret combinations, to get power and gain, until they shall
spread over the nation, behold they shall be destroyed. …’ (Ether 8:22.)
“This
scripture should alert us to what is ahead unless we repent, because there is
no question but that as people of the free world, we are increasingly upholding
many of the evils of the adversary today. By court edict godless conspirators
can run for government office, teach in our schools, hold office in labor
unions, work in our defense plants, serve in our merchant marines, etc. As a
nation, we are helping to underwrite many evil revolutionaries in our country.”
(Ensign, July 1972, “Civic Standards for the Faithful Saints”)
Ether 8:22 whatsoever nation shall uphold such secret
combinations…shall be destroyed
Ezra Taft Benson
“In
the contemporary world, secret combinations take various forms and operate at
different levels of society. They are expressed in organized crime and in religious,
economic, and political conspiracies. The Lord has warned that secret
combinations will be present in modern society (D&C 38:29; Ether 8:20-25).
They threaten freedom everywhere. However, Latter-day Saints believe that
secret combinations and their practices can be overcome, but only through
righteous living and full support of honest government.
“…The
Prophet Moroni described how the secret combination would take over a country
and then fight the work of God, persecute the righteous, and murder those who
resisted. Moroni therefore proceeded to describe the workings of the ancient ‘secret combinations’ so that modern man could
recognize this great political conspiracy in the last days: (quotes Ether
8:23-25)
“The
Prophet Moroni seemed greatly exercised lest in our day we might not be able to
recognize the startling fact that the same secret societies which destroyed the
Jaredites and decimated numerous kingdoms of both Nephites and Lamanites would
be precisely the same form of criminal conspiracy which would rise up among the
gentile nations in this day.” (Conference Report, Oct. 1961, p. 71-2)
Neal A. Maxwell
“There
will be combinations built up by the devil to overthrow freedom. (Ether 8:25.)
He is still acting out against the principle of freedom.” (Things As They
Really Are, p. 41)
Bruce R. McConkie
“At
Armageddon that great political power which ‘seeketh
to overthrow the freedom of all lands, nations, and countries,’ and
which ‘bringeth to pass the destruction of all
people,’ and which is itself ‘built up by the
devil’ (Ether 8:25) -- that very political kingdom, in all its parts,
shall be burned with fire. It is the great and abominable church.” (The
Millenial Messiah, p. 494)
Ether 8:22 the blood of his saints…shall always cry unto him from the
ground for vengeance
Remember in the story of
Cain, Satan lied to him and told him that the murder of Abel would be forever
secret, that if he would murder his brother Abel it
should not be known unto the world (Hel 6:27, see Moses 5:29). Nothing
could be further from the truth, for the Lord made this evil act famous among
all people declaring, it shall be said in time to
come—That these abominations were had from Cain (Moses 5:25). But who
was the whistle blower? How could anyone testify of what was done in secret?
The answer is that the earth itself revealed the great secret. The Lord
declared, The voice of thy brother’s blood cries
unto me from the ground (Moses 5:35).
Hugh Nibley
“What
is the rationale of this saying we have again and again in the Pearl of Great
Price especially-‘his blood shall cry from the
ground’ or ‘from the earth.’ There's a
rationale for this very ancient formula. The earth is the mother of life and is
the womb of the resurrection also. From the earth we are resurrected and out
from the earth we are born. She is Mother Earth. She is the mother of life and
the womb of the resurrection. The destruction of life in any form is the
reversal and perversion of existence itself, as we learn in Ether 8:19 in the
Book of Mormon. ‘For the Lord worketh not in secret
combinations, neither doth he will that man should shed blood, but in all
things hath forbidden it, from the beginning of man.’ It's an
unspeakably horrendous calamity deliberately to reverse the process for which
the earth was created. If the earth accepts their blood, it will cry from the
ground and demand vengeance, as it does in the book of Moses.” (Teachings
From the Book of Mormon, Lecture 52, p. 393)
Ether 8:23 the sword of the justice of the Eternal God shall fall
upon you…if ye shall suffer these things to be
Hugh Nibley
“(speaking
of secret combinations) What makes the thing so frightening is not the parasite
itself but the fact that a society is willing to offer it entry and
encouragement (to ‘uphold’ it), without which
it is not dangerous at all. Its presence therefore should be viewed more as a
symptom than a cause: ‘Wherefore, the Lord
commandeth you, when ye shall see these things come among you that ye shall awake
to a sense of your awful situation’ (Ether 8:24). Immediate repentance,
not police action, is urgently prescribed: ‘O ye
Gentiles . . . repent of your sins, and suffer not that these murderous
combinations shall get above you, which are built up to get power and gain’
(Ether 8:23).” (Since Cumorah, p. 396)
Hugh Nibley
“The
key word is ‘suffer’; we may not stand idly by under such conditions. Nor can
we live sheltered lives and still do the work for which we were sent into the
world: ‘As sheep among wolves’(Matt 10:16)—is that sheltered?” (Brother
Brigham Challenges the Saints, p. 130)
Ezra Taft Benson
“’Don't
worry,’ says the devil; ‘the Lord will protect you, and besides, the world is
so corrupt and heading toward destruction at such a pace that you can't stop
it, so why try?’ Well, to begin with, the Lord will not protect us unless we do
our part. This devilish tactic of persuading people not to get concerned
because the Lord will protect them no matter what they do is exposed by the
Book of Mormon. Referring to the devil, it says: ‘And
others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will
say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well-and thus the devil
cheateth their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell’ (2
Nephi 28:21).
“I
like that word carefully. In other words, don't shake them-you might wake them.
The Book of Mormon warns us that when we see these murderous conspiracies in
our midst, we should awaken to our awful situation (see Ether 8:24). Now, why
should we awaken if the Lord is going to take care of us anyway? Let us suppose
that it is too late to save freedom. It is still accounted unto us for
righteousness' sake to stand up and fight. Some Book of Mormon prophets knew of
the final desolate end of their nations, but they still fought on, and they
saved some souls, including their own, by so doing. For, after all, the purpose
of life is to prove ourselves, and the final victory will be for freedom
(Abraham 3:24-25).” (The Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p. 660)
Ether 8:24 when ye shall see these things come among you that ye
shall awake to a sense of your awful situation
Hugh Nibley
“Q.
But what can anyone do about combinations as secret and as powerful as those
mentioned? Who can oppose them?
“A.
First of all, we are told, we can cease to build them up, for ‘whoso buildeth it up seeketh to overthrow the freedom of
all lands, . . . and it bringeth to pass the destruction of all people’
(Ether 8:25).
“Q.
How can you build up a combination if you don't know where it is or even what
it is?
“A.
You can do that by playing the game its way. Once you have been warned, as we
have been here, that things are being run by such elements, then you know very
well that if you aspire to power and gain, influence, status, and prestige; in
other words, if you aspire to success by present-day standards, you can only
achieve it by doing everything their way. One ceases to uphold those elements
only by rejecting a whole way of life, regardless of the risk or inconvenience
involved.
“Q.
So you don't uphold them; but they are still there. How can you get at them?
“A.
As Alma and Ammon did in their day. They went forth ‘bearing
down in pure testimony’ to whoever would hear them, suffering the worst
the opposition had to offer, ‘not with the intent to
destroy our brethren [who were very wicked and depraved, you will
recall], but with the intent that perhaps we might
save some few of their souls’ (Alma 26:26). Admittedly it was a risky
and dangerous business, but it was all they could do. We are not called upon to
seize and occupy enemy territory, for the evil we are combatting is everywhere
(D&C 1), and the only place we can confront it and overcome it is in our
own hearts. I cannot make a bad person good by pulling a trigger, yet
conversion of sinners to saints is exactly what the Lord requires: to persuade
the children of men to do good continually, so that Satan may have no more
power over their hearts (Ether 8:26). If men are to overcome Satan in this
world, they must be alive to do it—shooting them solves nothing.
“Q.
But we must overcome the hosts of evil.
“A.
Where are they? ‘This is my doctrine, . . . that the
Father commandeth all men, everywhere, to repent’ (3 Nephi 11:32). Will
you ask God which people you are to love and which you are to hate? Which to
deal fairly with and which to cheat? Which to speak the truth to and which to
lie to? Which to be kind to and which to be cruel to? The word of God answers
all such questions with the greatest clarity; we have only one game-plan, and
that is the call to faith, repentance, and charity with which Moroni sums up
the Book of Mormon.” (The Prophetic Book of Mormon, p. 368-9)
Ether 8:26 Come unto the fountain of all
righteousness and be saved
Bruce R. McConkie
“Isaiah
12 tells of a millennial day when men shall ‘draw
water out of the wells of salvation’; and Zechariah, speaking of that
same day of peace and righteousness, tells how ‘living
waters shall go out from Jerusalem’ (Zech. 14:8.)
“From
all this it is perfectly clear that men must drink living water to be saved. As
Moroni expressed it: ‘Come unto the fountain of all
righteousness and be saved.’ (Ether 8:26.) And the same truths flow from
the same fountain yesterday, today, and forever.” (The Promised Messiah, p. 206)