The Book of Mormon by Joseph Smith (Translator) - HTML preview

The Book Of Ether

The record of the Jaredites, taken from the twenty-four plates found by the people of Limhi in the days of king Mosiah.

 

Ether 1

 

Chapter 1

Ether 1:1
1 And now I, Moroni, proceed to give an account of those ancient inhabitants who were
destroyed by the hand of the Lord upon the face of this north country.

Ether 1:2
2 And I take mine account from the twenty and four plates which were found by the
people of Limhi, which is called the Book of Ether.

Ether 1:3
3 And as I suppose that the first part of this record, which speaks concerning the creation
of the world, and also of Adam, and an account from that time even to the great tower,
and whatsoever things transpired among the children of men until that time, is had among
the Jews-

Ether 1:4
4 Therefore I do not write those things which transpired from the days of Adam until that
time; but they are had upon the plates; and whoso findeth them, the same will have power
that he may get the full account.

Ether 1:5
5 But behold, I give not the full account, but a part of the account I give, from the tower
down until they were destroyed.

Ether 1:6
6 And on this wise do I give the account. He that wrote this record was Ether, and he was
a descendant of Coriantor.

Ether 1:7

 

7 Coriantor was the son of Moron.

 

Ether 1:8

 

8 And Moron was the son of Ethem.

Ether 1:9
9 And Ethem was the son of Ahah.
10 And Ahah was the son of Seth.

Ether 1:11

 

11 And Seth was the son of Shiblon.

 

Ether 1:12

 

12 And Shiblon was the son of Com.

 

Ether 1:13

 

13 And Com was the son of Coriantum.

 

Ether 1:14

 

14 And Coriantum was the son of Amnigaddah.

 

Ether 1:15

 

15 And Amnigaddah was the son of Aaron.

 

Ether 1:16

 

16 And Aaron was a descendant of Heth, who was the son of Hearthom.

 

Ether 1:17

 

17 And Hearthom was the son of Lib.

 

Ether 1:18

 

18 And Lib was the son of Kish.

 

Ether 1:19

 

19 And Kish was the son of Corom.

 

Ether 1:20

 

20 And Corom was the son of Levi.

 

Ether 1:21

 

21 And Levi was the son of Kim.

 

Ether 1:22

 

22 And Kim was the son of Morianton.

 

Ether 1:23

 

23 And Morianton was a descendant of Riplakish.

Ether 1:24
24 And Riplakish was the son of Shez.
25 And Shez was the son of Heth.

Ether 1:26

 

26 And Heth was the son of Com.

 

Ether 1:27

 

27 And Com was the son of Coriantum.

 

Ether 1:28

 

28 And Coriantum was the son of Emer.

 

Ether 1:29

 

29 And Emer was the son of Omer.

 

Ether 1:30

 

30 And Omer was the son of Shule.

 

Ether 1:31

 

31 And Shule was the son of Kib.

 

Ether 1:32

 

32 And Kib was the son of Orihah, who was the son of Jared;

Ether 1:33
33 Which Jared came forth with his brother and their families, with some others and
their families, from the great tower, at the time the Lord confounded the language of the
people, and swore in his wrath that they should be scattered upon all the face of the earth;
and according to the word of the Lord the people were scattered.

Ether 1:34
34 And the brother of Jared being a large and mighty man, and a man highly favored of
the Lord, Jared, his brother, said unto him: Cry unto the Lord, that he will not confound
us that we may not understand our words.

Ether 1:35
35 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had
compassion upon Jared; therefore he did not confound the language of Jared; and Jared
and his brother were not confounded.

Ether 1:36
36 Then Jared said unto his brother: Cry again unto the Lord, and it may be that he will
turn away his anger from them who are our friends, that he confound not their language. 37 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord, and the Lord had
compassion upon their friends and their families also, that they were not confounded.

Ether 1:38
38 And it came to pass that Jared spake again unto his brother, saying: Go and inquire of
the Lord whether he will drive us out of the land, and if he will drive us out of the land,
cry unto him whither we shall go. And who knoweth but the Lord will carry us forth into
a land which is choice above all the earth? And if it so be, let us be faithful unto the Lord,
that we may receive it for our inheritance.

Ether 1:39
39 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did cry unto the Lord according to that
which had been spoken by the mouth of Jared.

Ether 1:40
40 And it came to pass that the Lord did hear the brother of Jared, and had compassion
upon him, and said unto him:

Ether 1:41
41 Go to and gather together thy flocks, both male and female, of every kind; and also of
the seed of the earth of every kind; and thy families; and also Jared thy brother and his
family; and also thy friends and their families, and the friends of Jared and their families.

Ether 1:42
42 And when thou hast done this thou shalt go at the head of them down into the valley
which is northward. And there will I meet thee, and I will go before thee into a land
which is choice above all the lands of the earth.

Ether 1:43
43 And there will I bless thee and thy seed, and raise up unto me of thy seed, and of the
seed of thy brother, and they who shall go with thee, a great nation. And there shall be
none greater than the nation which I will raise up unto me of thy seed, upon all the face of
the earth. And thus I will do unto thee because this long time ye have cried unto me.

Ether 2

 

Chapter 2

Ether 2:1
1 And it came to pass that Jared and his brother, and their families, and also the friends
of Jared and his brother and their families, went down into the valley which was
northward, (and the name of the valley was Nimrod, being called after the mighty hunter)
with their flocks which they had gathered together, male and female, of every kind. 2 And they did also lay snares and catch fowls of the air; and they did also prepare a
vessel, in which they did carry with them the fish of the waters.

Ether 2:3
3 And they did also carry with them deseret, which, by interpretation, is a honey bee; and
thus they did carry with them swarms of bees, and all manner of that which was upon the
face of the land, seeds of every kind.

Ether 2:4
4 And it came to pass that when they had come down into the valley of Nimrod the Lord
came down and talked with the brother of Jared; and he was in a cloud, and the brother of
Jared saw him not.

Ether 2:5
5 And it came to pass that the Lord commanded them that they should go forth into the
wilderness, yea, into that quarter where there never had man been. And it came to pass
that the Lord did go before them, and did talk with them as he stood in a cloud, and gave
directions whither they should travel.

Ether 2:6
6 And it came to pass that they did travel in the wilderness, and did build barges, in
which they did cross many waters, being directed continually by the hand of the Lord.

Ether 2:7
7 And the Lord would not suffer that they should stop beyond the sea in the wilderness,
but he would that they should come forth even unto the land of promise, which was
choice above all other lands, which the Lord God had preserved for a righteous people.

Ether 2:8
8 And he had sworn in his wrath unto the brother of Jared, that whoso should possess
this land of promise, from that time henceforth and forever, should serve him, the true
and only God, or they should be swept off when the fulness of his wrath should come
upon them.

Ether 2:9
9 And now, we can behold the decrees of God concerning this land, that it is a land of
promise; and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall serve God, or they shall be swept
off when the fulness of his wrath shall come upon them. And the fulness of his wrath
cometh upon them when they are ripened in iniquity.

Ether 2:10
10 For behold, this is a land which is choice above all other lands; wherefore he that doth
possess it shall serve God or shall be swept off; for it is the everlasting decree of God.
And it is not until the fulness of iniquity among the children of the land, that they are
swept off.
11 And this cometh unto you, O ye Gentiles, that ye may know the decrees of God--that
ye may repent, and not continue in your iniquities until the fulness come, that ye may not
bring down the fulness of the wrath of God upon you as the inhabitants of the land have
hitherto done.

Ether 2:12
12 Behold, this is a choice land, and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall be free from
bondage, and from captivity, and from all other nations under heaven, if they will but
serve the God of the land, who is Jesus Christ, who hath been manifested by the things
which we have written.

Ether 2:13
13 And now I proceed with my record; for behold, it came to pass that the Lord did bring
Jared and his brethren forth even to that great sea which divideth the lands. And as they
came to the sea they pitched their tents; and they called the name of the place
Moriancumer; and they dwelt in tents, and dwelt in tents upon the seashore for the space
of four years.

Ether 2:14
14 And it came to pass at the end of four years that the Lord came again unto the brother
of Jared, and stood in a cloud and talked with him. And for the space of three hours did
the Lord talk with the brother of Jared, and chastened him because he remembered not to
call upon the name of the Lord.

Ether 2:15
15 And the brother of Jared repented of the evil which he had done, and did call upon the
name of the Lord for his brethren who were with him. And the Lord said unto him: I will
forgive thee and thy brethren of their sins; but thou shalt not sin any more, for ye shall
remember that my Spirit will not always strive with man; wherefore, if ye will sin until
ye are fully ripe ye shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord. And these are my
thoughts upon the land which I shall give you for your inheritance; for it shall be a land
choice above all other lands.

Ether 2:16
16 And the Lord said: Go to work and build, after the manner of barges which ye have
hitherto built. And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did go to work, and also his
brethren, and built barges after the manner which they had built, according to the
instructions of the Lord. And they were small, and they were light upon the water, even
like unto the lightness of a fowl upon the water.

Ether 2:17
17 And they were built after a manner that they were exceedingly tight, even that they
would hold water like unto a dish; and the bottom thereof was tight like unto a dish; and
the sides thereof were tight like unto a dish; and the ends thereof were peaked; and the top thereof was tight like unto a dish; and the length thereof was the length of a tree; and the door thereof, when it was shut, was tight like unto a dish.

Ether 2:18
18 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared cried unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, I
have performed the work which thou hast commanded me, and I have made the barges
according as thou hast directed me.

Ether 2:19
19 And behold, O Lord, in them there is no light; whither shall we steer? And also we
shall perish, for in them we cannot breathe, save it is the air which is in them; therefore
we shall perish.

Ether 2:20
20 And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: Behold, thou shalt make a hole in the
top, and also in the bottom; and when thou shalt suffer for air thou shalt unstop the hole
and receive air. And if it be so that the water come in upon thee, behold, ye shall stop the
hole, that ye may not perish in the flood.

Ether 2:21
21 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared did so, according as the Lord had
commanded.

Ether 2:22
22 And he cried again unto the Lord saying: O Lord, behold I have done even as thou
hast commanded me; and I have prepared the vessels for my people, and behold there is
no light in them. Behold, O Lord, wilt thou suffer that we shall cross this great water in
darkness?

Ether 2:23
23 And the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: What will ye that I should do that ye may
have light in your vessels? For behold, ye cannot have windows, for they will be dashed
in pieces; neither shall ye take fire with you, for ye shall not go by the light of fire.

Ether 2:24
24 For behold, ye shall be as a whale in the midst of the sea; for the mountain waves
shall dash upon you. Nevertheless, I will bring you up again out of the depths of the sea;
for the winds have gone forth out of my mouth, and also the rains and the floods have I
sent forth.

Ether 2:25
25 And behold, I prepare you against these things; for ye cannot cross this great deep
save I prepare you against the waves of the sea, and the winds which have gone forth, and the floods which shall come. Therefore what will ye that I should prepare for you that ye may have light when ye are swallowed up in the depths of the sea?

Ether 3

 

Chapter 3

Ether 3:1
1 And it came to pass that the brother of Jared, (now the number of the vessels which
had been prepared was eight) went forth unto the mount, which they called the mount
Shelem, because of its exceeding height, and did molten out of a rock sixteen small
stones; and they were white and clear, even as transparent glass; and he did carry them in
his hands upon the top of the mount, and cried again unto the Lord, saying:

Ether 3:2
2 O Lord, thou hast said that we must be encompassed about by the floods. Now behold,
O Lord, and do not be angry with thy servant because of his weakness before thee; for we
know that thou art holy and dwellest in the heavens, and that we are unworthy before
thee; because of the fall our natures have become evil continually; nevertheless, O Lord,
thou hast given us a commandment that we must call upon thee, that from thee we may
receive according to our desires.

Ether 3:3
3 Behold, O Lord, thou hast smitten us because of our iniquity, and hast driven us forth,
and for these many years we have been in the wilderness; nevertheless, thou hast been
merciful unto us.

O Lord, look upon me in pity, and turn away thine anger from this thy people, and suffer not that they shall go forth across this raging deep in darkness; but behold these things which I have molten out of the rock.

Ether 3:4
4 And I know, O Lord, that thou hast all power, and can do whatsoever thou wilt for the
benefit of man; therefore touch these stones, O Lord, with thy finger, and prepare them
that they may shine forth in darkness; and they shall shine forth unto us in the vessels
which we have prepared, that we may have light while we shall cross the sea.

Ether 3:5
5 Behold, O Lord, thou canst do this. We know that thou art able to show forth great
power, which looks small unto the understanding of men.

Ether 3:6
6 And it came to pass that when the brother of Jared had said these words, behold, the
Lord stretched forth his hand and touched the stones one by one with his finger. And the
veil was taken from off the eyes of the brother of Jared, and he saw the finger of the
Lord; and it was as the finger of a man, like unto flesh and blood; and the brother of Jared
fell down before the Lord, for he was struck with fear.
Ether 3:7
7 And the Lord saw that the brother of Jared had fallen to the earth; and the Lord said
unto him: Arise, why hast thou fallen?

Ether 3:8
8 And he saith unto the Lord: I saw the finger of the Lord, and I feared lest he should
smite me; for I knew not that the Lord had flesh and blood.

Ether 3:9
9 And the Lord said unto him: Because of thy faith thou hast seen that I shall take upon
me flesh and blood; and never has man come before me with such exceeding faith as thou
hast; for were it not so ye could not have seen my finger. Sawest thou more than this?

Ether 3:10

 

10 And he answered: Nay; Lord, show thyself unto me.

 

Ether 3:11

 

11 And the Lord said unto him: Believest thou the words which I shall speak?

Ether 3:12
12 And he answered: Yea, Lord, I know that thou speakest the truth, for thou art a God
of truth, and canst not lie.

Ether 3:13
13 And when he had said these words, behold, the Lord showed himself unto him, and
said: Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall; therefore ye are
brought back into my presence; therefore I show myself unto you.

Ether 3:14
14 Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my
people. Behold, I am Jesus Christ. I am the Father and the Son. In me shall all mankind
have life, and that eternally, even they who shall believe on my name; and they shall
become my sons and my daughters.

Ether 3:15
15 And never have I showed myself unto man whom I have created, for never has man
believed in me as thou hast. Seest thou that ye are created after mine own image? Yea,
even all men were created in the beginning after mine own image.

Ether 3:16
16 Behold, this body, which ye now behold, is the body of my spirit; and man have I
created after the body of my spirit; and even as I appear unto thee to be in the spirit will I
appear unto my people in the flesh.

Ether 3:17
17 And now, as I, Moroni, said I could not make a full account of these things which are written therefore it sufficeth me to say that Jesus showed himself unto this man in the spirit, even after the manner and in the likeness of the same body even as he showed himself unto the Nephites.

Ether 3:18
18 And he ministered unto him even as he ministered unto the Nephites; and all this, that
this man might know that he was God, because of the many great works which the Lord
had showed unto him.

Ether 3:19
19 And because of the knowledge of this man he could not be kept from beholding
within the veil; and he saw the finger of Jesus, which, when he saw, he fell with fear; for
he knew that it was the finger of the Lord; and he had faith no longer, for he knew,
nothing doubting.

Ether 3:20
20 Wherefore, having this perfect knowledge of God, he could not be kept from within
the veil; therefore he saw Jesus; and he did minister unto him.

Ether 3:21
21 And it came to pass that the Lord said unto the brother of Jared: Behold, thou shalt
not suffer these things which ye have seen and heard to go forth unto the world, until the
time cometh that I shall glorify my name in the flesh; wherefore, ye shall treasure up the
things which ye have seen and heard, and show it to no man.

Ether 3:22
22 And behold, when ye shall come unto me, ye shall write them and shall seal them up,
that no one can interpret them; for ye shall write them in a language that they cannot be
read.

Ether 3:23
23 And behold, these two stones will I give unto thee, and ye shall seal them up also
with the things which ye shall write.

Ether 3:24
24 For behold, the language which ye shall write I have confounded; wherefore I will
cause in my own due time that these stones shall magnify to the eyes of men these things
which ye shall write.

Ether 3:25
25 And when the Lord had said these words, he showed unto the brother of Jared all the
inhabitants of the earth which had been, and also all that would be; and he withheld them
not from his sight, even unto the ends of the earth.

Ether 3:26
26 For he had said unto him in times before, that if he would believe in him that he could show unto him all things--it should be shown unto him; therefore the Lord could not withhold anything from him, for he knew that the Lord could show him all things.

Ether 3:27
27 And the Lord said unto him: Write these things and seal them up; and I will show
them in mine own due time unto the children of men.

Ether 3:28
28 And it came to pass that the Lord commanded him that he should seal up the two
stones which he had received, and show them not, until the Lord should show them unto
the children of men.

Ether 4

 

Chapter 4

Ether 4:1
1 And the Lord commanded the brother of Jared to go down out of the mount from the
presence of the Lord, and write the things which he had seen; and they were forbidden to
come unto the children of men until after that he should be lifted up upon the cross; and
for this cause did king Mosiah keep them, that they should not come unto the world until
after Christ should show himself unto his people.

Ether 4:2
2 And after Christ truly had showed himself unto his people he commanded that they
should be made manifest.

Ether 4:3
3 And now, after that, they have all dwindled in unbelief; and there is none save it be the
Lamanites, and they have rejected the gospel of Christ; therefore I am commanded that I
should hide them up again in the earth.

Ether 4:4
4 Behold, I have written upon these plates the very things which the brother of Jared
saw; and there never were greater things made manifest than those which were made
manifest unto the brother of Jared.

Ether 4:5
5 Wherefore the Lord hath commanded me to write them; and I have written them. And
he commanded me that I should seal them up; and he also hath commanded that I should
seal up the interpretation thereof; wherefore I have sealed up the interpreters, according
to the commandment of the Lord.

Ether 4:6
6 For the Lord said unto me: They shall not go forth unto the Gentiles until the day that
they shall repent of their iniquity, and become clean before the Lord.
Ether 4:7
7 And in that day that they shall exercise faith in me, saith the Lord, even as the brother
of Jared did, that they may become sanctified in me, then will I manifest unto them the
things which the brother of Jared saw, even to the unfolding unto them all my revelations,
saith Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of the heavens and of the earth, and all
things that in them are.

Ether 4:8
8 And he that will contend against the word of the Lord, let him be accursed; and he that
shall deny these things, let him be accursed; for unto them will I show no greater things,
saith Jesus Christ; for I am he who speaketh.

Ether 4:9
9 And at my command the heavens are