When we wonder about the truth

36 Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.

37 Behold the wounds which pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet; be faithful, keep my commandments, and ye shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. Amen. (D&C 6:36-37)

 The context of this section is the Lord speaking to Oliver Cowdery, who had wondered about and already received a divine manifestation of the truth of Joseph Smith’s testimony.  In section 6 the Lord gives instructions about how peace coming to our hearts is a witness of the truth and such like.  The section ends with the verses above.

I wondered why the Lord says, “behold the wounds which pierced my side, and also the prints of the nails in my hands and feet” when the Lord didn’t appear to Oliver at that time.  What was the purpose behind those words? 

I realized that it was a reference to the story of doubting Thomas in the New Testament, who would not believe that the other apostles had seen the resurrected Lord unless Christ appeared to him.  The reference to Thomas was to show Oliver the necessity of believing Joseph’s testimony and beholding with an eye of faith the evidences that had been presented earlier in the section.

I also like that it says “look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not.”  It is a nice formula for choking off paralyzing doubts and fears by determinedly choosing instead to think about the Lord and what He would do.  The times that I have remembered to do this, I have been very blessed.

Not understanding the word of God and other obstacles to bearing fruit

When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side. (Matt 13:19)

This shows us how important it is to understand God’s words.  The things we hear and don’t understand are easily taken away and discarded.  This also suggests how important it is to teach the gospel plainly and simply.

When I was reading this from the parable of the sower, I also started to see that the four types of ground not only illustrates four different ways that different people respond to the word of God, but also illustrates the obstacles we are all up against to receive it.

The first obstacle, of course, is understanding it.  The Lord tries to make this obstacle as small as possible by making the gospel simple and easy to understand because if we don’t understand, we lose it really fast.

The second obstacle is tribulation and persecution.  If we can’t stay steadfast, we lose our place in the kingdom and the gospel seems like a fair-weather philosophy.  (Thank goodness it is not though.; it can get us through hurricanes.)

The third obstacle is competing concerns of the cares of the world and the temptation for gain and riches, which can certainly steal our energy and commitment—“choking the word.”

The fourth obstacle is simply us and our limitations and weaknesses. 

But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. (Matt. 13:23) 

Bearing fruit thirty or sixty-fold doesn’t seem like a problem or an obstacle, but if the goal is bearing a hundredfold, we see there is still some obstacle in the way.  Maybe it isn’t really a limitation in us; maybe the obstacle has to do with how much seed we sow and grow.  Maybe there is something about the law of the harvest here.  The fourth obstacle we have to overcome is lack of commitment, which determines how much we put into obedience and discipleship.  

Who can find a virtuous man?

Proverbs 31:10-31 has a pretty great description of the ideal virtuous woman, whose price is far above rubies.  It seemed to me that we need a male counterpart, so I took it upon myself to write one, though considerably modernized. ;-)

Who can find a virtuous man? For his price is far above emeralds.

The heart of his wife safely trusts in him, so that she will have no fear of betrayal, neglect, abuse, or pornography.

He will do her good and not evil all the days of his life.

He seeketh resources and worketh willingly with his hands.

He is like the merchants ships; he bringeth home the best deals from afar.

He riseth while it is yet night, and repaireth the broken appliances.

He considereth the yard, and moweth it.  With the tools of his garage, he trims the bushes and the trees, and planteth a garden.

He girdeth his loins with strength, and strengtheneth his arms at the gym.

He layeth his hands to the hammer, and his hands hold the nails and the screwdriver.

He stretcheth out his hands to the poor; yea, he moveth families with the elders quorum and passeth along job opportunities.

He is not afraid of the weather for his household: for all the house is in good repair.

He picketh out coverings of cotton and fine knit; his clothing is denim or a spiffy black suit and tie.

His wife is known in the city, when she sitteth among the women to talk.

He starteth a business and buildeth it.  He delivers excellent goods and services to his customers.

Strength and honour are his clothing; and he shall rejoice in time to come.

He openeth his mouth with wisdom; and in his tongue is the law of kindness and integrity.

He looketh well to the ways of his business and employment, and eateth not the bread of idleness.

His children arise up, and call him awesome; his wife also, and she praiseth him.

Many sons have done virtuously, but thou excellest them all.

Favour is deceitful, and rugged good looks are vain, but a man that feareth the Lord, he shall be praised.

Give him the fruit of his hands; and let his own works praise him on the news.

What would you add?

Review: Satan’s War on Free Agency, by Greg Wright

Satan's War on Free Agency, by Greg Wright is a book that you must read.  We have traditionally viewed Satan’s plan as an attempt to force others to be good, but this book examines additional ways that agency may be taken away, such as attempts to remove negative consequences.  He explains well enough that you will find your view of agency and appreciation for agency greatly enhanced, and you will find yourself understanding the challenges of current events at a much deeper level and how the adversary is still working to try to take away our agency.   This book was such a revelation to me that I think I was completely blind before I read it. 

Parents will greatly appreciate the very practical examples that Wright includes of how to raise happy and successful children using an expanded understanding of the doctrine of agency.   I feel that I grew up with wonderful parents who taught according to gospel principles, but I was exceptionally impressed with the examples that Wright shared.  I am convinced his examples and stories will give a huge amount of hope and confidence to any parent who is trying to raise a child in this difficult world. 

Let me see if I can summarize the main idea that he presented.  In order for us to have agency, we must have four things:

1.     Knowledge of right and wrong

2.     At least two options from which to choose

3.     The options must have different consequences

4.     Ability to choose for ourselves

Traditionally we have believed that Satan’s plan was to force everyone to do the right thing so they could come back to Heavenly Father.  Wright demonstrates in a startling manner that this traditional view is not scriptural!   Wright explains with great clarity that another way Satan could have tried to destroy agency is if he could convince Heavenly Father to allow everyone back into heaven no matter what they did, in effect creating a “no fail” situation opportunity.  (Amulek and Zeezrom debated about this “saved in your sins” versus “saved from your sins.”)

Wright describes how Satan continues his war on earth by tempting us to try to get rid of negative consequences for our actions.  He says if both good actions and evil actions are rewarded the same way, then it doesn’t matter what we choose.  If our choice doesn’t matter, then our agency has been destroyed, and our behavior will deteriorate every time.  The examples and thought experiments Wright uses to illustrate his points are very helpful and illuminating.

I whole-heartedly recommend Greg Wright’s book, and I advise that you get a copy to read as soon as you can to prepare you for when your kids’ summer vacation begins.

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have NOT received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The individuality of revelation and what’s of most worth

I was reading D&C sections 15 & 16, which happen to be identical except for the person to whom they were addressed.  Here’s section 15:

1 Hearken, my servant John, and listen to the words of Jesus Christ, your Lord and your Redeemer.

 2 For behold, I speak unto you with sharpness and with power, for mine arm is over all the earth.

 3 And I will tell you that which no man knoweth save me and thee alone—

 4 For many times you have desired of me to know that which would be of the most worth unto you.

 5 Behold, blessed are you for this thing, and for speaking my words which I have given you according to my commandments.

 6 And now, behold, I say unto you, that the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father. Amen. (D&C 15)

Section 15 was addressed to John Whitmer, and section 16 was addressed to Peter Whitmer Jr.

When I was reading the two sections together, I thought it was amazing that both revelations were included in the D&C and not just one of them.  I began to wonder what instructive purpose was served by that decision.  The church could very well have decided that only one was needed.  (I know if I had been on the committee selecting revelations to be included, I would have voted for section 16 to be kept out.  That shows you how uninspired I am. ;-) )

Verse 3 says “I will tell you that which no man knoweth save me and thee alone.”  This catches our attention and we become curious about what the Lord could say He knew more than anyone about John.    And after reading section 16 that duplicates this confidential phrase exactly, I begin to wonder if this choice of words was a form that appealed to Joseph Smith’s mind…  but the fact that both sections are there demonstrates that the truth can be repetitive and can even seem boring if we think of it as an entertaining story.  It reminds me that it is revelation, since one of those sections could easily have been left out so as to seem more interesting.

For many times you have desired of me to know that which would be of the most worth unto you….the thing which will be of the most worth unto you will be to declare repentance unto this people, that you may bring souls unto me, that you may rest with them in the kingdom of my Father. (v4,6)

I know I have often wondered what would be the best thing for me to do in my life, and this counsel—declare repentance--is a great guide.  That it is repeated twice to two separate people shows the answer doesn’t change; it is the same for everybody.

I think it is interesting that we get to see that two brothers were wondering the same thing, wondering what would be the best thing for them to do in their lives.  Don’t we find ourselves wondering the same thing?  Also, since these two revelations tell of sharing something known only between the Lord and them, we see that these brothers hadn’t talked to each other about the questions they had about what would be of most worth for them to do.  It reminds us that there are things family members may not know about each other, even while living together.  Family members may not know the good desires that each other have.

Another thing these sections show is that the Lord knows what we most want, and listens to our prayers.  And He answers them.

And too, the Lord gives the tough answer, even if it is one that will put a lot of responsibility on us.  The answer that declaring repentance to people will be of most worth isn’t an easy answer.  It is one that requires lifelong commitment and work.  I suppose this is what makes it of such great worth.

Lessons from parable of the unjust steward

The parable of the unjust steward is one of the more confusing and difficult-to-understand of Jesus’s parables, but when you get right down to the bottom, it can be very helpful to us as a lesson of stewardship.

1 And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods.

 2 And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward.

 3 Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed.

 4 I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.

 5 So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord?

 6 And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty.

 7 Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore.

 8 And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.

 9 And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. (Luke 16:1-19)

In this parable, a steward hears he is going to be called on the carpet for waste and he will probably be thrown out of his job, so he comes up with a strategy to smooth his way out and ingratiate himself with his master’s debtors by forgiving portions of their debts in the hopes that they will find a place for him.

The part of this parable that puzzles us is this—“And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely.”  It puzzles us because it makes it sound like the master sees his steward cheating him and approves of what he is doing.  In real life this would probably not happen between human master and steward, but I believe it is used here in this parable to illustrate how Heavenly Father’s would react to us as stewards if we were doing the same thing.  If we truly believe that Heavenly Father is our master and we are His stewards, we know that Heavenly Father is not so narrow-minded as to object if we use part of our stewardship to help others, even if we have been wasteful in the rest of our stewardship.  He sees it as wisely providing for our everlasting habitation after mortality.

This is reinforced by this line--"Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations."  We are to understand that if we use parts of our stewardship to help people, even if they don't really deserve it, when Judgment Day comes, they will speak up for us and be witnesses for our generosity.  Helping them amounts to "laying up treasure in heaven."

“For the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light” (v8) – Jesus said this to point out how any money-grabbing man of the world is smart enough to prepare ahead of time some sort of golden parachute (as we might call it) to use after getting ousted from a job, but the children of the Father’s kingdom don’t seem to realize they can provide golden parachutes for themselves for after mortality through charitable good works. 

So after realizing this, I wondered what was keeping me from living my life in such a way so as to consciously add to my treasure in heaven, and I wondered why I had dismissed in the past the concept of “treasure in heaven” as sort of a pie-in-the-sky idealistic notion is if it had no practicality.   I realized it was because it is hard for me to get a good sense of what kind of treasure and how much I had laid up.   We don’t have a way to really check on how much is there like we can check our bank’s website or our bank statement and see a number. 

But then I thought, is that God’s fault or ours?

It strikes me that while we may keep careful account of our bank deposits and withdrawals, we don’t necessarily keep much account of the good we do for others.  It is said that what we measure and record tends to improve, so perhaps if we wish to know about our treasure in heaven, we should record every good deed we do.  We can do this in the confidence that it indicates the amount of treasure that we are laying up in heaven.   And if it helps us remember the satisfaction we have felt while doing those things, then that’s an earthly benefit we certainly deserve to give ourselves.

It looks like I have some things to write in my journal.  I don’t think it needs to be really detailed.  It can just be a line or two.

Now, I don’t suppose that this laying up treasure in heaven is something we are supposed to do only when we are about to pass over to the other side, like the steward who only started thinking about generosity when he was about to get kicked out of his job.  I get the sense that it is supposed to be something we do all along, splitting our efforts between caring wisely for our stewardship and giving something away, maybe even to those who don’t seem to deserve it.  In the parable, those debtors certainly didn’t deserve clemency; after all, they were in debt!  They got themselves in that predicament!  Thus, some generosity to those who seem to not warrant it is truly a kindness.

Watch the following video "Treasures in Heaven: The John Tanner Story, part 2 of 2" and see if you can keep track of the treasure in heaven that John Tanner laid up.

If this post helped you, please share it on Facebook or Twitter or your other networks.  You never know how many people you can help.

Breaking the taboo in order to save

6 And Ammon took three of his brethren, and their names were Amaleki, Helem, and Hem, and they went down into the land of Nephi.

 7 And behold, they met the king of the people who were in the land of Nephi, and in the land of Shilom; and they were surrounded by the king’s guard, and were taken, and were bound, and were committed to prison.

 8 And it came to pass when they had been in prison two days they were again brought before the king, and their bands were loosed; and they stood before the king, and were permitted, or rather commanded, that they should answer the questions which he should ask them.

 9 And he said unto them: Behold, I am Limhi, the son of Noah, who was the son of Zeniff, who came up out of the land of Zarahemla to inherit this land, which was the land of their fathers, who was made a king by the voice of the people.

 10 And now, I desire to know the cause whereby ye were so bold as to come near the walls of the city, when I, myself, was with my guards without the gate?

 11 And now, for this cause have I suffered that ye should be preserved, that I might inquire of you, or else I should have caused that my guards should have put you to death. Ye are permitted to speak.

 12 And now, when Ammon saw that he was permitted to speak, he went forth and bowed himself before the king; and rising again he said: O king, I am very thankful before God this day that I am yet alive, and am permitted to speak; and I will endeavor to speak with boldness; (Mosiah 7:6-12)

When Ammon and his buddies meet King Limhi and his guards outside the city walls, somehow this is a particularly taboo place and occasion.  It is so boldly taboo that King Limhi specifically tells them that the only reason he kept them alive was to ask them why they were so bold. 

This makes me wonder.  Was external excess to King Limhi so restricted that the only way Ammon would not be killed would be to meet the king when and where he did?  Or did he meet the king at a particularly bad time (and any other time would have been better) and only his boldness about breaking the taboo (on accident) saved him?    I really don’t know.  Either way the Lord brought about the meeting, restrained King Limhi, and kept Ammon and his group alive so that Limhi and his people could ultimately be saved.

It is interesting that in this meeting both Limhi and Ammon are ignorant, and so in a sense, they both wrong each other.  Ammon approaches the king at a bad time and place because he doesn’t know there is anything bad about it.  The king tosses Ammon and his buddies in prison and was very close to killing them because he doesn’t know who they are and what their intentions are.  And yet they are both good and just men.  I suppose this can teach us that sometimes we may wrong each other out of ignorance of the full facts, and the Lord can help us keep from doing something hasty.

Imagine if the king had killed Ammon and his men, the very people who could lead them out of bondage and show them the way to Zarahemla.  It makes me wonder how often we might disregard the very things or people that could help us out of our problems, disregarding them just because they do something out of ignorance at first that offends us?

Another lesson we can get from this story is from Ammon’s viewpoint.  It may be that in order to save people spiritually we have to break some cultural rules against mentioning religion in casual conversation, speaking in times and places that our friends don’t think are the best.

“I Often Go Walking”: the rest of the story

Many mothers in the church have been serenaded on Mother’s Day over the years by their cherubs lisping the words from “I Often Go Walking.”

I often go walking in meadows of clover,

And I gather armfuls of blossoms of blue.

I gather the blossoms the whole meadow over;

Dear mother, all flowers remind me of you.

O mother, I give you my love with each flower

To give forth sweet fragrance a whole lifetime through;

For if I love blossoms and meadows and walking,

I learn how to love them, dear mother, from you.

It might be easy to think that this song is antiquated and idealized almost to the point of saccharine; after all, how many children often go walking in meadows of clover these days? (You can tell I'm isolated from farmland these days, huh.)

It was when I discovered the back story to this song that I began to see how relevant it still is to us today, and how much of an inspiration it can be.

The song was written by Phyllis Luch. “Phyllis Luch says of her inspiration for the words: ‘My mother was mentally ill….Nearly the only time she was at peace was in the fields and meadows….She knew the names of wildflowers, which as a child I thought was amazing.’” (Our Children’s Songs: Teaching the Gospel with the Children’s Songbook, p98)

When I first read that, I thought there was some bitter irony that a song that sounds so idealized was written for a mother with such difficulties. Was Phylis trying to gloss over the hard times and make some sort of pretty picture to cling to and fantasize about?

No. When I read more carefully, I noticed that Phyllis was expressing how she had learned to love blossoms, meadows, and walking because her mother loved those things. It is a message that any mother, no matter what kind of difficulty they may labor under to nurture and train their children, still has the ability to pass on to her child an appreciation for the things that she loves.

It is comforting to know that Phyllis knew that her mother was mentally ill. I don’t know whether she knew it while as a child or whether she learned it as an adult, but she knew it. And she chose to give tribute to her mother for something good she learned from her, rather than dwelling on the difficulties and pain.

So, here’s to ALL MOTHERS! Here’s to the mothers that press on through feelings of inadequacy. Here’s to the sacrifice and selflessness and especially the inner struggle that leads to it. Here’s to the courage and the dignity in spite of the sneers of the world. Here’s to the hours of changing diapers and spooning baby food into little mouths. Here’s to the chauffeuring and the homework help. Here’s to putting your foot down and taking a stand. Here’s to the perseverance to repeat the same righteous teachings as many times as is needed before it finally sinks in. Here’s to the pleading prayers, the deferred me-time, the falling into bed exhausted at the end of the day.

Mothers, I salute you!

Alma and the two ends of a trespass

Many members of the Church are led into sin by unbelievers—Alma is promised eternal life—Those who repent and are baptized gain forgiveness—Church members in sin who repent and confess to Alma and to the Lord will be forgiven; otherwise, they will not be numbered among the people of the Church. About 120–100 B.C.

1 Now it came to pass that there were many of the rising generation that could not understand the words of king Benjamin, being little children at the time he spake unto his people; and they did not believe the tradition of their fathers.
2 They did not believe what had been said concerning the resurrection of the dead, neither did they believe concerning the coming of Christ.
3 And now because of their unbelief they could not understand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened.
4 And they would not be baptized; neither would they join the church. And they were a separate people as to their faith, and remained so ever after, even in their carnal and sinful state; for they would not call upon the Lord their God.
5 And now in the reign of Mosiah they were not half so numerous as the people of God; but because of the dissensions among the brethren they became more numerous.
6 For it came to pass that they did deceive many with their flattering words, who were in the church, and did cause them to commit many sins; therefore it became expedient that those who committed sin, that were in the church, should be admonished by the church.
7 And it came to pass that they were brought before the priests, and delivered up unto the priests by the teachers; and the priests brought them before Alma, who was the high priest.
8 Now king Mosiah had given Alma the authority over the church.
9 And it came to pass that Alma did not know concerning them; but there were many witnesses against them; yea, the people stood and testified of their iniquity in abundance.
10 Now there had not any such thing happened before in the church; therefore Alma was troubled in his spirit….(Mosiah 26:1-10)

This is a really curious situation that arises.  First, people outside of the church had led church members into temptation and sin with flattering words.  (I’ve already examined flattery in detail, we should be pretty familiar with what was involved there.)  So it becomes necessary for those who had sinned to be “admonished,” or warned. 

It seems the admonishing was given first by teachers, then priests, and then the matter was referred to Alma. It could indicate that they didn’t have authority on their own to administer discipline or it could indicate that the teachers and priests must have felt their words were being disregarded and greater authority was needed to convince the sinner. 

Another thing I notice that is interesting is the sheer numbers involved in this uproar.  Verse 6 says “many” were deceived and committed “many sins,” and verse 9 says there were “many witnesses” and the people testified of the iniquity “in abundance.”  In short, the courts and their dockets were bursting at the seams.  It must have been incredibly chaotic with all the accused, and all the sins enumerated, and all the witnesses.  This wasn’t a hidden problem; it was something a lot of people knew about and it must have been festering for a time.  (This kind of reminds me of back when I was growing up and my younger siblings would come to me all yelling and demanding justice, complaining of all the wrongs the others had committed against them and denying any responsibility was theirs.  Those were always really tough to sort out.)  The sheer numbers of people would definitely have troubled Alma.

…and he [Alma] caused that they should be brought before the king.

 11 And he said unto the king: Behold, here are many whom we have brought before thee, who are accused of their brethren; yea, and they have been taken in divers iniquities. And they do not repent of their iniquities; therefore we have brought them before thee, that thou mayest judge them according to their crimes.

 12 But king Mosiah said unto Alma: Behold, I judge them not; therefore I deliver them into thy hands to be judged.

 13 And now the spirit of Alma was again troubled; and he went and inquired of the Lord what he should do concerning this matter, for he feared that he should do wrong in the sight of God. (Mosiah 26:10-13)

It seems odd to us to read of a church leader not knowing what to do when transgressors are brought to them to be judged, since we are so used to knowing about it ourselves.  One of the things I had to become more aware of was that Alma’s leadership experience was more with bringing people into the covenant who hadn’t been there before, rather than dealing with transgressors who were already in it.  He must have wondered where one draws the line between acceptable behavior for remaining in the church and unacceptable behavior that would constitute grounds for removal from the church.  With such a variety of transgression to judge, he would have to have very clear principles by which to judge, otherwise he might remove someone who should stay in or keep someone in who should have been removed. 

One insight I received a long time ago about the revelation that Alma received was how many times the Lord tells Alma “this is my church” and “they are mine” “I am the Lord your Redeemer.”  It is as if the Lord is reminding Alma that it isn’t Alma’s church, it is the Lord’s.  Just that reminder would have taken a lot of pressure off Alma, I think.  With that reminder, the main kernel of revelation comes.

28 Therefore I say unto you, that he that will not hear my voice, the same shall ye not receive into my church, for him I will not receive at the last day.

 29 Therefore I say unto you, Go; and whosoever transgresseth against me, him shall ye judge according to the sins which he has committed; and if he confess his sins before thee and me, and repenteth in the sincerity of his heart, him shall ye forgive, and I will forgive him also.

 30 Yea, and as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me.

 31 And ye shall also forgive one another your trespasses; for verily I say unto you, he that forgiveth not his neighbor’s trespasses when he says that he repents, the same hath brought himself under condemnation.

 32 Now I say unto you, Go; and whosoever will not repent of his sins the same shall not be numbered among my people; and this shall be observed from this time forward. (Mosiah 26:28-32)

Verse 32 is pretty plain.  Those who will not repent will not be numbered among the Lord’s people.  That means keeping a broken and contrite heart is essential for our membership in the church.

Also, though we tend to focus on the plain principles of repentance here, we can also find counsel given for those who were the plaintiffs and witnesses who testified against those who sinned.  “Ye shall also forgive one another your trespasses”(v31).  In this story, this counsel was especially important because of all the ruffled feathers that needed to be smoothed down.   And too, there was counsel for those who had difficulty forgiving:  “he that forgiveth not his neighbor’s trespasses when he says that he repents, the same hath brought himself under condemnation” (v31).  It is nice to know that the revelation Alma received had instructions that pertained to the plaintiff side of the case as well. 

I’ve found that consciously forgiving people of their trespasses against me helps me feel renewed and lighter.. when I can remember to do it. (Obviously this is something I need to work on.)    It occurs to me that repentance and forgiveness are complimentary principles that we need to live by.  If we’re not on the repenting end, we’re on the forgiving end.  Those are the two ends of a trespass.

It spake as a dragon: the two beasts in Revelation 13

Everybody has to take a stab at least once in their life at interpreting the symbolism of Revelation, especially the two beasts in Revelation 13.   So here’s my attempt, which represents my unofficial, but well-considered opinion.  I am sure that there will be new interpretations that come out in the future that will be better than mine as world events progress.  I’m also pretty sure my ideas will change over time as I learn more.  But for now, here’s my take on it. 

1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

 2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

 3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

 4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

 5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.  (Revelation 13:1-6)

I suspect that the first beast that rose up from the sea represents apostate religion. 

It rises out of the sea (v1)—It appears from the unstable masses of people in the world.

It has seven heads and ten horns(v1)—Heads seem to represent thoughts to me, and horns represent power.  Its thoughts and ideas are not unified (all kinds of doctrines are taught, making perfect confusion), but having plenty of people with power to back them up.  (Notice some heads must have more power than others, since you can’t divide 10 horns evenly among 7 heads.)

It is like a leopard (v2)—It is predatory.

It has the feet of a bear (v2)—Its acts are vicious and crushing.

It has the mouth of a lion (v2)—Its words are vicious, loud, and fearsome.

The dragon gave him his power, seat, and authority (v2)—The beast’s authority is NOT from God, but based on Satanic methods.

Upon his heads the name of blasphemy (v1)—This is the blasphemy of false doctrine about what God is like or what He can or can’t do. 

One of the heads was wounded to death and was healed and everyone wondered (v3)—There are two ways to look at this.  One way is to see it as a performance staged like Christ’s death and resurrection, not for the sake of truth, but to deceive.  Another way is to see it is that the imagery is meant to remind of the promise given in the Garden of Eden of how Christ’s mission and Atonement would bruise the serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15).  So Christ and the former-day church put a huge dent in apostate and false religion, but when the church fell into apostasy, the wound on the head of the beast was healed.  (http://www.bibleprobe.org/rev13.html)  This would certainly cause great wonder and dismay and make people wonder if it was possible to fight it.

Everyone worships the beast, thinking they can’t fight it and there’s nothing else with that kind of power (v4)—I imagine people have felt for a long time that even though they didn’t believe the apostate doctrine, there was no way they could fight the apostate religion.

A mouth to speak great things and blasphemies was given to the beast (v5)—Lots of power over the media, both for greatness and for blasphemy.

The beast blasphemed God, heaven, the tabernacle, them that dwell in heaven (v6)—False doctrine about God, heaven, the temple, and the angels is certainly a sort of blasphemy.

7 And it was given unto him [the beast] to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

 8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

 9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.

 10 He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. (Revelation 13:7-10)

It was given him to make war with the saints and overcome them, and power was given him over all kindreds (v7)—Apostate religion stamped out true religion.  Everyone comes under the sway of this religion. Inquisition is just one example. 

Those who worship this beast are those whose names aren’t in the book of life (v8)—It seems that those who do not worship Christ will be worshipping their religion instead.  And worshipping religion doesn’t get your name in the book of life.  The flip side of this is that a true worshipper of Christ is going to get a lot of persecution from false worshippers and probably have to endure marginalization, captivity, and even death.  This is why verse 10 was added—to reassure the true worshippers that those who led them captive or killed them would likewise suffer captivity and death.

The next beast that appears seems to me to represent Science.

 11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

 12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

 13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

 14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. (Revelation 13:11-14)

The second beast comes up out of the earth (v11)—It comes from the study of natural phenomena of the earth.  Darwin studying the animals, the study of dinosaur bones, the discovery of prehistoric cave paintings, men experimenting with chemicals and steam and electricity.

The second beast had two horns like a lamb (v11)—Two represents witness, which can remind us how scientific study needs multiple witnesses with multiple studies to establish advances.  The horns represent power.  A lamb doesn’t start out with horns, but they grow bigger as time goes on.  Similarly, science didn’t start out with power, but its power has grown over time.

It speaks as a dragon (v11)—This is temptation made more fearsome.  If a snake represents Garden of Eden temptation, a dragon is a snake on miracle-gro, or huge temptation.  It is extra tempting to believe science that seems to have such logical authority.  Dragonish temptations are those that say, “Studies show that [something bad for you] is not as harmful as previously believed, but can actually be beneficial.”  Dragonish temptations may also be those that come by way of technology, such as pornography and other addictions.

And he exercises all the power of the first beast before him (v12)—Science has gained the same slavish respect and awe that apostate religion once had all to itself, but…

The second beast causes everyone to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed (v12)—The temptation presented by the second beast drives the people to cling more tightly to their religion, even though it is apostate because while the first beast is bad, the second beast denies God completely.

The second beast does great wonders, so that he makes fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men (v13)—This evokes the story of Elijah and the priests of Baal in which Elijah called fire down from heaven to burn his sacrifice to prove that Jehovah was God.  The point of Elijah’s story was that wonders were used to prove the truth.  Used in this context, the imagery tells us Science also does experiments to prove scientific truths, and certainly can do amazing things.  Think of the fire of the space shuttle blasting off, or the immolation of the atomic bomb, not to mention all the non-fiery scientific advances the world has witnessed.

The second beast deceives them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do (v14)—We believe science has the answers because science has done so much for us.  Are we deceived by the temptations technology offers us?  Christ said great wonders could deceive even the elect.  Are we deceived by the temptations that come with cell phones, computers, internet, TV, and other technology?

The second beast says to them that dwell on the earth that they should make an image to the beast which had the wound and did live (v14)—Scientific religious thinkers want to remake religion, give it a good reputation, systematize it, use scientific practices to build it up, etc.  They want to use science to make the worship services more appealing with lights, music, saturation of the senses, etc. 

15 And he [the second beast] had power to give life unto the image of the [first] beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

 16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

 18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six. (Revelation 13:15-18)

The second beast had power to give life to the image of the first beast to make it speak and cause the deaths of those who don’t worship it (v15)—This is evoking the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abedego, who were told they must worship the huge golden image or be killed.  In that story, worshipping that image was definitely silly, since it couldn’t move or talk and couldn’t do anything for or against anyone.  However, in this story worshipping the image is harder to resist because it talks and it seems to have control over whether people are saved or destroyed.  It is harder to discern that it can’t really save anybody.  Here, Science is being used by apostate religion to make apostate religion (which is dead) appear alive.   It has the form of godliness, but denies the power thereof.  And of course, if anyone resists worshipping it, apostate religion causes them so much pain and hurt with spiritual abuse and disfellowshipping that it kills all desire to be involved in religion at all.  This leads to spiritual death. (There may also come a time when the killing becomes literal too, but let’s hope not..)

He causes all to receive a mark in their right hand or forehead (v16)— This is where the Book of Mormon’s doctrine about the mark comes in to give us encouragement.    The Book of Mormon teaches that anyone who is marked chose to be marked, so we need not worry that ALL are FORCED to receive the mark of the beast. 

None may buy or sell without the mark (v17)—Does science want to control all the commerce of the world?   I don’t know the answer.  But another way of looking at buying and selling may be to view it as a symbol for the exchange of ideas.  Do we see a restriction on the kinds of ideas that may be shared and traded in the public square?   I would say so. 

Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.  (v18) –The best idea I’ve run across so far for the meaning of 666 is from the Enduring Word’s webpage “Revelation 13 – The Two Beasts.”   It suggests that 666 is a reference to 1 Kings 10:44, which tells Solomon received 666 talents of gold yearly.  We are reminded that Solomon was a wise, good man, but he was eventually corrupted into idolatry.   This is also adds extra significance to the Revelation verse’s text that says the number calls for wisdom, which was certainly a characteristic of Solomon.  So if Revelation says that the mark of the second beast was 666, perhaps this suggests that those who follow the beasts had great wisdom and goodness that was terribly corrupted into the idolatry of seeking gain.  

I find this interpretation of the two beasts very helpful because it substantially demystifies much of the stranger imagery, it clarifies where we are in history with a sweeping view, and it also gives solid information about the spiritual difficulties we face.