Misery/miserable is found 30 times in the Book of Mormon, notably in 2 Nephi 2, 2 Nephi 9, and the teachings of Alma-2.
Interestingly, the uses of the word "misery/miserable" in the Book of Mormon are clustered in the 3 of the 4 sermons mentioned in this post. Perhaps there are temple-relevant lessons to be learned from this word? (Keep in mind the temple relevance of Satan's desire to make men and women miserable.)
Lehi teaches his sons. 2 Nephi 1/2 -- 9 total uses of "Misery/miserable"
2:5 ...by the spiritual law they perish from that which is good, and become miserable forever.
2:18 And because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind.
Jacob's sermon to the Nephites. 2 Nephi 9 -- 2 total uses of "Misery/miserable"
9 And our spirits must have become like unto him, and we become devils, angels to a devil, to be shut out from the presence of our God, and to remain with the father of lies, in misery, like unto himself;
Alma-2's instructions to his once wayward son Corianton. Alma 40-42 -- 8 total uses of "Misery/miserable"
41:4 Therefore, all things shall be restored to their proper order, every thing to its natural frame—mortality raised to immortality, corruption to incorruption—raised to endless happiness to inherit the kingdom of God, or to endless misery to inherit the kingdom of the devil, the one on one hand, the other on the other...
In other words, 19 of the 30 total usages of the word "misery/miserable" occur in these three sermons, each of which contains numerous common themes regarding the Plan of Salvation, the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and the path to salvation. Interesting!
The context matters
By far the most common usages involve the eternal state of the soul or a mention of the devil's desire for us to be miserable. In fact, I can only see one example of the word being used in the Book of Mormon in a strictly temporal context, from King Benjamin's sermon (Mosiah 4):
17 Perhaps thou shalt say: The man has brought upon himself his misery; therefore I will stay my hand, and will not give unto him of my food, nor impart unto him of my substance that he may not suffer, for his punishments are just
In every other case, it seems the context is focused on the permanent state of our souls.
By contrast, "misery" appears 9 times in the KJV, 7 times in the Old Testament and twice in the New Testament, never in this specific context (the context is typically generic misery or temporal misery).
"Misery" in the Book of Moses
This is also interesting because Moses 7 gives us a very detailed view of the Satan's desire for man:
26 And he beheld Satan; and he had a great chain in his hand, and it veiled the whole face of the earth with darkness; and he looked up and laughed, and his angels rejoiced."Misery" is found twice in this chapter in the verses that follow this description (see verses 37 and 41).
Hat tip: Jeff Lindsay.
