In yesterday's post, I attempted to make a connection between the high mountain to which Nephi was carried by the Spirit and Enoch's City of Holiness/Zion. For me, this connection has everything to do with living according to the covenants we make in the temple. As we do so, we progress from the telestial and draw closer to the celestial realm where God lives. It isn't hard to think of that celestial realm as a "high mountain."
The work associated with this covenant is what we typically refer to as "missionary work," but it could just as easily be called the work of angels. Divine messengers bring glad tidings of peace and the authority to create binding covenants between God and His children. Once we make those covenants, we become the children of Christ in a specific sense -- He becomes the father of our salvation.
It is this context that helps us understand Abinadi's words to the priests of King Noah:
14 And these are they who have published peace, who have brought good tidings of good, who have published salvation; and said unto Zion: Thy God reigneth!
15 And O how beautiful upon the mountains were their feet!
16 And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those that are still publishing peace!
17 And again, how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those who shall hereafter publish peace, yea, from this time henceforth and forever!
18 And behold, I say unto you, this is not all. For O how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that is the founder of peace, yea, even the Lord, who has redeemed his people; yea, him who has granted salvation unto his people;
19 For were it not for the redemption which he hath made for his people, which was prepared from the foundation of the world, I say unto you, were it not for this, all mankind must have perished. (Mosiah 15)
In these verses, we get a connection between a mountain, Zion, and the feet of those who "publish good tidings of good" and "salvation." (Notice the past/present/future symbolism as well.) This is a clear reference to the covenant path / Way of Eternal Life. In verse 18, Christ is mentioned as "the founder of peace." I love these verses. "Feet" is a symbol of their willingness to "come down" from their place of safety to share the message of redemption with a fallen world.
"Tears as rain upon the mountain"
Notice how the tears of "the God of heaven" are described in these verses, taken from the vision of Enoch (the initiated one):
25 And he saw angels descending out of heaven; and he heard a loud voice saying: Wo, wo be unto the inhabitants of the earth.
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.
27 And Enoch beheld angels descending out of heaven, bearing testimony of the Father and Son; and the Holy Ghost fell on many, and they were caught up by the powers of heaven into Zion.
28 And it came to pass that the God of heaven looked upon the residue of the people, and he wept; and Enoch bore record of it, saying: How is it that the heavens weep, and shed forth their tears as the rain upon the mountains? (Moses 7)
God's tears are compared to rain upon the mountains, perhaps a reminder to those who are dwelling in safety on the mountain to remember those who are still wandering in the mists of darkness along strange roads and forbidden paths.
Two Rivers in Lehi's dream -- what do they have in common?
The fountain of living water from Lehi's dream is a representation of "the love of God" (see 1 Nephi 11:25), whereas the fountain/river of filthy water is described as "the depths of hell" (1 Nephi 12:16). What is the common link? In the context of "the two ways," I see a clear connection between these two sources of water. One leads to eternal life, the other leads to certain destruction. The one is found by following the word of God up the mountain (see 1 Nephi 8:19), the other is encountered as one crosses the gulf that divides the wicked from the righteous in an effort to reach the great and spacious building.
Interestingly, it is from the depths of hell that some converts are grasped and brought to feel the love of God. Notice how this imagery colors the conversion story of Alma-2:
The stark contrast here is part of what makes Alma-2's conversion so remarkable. In a smaller way, each of us experiences the same pattern as we become aware of our sins, feel the anguish that comes from realizing we are guilty before God, and then come to feel the Love of God through Jesus Christ's atonement.
12 But I was racked with eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree and racked with all my sins.
13 Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell; yea, I saw that I had rebelled against my God, and that I had not kept his holy commandments.
14 Yea, and I had murdered many of his children, or rather led them away unto destruction; yea, and in fine so great had been my iniquities, that the very thought of coming into the presence of my God did rack my soul with inexpressible horror.
15 Oh, thought I, that I could be banished and become extinct both soul and body, that I might not be brought to stand in the presence of my God, to be judged of my deeds.
16 And now, for three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the pains of a damned soul.
17 And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment, while I was harrowed up by the memory of my many sins, behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophesy unto the people concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ, a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world.
18 Now, as my mind caught hold upon this thought, I cried within my heart: O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who am in the gall of bitterness, and am encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.
19 And now, behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea, I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more.
20 And oh, what joy, and what marvelous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain! (Alma 36)
A pure mountain spring becomes filthy when it is trodden under foot by man or animal, or when it is mixed with impurities, representative of the ideas of men. The purity of the fountain of living water--God's love for us--is found by leaving the large and spacious field and the mists of darkness and rising above. This path naturally leads us to love Him, and then feel that same love for others. The "love of God" can thus have multiple meanings and can flow in more than one direction.
What does this have to do with Zion or being carried away by the Spirit?
The goal of this series is to connect the concept of Zion with the concept of being carried away by the Spirit. How does this relate? In short, the answer (for me) is consecration. When we are living according to the covenant we make with God, we dedicate our lives to the building up of Zion. The work of angels coming down from the mountain to declare good tidings becomes our work. See an angel, be an angel. "Let us go down."
I'll end this section with a passage referenced by Stisa in his two-part series of being carried away in the Spirit. This has to do the with change that took place in the Three Nephites when they were "caught up into heaven." We see very clearly that they were given knowledge of the mysteries of God and were thenceforth engaged in the work of salvation:
13 And behold, the heavens were opened, and they were caught up into heaven, and saw and heard unspeakable things.
14 And it was forbidden them that they should utter; neither was it given unto them power that they could utter the things which they saw and heard;
15 And whether they were in the body or out of the body, they could not tell; for it did seem unto them like a transfiguration of them, that they were changed from this body of flesh into an immortal state, that they could behold the things of God.
16 But it came to pass that they did again minister upon the face of the earth; nevertheless they did not minister of the things which they had heard and seen, because of the commandment which was given them in heaven.
17 And now, whether they were mortal or immortal, from the day of their transfiguration, I know not;
18 But this much I know, according to the record which hath been given—they did go forth upon the face of the land, and did minister unto all the people, uniting as many to the church as would believe in their preaching; baptizing them, and as many as were baptized did receive the Holy Ghost. (3 Nephi 28)
In the next part, we'll take a side road down to the Dead Sea to compare the concepts we've discussed so far with what can be found in the Dead Sea Scrolls.
