The Creation-Covenant Connection in more detail, part 3

These days I'm spending a lot of time thinking about the connection between Creation and Covenant.  Margaret Barker proposes that both words derive from a primitive Hebrew root associated with "organizing" and "bringing together." The covenant was first introduced in the Garden of Eden. Transgression led to the Fall, which drove Adam and Eve out into a cursed, thorny, dusty wilderness (see Genesis 3:17-19).

The Fall brought us to a wilderness and a world of trouble.  The Everlasting Covenant shows us the way to return to the garden. This theme has been discussed many times in other posts, which you can find here.

In this series of posts, we'll walk through this concept in more detail and hopefully find new meaning in a few scriptural passages along the way.

Part 1 -- "The Light of the Knowledge of the Glory of God in the Face of Jesus Christ"
Part 2 -- A Divinely-Appointed Curse "for [our] sakes"
Part 3 -- "Rending the Veil of Unbelief" and "Dispersing the Cloud/Mists of Darkness"
Part 4 -- Creation, Covenant, and "Life"

What is Unbelief?

In the Book of Mormon, unbelief is symbolized by mists of darkness or clouds of darkness. These symbols teach us important truths.

My purpose in this section is to highlight how unbelief stems from false confidence in the creation ("trusting in the arm of flesh," so to speak), and how this principle is symbolically portrayed in the Book of Mormon.

Nephi is taught in his vision that the mists of darkness in his father's dream represent "the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost." (1 Nephi 12:17)
Below are examples of how this concept is symbolically portrayed in the Book of Mormon. In both examples, unbelief gives way to knowledge through faith, and specific mention is made of the spiritual overcoming the natural.

King Lamoni

Notice how this is portrayed in the conversion story of King Lamoni:

6 Now, this was what Ammon desired, for he knew that king Lamoni was under the power of God; he knew that the dark veil of unbelief was being cast away from his mind, and the light which did light up his mind, which was the light of the glory of God, which was a marvelous light of his goodness—yea, this light had infused such joy into his soul, the cloud of darkness having been dispelled, and that the light of everlasting life was lit up in his soul, yea, he knew that this had overcome his natural frame, and he was carried away in God (Alma 19)

The "dark veil of unbelief" is "cast away from his mind" and replaced by the "light of the glory of God." The "light of everlasting life" "[overcame] his natural frame."

The Brother of Jared

Here is another more complicated example of an interplay between the symbol of being surrounded by the creation and the light of the Lord, from the experience of the brother of Jared on the mount:

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 2:5)

The dilemma

 The brother of Jared is the spiritual leader of this group, without a doubt, and yet the Lord is concealed to him in a cloud.  Then, in an effort to obey the Lord's direction for the people to cross the great waters, the brother of Jared asks an important question:

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)

The Lord's answer is telling.  First, He tells him that natural light is not an option.

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)

Then, He reminds him that at times along their journey, they will be buried in the creation by the elements of nature, and that He will prepare/protect them against these elements:

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.
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. (Ether 2)

Finally, He puts the question right back on the brother of Jared:

...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 2)

The Lord has outlined the problem -- the creation will completely surround the Jaredites on their journey, and natural light is not an option for them. If we step out of the literal context of the story and think about it symbolically, the Lord is asking the brother of Jared what He should prepare for mortals to allow them to have joy and hope of conquering death during their time on earth. Nothing natural or man-made can overcome this dilemma, and the Lord asks Jared to come up with a solution.

The solution

The brother of Jared proposes to solve this problem by creating clear glass stones out of rock taken from an exceedingly high mountain and crying to the Lord to touch them with His finger:

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)

It's easy to get so caught up in the story that we forget the double-significance of this proposal.  The brother of Jared is suggesting that the Lord prepare miraculous vessels of light to shine forth in the darkness and give light to those people who are crossing the sea. This sounds to me like angelic messengers sent down from Mount Zion to prepare the way of the Lord to the inhabitants of the earth (see Moses 7:25-27).

The rending of the veil of unbelief

After this remarkable doubly impactful display of faith in God, the veil of unbelief is removed, and the brother of Jared sees the Lord. Interestingly, the Lord words it this way:

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.
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)

What lies beyond the veil?

According to Barker, the veil of the temple represents the physical web of matter associated with the creation.  What lies beyond the veil? The Holy of Holies, God's presence, a glory reserved for those who believe on Him and have their garments washed in the blood of the Lamb. What do we find there? We find those things which were prepared from the foundation of the world, before the separation of light and darkness.

If unbelief is the darkness of the physical world, rending the veil of unbelief exposes the light of God.

King Lamoni saw "the light of everlasting life" when the veil of unbelief was rent.  The brother of Jared learned that in Christ, "all mankind shall have life, and that eternally." We'll get into the concept of eternal life in the Holy of Holies in part four of this series, but for now, it's sufficient to note that everlasting life/eternal life is found on the other side of the veil, when we are freed from the unbelief inherent to the created flesh.


There are additional examples of this same pattern in the Book of Mormon, which I'll detail extensively in a future post (after part 4), in an effort to keep this post from being too long.  They are found in Helaman 5 and 3 Nephi 8-11. Both have been touched on in previous posts, here and here.