Endowment Narratives in the Book of Mormon, Part 6

In this post, we'll close out the endowment pattern series by looking at the Doctrine & Covenants and see how the symbolism of Adam and Eve that we find repeated throughout scriptural account of the formation of new covenant groups can also be found in our modern day revelations.  God is calling us to leave the fallen world behind, enter the metaphorical wilderness, cross over the waters and enter into His rest. 

We'll conclude this series by looking at a pretty direct historical example in church history, then we'll conclude the series by reviewing some verses from the Doctrine & Covenants in which some of the elements of the endowment pattern are put to use. Below that, I'll list some verses from the Doctrine & Covenants which beautifully portray how this same endowment pattern is in effect for covenant-keeping latter-day saints in our day.

Exodus from Nauvoo

After the cold-blooded murder of their prophet and his brother, the saints were called to leave Nauvoo and travel into the wilderness to find refuge in the mountains to the west. They "covenant[ed] to leave no one behind... who wished to go west" (Saints, Vol. 1, Ch. 46).  This trek began by crossing the Mississippi river and camping (in tents) along the banks of the Mississippi, then making the trek west.

Reading Doctrine & Covenants 136 with the endowment pattern in mind is pretty interesting:

2 Let all the people of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and those who journey with them, be organized into companies, with a covenant and promise to keep all the commandments and statutes of the Lord our God.

3 Let the companies be organized with captains of hundreds, captains of fifties, and captains of tens, with a president and his two counselors at their head, under the direction of the Twelve Apostles.

4 And this shall be our covenant—that we will walk in all the ordinances of the Lord. ...

8 Let each company bear an equal proportion, according to the dividend of their property, in taking the poor, the widows, the fatherless, and the families of those who have gone into the army, that the cries of the widow and the fatherless come not up into the ears of the Lord against this people.

9 Let each company prepare houses, and fields for raising grain, for those who are to remain behind this season; and this is the will of the Lord concerning his people.

10 Let every man use all his influence and property to remove this people to the place where the Lord shall locate a stake of Zion.

11 And if ye do this with a pure heart, in all faithfulness, ye shall be blessed; you shall be blessed in your flocks, and in your herds, and in your fields, and in your houses, and in your families. (D&C 136)

Conclusion

God desires to bless us with "the greatest of all blessings" if we will hearken to His voice and covenant to obey Him and trust in Him to guide us to a land of plenty. His promise is that if we hearken to His voice, He will teach us through (priesthood ordinances and temple covenants) to call upon Him with a voice that He promises to hear.

1 Listen to the voice of Jesus Christ, your Redeemer, the Great I Am, whose arm of mercy hath atoned for your sins;

2 Who will gather his people even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, even as many as will hearken to my voice and humble themselves before me, and call upon me in mighty prayer. (Doctrine & Covenants 29)

 

66 Behold, that which you hear is as the voice of one crying in the wilderness—in the wilderness, because you cannot see him—my voice, because my voice is Spirit; my Spirit is truth; truth abideth and hath no end; and if it be in you it shall abound. (Doctrine & Covenants 88)

 

1 Hearken and hear, O ye my people, saith the Lord and your God, ye whom I delight to bless with the greatest of all blessings, ye that hear me; (Doctrine & Covenants 41)

Covenant as messenger -- "Hearken ye together" (Part 3 of 4)

This is part 3 of a series connecting the symbol of the covenant as the messenger as found in Section 45.  Part 1 here.  Part 2 here. In this post we will look at what it means to hearken together, especially in the context of building Zion and creating a covenant people.

The context of Doctrine & Covenants 45 is Enoch and his people.  The Enoch chapters of what is now the Book of Moses had just been revealed. In verse 8, Christ explains that His intention is to offer the following to "as many as received me":

• power to do many miracles
• power to become the sons of God
• power to obtain eternal life

(Interestingly, that last item is a blessing connected to "believ[ing] on [Christ's] name." See Stisa's related posts here and here.)

These promises are fulfilled through divine authority, which is given to a group of believers seeking to build Zion (by "hearken[ing] together"). We are blessed to live in the dispensation of the fullness of times, when these blessings have been restored and temples dot the earth.

Following verses (9-11) each contain language that connects back to verse 8:  "even so I have..." and "Wherefore, ..."  In other words, verse 8 explains what Christ intends to give us and verses 9-11 explain how He intends to give it to us.

9 And even so I have sent mine everlasting covenant into the world, to be a light to the world, and to be a standard for my people, and for the Gentiles to seek to it, and to be a messenger before my face to prepare the way before me.
10 Wherefore, come ye unto it, and with him that cometh I will reason as with men in days of old, and I will show unto you my strong reasoning.
11 Wherefore, hearken ye together and let me show unto you even my wisdom—the wisdom of him whom ye say is the God of Enoch, and his brethren...

In many ways, I believe the Doctrine & Covenants is a handbook for how to build Zion -- "the wisdom of the God of Enoch." 

I looked for other examples in the Doctrine & Covenants where people are specifically commanded to hearken together. Here is what I found:

Section 1

1 Hearken, O ye people of my church, saith the voice of him who dwells on high, and whose eyes are upon all men; yea, verily I say: Hearken ye people from afar; and ye that are upon the islands of the sea, listen together. (Doctrine & Covenants 1)

This is an excellent example. The very first verse of the revealed preface of the book tells us to "listen together." Verses 1-23 go on to explain why the voice of warning is being raised: "...that mine everlasting covenant might be established" (verse 22).

There are some additional references, each of which is associated with a voice of warning or the giving of commandments:

• Doctrine & Covenants 41:2
• Doctrine & Covenants 42:1-3
• Doctrine & Covenants 72:1
• Doctrine & Covenants 136:41-42

Book of Mormon Relevance

4 Nephi 1 offers us a glimpse into what it looks like to have a Zion people on earth over a sustained period of time.  Among the many details given by Mormon, he includes the following:

• There was peace, prosperity, and miracles wrought "in the name of Jesus" (verses 4-7, 13).
• They met together oft "both to pray and to hear the word of the Lord" (verse 12).
• "surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God" (verse 16)
• "they were in one, the children of Christ, and heirs to the kingdom of God" (verse 17) "and "partakers of the heavenly gift" (verse 3)

As the people thrive, the destruction that prededed Christ's appearance is reversed. The people become one, happy, children of Christ, and inherit eternal life. It is essentially the same formula outlined in Doctrine & Covenants 45 above!

I'll close this post with one final example. This example connects preparing for the second coming, gathering of a covenant people, the elements of creation, and the voice of the Lord:

16 Hearken and hear, O ye inhabitants of the earth. Listen, ye elders of my church together, and hear the voice of the Lord; for he calleth upon all men, and he commandeth all men everywhere to repent.
17 For behold, the Lord God hath sent forth the angel crying through the midst of heaven, saying: Prepare ye the way of the Lord, and make his paths straight, for the hour of his coming is nigh—
18 When the Lamb shall stand upon Mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty-four thousand, having his Father’s name written on their foreheads.
19 Wherefore, prepare ye for the coming of the Bridegroom; go ye, go ye out to meet him.
20 For behold, he shall stand upon the mount of Olivet, and upon the mighty ocean, even the great deep, and upon the islands of the sea, and upon the land of Zion.
21 And he shall utter his voice out of Zion, and he shall speak from Jerusalem, and his voice shall be heard among all people;
22 And it shall be a voice as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder, which shall break down the mountains, and the valleys shall not be found.
23 He shall command the great deep, and it shall be driven back into the north countries, and the islands shall become one land;
24 And the land of Jerusalem and the land of Zion shall be turned back into their own place, and the earth shall be like as it was in the days before it was divided.
25 And the Lord, even the Savior, shall stand in the midst of his people, and shall reign over all flesh. (Doctrine & Covenant 133)