"Stretch forth thine hand" -- Part 4 (Enoch)

The other parts of this series can be found here:

Part 1: Introduction

Part 2: Old Testament

Part 3: The Book of Mormon

In this concluding post of the series, we'll look at the Book of Moses and what I consider to be the most important use of "stretching forth hands" imagery in all of the scriptures. The context is Enoch seeing a grand vision of the world.  In this vision, he sees Satan's great influence over the fallen world, and he sees the God of Heaven weeping. This impacts Enoch greatly, and he asks the Lord an important question:

29 And Enoch said unto the Lord: How is it that thou canst weep, seeing thou art holy, and from all eternity to all eternity?

30 And were it possible that man could number the particles of the earth, yea, millions of earths like this, it would not be a beginning to the number of thy creations; and thy curtains are stretched out still; and yet thou art there, and thy bosom is there; and also thou art just; thou art merciful and kind forever;

31 And thou hast taken Zion to thine own bosom, from all thy creations, from all eternity to all eternity; and naught but peace, justice, and truth is the habitation of thy throne; and mercy shall go before thy face and have no end; how is it thou canst weep? (Moses 7)

The Lord responds with a rather lengthy answer.  Here is the first part of His answer:

 

32 The Lord said unto Enoch: Behold these thy brethren; they are the workmanship of mine own hands, and I gave unto them their knowledge, in the day I created them; and in the Garden of Eden, gave I unto man his agency;

33 And unto thy brethren have I said, and also given commandment, that they should love one another, and that they should choose me, their Father; but behold, they are without affection, and they hate their own blood;

34 And the fire of mine indignation is kindled against them; and in my hot displeasure will I send in the floods upon them, for my fierce anger is kindled against them.

35 Behold, I am God; Man of Holiness is my name; Man of Counsel is my name; and Endless and Eternal is my name, also.

The Lord continues to answer Enoch. The next few verses are really interesting:

36 Wherefore, I can stretch forth mine hands and hold all the creations which I have made; and mine eye can pierce them also, and among all the workmanship of mine hands there has not been so great wickedness as among thy brethren.

37 But behold, their sins shall be upon the heads of their fathers; Satan shall be their father, and misery shall be their doom; and the whole heavens shall weep over them, even all the workmanship of mine hands; wherefore should not the heavens weep, seeing these shall suffer?   

38 But behold, these which thine eyes are upon shall perish in the floods; and behold, I will shut them up; a prison have I prepared for them.

39 And that which I have chosen hath pled before my face. Wherefore, he suffereth for their sins; inasmuch as they will repent in the day that my Chosen shall return unto me, and until that day they shall be in torment;

40 Wherefore, for this shall the heavens weep, yea, and all the workmanship of mine hands.

In these two verses we have three references to hands.  First the Lord reminds Enoch that none of His creations are beyond His power -- He can stretch forth His hands and hold all of them.  We'll come back to this a little later. Next, He laments the wickedness of the residue of the people (those who were not taken up to heaven with Zion) at the time of Noah. Finally, He indicates to Enoch that all heavenly beings (presumably including the righteous in Zion) will weep over the wicked who will suffer. No righteous individual takes any delight in the suffering of anyone, even the wicked.  

This statement seems to have a powerful effect on Enoch:

41 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto Enoch, and told Enoch all the doings of the children of men; wherefore Enoch knew, and looked upon their wickedness, and their misery, and wept and stretched forth his arms, and his heart swelled wide as eternity; and his bowels yearned; and all eternity shook. 

This is such an important verse! Enoch receives sacred information about God, mankind, the creation, and his own role in the plan of salvation.  Let's take a closer look at the list of things that happen as a result of God revealing to Enoch this information:

...wherefore Enoch: 

1. knew, and 
2. looked upon their wickedness, and their misery, and 
3. wept and 
4. stretched forth his arms, and 
5. his heart swelled wide as eternity; and 
6. his bowels yearned; and 
7. all eternity shook. 

Notice that the items on this list directly imitate the attributes and actions of God. With items #3 and #4, Enoch performs the same actions noted in verses 28 and 36, respectively. #4 is an important symbol. Enoch has fully committed himself to fulfilling God's righteous purposes. Items #5-7 remind me of key passages from the Book of Mormon. This will be the subject of future posts, because in some cases the references are numerous and deserve some discussion. Below I'll give a single corresponding Book of Mormon reference for each item.

#5 - His heart swelled: "Now this great iniquity had come upon the Nephites, in the space of not many years; and when Nephi saw it, his heart was swollen with sorrow within his breast; and he did exclaim in the agony of his soul:" (Helaman 7:6)

#6 - His bowels yearned: "And he said unto them: Behold, my bowels are filled with compassion towards you. Have ye any that are sick among you? Bring them hither. Have ye any that are lame, or blind, or halt, or maimed, or leprous, or that are withered, or that are deaf, or that are afflicted in any manner? Bring them hither and I will heal them, for I have compassion upon you; my bowels are filled with mercy." (3 Nephi 17:6-7)

#7 - all eternity shook: "Ye are swift to do iniquity but slow to remember the Lord your God. Ye have seen an angel, and he spake unto you; yea, ye have heard his voice from time to time; and he hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his words; wherefore, he has spoken unto you like unto the voice of thunder, which did cause the earth to shake as if it were to divide asunder." (1 Nephi 17:45)

Hands and Noah's Ark

Before finishing up, let's revisit the phrase from verse 36, "I can stretch forth mine hands and hold all the creations which I have made." I believe the clue to understanding what God means by this verse is found in verse 43:

43 Wherefore Enoch saw that Noah built an ark; and that the Lord smiled upon it, and held it in his own hand; but upon the residue of the wicked the floods came and swallowed them up.

God is certainly mighty to save all of His creations.  He stretches forth His hand to offer refuge from death and hell -- the "prison" referred to in verse 38. Those who enter in do so by covenant.  This is perfectly symbolized by Noah's ark, which was held in God's own hand.  (I previously posted about this verse here.) It is no surprise then that when prophets come to preach repentance, they often gesture by stretching forth their hands.  It's a powerful symbol.

Conclusion

The name Enoch means 'initiated one.' These verses demonstrate how Enoch's visionary experiences result in him becoming an instrument in God's hands, with an eye single to His glory. When prophets stretch forth their hands and declare repentance, they are helping God bring about God's purposes for His creation.

Stretching forth one's hand is a subtle scriptural reference to this initiatory experience had by Enoch. This series has helped me see God's love more clearly. We'll close this series with the poignant words of Jacob:

4 And how merciful is our God unto us, for he remembereth the house of Israel, both roots and branches; and he stretches forth his hands unto them all the day long; and they are a stiffnecked and a gainsaying people; but as many as will not harden their hearts shall be saved in the kingdom of God.

5 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I beseech of you in words of soberness that ye would repent, and come with full purpose of heart, and cleave unto God as he cleaveth unto you. And while his arm of mercy is extended towards you in the light of the day, harden not your hearts. (Jacob 6)

Searching the scriptures -- Moses 7:59-69

I've had an incredible experience studying Moses 7:59-69 for the past week.  This is a truly remarkable passage of scriptures.

I've had people ask me what system I use to study the scriptures. I have developed a few patterns over the years and I was amazed to listen to a devotional given by Elder David A. Bednar in 2007 in which he underscores the importance of several principles related to scripture study, including the importance of studying connections between various concepts and stories. By the time I found this talk, I had already learned for myself how important this principle is. I wrote about that talk in this post if you'd like to learn more. Here is a one minute clip where he describes what connections are and why they are a source of spiritual truth:

Today's post will be unlike any of my previous posts.  My focus is on attempting to demonstrate how interconnected the scriptures are. I'll do this by creating hyperlinks in the Moses 7 passage below. Each link will take you to a section at the bottom with additional scriptural references connected to that word or phrase. This is not comprehensive, nor is it intended to detail all of the learning that can take place by studying the references listed.  Rather, I just want to show how 11 verses in one book of scripture can take us on a journey through many other passages of scriptures if we take the time to study using Elder Bednar's principles.

Long post warning -- typically, a post of mine represents an hour or two of dedicated study.  This post will contain notes and references from about ten hours of study over a week.  The reason I'm not breaking it up into many posts is so that all of the references stay in one place for future reference, rather than spread out over many posts. However, I will circle back to these lists in future posts to discuss some of the insights I've gained as a result of this study, which I consider vital to understanding Moses 7.

Moses 7:59-69

59 And Enoch beheld the Son of Man ascend up unto the Father; and he called unto the Lord, saying: Wilt thou not come again upon the earth? Forasmuch as thou art God, and I know thee, and thou hast sworn unto me, and commanded me that I should ask in the name of thine Only Begotten; thou hast made me, and given unto me a right to thy throne, and not of myself, but through thine own grace; wherefore, I ask thee if thou wilt not come again on the earth.

60 And the Lord said unto Enoch: As I live, even so will I come in the last days, in the days of wickedness and vengeance, to fulfil the oath which I have made unto you concerning the children of Noah;

61 And the day shall come that the earth shall rest, but before that day the heavens shall be darkened, and a veil of darkness shall cover the earth; and the heavens shall shake, and also the earth; and great tribulations shall be among the children of men, but my people will I preserve;

62 And righteousness will I send down out of heaven; and truth will I send forth out of the earth, to bear testimony of mine Only Begotten; his resurrection from the dead; yea, and also the resurrection of all men; and righteousness and truth will I cause to sweep the earth as with a flood, to gather out mine elect from the four quarters of the earth, unto a place which I shall prepare, an Holy City, that my people may gird up their loins, and be looking forth for the time of my coming; for there shall be my tabernacle, and it shall be called Zion, a New Jerusalem.

63 And the Lord said unto Enoch: Then shalt thou and all thy city meet them there, and we will receive them into our bosom, and they shall see us; and we will fall upon their necks, and they shall fall upon our necks, and we will kiss each other;

64 And there shall be mine abode, and it shall be Zion, which shall come forth out of all the creations which I have made; and for the space of a thousand years the earth shall rest.

65 And it came to pass that Enoch saw the day of the coming of the Son of Man, in the last days, to dwell on the earth in righteousness for the space of a thousand years;

66 But before that day he saw great tribulations among the wicked; and he also saw the sea, that it was troubled, and men’s hearts failing them, looking forth with fear for the judgments of the Almighty God, which should come upon the wicked.

67 And the Lord showed Enoch all things, even unto the end of the world; and he saw the day of the righteous, the hour of their redemption, and received a fulness of joy;

68 And all the days of Zion, in the days of Enoch, were three hundred and sixty-five years.

69 And Enoch and all his people walked with God, and he dwelt in the midst of Zion; and it came to pass that Zion was not, for God received it up into his own bosom; and from thence went forth the saying, Zion is Fled. (Moses 7)

Each of the links in the passage above will take you to the corresponding section of references related to that word or phrase below.  In future posts, I'll look at the references in each list and discuss what I believe each of these concepts adds to the whole picture. In some cases, it is clear that multiple concepts tend to cluster together (I've indicated this by listing these in parentheses next to references where it applies).  

Taking the process of studying these references as groups and taking the time to develop a deeper sense of what the term is referring to is the essence of this pattern of scripture study.  I have learned so much, often completely unexpectedly, as I've taken this approach.  

"through thine own grace"

• 2 Nephi 10:24
• 2 Nephi 11:5
• Jacob 4:6-7
• Moroni 10:32
• Post: What is required to access grace?

"fulfill the oath"

• Moses 7:50-51

"darkness"

• JS-Matthew 1:33
• Doctrine & Covenants 29:14
• Exodus 10:21-23

"tribulation"

• Doctrine & Covenants 29:8 (prepare, gather)
• Doctrine & Covenants 58:2-4

"preserve"

• 1 Nephi 22:17

• Mosiah 2:20-21

• Alma 46:24

• Psalm 37:28

• Post:  "keep and preserve"

"sweep"

• Jacob 5:66
• Doctrine & Covenants 109:30

"gather"

• 1 Nephi 22:25
• 3 Nephi 16:5
• Doctrine & Covenants 29:7-8 (elect, prepare, tribulation) 

"elect"

• JS-Matthew 1:27-29, 37-39
• Doctrine & Covenants 29:7-8 (gather, prepare, tribulation) 
• Doctrine & Covenants 33:6 (gather)
• Doctrine & Covenants 84:34
• Isaiah 65:9, 22

"prepare"

• 1 Nephi 10:18
• 1 Nephi 22:20
• 2 Nephi 9:10
• Jacob 5:61
• Mosiah 4:6-7
• Alma 13:3, 5
• Alma 16:16
• Alma 42:10, 13
• 3 Nephi 21:27
• Ether 3:14
• Ether 9:28
• Ether 12:11
• Moroni 7:31-32
• Doctrine & Covenants 29:7-8 (elect, gather, tribulation)
• Doctrine & Covenants 38:9 (gird up loins)
• Doctrine & Covenants 38:30
• Doctrine & Covenants 42:9 (gather)
• Doctrine & Covenants 78:20-21
• Doctrine & Covenants 88:88-93 (quake -- see Moses 7:61 "shake")
• Doctrine & Covenants 133:57-59

"bosom"

• Doctrine & Covenants 38:4
• Doctrine & Covenants 88:13
• Doctrine & Covenants 109:4
• Moses 7:24, 27, 63, 69

"gird up loins"

• Doctrine & Covenants 27:15-16
• Doctrine & Covenants 36:8
• Doctrine & Covenants 38:9
• Doctrine & Covenants 43:19
• Doctrine & Covenants 61:38
• Doctrine & Covenants 73:6
• Doctrine & Covenants 78:22
• Doctrine & Covenants 106:5
• Doctrine & Covenants 112:7, 14

"abode"

• Moses 7:21
• Numbers 9:17-22

"rest"

• Jacob 1:7
• Alma 12:34-37
• Alma 13:6, 12, 13, 16, 29
• Alma 16:7
• Alma 40:12
• Alma 60:13
• 3 Nephi 27:19
• 3 Nephi 28:3
• Moroni 7:3
• Moroni 9:6, 25
• Doctrine & Covenants 15:6 (16:6)
• Doctrine & Covenants 19:9
• Doctrine & Covenants 54:10
• Doctrine & Covenants 59:2
• Doctrine & Covenants 84:24
• Doctrine & Covenants 101:31
• Doctrine & Covenants 121:32
• Doctrine & Covenants 124:86

"all things"

• 1 Nephi 9:6
• 1 Nephi 14:26
• 1 Nephi 19:21
• 1 Nephi 22:2, 20
• 2 Nephi 2:24
• 2 Nephi 6:3
• 2 Nephi 9:20
• 2 Nephi 27:10-11, 22
• 2 Nephi 30:16-18
• 2 Nephi 32:3, 5
• Mosiah 5:3
• Moroni 10:5, 13, 23
• Moses 1:4-6

"day of the righteous"

• 2 Nephi 9:46

"fulness of joy"

• 3 Nephi 27:31
• 3 Nephi 28:10

"walked with God"

• Genesis 6:9
• Doctrine & Covenants 107:49

Conclusion

The Book of Moses astounds me.  I see this passage of scripture in a new light as dozens of connections to other verses have become apparent to me.  There is a lot to say about it.  I'll highlight the significance I've found in these lists of references in upcoming posts.  I hope you'll take the time to look them up and make lists of your own.

Adam and adamah -- Part 3 ("in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed")

Links to 

• Part 1 
• Part 2

We have looked at the story in Genesis 2-4 from the perspective of the ground (Hebr. adamah) because it plays a central role and is even sometimes personified, but also because it forms an intimate relationship with man (Adam) in the text emphasized through the similarity of words. In part 1 we considered these three levels

1. Garden of Eden. No cultivation needed because the ground brings forth "every tree" (Genesis 2:9)
2. Cursed ground outside the Garden of Eden. Needs cultivation by man to bring forth fruit. (Genesis 3:19,23)
3. Both ground and tiller of the ground (Cain) are cursed. The ground no longer yielding its strength. (Genesis 4:12)

To make it back to the tree of life, we need to reverse these curses. The plan of salvation can be framed in different ways but the reversal of these curses is one of them. I think Alma agrees

5 For behold, if Adam had put forth his hand immediately, and partaken of the tree of life, he would have lived forever, according to the word of God, having no space for repentance; yea, and also the word of God would have been void, and the great plan of salvation would have been frustrated.

6 But behold, it was appointed unto man to die—therefore, as they were cut off from the tree of life they should be cut off from the face of the earth—and man became lost forever, yea, they became fallen man. (Alma 42)

In part 2 we considered the connection of blood (Hebr. dam) to adamah and adam. As Alma later explains in this chapter and as discussed in the last post, the sanctifying blood of Christ provides the means to reverse these curses. In this post I will demonstrate that keeping covenants is another. We are back to Christ and covenants (see here and here). No surprises there really. 

The intimate relationship between man and ground characterizes the curses from Genesis 3 and 4 and their reversal. We see this pattern clearly in Lehi's dream, for example. It starts out in a dark and dreary wilderness. The wilderness is a place where the ground does not yield its strength. The endowment pattern that Lord Wilmore has discussed often starts there. Next, Lehi sees a large field. Then he gets to the tree of life.

After the wilderness phase, there is tilling of the ground. Lord Wilmore points out in this post that both the Nephites and Jaredites start tilling the ground as soon as they get to the promised land. I want to include additional examples because I think they tie back to the reversal of the curses in Genesis. They also link to covenants. Recall in Mosiah 5, when King Benjamin has finished his speech, his people enter into a covenant. In Mosiah 6, they write down the names of all those who have entered into the covenant, Mosiah starts his reign, and then they till the ground

And king Mosiah did cause his people that they should till the earth. And he also, himself, did till the earth, that thereby he might not become burdensome to his people, that he might do according to that which his father had done in all things. And there was no contention among all his people for the space of three years. (Mosiah 6:7)

We see the same pattern in Mosiah 23. The people of Alma have just entered into a covenant at the waters of Mormon. This is what happens next.

3 And they fled eight days’ journey into the wilderness.

4 And they came to a land, yea, even a very beautiful and pleasant land, a land of pure water.

5 And they pitched their tents, and began to till the ground, and began to build buildings; yea, they were industrious, and did labor exceedingly. (Mosiah 23)

The intimate connection between man and ground is reflected in a covenant people prospering in the land and the land yielding its strength. I quoted Moses 7:15-17 in the previous post with the promise that I would get back to that. It is worth repeating in this context of curses and blessings on man and land alike, (in this case also coupled with bloodshed)

15 And the giants of the land, also, stood afar off; and there went forth a curse upon all people that fought against God;

16 And from that time forth there were wars and bloodshed among them; but the Lord came and dwelt with his people, and they dwelt in righteousness.

17 The fear of the Lord was upon all nations, so great was the glory of the Lord, which was upon his people. And the Lord blessed the land, and they were blessed upon the mountains, and upon the high places, and did flourish.

When we enter into and keep covenants, the earth yields its strength. The land is blessed and flourishes and so does the covenant people. This prepares us for Zion, the enclosed garden, where we can finally "put forth [our] hand" and "partake of the tree of life". Here is a final covenant example:

And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. (Genesis 12:3)

This is Yahweh's covenant with Abraham. "Earth" in this verse is from the Hebrew, adamah. Breaking the covenant brings a curse, keeping the covenant (by "blessing" Abraham as his seed) brings blessings. Adamah was cursed for Adam's sake after his transgression, but as a reversal of that curse, the families of adamah will be blessed in Abraham when entering into and keeping covenants.

I think all these examples are sufficient to conclude that the intimate relation between man and ground is reflected not only in Genesis 2-4 when they are cursed, but also in the covenant path that reverses those curses to blessings. Along with the sanctifying blood of Christ, covenants are what brings us back to the garden and the tree of life.