This week’s “Come, Follow Me” study guide covers Ether 1-5, which includes the Jaredites journeying to the promised land in barges and the brother of Jared seeing Jesus Christ.
Following are a few quotes from past and present Church leaders about these chapters in the Book of Mormon.
Ether 1-3
“God will be our ‘stay,’ our steadfast source of strength, if we choose to walk with Him. Yet we sometimes cease to pray. We allow a close relationship to become distant and less connected.
“At the time of the Tower of Babel, the brother of Jared cried unto the Lord to save the language of His people, and the Lord responded. Then the brother of Jared cried unto the Lord again, asking that He not confound the language of his friends. In both instances “the Lord had compassion upon [them]” (Ether 1:37).
“With these prayers answered, the brother of Jared turned again to the Lord, asking where He would have the people go. The Lord promised to meet them in the valley of Nimrod ‘because this long time ye have cried unto me.’ As promised, the Lord came and talked to the brother of Jared. (See Ether 1:38–39, 42–43; 2:1, 4.)
“Line upon line, step by step, Jared and his brother were ‘directed continually by the hand of the Lord’ (Ether 2:6). They made it through the wilderness to the seashore, where they stayed for four years. Certainly they had understood and practiced the power of prayer throughout their journey, but at one point the Lord had to chasten the brother of Jared because ‘he remembered not to call upon the name of the Lord’ (Ether 2:14).
“Did the brother of Jared simply forget to seek the Lord’s daily guidance? Did he feel that he had things under control and did not need God? Did his prayers become less sincere or more routine? The example of the brother of Jared brings us hope because he repented. After this, his faithfulness allowed him to see God face to face (see Ether 3:13–14).”
— Sister Bonnie H. Cordon, then the Young Women general president, in the February 2021 Liahona article, “Our Guide, Solace and Stay”
Ether 2
“The Lord’s guidance and instruction are essential. He helped the faithful brother of Jared by solving one of his two challenges when He told him how to get fresh air into the barges that had been faithfully built (see Ether 2:20). But, pointedly, the Lord not only left temporarily unsolved the challenge of how to provide light, but He then made it clear that He, the Lord, would allow the buffetings and trials that necessitated its solving. He it would be who would send forth the winds, the rains and the floods (see Ether 2:23–24).
“Why would He do that? And why does He warn any of us to remove ourselves from a source of danger when He could simply stop the danger from happening? …
“Here is the point — rather than solve the problem Himself, the Lord wants us to develop the faith that will help us rely upon Him in solving our problems and trust Him. Then we can feel His love more constantly, more powerfully, more clearly and more personally. We become united with Him, and we can become like Him. For us to be like Him is His goal.”
— Elder Terence M. Vinson, emeritus General Authority Seventy, October 2013 general conference, “Drawing Closer to God”
“The beehive has always been an important symbol in our Church history. We learn in the Book of Mormon that the Jaredites carried honeybees with them (see Ether 2:3) when they journeyed to the Americas thousands of years ago. Brigham Young chose the beehive as a symbol to encourage and inspire the cooperative energy necessary among the pioneers to transform the barren desert wasteland surrounding the Great Salt Lake into the fertile valleys we have today. …
“Imagine what the millions of Latter-day Saints could accomplish in the world if we functioned like a beehive in our focused, concentrated commitment to the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ.”
— The late President M. Russell Ballard, then of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, October 2012 general conference, “Be Anxiously Engaged”
“The brother of Jared in the Book of Mormon repented when the Lord stood in a cloud and talked with him ‘for the space of three hours … and chastened him because he remembered not to call upon the name of the Lord’ (Ether 2:14). Because he so willingly responded to this severe rebuke, the brother of Jared was later given the privilege of seeing and being instructed by the premortal Redeemer (see Ether 3:6-20). The fruit of God’s chastisement is repentance leading to righteousness.”
— Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2011 general conference, “‘As Many as I Love, I Rebuke and Chasten’”
“Prayer is what makes the connection with God’s power, which leads to loving and serving, sacrificing, and enlarging your own capacities.
“The brother of Jared in the Book of Mormon knew about this process. He had built eight barges, or ships, under the direction of the Lord, but they had no light in them. He called upon the Lord for help (and that’s our opportunity too). But the answer did not come in the way he was expecting. The Lord could have easily put light in those barges, but He wanted the light — the light of the Spirit — in the brother of Jared.
“What do you think the brother of Jared was doing from the time he realized the Lord was not going to give him a flashlight to the time he carved out 16 stones and asked the Lord to touch them and give them light? I think he must have done a great deal of … fasting and praying and pondering and reading his scriptures and serving and loving and forgiving and just trying to be obedient so he would have the Spirit, the light, to direct him.
“While the brother of Jared was doing everything he knew to do, was working hard and using every resource available — especially faith in the Lord — he went to the Lord again with his idea, and his efforts were enough. The Lord touched those 16 stones and there was light (see Ether 2:18-25; Ether 3:1-6). There are always answers.”
— Sister Sharon G. Larsen, then the second counselor in the Young Women general presidency, April 1999 general conference, “Your Light in the Wilderness”
“There are times… when darkness surrounds us and threatens to engulf us altogether. At such times we can take a lesson from the brother of Jared. You remember the Lord instructed the brother of Jared to make barges so his people could travel safely to the promised land. But because these boats were dark and without air, the brother of Jared took his concerns to the Lord in words that any of us might use to describe our own troubled times: ‘There is no light. … we cannot breathe’ (Ether 2:19).
“How does a person venture out into the darkness without fear? How do any of us venture out day after day into a world where there are no guarantees of safety? The Lord gave a profound answer that again applies not just to the dark sea the brother of Jared faced, but to our own dark seas as well: ‘Ye cannot cross this great deep save I prepare you against the waves of the sea’ (Ether 2:25). ‘I will bring you up again out of the depths of the sea’ (Ether 2:24). The Lord was not going to spare the Jaredites from the experience, but he prepared them for it and gave them the sweet promise of bringing them up again out of the depths of the sea.
“Then the brother of Jared asked the Lord, ‘How are we to get light in vessels without windows?’ And the Lord said: ‘What will ye that I should do that ye may have light in your vessels?’ (Ether 2:23).
“The Lord wanted the brother of Jared to suggest a solution, and he did well. He went to the mountain and refined out of a rock sixteen stones clear as transparent glass. I cannot imagine that this was an easy task; it took time and faith. When he finished, he took these stones to the Lord, asking the Lord to stretch forth His finger and make them shine so that his people might not travel in the terrifying darkness. And the Lord did touch the stones with light.
“Like the Jaredites, we’re afraid of traveling in the darkness, and we need light, which is hope. Sometimes, in the midst of our problems, we lose the vision of why we’re here or where we’re going. We wonder if we’re equal to the tasks that are given us. It is then that we can ask the Lord to touch the unlighted stones of our lives with light. He can deliver peace and hope when all around us speak against it.”
— Sister Dwan J. Young, then the Primary general president, October 1986 general conference, “The Light of Hope”
Ether 3
“Our willingness to take upon us the name of Christ and keep His commandments requires a degree of faith, but as we honor our covenants, that faith expands. In the first place, the promised fruits of obedience become evident, which confirms our faith. Secondly, the Spirit communicates God’s pleasure, and we feel secure in His continued blessing and help. Thirdly, come what may, we can face life with hope and equanimity, knowing that we will succeed in the end because we have God’s promise to us individually, by name, and we know He cannot lie (see Ether 3:12).”
— Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 2009 general conference, “The Power of Covenants”
“Suppose you had a very important job that needed to be done, and there were several people you could ask to do the job for you. Which person would you choose? Wouldn’t you choose the person who was best prepared to do the job?
“That is what our Heavenly Father did. The very important work that had to be done was to save us from sin and spiritual death and to show us how we could return to him. Unlike Satan, who wants to destroy you, Heavenly Father wants you because he loves you. He has provided ways to protect you from Satan. And whom did He choose to show us the way? His Son Jesus Christ. ‘Behold, I am he who was prepared from the foundation of the world to redeem my people’ (Ether 3:14).”
— Sister Michaelene P. Grassli, then the Primary general president, October 1989 general conference, “Follow Him”
“The Book of Mormon explains the significance of being called by the name of Jesus Christ. When the Savior showed His spirit body to the brother of Jared, He introduced Himself as the Father and the Son, declaring that through His redeeming sacrifice all mankind who believed on His name should have life eternal through Him, ‘and they shall become my sons and my daughters’ (Ether 3:14). …
“Those who are qualified by faith and repentance and compliance with the laws and ordinances of the gospel will have their sins borne by the Lord Jesus Christ. In spiritual and figurative terms they will become the sons and daughters of Christ, heirs to His kingdom. These are they who will be called by His name in the last day.”
— President Dallin H. Oaks, then a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, April 1985 general conference, “Taking upon Us the Name of Jesus Christ”
Ether 4
“I testify of Him who died, was buried, and rose again the third day and ascended into heaven so that you and I receive the blessings of immortality and exaltation. He is ‘the light, … the life and the truth’ (Ether 4:12). He is the antidote and remedy to the confusion of the world. He is the standard of excellence for exaltation, even Jesus Christ.”
— Elder Thierry K. Mutombo, General Authority Seventy, April 2021 general conference, “Ye Shall Be Free”
“Right and wrong do exist and are opposite to each other. The actions of mankind do have moral consequences. The gospel of Jesus Christ defines for us the difference between what is good and what is bad. That which is good comes from God. Christ has said: ‘And whatsoever thing persuadeth men to do good is of me; for good cometh of none save it be of me. I am the same that leadeth men to all good’ (Ether 4:12).”
— The late Elder William R. Bradford, then a General Authority Seventy, October 1999 general conference, “Righteousness”
Ether 5
“After centuries of plain and precious things being lost, the Bible enjoyed something less than perfect eyesight. The coming forth of the Book of Mormon with its perfect eyesight not only increased the field of spiritual vision but also gave much-needed clarity to the overlapping portion of the two spiritual eyes, or the binocular field of vision — scripturally we call this the law of two witnesses (see Ether 5:4).
“The overlapping field of vision, or ‘binocular summation,’ enhances the ability to detect faint objects. We see things more clearly as the separate views received in each eye are combined into a single image, giving us a convergence of the ‘visual axis’ and thus eliminating the ‘confusion and strife’ that so bewildered young Joseph [Smith] (see Joseph Smith—History 1:8).”
— Elder Lynn G. Robbins, emeritus General Authority Seventy, in the June 2016 Ensign article, “The Eyes of the Blind Shall See”
