Recommended Resources

Learn about the Book of Mormon with verse by verse commentaries from renowned Book of Mormon scholars like John W. Welch and Brant A. Gardner in the ScripturePlus app. Read this week's KnoWhy connected with the Come Follow Me curriculum, and watch a video elucidating an insight in this week's scripture reading.

John W. Welch Notes

Ether 1–5

Come Follow Me (Insights into Ether 1-5, November 9--15)

Book of Mormon Central

Come, Follow Me with John Hilton III (Ether 1–5)

Book of Mormon Central

Come, Follow Me with Taylor Halverson (Ether 1–5)

Book of Mormon Central

KnoWhy 584

Why Did Jesus Say, “Never Have I Showed Myself unto Man”?

KnoWhys

Reading Plan

Structure your personal scripture study by following a multimedia, day by day plan. Each day's assignment includes the required scripture passages from the Come Follow Me curriculum, as well as suggestions for additional resources to bring context and understanding to your study.

Monday

• Scripture: Ether 1:1-5
• Quote: “It is not absolutely clear in the Book of Mormon whether Moroni made his abridgment of the record of Ether from Mosiah’s earlier translation or whether Moroni took his account directly from the plates of Ether—in which case he would have needed to translate the record as well as abridge it.”
  Ludlow, Daniel H. A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon. 308. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1976.
• Quote: “Also among the ancient Jaredites was a record which had been ‘brought across the great deep’ from Mesopotamia by Jared and his people. It contained a creation account down to the time of ‘the great tower’ and also set forth the ‘secret plans’ of evil men aimed at obtaining kingdoms and glory. None of this early scriptural information, however, is found in our book of Ether, for it was supposed by Moroni that it would be had among the Jews.”
  Welch, John W. “Preliminary Comments on the Sources behind the Book of Ether.” in F.A.R.M.S. Preliminary Report. Provo, UT: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 5.
• Scripture: Ether 1:6-32
• KnoWhy 235: Why Does the Book of Ether Begin with Such a Long Genealogy?
• Scripture: Ether 1:33-43
• Quote: “It is not clear why the name of the brother of Jared does not appear in the Book of Mormon. However, the following are possible reasons: (1) He may have omitted his name out of modesty (John the Beloved did essentially this same thing in the Gospel of John, which he wrote). (2) The book of Ether is clearly a family record of Jared, not of the brother of Jared; Ether—the final writer and perhaps the abridger of the record—was a descendant of Jared and might naturally have emphasized the achievements of his direct ancestor rather than the brother of his ancestor. (3) Moroni may have omitted the name in his abridgment because of difficulty in translating (or transliterating) the name into the Nephite language.”
  Ludlow, Daniel H. A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon. 310. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1976.

Explore Further

• Chart: The Genealogy from Jared to Ether

Tuesday

• Scripture: Ether 2:1-8
• Quote: “The name of this valley may have been a stark reminder to the Jaredites that they, like all of God’s children entering mortality, were strangers and sojourners in a dark and dreary world. Their trek through this valley of Nimrod might well have been a time of testing for them. If so, it can stand as a pattern of a similar temptation and trial the Savior experienced after being in the wilderness following his baptism. The record does not give us much detail concerning this part of their journey, except that it was a time of hard work, gathering and preparation.”
  Valletta, Thomas R. “Jared and His Brother.” In The Book of Mormon: Fourth Nephi through Moroni, from Zion to Destruction: Papers from the Ninth Annual Book of Mormon Symposium, 1994, edited by Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate, 310-311. Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2008.
• Quote: “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 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. We are the beneficiaries of their collective vision and industry . . . All of this symbolism attests to one fact: great things are brought about and burdens are lightened through the efforts of many hands ‘anxiously engaged in a good cause.’ 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.”
  Russell, Ballard, M. “Be Anxiously Engaged,” General Conference October 2012.
• Video: Where Does the Word “Deseret” Come From? (1:24)
• Scripture: Ether 2:9-15
• Quote: “In the dispersion from the Tower of Babel, the people of Jared arrived at ‘that great sea which divideth the lands,’ where they pitched their tents, awaiting further revelation about crossing the mighty ocean. For four years they awaited divine direction, but apparently they waited too casually, without supplication and exertion. Then came this remarkable encounter . . . It is difficult to imagine what a three-hour rebuke from the Lord might be like, but the brother of Jared endured it. With immediate repentance and prayer, this prophet again sought guidance for the journey they had been assigned and those who were to pursue it. God accepted his repentance and lovingly gave further direction for their crucial mission.”
  Holland, Jeffrey R. Christ and the New Covenant. 14-15. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1997.
• Quote: “All of us can meet God’s high expectations, however great or small our capacity and talent may be. Moroni affirms, ‘If ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is [God’s] grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ.’ It is a diligent, devoted effort on our part that calls forth this empowering and enabling grace, an effort that certainly includes submission to God’s chastening hand and sincere, unqualified repentance. Let us pray for His love-inspired correction.”
  Christofferson, D. Todd. “As Many as I Love, I Rebuke and Chasten.” General Conference April 2011.

Explore Further

• KnoWhy 236: Where Does the Word “Deseret” Come From?

Wednesday

• Scripture: Ether 2:16-25
• Quote: “Like the brother of Jared, each of us faces challenges in life. At times we may plead with the Lord: ‘Will ye have me go through this life without light to understand why things are the way they are?’ His answer to us might be the same question he asked the brother of Jared: ‘What would ye that I should do to put light into your spiritual vessels?’”
  Garrett, H. Dean. “Light in Our Vessels: Faith, Hope, and Charity.” Essay. In The Book of Mormon: Fourth Nephi through Moroni, from Zion to Destruction: Papers from the Ninth Annual Book of Mormon Symposium, 1994, edited by Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate, 81. Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2008.
• Quote: “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. In fact, it is His glory as well as His work.”
  Vinson, Terence M. “Drawing Closer to God.” General Conference October 2013.
• Image: Touch These Stone O Lord

Thursday

• Scripture: Ether 3:1-12
• Quote: “After his experience with the Lord, the brother of Jared continued to diligently prepare himself for the journey ahead. So too must we hearken to the teachings of our prophets. The living prophets have counseled us time and again to put our lives in order . . . As we look into the eyes of our children and grandchildren, we see the doubt and fear of our times. Wherever these precious ones go in the world, they hear about unemployment, poverty, war, immorality, and crime. They wonder, 'How can we cope with these problems?' To find answers, they look back into our eyes and listen to our words. Do they hear us speaking faithfully and hopefully, despite the tribulations of our times? They need to see us continuing to pray and study the scriptures together, to hold family home evening and family councils, to serve faithfully in our Church callings, to attend the temple regularly, and to be obedient to our covenants. When they see our steadfastness in keeping the commandments, their fears will subside and their confidence in the Lord will increase.”
  Hales, Robert D. “Faith through Tribulation Brings Peace and Joy.” General Conference April 2003.
• KnoWhy 526: How Were Jonah and the Brother of Jared Able to Find Comfort?
• Quote: “Some of us may need something startling like a burning bush experience to awaken our senses. In such an experience the essential nature of something—a person, a situation, an object—is suddenly perceived. We understand this to be inspiration. To be able to perceive by inspiration the common and ordinary things of life in their true meaning is a special gift. Many people fail to perceive inspiration because God’s ‘great power … looks small unto the understanding of men’ or because they are “less and less astonished at a sign or a wonder from heaven.”
  Faust, James E. “Did You Get the Right Message?” General Conference April 2004.
• Quote: “As a rule, prophets are invited into the presence of the Lord, are bidden to enter his presence by him and only with his sanction. The brother of Jared, on the other hand, seems to have thrust himself through the veil, not as an unwelcome guest but perhaps technically as an uninvited one . . . Obviously the Lord himself was linking unprecedented faith with this unprecedented vision. If the vision itself was not unique, then it had to be the faith and how the vision was obtained that was so unparalleled. The only way that faith could be so remarkable was its ability to take the prophet, uninvited, where others had been able to go only with God’s bidding.”
  Holland, Jeffrey R. Christ and the New Covenant. 23. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1997.

Friday

• Scripture: Ether 3:13-28
• Quote: “Experience by experience, faith can yield to knowledge ‘in that thing,’ meaning the particularized verifications of gospel truths. It was so with the brother of Jared: ‘He had faith no longer, for he knew.’  Brigham Young assured that ‘every principle God has revealed carries its own convictions of its truth to the human mind.’ Jesus clearly declared that ‘if any man will do his will, he shall know.’ However, Jesus described the steady process as being one of ‘line upon line, precept upon precept.’"
  Maxwell, Neal A. “Lest Ye Be Wearied and Faint in Your Minds.” General Conference April 1991.
• KnoWhy 237: Why Did Moroni Use Temple Imagery While Telling the Brother of Jared Story?
• Quote: “The two stones, or interpreters, were a Urim and Thummim (Hebrew, meaning ‘lights and perfections’), the very same instrument that Joseph Smith would later use.”
  Ogden, D. Kelly, and Andrew C. Skinner. Verse by Verse: the Book of Mormon. 2:267. Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 2011.

Saturday

• Scripture: Ether 4:1-19
• KnoWhy 409: Is There Evidence That Joseph Smith Possessed a Urim and Thummim and Breastplate?
• KnoWhy 239: Why Do So Many of Mormon’s Teachings Appear in Ether 4 and 5?

Sunday

• Scripture: Ether 5:1-6
• Quote: “The testimony of the Three Witnesses to the Book of Mormon stands forth in great strength. Each of the three had ample reason and opportunity to renounce his testimony if it had been false, or to equivocate on details if any had been inaccurate . . . each one of these three witnesses was excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by about eight years after the publication of their testimony. All three went their separate ways, with no common interest to support a collusive effort. Yet to the end of their lives--periods ranging from 12 to 50 years after their excommunications--not one of these witnesses deviated from his published testimony.”
  Oaks, Dallin H. “The Witness: Martin Harris." General Conference April 1999.
• Quote: “No other book in the world has ever had a witness borne to it as dynamic and powerful as the one the Master provided to sustain the Book of Mormon in what is known as ‘The Testimony of Three Witnesses.’ The ancient American prophets had predicted that through the power of the Lord the plates would be shown to three others besides the prophet to whom the records would be given for the purpose of their bearing witness. Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris asked for that privilege.”
  Hunter, Milton R. “A Great and Marvelous Work.” General Conference April 1969.
• Quote: “Traditionally, we think of the three witnesses to the Book of Mormon as Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris, and David Whitmer . . . However, there are additional sets of three witnesses to this sacred record. Moroni declared that the ‘Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost bear record.’ Also, three branches of the House of Israel, the Jews, the Nephites, and the lost tribes, each kept a record, and each branch will eventually receive the others’ records. These three branches of the House of Israel will also become a set of three witnesses in the latter-days.”
  Donaldson, Lee L. “The Plates of Ether and the Covenant of the Book of Mormon.” Essay. In The Book of Mormon: Fourth Nephi through Moroni, from Zion to Destruction: Papers from the Ninth Annual Book of Mormon Symposium, 1994, edited by Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate, 74. Provo, UT, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1995.
• Image: Gold Plates

Additional Resources (Bibliography)