GOSPEL
DOCTRINE LESSON
Supplements for
LDS Sunday School Courses for the Book of Mormon
(Including
Information for
Preparing Gospel Doctrine Lessons in Hebrew)
by Daniel Rona
Lesson Number 46
"By Faith All Things Are Fulfilled" (Ether 7-15)
Although these chapters in The Book of Mormon deal mostly with wars and secret combinations and little Jewish or "Israelitish" insight can be given, one thing comes vividly to mind. That is, vows and covenants are usually made with the Lord and not used as an instrument of people to people.
(Encyclopedia Judaica Jr.)"In Jewish law, "oaths" and "vows" serve as distinct terms, each representing a different class of "sworn statement." The oath, which in Hebrew is called shevuah, is limited to sworn statements made during the course of judicial proceedings, while the vow, called in Hebrew neder, has a much broader application and refers to all types of sworn statements made outside the courtroom. Both are treated at great length in the Talmud, in separate tractates entitled, respectively, Shevuot and Nedarim."
"Today in courts in most countries, it is common practice to "swear in" all witnesses. Jewish law never adopted this custom, preferring to accept testimony without the administration of an oath, as long as there were at least two witnesses who corroborated each other's testimony, as well as other supportive evidence. Testimony given under oath was, in fact, considered to be a particularly weak form of evidence, and it was only accepted when there was a complete lack of some thing better. When the judicial oath was administered, it was only used in civil cases and then not to the witnesses but to the defendant, or less often, to the plaintiff. In capital cases, a judicial oath was never administered, since it was assumed that no one charged with a capital crime could be believed, even under oath."
"In contrast to the judicial oath, the "vow" has very wide application. It consists of a fully verbalized statement made by an adult (not a minor) that he (or she) takes upon himself a specified obligation (such as giving a definite sum of money to charity) or that he denies to himself the enjoyment of a given object, person or experience (such as eating a particular type of food). If the vow is made voluntarily, without any compulsion from anyone else, it is fully binding, and only with great difficulty can it be declared void."
"Vows were regarded by the rabbis with great seriousness. They attempted to discourage indiscriminate making of vows, for they realized that most people made them without fully realizing the consequences. It is reported in the Talmud that the sage Samuel even declared that "he who makes a vow, even though he fulfills it, commits a sin." The rabbis tolerated vows only when they were taken in order to get rid of bad habits and encourage one to do good; otherwise they emphasized that one should strive for the desired ends without the aid of vows."
"Because of the strict binding nature of vows, and the great difficulties involved in having them annulled, even today many people have the habit of saying beli neder ("without it being a vow") whenever they make statements about acts which they plan to undertake in the future."
Notice that just prior to the destruction of the people, the various Kings and rulers like Shiblom, arrested and killed the prophets. In the days of Ahah, Ethem and Moron even the people rebelled against the prophets. A parallel to that is in Israel when Jeremiah was imprisoned for speaking against the government. This is also just prior to the destruction of the City of The Lord, Jerusalem.
"For then the king of Babylon's army besieged Jerusalem: and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the prison, which was in the king of Judah's house.
For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying, Wherefore dost thou prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD, Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it;" (Jeremiah 32:2-3)
The contrast in these chapters is that of trusting in the arm of flesh versus trusting faith in the Lord. Nowadays, the modern structure of Judaism is based on keeping commandments rather than on the "spirit" or personal "faith."
"The medieval Jewish philosophers gave a great deal of thought to formulating articles of faith and disagreed among themselves as to how many there should be. Some even opposed any such formulation on the grounds that every mitzvah [commandment] is an article of faith."
"In post-medieval times, interest in dogmas on the part of Jewish philosophers waned. Moses Mendelssohn rejected belief as a requirement of Judaism and claimed that performance of the mitzvot is the sole criterion." (Encyclopedia Judaica Jr.)
In Judaism, one of the commandments is to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem three times a year. Once is in the Spring celebrating being delivered from Egypt. That is called Passover. The second is fifty days later, the celebration of Shavuot. It is in commemoration of receiving the Law of Moses. It is also the time the "Spirit or the gift of the Holy Ghost" was given after Jesus’ atonement. The third is called Sukkot. It is celebrating the journey through the wilderness, eventually arriving in the promised land. These were done in Old Jerusalem and now after several utter destructions of the Holy City, it is done in the newly rebuilt Jerusalem.
"Jerusalem occupies a very special place in the Jewish religion. It is, of course, often mentioned in the Bible, in a historical and poetical context. It is sometimes given a quasi-mystical character and is frequently used to signify all of Israel or all of Judaism. "Because of its special holiness, Jerusalem is treated differently from other cities by the sages. There could be no permanent ownership of property in the city; its ritual purity had to be protected, and so no burial sites were allowed within the city walls."
"While the Temple stood, Jews were expected to make three pilgrimages there each year --- on Passover, Sukkot, and Shavuot. Many still make these pilgrimages, using the opportunity to mourn the destruction of the Temple."
"Jerusalem [is the] capital of the State of Israel and spiritual center for most of the western world. Jerusalem is more than just a physical grouping of stone buildings and ancient walls spreading out over the Judean hills: it is the Holy City, symbol of universal peace and redemption for over 3,000 years."
"Jerusalem has since had many names, reflective of the love and reverence of its admirers, including "God's City," "Faithful City," and "The Beautiful City."
(Encyclopedia Judaica Jr.)The imagery of the Holy City, Jerusalem applies to the past, present and future. It will, however, be more than just a city, it will be the "City of The Lord" with just as sacred and caring respect at the "House of The Lord."
As there is more than one eternal, righteous and one-in-heart "House of The Lord," so will there be more than one eternal, righteous and one-in-heart "City of The Lord."
"Now many will feel disposed to say, that this New Jerusalem spoken of, is the Jerusalem that was built by the Jews on the eastern continent. But you will see, from Revelation 21:2, there was a New Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, adorned as a bride for her husband; that after this, the Revelator was caught away in the Spirit, to a great and high mountain, and saw the great and holy city descending out of heaven from God. Now there are two cites spoken of here. As everything cannot be had in so narrow a compass as a letter, I shall say with brevity, that there is a New Jerusalem to be established on this continent, and also Jerusalem shall be rebuilt on the eastern continent (see Book of Mormon, Ether 13:1-12). "Behold, Ether saw the days of Christ, and he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence Lehi should come; after it should be destroyed, it should be built up again, a holy city unto the Lord, wherefore it could not be a New Jerusalem, for it had been in a time of old."
(Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Section Two 1834-37 p.86)"As we have heard, so have we seen in the city of the LORD of hosts, in the city of our God: God will establish it for ever."
(Psalms 48:8)"I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the LORD."
(Psalms 101:8)"The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel."
(Isaiah 60:14)"And he spake also concerning the house of Israel, and the Jerusalem from whence Lehi should come--after it should be destroyed it should be built up again, a holy city unto the Lord; wherefore, it could not be a new Jerusalem for it had been in a time of old; but it should be built up again, and become a holy city of the Lord; and it should be built unto the house of Israel."
"The city of the Lord is different wherein we seek not only that which is better, but that which is best. Filled as our city is with people who are increasingly of one heart and Of one mind and who are moved by the same basic beliefs, there is need for less and less in the way of structure to see that people do their duty toward each other. Here we do not divert people from their own labors into wasteful secondary tasks; basic love and honesty obtain increasingly between our people."
(Neal A. Maxwell, Of One Heart, p.38)In an overview of God’s dealings with his chosen people, the Children of Israel in ancient times, knew Him first, lived in the "Camp of Zion" and had a city of the Lord. The tribe of Judah, from Old Jerusalem, provided the Kings, the leadership at that time. From Judah’s line came the King of Kings. In our present time, the leadership is with Joseph, who received the keys of Temple worship, builds and uses these Houses of the Lord to bind us together and prepare us for His future return. One of the places he returns to is New Jerusalem, Adam Ondi Ahman. He will also appear in Old Jerusalem made new and the Jews, waiting for their King of Kings will recognize Him as the Holy One their forefathers knew. Have faith! All things will be fulfilled as the prophets told us.
"I saw Adam in the valley of Adam-ondi-Ahman. He called together his children and blessed them with a patriarchal blessing. The Lord appeared in their midst, and he (Adam) blessed them all, and foretold what should befall them to the latest generation." (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, Section Four 1839-42 p.158)
"And when these things come, bringeth to pass the scripture which saith, there are they who were first, who shall be last; and there are they who were last, who shall be first."
(Ether 13:12)