the sealed portion of The Book of Mormon
an attempt at illustrating what The Book of Mormon plates
might look like, showing a large portion of them sealed
In this study, references to The Book of Mormon use LDS versification.
The Book of Mormon mentions other sacred writings to come forth in the end
times from a hidden vault in Hill Cumorah (Cerro Rabon) in Mexico. These
include the large plates of Nephi abridged by Mormon, the 24 gold plates
abridged by Moroni, and the plates of brass quoted from in The Book of
Mormon. Since The Book of Mormon plates that were translated by Joseph
Smith are also there, including the sealed plates, their rediscovery will enable
scholars, by comparing Joseph Smith's translation with the characters on
those plates, to translate the entire collection of Nephite writings. The plates
of brass and the small plates of Nephi (1 Nephi through Omni) were engraven
with characters that Egyptian language scholars already know how to
translate. Translating the 24 gold plates may require some use of the Urim
and Thummim, also in the vault, unless King Mosiah's translation of them
(Mosiah 28:10-20) is found engraven on plates.
The Lord showed himself to the brother of Jared (Ether 3:6-20) and gave
him two stones, which constitute the Urim and Thummim. The Lord showed
"all things" to the brother of Jared, commanding that he write concerning
what he saw and then seal it up with the Urim and Thummim (Ether 3:21-28).
We don't know what kind of material the brother of Jared wrote on. We only
know that he wrote in the language of the Jaredites, which was the
unconfounded language of Adam, and that what he wrote was in some
manner sealed. Any physical sealing could be removed. Translating what
would later become a lost language would require using the accompanying
Urim and Thummim.
At the end of the Jaredite civilization, Ether produced his summary of it on
24 gold plates (Ether 1:1-6). None of the 24 gold plates were sealed. They
did not contain the writings of the brother of Jared that were sealed.
Omni 20-22 states: "And it came to pass in the days of Mosiah [the elder],
there was a large stone brought unto him with engravings on it; and he did
interpret the engravings by the gift and power of God. And they gave an
account of one Coriantumr [a contemporary of Ether], and the slain of his
people. And Coriantumr was discovered by the people of Zarahemla; and he
dwelt with them for the space of nine moons. It also spake a few words
concerning his fathers. And his first parents came out from the tower, at
the time the Lord confounded the language of the people." Mosiah the elder's
ability to interpret the engravings "by the gift and power of God" suggests
that he had access to the Urim and Thummim. Were they given to him by
Ether?
King Mosiah the elder's son King Benjamin must have been given (perhaps
by Ether) the sealed writings of the brother of Jared, for King Benjamin
kept them for revealment "after Christ should show himself unto his people"
(Ether 4:1).
The 24 gold plates engraven upon by Ether were discovered by a search
party sent out by King Limhi, and were taken to King Limhi in the land of
Nephi (Mosiah 8:5-19; 21:25-27).
King Mosiah the younger, in the land of Zarahemla, translated and
published what was engraved by Ether on the 24 gold plates (Mosiah
28:10-20). The only portion of the 24 gold plates not published may have
been the secret oaths and covenants used by wicked Jaredites to gain
power over people. For when Alma the younger turned over all of the
sacred records to his son Helaman, Alma ordered that the secret oaths
and covenants engraved upon the 24 gold plates be withheld from
publication (Alma 37:21-32).
Jesus Christ revealed to the surviving Nephites what was written and
sealed up by the brother of Jared (3 Nephi 26:3-5 with Ether 4:1-3).
Notice especially Ether 4:2: "And after Christ truly had showed himself
unto his people he commanded that they [the sealed writings of the
brother of Jared] should be made manifest." The act of making them
manifest would have required presenting them in the Nephite language.
Mormon's abridgment of the plates of Nephi included two unabridged
sets of plates, the small plates of Nephi (1 Nephi through Omni), and a
transcription or translation of the writings of the brother of Jared,
which Moroni would later quote from. The transcription or translation
of the writings of the brother of Jared was included to fulfill 2 Nephi
27:10-11: "For the book shall be sealed by the power of God, and the
revelation which was sealed shall be kept in the book until the own due
time of the Lord, that they may come forth; for behold, they reveal all
things from the foundation of the world unto the end thereof. And the
day cometh that the words of the book which were sealed shall be read
upon the house tops; and they shall be read by the power of Christ; and
all things shall be revealed unto the children of men which ever have
been among the children of men, and which ever will be even unto the
end of the earth." The small plates of Nephi would have been made to
conform to the dimensions of the large plates of Nephi, which are the
same dimensions that Mormon used in his abridgment of the large
plates of Nephi. Since the sealed plates included in The Book of Mormon
were the same physical size as the other plates, they were not the actual
material written upon by the brother of Jared. The sealed plates included
with The Book of Mormon plates are a transcription or translation of the
original writings of the brother of Jared, which are preserved in the
vault in Hill Cumorah where other sacred writings are kept.
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Mormon 6:4-6
And it came to pass that we did march forth to the land of Cumorah, and
we did pitch our tents round about the hill Cumorah; and it was in a
land of many waters, rivers, and fountains; and here we had hope to gain
advantage over the Lamanites. And when three hundred and eighty and
four years had passed away, we had gathered in all the remainder of our
people unto the land Cumorah. And it came to pass that when we had
gathered in all our people in one to the land of Cumorah, behold, I,
Mormon, began to be old; and, knowing it to be the last struggle of my
people, and having been commanded of the Lord that I should not suffer
that the records which had been handed down by our fathers, which were
sacred, to fall into the hands of the Lamanites (for the Lamanites would
destroy them), therefore, I made this record out of the plates of Nephi
and hid up in the hill Cumorah all the records which had been entrusted
to me by the hand of the Lord, save it were these few plates which I gave
unto my son Moroni.
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Within Moroni's Book of Ether, which summarizes what was engraved by
Ether on the 24 gold plates, Moroni also quoted from the formerly sealed
writings of the brother of Jared, which were not included in Ether's 24
gold plates. Ether 4:4-5 states: "Behold, I have written upon these plates
the very things which the brother of Jared saw [Ether 3:6-27]; and there
never were greater things made manifest than those which were made
manifest unto the brother of Jared. Wherefore the Lord hath commanded
me to write them; and I have written them." Moroni then sealed the
transcription or translation of writings by the brother of Jared and
ordered the future translator of The Book of Mormon not to unseal them
(Ether 5:1). As for the 24 gold plates, they were not included in The Book
of Mormon plates found and translated by Joseph Smith. When the sacred
records in Hill Cumorah in Mexico are discovered, it will be obvious which
among the many engraved plates are the 24 gold plates. Moroni engraved
this promise: "whoso findeth them [the 24 gold plates], the same will have
power that he may get the full account" (Ether 1:4), which may indicate
that the finder will be granted a sacred use of the Urim and Thummim in
order to translate the 24 gold plates.
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Mosiah 8:13
Now Ammon said unto him, I can assuredly tell thee, O King, of a man
that can translate the records; for he has wherewith that he can look and
translate all records that are of ancient date; and it is a gift from God.
And the things are called interpreters; and no man can look in them,
except he be commanded, lest he should look for that he ought not, and
he should perish.
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An archaeological dig at Hill Cumorah in Mexico is underway. In the
following list of articles about the dig, those citing a 2018 "All Roads
Lead To Rome" prophecy through Mark Taylor are marked with an *.
Cumorah Messenger 2018-09 Upcoming Events (page 7)
Cumorah Messenger 2019-03 *Cumorah Excavations (page 4)
Cumorah Messenger 2019-06 Anticipating Cumorah’s Gifts (page 1)
Cumorah Messenger 2019-09 Progress at Cumorah (page 1)
Cumorah Messenger 2019-12 *An Update on Coxca (page 1)
Cumorah Messenger 2020-03 What Lies Ahead (page 1)
Cumorah Messenger 2020-12 2020 In Review (page 1)
The final paragraph of the "All Roads Lead to Rome" prophecy reads:
"The Spirit of God says, There is a dig, an archaeological find that is
coming, in an underground vault, which will be so cataclysmic that it
will ROCK the Christian world. The answer lies between Jerusalem
and Vatican City."
According to Merriam-Webster, "Vatican," a word derived from the
name of a hill on the west bank of the Tiber, the traditional site of the
apostle Peter's tomb, has two meanings: (1) the papal headquarters in
Rome; (2) the papal government. From 1309 to 1377, the papal
headquarters was in Avignon, France. In 1378 it was returned to Rome.
The Papal Palace was built from 1471 to 1605. St. Peter's Basilica was
built from 1506 to 1626. The first known use of the word "Vatican" in
sense (1) was in 1555. "Vatican City" in Rome was not established until
1929.
David B. Brown, of the Hill Cumorah Expedition Team, which, beginning
in 2001, has been searching to discover where The Book of Mormon
plates and other sacred Nephite writings are hidden, quoted "All Roads
Lead To Rome" and commented: "This prophetic word is an affirmation
that this library is about to come forth. While the 'Jerusalem and
Vatican City' aspect may seem that it is supposed to be somewhere in the
Mediterranean, we submit that this is actually metaphorical of a
timeframe when this library was buried; between Christ in Jerusalem
and the establishment of Vatican City" (Cumorah Messenger 2019-03-15
page 4). Mormon hid the Nephite sacred library in a underground vault
in Hill Cumorah in AD 384.
On 2022-09-20 Robin D. Bullock prophesied: "I will prosper Mexico and
give you hidden riches that lie beneath the ground that you have not
seen before. They've been there all this time, and no one has unearthed
it, because it was one revolution after another, and all of it was designed
to keep the blessing out of your land." See video@4:38.
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information in early printings of revelations
Textual differences between the first two listed are shown in red font.
Book of Commandments (1833)
CHAPTER IX.
1 A Revelation given to Joseph, in Harmony, Pennsylvania, May,
1829, informing him of the alteration of the Manuscript of the
fore part of the book of Mormon.
Now, behold I say unto you, that because you delivered up so
many writings, which you had power to translate, into the hands
of a wicked man, you have lost them, and you also lost your gift
at the same time, nevertheless it has been restored unto you
again: therefore, see that you are faithful and go on unto the
finishing of the remainder of the work as you have begun. Do not
run faster than you have strength and means provided to
translate, but be diligent unto the end, that you may come off
conquerer; yea, that you may conquer satan, and those that do
uphold his work.
Doctrine and Covenants (1835)
SECTION XXXVI.
Revelation given to Joseph Smith, jr. May, 1829, informing him
of the alteration of the Manuscript of the fore part of the book of
Mormon.
1 Now, behold I say unto you, that because you delivered up
those writings which you had power given unto you to translate,
by the means of the Urim and Thummim, into the hands of a
wicked man, you have lost them; and you also lost your gift at
the same time, and your mind became darkened; nevertheless,
it is now restored unto you again, therefore see that you are
faithful and continue on unto the finishing of the remainder of
the work of translation as you have begun: do not run faster, or
labor more than you have strength and means provided to enable
you to translate; but be diligent unto the end: pray always, that
you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer satan
and that you may escape the hands of the servants of satan, that
do uphold his work.
Doctrine and Covenants (1835)
SECTION XLII.
Revelation to Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer and Martin
Harris, June, 1829, given previous to their viewing the plates
containing the book of Mormon:
1 Behold I say unto you, that you must rely upon my word, which
if you do, with full purpose of heart, you shall have a view of the
plates, and also the breastplate, the sword of Laban, the Urim
and Thummim, which were given to the brother of Jared upon the
mount, when he talked with the Lord face to face, and the
miraculous directors which were given to Lehi while in the
wilderness, on the borders of the red sea; and it is by your faith
that you shall obtain a view of them, even by that faith which was
had by the prophets of old.
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information in church history
[1833 description of The Book of Mormon plates in The Evening and the
Morning Star 1:8]
These plates were generally made from the sixteenth to the thirty second
part of an inch thick (of metal) and something like six by eight inches
square, and fastened at the back with three rings through which a rod was
put to carry them, or hang them. The word of the Lord, the history of the
doings of the children of God, and their genealogy was engraved in a nice
workmanlike manner, upon them, in Hebrew, reformed Egyptian, &c.
Such was the condition of the plates, from which came the book of
Mormon. As may be seen by an allusion in the book of Ether, all that was
on them is not translated; wherefore, as they are sacred, when the book
of Mormon was translated from them, they were again hid up to the Lord,
to come forth again in his own due time.
[Joseph Smith's 1842 description of The Book of Mormon plates and the
Urim and Thummim published in Times and Seasons 3:707]
These records were engraven on plates which had the appearance of
gold, each plate was six inches wide and eight inches long and not quite
so thick as common tin. They were filled with engravings, in Egyptian
characters and bound together in a volume, as the leaves of a book with
three rings running through the whole. The volume was something near
six inches in thickness, a part of which was sealed. The characters on
the unsealed part were small, and beautifully engraved. The whole book
exhibited many marks of antiquity in its construction and much skill in
the art of engraving. With the records was found a curious instrument
which the ancients called 'Urim and Thummim,' which consisted of two
transparent stones set in the rim of a bow fastened to a breastplate.
[1833 description of the Urim and Thummim published in The Evening
and the Morning Star 1:8]
It was translated by the gift and power of God, by an unlearned man,
through the aid of a pair of Interpreters, or spectacles—(known,
perhaps, in ancient days as Teraphim, or Urim and Thummim) ...
[Lucy Smith's 1853 description of the Urim and Thummim in
Biographical Sketches of Joseph Smith the Prophet, and his Progenitors
chapter 23]
'Do not be uneasy, mother, all is right—see here, I have got a key.' I
knew not what he meant, but took the article of which he spoke into my
hands, and upon examination, found that it consisted of two smooth
three-cornered diamonds set in glass, and the glasses were set in silver
bows, which were connected with each other in much the same way as
old-fashioned spectacles.
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The original logo of Yale University Press had Hebrew words for
Urim and Thummim and Latin words meaning Light and Truth.
Yale published The Book of Mormon: The Earliest Text in 2009.
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