3 Nephi 25

#3 Nephi Chapter 25

This chapter consists of the Savior’s quoting Malachi 4. The central theme of 3 Nephi 25 is the return of the prophet Elijah. Please review the introductory discussion for 3 Nephi 24.

verses 1-2 Elder Bruce R. McConkie has suggested that in these two verses the prophet Malachi may have been quoting from the ancient prophet Zenos whose writings are contained only on the plates of brass. The setting for the fulfillment of these verses is the destruction of the wicked that will be part of the earth’s cleansing preparatory to the Lord’s return in glory.

The reader should compare these two verses here in 3 Nephi 25 with two verses in 1 Nephi 22 (verses 15 and 24) likely written by the prophet Zenos:

“For behold, saith the prophet, the time cometh speedily that Satan shall have no more power over the hearts of the children of men; for the day soon cometh that all the proud and they who do wickedly shall be as stubble; and the day cometh that they must be burned” (1 Nephi 22:15).

“And the time cometh speedily that the righteous must be led up as calves of the stall, and the Holy One of Israel must reign in dominion, and might, and power, and great glory” (1 Nephi 22:24).

1 For behold, the day cometh that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

verse 1 When Jesus returns, the earth must be purified. Whether by repentance or by destruction, wickedness of all forms must be removed before Christ will dwell here, for only those who are worthy will be privileged to live in his presence.

It seems clear that the usage of the image of such phrases as the wicked burning “as stubble” was not unique to Malachi. Nephi quoted “the prophet” (probably Zenos) as using similar language (see the introductory commentary for verses 1-2 above and the commentary for 1 Nephi 22:15).

2 But unto you that fear my name, shall the Son of Righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth and grow up as calves in the stall.

verse 2 “Son of Righteousness” This expression refers to the Savior. Years ago Sidney B. Sperry pointed out that the word “Son” here should probably have been written “Sun” (“The Book of Mormon and Textual Criticism,” in Book of Mormon Institute, BYU Extension Publications, 5 December 1959, 5). The expression is a quote from Malachi 4:2. The Hebrew texts of Malachi 4:2 contain the word shemesh which means “sun” and not the word ben which means “son.” Keep in mind that the Book of Mormon was dictated by Joseph Smith and transcribed largely by Oliver Cowdery. Obviously, son and sun sound alike. The matter is of little importance to the meaning of the verse since the expression “Sun of Righteousness” also refers to the Savior.

The image of the “Son” (or “Sun”) of Righteousness is particularly relevant considering what the Nephites had just endured prior to the Lord’s coming. Following their great holocaust where destruction and calamity were everywhere, the “Sun of Righteousness” had arisen in their midst with spiritual and physical healing in his wings.

The image of “healing in his wings” is the promise afforded the righteous in direct contrast to the curse that awaits the wicked. It is the power of the atonement.

“ye shall go forth and grow up as calves in the stall” The image here is that of gathering to Christ and to the lands of their inheritance.

3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of Hosts.

verse 3 This verse continues the theme of destruction of the wicked and the ultimate victory of good over bad. Some of the righteous might be a bit uncomfortable with the aggressive tone of this verse, since it places them in the role of the destroyer.

4 Remember ye the law of Moses, my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.

verse 4 “Horeb” is another name for Sinai.

At first this verse would seem to be a reminder to observe the law of Moses which was in force in Malachi’s day but was fulfilled in Christ. In this particular setting this counsel seems somewhat out of place. Perhaps the Lord’s counsel here has reference to something else. In commenting on this verse, Joseph Smith taught: “[The] law revealed to Moses in Horeb never was revealed to the children of Israel,” apparently referring to the higher law revealed to Moses which Israel did not receive because of rebellion (see JST Exodus 34:1-2; D&C 84:23-25). It may have been the prophet Malachi’s intent, and Jesus’s intent in quoting this verse to draw attention to the higher law, even the fulness of the gospel, that Moses obtained but that Israel was unworthy to receive. In that case, the reference here to the law received by Moses would not be out of place with the discussion in the following verses concerning Elijah’s coming. Jesus’s listeners on this occasion were worthy and able to receive the higher law, priesthood, ordinances, and blessings that God revealed to Moses on the mountain that their Israelite ancestors had forfeited.

5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord;

6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

verses 5-6 When Moroni appeared to Joseph Smith in September 1823, he quoted Malachi 4:5-6, but with significantly different wording from the way it appears in either the King James Bible or here in the Book of Mormon. Moroni said, “Behold, I will reveal unto you the Priesthood, by the hand of Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord” (D&C 2:1). So, Elijah was to restore to the earth an important aspect of the priesthood. Why send Elijah? The Prophet Joseph taught:

Elijah was the last prophet that held the keys of this priesthood, and who will, before the last dispensation, restore the authority and deliver the keys of this priesthood in order that all the ordinances may be attended to in righteousness. . . Why send Elijah? Because he holds the keys of the authority to administer in all the ordinances of the priesthood, and without the authority the ordinances could not be administered in righteousness (Ehat and Cook, The Words of Joseph Smith, 43.)

This prophecy of the prophet Elijah’s coming was fulfilled in our dispensation on April 3, 1836, when Elijah and other ancient prophets who held the keys of various priesthood functions appeared to the Prophet Joseph and restored their keys to the earth. What exactly did Elijah restore? He restored the keys whereby all priesthood ordinances performed on the earth may be rendered valid both on earth and in heaven. This is referred to as the “sealing power.” Generally, we are prone to think of the coming of Elijah as essential to the great genealogical or family history work of the Church. But there is more. The sealing power pertains to all priesthood ordinances done for the living or for the dead. Because of the keys that Elijah restored, all priesthood ordinances including those having to do with our eternal family ties are valid, now and in the eternities. These ordinances include baptism, priesthood ordinations, and all those ordinances performed in the temple including celestial marriage, sealings—both for the living and for the dead.

Elijah also came to “turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers.” Immediately following this quotation, Jesus “did expound all things, even from the beginning until the time that he should come in his glory” (3 Nephi 26:3). This suggests that something about Malachi’s prophecy, and especially Elijah’s role as a preparatory messenger, was of great importance to the Plan of Salvation (See “Elias,” in the LDS Bible Dictionary, online at lds.org, for a brief explanation of preparatory messengers.).

Although the King James Version states that Elijah would turn the hearts of fathers and children, scholars have noted that the equivalent term in the Septuagint (the Greek version of the Old Testament) can be translated as restore and that the original Hebrew can be appropriately rendered as reconcile (Alan J. Hawkins, Clifford J. Rhoades, and David C. Dollahite, “Turning the Hearts of the Fathers to the Children: Nurturing the Next Generation,” BYU Studies 33, no. 2, 1993: 276). Also, Joseph Smith taught that “the word “turn” here should be translated “bind” or “seal” (Ehat and Cook, The Words of Joseph Smith, 318).

Interestingly, when Moroni repeatedly appeared to Joseph Smith in his room, he quoted this very same verse, but he altered it slightly so that Elijah would “plant in the hearts of the children the promises made to the fathers” (It’s possible that Moroni rendered the verse in a way that was more culturally and scripturally linked to the Book of Mormon, which he revealed to Joseph Smith in the same interview (see Joseph Smith—History 34–35). Alma, for example, preached that the word of God should be planted in the heart and then nourished until it grows into a tree of life (see Alma 32:28–43, emphasis added). For a treatment of trees growing from hearts in ancient American religious thought, see, John L. Sorenson, Mormon’s Codex: An Ancient American Book, Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2013, 465–466. Sydney B. Sperry, on the other hand, simply concluded that Moroni adjusted the verse so that it would be easier for Joseph Smith to understand. See Sidney B. Sperry, “Moroni Expounds Old Testament Scriptures,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 4, no. 1, 1995: 275), suggesting that like a seed, the covenantal relationship between these two groups could be nourished and regrown (Joseph Smith—History 39, emphasis added) (It should also be noted, as mentioned above, that Moroni added a reference to Elijah and the priesthood in his quotation of Malachi’s prophecy: “And again, he quoted the fifth verse thus: Behold, I will reveal unto you the Priesthood, by the hand of Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord (Joseph Smith—History 1:38). For further analysis of Moroni’s use of the Old Testament in his instruction to Joseph Smith, W. Jeffrey Marsh, “Training from the Old Testament: Moroni’s Lessons for a Prophet,” Ensign, August 1998, online at lds.org).

Elijah’s needed influence to turn, reconcile, restore, bind, seal and even plant promises in the hearts of fathers and children presupposes that, at some point or another, the familial relationship between generations would be broken, lost, or otherwise compromised. As Jesus prophesied, “the love of many shall wax cold” (Matthew 24:12). Alan J. Hawkins, Clifford J. Rhoades and David C. Dollahite have argued that in the past two hundred years, industrialization, urbanization, and an emphasis on individual freedom have led to a “significant turning of paternal hearts away from their children” (Hawkins et al., “Turning the Hearts,” 279).

Whereas a predominant “agricultural and rural setting” once allowed many fathers and mothers to be “intimately involved in the daily lives of their children,” the rise of factories and industrialized professions has led parents to reduce time spent with children and family members (Hawkins et al., “Turning the Hearts,” 277–278). Moreover, “[w]hen the recent data on divorce and non-marital childbearing are added to this portrait, we see fathers as increasingly on the periphery of children’s lives” (Hawkins et al., “Turning the Hearts,” 278).

This unfortunate trend has only been pushed along by the Western world’s increased emphasis on individualism. This self-centered philosophy triumphs the freedom and desires of the individual over the obligations and duties that accompany familial relationships. Yet, after “having freed themselves from the bonds that selfless caring for others necessarily brings, people may find themselves so disconnected from familial community and institutional relationships that their unfettered self-fulfillment feels like desperate loneliness” (Hawkins et al., “Turning the Hearts,” 279).

Also, there is much evidence that Elijah came to strengthen and mend family relationships here and now among the living. Elder Russell M. Nelson explained that upon the prophesied return of Elijah, “natural affection between generations began to be enriched.” He further concluded, “This restoration was accompanied by what is sometimes called the Spirit of Elijah—a manifestation of the Holy Ghost’s bearing witness of the divine nature of the family” (Russell M. Nelson, “A New Harvest Time,” Ensign, May 1998, online at lds.org. As a prophetic manifestation of this influence, see “The Family: A Proclamation to the World,” Ensign, November 1995, online at lds.org).

We have endeavored to accurately portray the desire and commitment of today’s fathers to play an important role as parents and family members, not simply as financial providers. When discussing the changes we observe, we have often been asked, “Is this all a Millennial thing?” Are the changing attitudes about fatherhood the result of a generational shift that is underway? (Brad Harrington, Jennifer Sabatini Fraone, Jegoo lee, and Lisa Levey, The New Millennial Dad: Understanding the Paradox of Today’s Fathers, Chestnut Hill, MA: Boston College Center for Work and Family, 2016, 2, online at www.bc.edu).

Certainly not every family development of the modern age is healthy, but the increasing concern for parental interaction and influence among family members is encouraging (For examples of unhealthy attitudes toward family in modern society, see L. Tom Perry, “Why Marriage and Family Matter—Everywhere in the World,” Ensign, May 2015, 41, online at lds.org). The hearts of parents are turning more to their children and posterity. According to Hawkins, Dollahite, and Rhoades, this widespread restoration of familial care is evident in at least three notable areas: “(1) a small but growing number of fathers are becoming more involved in the daily care and nurturing of their children, (2) the status of children is improving, and (3) people are showing greater concern for the natural environment that will be passed on to future generations” (Hawkins et al., “Turning the Hearts,” 281).

These types of positive societal shifts can be seen as complimentary and perhaps even preparatory to the acceptance and appreciation of the sealing power restored by Elijah in the Kirtland temple. A world that does not know how to love, appreciate, and care for living family members and future generations would naturally have a difficult time fulfilling the millennial work to redeem their kindred dead and all of

God’s children (See Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Brigham Young, Salt Lake City, UT: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1997, 311–312, 333–334, for a discussion of temple work during the Millennium.). Yet for those who already love and cherish current family relationships, the message of eternal families, restored sealing powers, and vicarious ordinances can readily be accepted with joy.

The power of loving family and communal relationships is directly apparent in the record of Nephite society following Christ’s ministry among their people. Mormon reported that “they were married, and given in marriage, and were blessed according to the multitude of the promises which the Lord had made unto them,” (4 Nephi 1:11), and that “there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people” (verse 15).

He concluded that “surely there could not be a happier people among all the people who had been created by the hand of God” (verse 16). This ideal social model— based on Christ’s doctrines, teachings, promises, and sacred experiences with parents and children—prefigured what has been made possible through the Spirit of Elijah in the latter days (See M. Gawain Wells, “The Savior and the Children in 3 Nephi,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 14, no. 1 (2005): 62–73, 129, for a discussion of the Savior’s interactions with families in 3 Nephi.).

All those who allow this divine influence to deeply penetrate their hearts can likewise receive an abundance of familial love and happiness, which, when accompanied by sacred priesthood ordinances, will eventually be sealed up and “coupled with eternal glory” (Doctrine and Covenants 130:2) by virtue of the powers and keys which Elijah came to restore. Elder David A. Bednar assured, “The promises made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will be implanted in your hearts. . . Your love and gratitude for your ancestors will increase. . . And I promise you will be protected against the intensifying influence of the adversary” (David A. Bednar, “The Hearts of the Children Shall Turn,” Ensign, 26–27, November 2011, online at lds.org).

Through the temple ordinances, God’s promises to the fathers—the promises pertaining to the gospel and eternal increase (Abraham 2:8-11)—are extended to all God’s children. The hearts of the children are bound to the ancient fathers because the children are now participants in and recipients of the blessings of the fathers. Being profoundly grateful for such privileges, members of the Church (motivated by the “Spirit of Elijah”) also find their hearts turning to their more immediate fathers, and they do all within their power (through genealogical research and subsequent temple work) to ensure that the blessings of the ancient fathers are enjoyed by ancestry as well as posterity (see Doctrine and Covenants 110) (See, for example, Quintin L. Cook, “Roots and Branches,” Ensign, May 2014, 44–48, online at lds.org.).

“lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” Why would the Lord smite the earth with a curse? One reason is that there would be no binding and sealing powers whereby families could be cemented forever. Let us be reminded that there will be but one family in the celestial heaven following this earth’s mortal existence. All individual’s therein will be sealed to one another—bound to each other by covenant. This family unit is obviously vitally important going forward in our eternal existence in ways we don’t as yet understand. Without this family unit’s being formed by doing extensive family history research, the earth would not have accomplished its foreordained purpose—to establish on its face a family system patterned after the order of heaven. In addition, without the sealing power all covenants entered into by man upon the earth would be of no force in the eternities. This would make null and void the entire system of covenants whereby man grows spiritually upon the earth and has an opportunity to attain celestial glory. This would prevent the earth from fulfilling its mission as an effective venue for mortality and for testing and also prevent the celestial heaven’s opportunity to be an edifying place for all eternity. The plans and designs and schemes and activities of mortal man would be basically purposeless from an eternal perspective. The earth would fail to “answer the end of its creation” (D&C 49:16).

It seems likely that the Savior’s visit to the Nephites initiated an era of intense temple activity among them. It is also likely he used Malachi’s prophecy as a means to emphasize the role of eternal marriage and the other blessings of Elijah’s sealing mission (see 4 Nephi 1:11). We would also assume that baptisms for the dead were subsequently practiced among the Nephites, just as they were in the Old World (see 1 Corinthians 15:29).