“And then we have this really sobering message: Christ speaking, describing exactly where we are at this moment on this land. (This could be a headline from a responsible news agency today—if you could find one.) This is exactly what is happening, and it's Christ's words:
Yes, woe [great sorrow or distress] to the Gentiles unless they repent: For when that day come, says the Father, I'll take away your strength from you, and I'll destroy your security. Your cities will fall and I'll break open your guarded borders. Your sciences and learning will turn into foolishness, and your false beliefs will cause your failure. I'll expose the fraud of those in authority, …your trusted institutions will lose every[body’s] loyalty. (3 Nephi 9:12 CE)
The new Covenant of Christ is intended to tell you exactly where you are and exactly how we got here. It is a revelation from God” (Modern English Translation, Denver Snuffer Jr., p.12, emphasis added).
Where Exactly Are We?
In the previous quotation we are told Christ’s words are being spoken telling us exactly where we are at this time. To assess whether or not that is being accomplished, let’s examine what the Lord gave us in Joseph Smith’s day.
The following is the Restoration Edition’s version of the same quotation read by Denver in context.
“For in that day, for my sake, shall the Father work a work which shall be a great and a marvelous work among them, and there shall be among them those who will not believe it, although a man shall declare it unto them. But behold, the life of my servant shall be in my hand; therefore, they shall not hurt him, although he shall be marred because of them. Yet I will heal him, for I will shew unto them that my wisdom is greater than the cunning of the Devil. Therefore, it shall come to pass that whosoever will not believe in my words, who am Jesus Christ, which the Father shall cause him to bring forth unto the gentiles, and shall give unto him power that he shall bring them forth unto the gentiles, it shall be done even as Moses said — They shall be cut off from among my people who are of the covenant. And my people who are a remnant of Jacob shall be among the gentiles, yea, in the midst of them as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who, if he go through, both treadeth down and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Their hand shall be lifted up upon their adversaries, and all their enemies shall be cut off. Yea, woe be unto the gentiles except they repent, for it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Father, that I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee, and I will destroy thy chariots, and I will cut off the cities of thy land and throw down all thy strong holds. And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thy land, and thou shalt have no more soothsayers. Thy graven images I will also cut off and thy standing images out of the midst of thee, and thou shalt no more worship the works of thy hands. And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee; so will I destroy thy cities. And it shall come to pass that all lyings, and deceivings, and envyings, and strifes, and priestcrafts, and whoredoms shall be done away. For it shall come to pass, saith the Father, that at that day, whosoever will not repent and come unto my Beloved Son, them will I cut off from among my people, O house of Israel, and I will execute vengeance and fury upon them, even as upon the heathen, such as they have not heard” (RE 3 Nephi 9:12).
Denver’s reading from the Covenant of Christ is only a partial quotation of the same verse in the Restoration edition of the Book of Mormon. For a more precise comparison between Joseph Smith’s Book of Mormon as currently constituted and the Covenant of Christ the full text from the Covenant of Christ should be considered.
“At that time, to advance My cause, the Father will begin a work, which will be a great and awe-inspiring work among them [gentiles]. There will be many who won’t believe it, although a man will tell it to them. But the ministry of My servant will be led by My hand; therefore they won’t be able to harm his work, although he’ll be opposed and discredited by them. Yet I’ll support him; I’ll show them My wisdom is greater than the accuser’s deceitful scheming. Therefore those who won’t believe in My words, and I Am Jesus Christ, which the Father will give and empower that servant to set before the Gentiles, it will result exactly as Moses said: They will be cut off from My people who are part of the covenant. And then you [gentiles who repent], a remnant of the house of Jacob [family of God], will rise up from them. And you’ll be mixed in with them [gentiles] who will outnumber you. You’ll be among them like a lion among his prey in the forest, and as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who moves unopposed to take down and tear to pieces. Your hand will be against your opponents and all your opponents and all your enemies will be cut down. Yes, woe to the Gentiles unless they repent: For when that day comes, says the Father, I’ll take away your strength from you, and I’ll destroy your security. Your cities will fall and I’ll break open your guarded borders. Your sciences and learning will turn into foolishness, and your false beliefs will cause your failure. I’ll expose the fraud of those in authority, and your trusted institutions will lose everyone’s loyalty. False prophets and false ministers will be brought to shame and humiliation. All lying, deceiving, envying, strife, priestcraft, and whoredoms will come to an end. At that time, says the Father, I’ll cut down anyone who won’t repent and draw near to My Beloved Son to preserve My people, the house of Israel. I’ll take vengeance and unleash My fierce anger on all the unbelieving, beyond anything they expect” (Covenant of Christ, 3 Nephi 9:9-18, emphasis added).
This quote should cause everyone pause to consider the gravity of what is being said. Denver’s remarks are prefaced with the word “sobering,” so gentiles reading this should ponder why the message is sobering for them.
The most sobering element between the two references is the clarity the second passage provides because it tells us a servant of God declaring the words of Christ tells us exactly where we are at this time. The original quotation implies the time of fulfillment is in some future time. In the RE version many who come from the LDS tradition believe this prophecy was fulfilled by Joseph Smith. In contrast, the Lord through a servant, declares Christ’s words that state the events of this prophecy pertain to our moment in time. A servant of Christ is quoting Christ and telling the gentiles the prophecy is fulfilled right now in real time. The possibility the gentiles are going to face the events described in this prophecy is ominous as well as sobering.
In addition to the verses quoted by Denver are verses not referred to that will damn the souls of those who overlook or ignore them.
“False prophets and false ministers will be brought to shame and humiliation. All lying, deceiving, envying, strife, priestcraft, and whoredoms will come to an end. At that time, says the Father, I’ll cut down anyone who won’t repent and draw near to My Beloved Son to preserve My people, the house of Israel. I’ll take vengeance and unleash My fierce anger on all the unbelieving, beyond anything they expect” (Ibid).
Try to image how it would feel to have the proverbial rug pulled out from underneath your feet. All your strength is withdrawn. Every ounce of confidence you have in the things bringing you security are destroyed. Cities fall, borders removed, access to fuel and the power grid are eliminated, everything you trust in is destroyed and discredited. Our false beliefs expose our vulnerabilities and cause us to fail in all our pursuits. Fraud and corruption is exposed among those who exercise authority over the gentiles, including religious leaders securing their authority with false claims they represent God. The only recourse left to trust is the Lord and His servants. Refuse them and the gentiles who resist and reject repentance suffer the wrath of a just God: “I’ll take vengeance and unleash My fierce anger on all the unbelieving, beyond anything they expect” (Ibid).
The gentiles who repent are outnumbered by those who refuse to repent [you’ll be mixed in with them who will outnumber you. You’ll be among them like a lion among his prey in the forest, and as a young lion among the flocks of sheep, who moves unopposed to take down and tear to pieces]. This may seem hyperbolic until you consider the level of despair unrepentant gentiles feel when everything they trust in is removed and the only thing left standing is the work of the Father supporting the cause of the Son of God and His servants. Under those circumstances, in a world where the majority are blind the man with vision is king.
When those around you are struck with fear, the person with knowledge from God regarding the work He is performing will not be paralyzed by fear because they have faith in God and understand His objectives.
The Covenant of Christ has an account preceding the Savior’s Nephite ministry that illustrates similar circumstances. Nephi and Lehi, the sons of Helaman [both Nephites] are captured by Lamanites and imprisoned for many days without food. When the Lamanites decide to execute the brothers the Lord intervenes to bring about a miraculous conversion of three hundred Lamanites and some Nephite dissenters.
“But Nephi and Lehi were surrounded as if by fire [Spirit of Elijah], and so they didn’t dare touch them for fear of being burned. However, Nephi and Lehi weren’t burned although they were standing unharmed in the middle of fire [“quench the violence of fire”, RE Genesis 7:18]. When they saw they were surrounded by a pillar of fire and it didn’t burn them, their hearts took courage; they saw the Lamanites didn’t dare touch them, or even dare to approach them; instead, they stood dumbstruck in amazement
[“young lions among lambs,” “put at defiance the armies of nations,” RE Genesis 7:19] .
Nephi and Lehi got up and spoke to them, saying: Don’t be afraid! It’s God who’s shown you this miraculous thing, showing you that you can’t take and kill us. These words were followed by a strong earthquake. The prison walls shook as if they were about to fall to the ground, but they didn’t fall. The crowd who entered the prison were Lamanites and Nephite defectors. Thick darkness surrounded them [see RE 3 Nephi 4:4], and they were filled with ominous fear. They heard a voice speaking [first time, knock #1] as if from above the thick cloud of darkness, saying: Repent, repent! Stop trying to kill My servants, whom I’ve sent to you to declare the gospel.
What they heard wasn’t a voice like thunder, nor a deafening, loud voice, but it was a quiet voice of perfect mildness, almost a whisper; and it pierced right to the very core- and yet despite the mildness of the voice, the earth shook terribly. The prison walls quaked again as if they were about to fall to the ground. The thick darkness overshadowing them remained. And the voice spoke again [knock #2], saying: Repent, repent, because the kingdom of heaven is near. Stop trying to kill My servants. And again the earth and walls shook and quaked. The voice spoke a third time [knock #3] and said astonishing words to them that we are unable to record. The walls quaked again, and the earth shook as if it were about to split in two.
The Lamanites couldn’t see to flee because of the thick darkness surrounding them, and they were also paralyzed by fear. Now one of them, a Nephite by birth, had once belonged to God’s congregation but had split from them. He turned around, and could see through the darkness the faces of Nephi and Lehi. They were brightly shining like the faces of angels. He saw them looking up to heaven and they seemed to be talking or addressing someone they could see.
This man yelled out to the crowd to turn around and look. And they turned around and looked and they also saw the faces of Nephi and Lehi. They asked the man: What does all this mean? Who are these men talking to? Now the man’s name was Aminadab. And Aminadab answered: They’re talking with the God’s angels. The Lamanites asked him: How can we get this thick darkness removed from surrounding us? Aminadab answered: You must repent and pray to the voice until you have faith in Christ, which was taught to you by Alma, Amulek, and Zeezrom. When you do this, the thick darkness will be lifted from you.
They all began to pray to the voice of the One who had shaken the earth. Indeed, they prayed until the thick darkness dispersed. When they looked around and saw the thick darkness was removed from surrounding them, they realized they all were surrounded by a pillar of fire [Spirit of Elijah, baptism by fire]. Nephi and Lehi were in the center of the crowd. Yet even though they were surrounded and in the middle of a flaming fire it didn’t hurt them, and it didn’t harm the prison walls, either. They felt joy that’s unspeakable and glorious. The Holy Spirit of God descended from heaven and entered their hearts. They were filled as if with fire, enabling them to speak of breathtaking, glorious things.
The voice spoke to them again, cheerfully and softly, saying: Peace, peace be with you because of your faith in My Well Beloved [Heavenly Father is speaking, 4th knock], who existed from the foundation of creation. When they heard this, they looked up trying to see who was speaking. The heavens opened [Elijah opens the conduit between Heaven and Earth] as angels descended from heaven and ministered to them. There were about 300 souls who witnessed these things. They were told to not question or doubt their experience. They went out and testified to the people, declaring throughout the surrounding area everything they had heard and seen, and the majority of the Lamanites were convinced by their testimony. All those who were convinced gave up their weapons, their hatred, and ancestors’ traditions as well. And they returned the lands they had taken back to the Nephites” (Covenant of Christ, Helaman 5:23-52, emphasis added).
Much could be said about this passage. Because of its historical proximity to the coming of Christ to the Nephites, it is not unreasonable to consider this account as a precursor to Christ’s Nephite ministry. It may also serve as a type of events preceding the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. These events clearly have many elements of the Spirit and power of Elijah. Fiery pillars, earthquakes, mists of darkness appear and are then dispelled, the voice of Christ three times and the baptism by fire and the voice of Heavenly Father. All of these elements are worthy of exploration.
The point of reviewing this account is how it illustrates how two servants of God with His intervention set at defiance a Lamanite army of 300 hundred men and turned their hearts to Christ. In the account from the Covenant of Christ Denver Snuffer quoted, the following: you’ll be mixed in with them who will outnumber you. You’ll be among them like a lion [confident and unwavering] among his prey in the forest, and as a young lion [they know God and His power is with them] among the flocks of sheep [those who have trusted in the arm of flesh], who moves unopposed to take down and tear to pieces. Your hand will be against your opponents and all your opponents and all your enemies will be cut down. Yes, woe to the Gentiles unless they repent: For when that day comes, says the Father, I’ll take away your strength from you [gentiles who trust in man], and I’ll destroy your security [no one to lead them or things to rely on] (Ibid).
When the Father strips from the gentiles all they trust in, they are stripped of all confidence and become paralyzed with fear. Life without assurance or confidence leads to fearfulness and exposed vulnerabilities. That is exactly what we face at this point in time.
This is not the only time the Lord warned of this day. He said as much by revelation to Joseph Smith, November 1831.
“Wherefore, the voice of the Lord is unto the end of the earth, that all that will hear may hear: Prepare yourselves, prepare for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh and the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in Heaven and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth, and the arm of the Lord shall be revealed. And the day comes that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people [an expansive reference to the Moses prophecy in 3 Nephi 9], for they have strayed from my ordinances and have broken my everlasting covenant. They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walks in his own way and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol which waxes old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great which shall fall.
Wherefore, I, the Lord, knowing the calamity which should come upon the inhabitants of the earth, called upon my servant Joseph and spoke unto him from Heaven, and gave him commandment, and also gave commandments to others that they should proclaim these things unto the world. And all this that it might be fulfilled which was written by the prophets: the weak things of the world should come forth and break down the mighty and strong ones, that man should not counsel his fellow man, neither trust in the arm of flesh, but that every man might speak in the name of God [legitimately authorized to do so], the Lord, even the Savior of the world, that faith also might increase in the earth, that my everlasting covenant might be established, that the fullness of my gospel might be proclaimed by the weak and the simple unto the ends of the world and before kings and rulers [The kings shall shut their mouths at him, for that which had not been told them shall they see, and that which they had not heard shall they consider, RE 3 Nephi 9:10]. Behold, I am God and have spoken it . . . Search these commandments for they are true and faithful, and the prophecies and promises which are in them shall all be fulfilled. What I, the Lord, have spoken, I have spoken, and I excuse not myself. And though the heaven and the earth pass away, my word shall not pass away, but shall all be fulfilled, whether by my own voice or by the voice of my servants it is the same. For behold and lo, the Lord is God and the spirit bears record, and the record is true, and the truth abides for ever and ever. Amen” (RE T&C 54:3-4 & 7, emphasis added).
Embedded within this revelation to Joseph Smith is a more expansive version of the prophecy of Moses. This reference to the prophecy of Moses expands its fulfillment to include the Lord’s voice, the voice of His servants, and the prophets and apostles as means for determining who shall be cut-off from among Israel. At the end of this reference the Lord openly declares, whether by my own voice or by the voice of my servants it is the same. The Lord, with similar verbiage to 3 Nephi 9 proclaims His covenant and everlasting gospel will be proclaimed to kings and rulers by the weak and simple to the ends of the world.
The references in 3 Nephi 9 and T&C 54 both relate to our time at this moment exactly. Those references are not the end of the matter in modern revelation.
Scott Roderick
7/13/2024
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