Moroni tells us that Ether was a diligent prophet, preaching “from the morning, even until the going down of the sun.” Ether’s main topic was faith.
Moroni takes this opportunity to teach us about faith. He defines it as “things which are hoped for and not seen.” He lists a number of examples of people who had faith. And he shares his own experience doubting his own abilities and being encouraged and reassured by God. Finally, he bids us farewell and commends us to seek Jesus and receive His grace.
Chapter Outline
- Ether preached about faith (v. 1-5)
- Moroni: Faith is things which are hoped for and not seen (v. 6-9)
- Examples of faith (v. 10-22)
- Moroni’s anxiety, and God’s reassurance (v. 23-37)
- Moroni’s farewell and invitation (v. 38-41)
My Takeaways
- Hope anchors us by reminding us not to give up.
- Hope is a characteristic of faith. It is also an outcome of faith.
- We can overcome feelings of inadequacy by knowing that God’s grace is sufficient for us.
- God shows us our weakness in order to help us improve.
Featured Blog Posts
Moroni’s Message About Faith – Ether 12
Setting After introducing the final prophet of the Jaredite nation—Ether—Moroni paused in his narrative to teach his modern readers about faith. Purpose Moroni’s objective in writing this chapter was to encourage us to have faith in Jesus Christ, so that we can experience miracles in our lives. Outline Lessons from Ether’s example of faith (Ether…
❖ Ether preaches – Ether 12:1-5
He Could Not Be Restrained – Ether 12:2
2 And Ether was a prophet of the Lord; wherefore Ether came forth in the days of Coriantumr, and began to prophesy unto the people, for he could not be restrained because of the Spirit of the Lord which was in him. 3 For he did cry from the morning, even until the going down…
“An Anchor to the Souls of Men” – Ether 12:4
4 Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God. (Ether…
❖ Faith defined – Ether 12:6-9
Partakers of the Heavenly Gift – Ether 12:6-9
6 And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen; wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith. 7 For it was by faith that Christ…
Faith Comes First
Moroni wasn’t impressed with Ether’s people. They refused to believe anything they couldn’t see. What’s admirable about that? Faith is admirable. It’s a choice to believe in an environment of uncertainty. It’s the patience to wait for promised blessings.
❖ Examples of faith – Ether 12:10-22
What Are Some Examples of Faith in the Book of Mormon?
Near the end of the Book of Mormon, the prophet Moroni—the last author in the book—provides a list of people who received blessings after they exercised faith in Jesus Christ (Ether 12:10-22). This list is very similar to a list provided by the Apostle Paul in Hebrews 11, and has a similar purpose: to demonstrate…
“A More Excellent Way” – Ether 12:11
Moroni tells us that the law of Moses was given by faith. It was a divinely inspired code of conduct given to help the children of Israel live to their full potential. (See Exodus 19:1-6.) But Moroni adds, “In the gift of his Son hath God prepared a more excellent way, and it is by…
If There Be No Faith – Ether 12:12
12 For if there be no faith among the children of men God can do no miracle among them; wherefore, he showed not himself until after their faith. (Ether 12:12) How can it be true that an all-powerful God can do no miracle until after we exercise faith? I think Moroni is describing not a…
With an Eye of Faith – Ether 12:19
19 And there were many whose faith was so exceedingly strong, even before Christ came, who could not be kept from within the veil, but truly saw with their eyes the things which they had beheld with an eye of faith, and they were glad. (Ether 12:19) When we have faith, we can visualize outcomes…
❖ God’s reassurance – Ether 12:23-37
“My Grace Is Sufficient” – Ether 12:26-27
When the apostle Paul struggled with feelings of inadequacy, the Lord reassured him with these words: “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9). When Moroni expressed similar misgivings, the Lord responded with the same affirmation: “Fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they…
“I Will Show Unto Them Their Weakness” – Ether 12:27
Moroni was painfully aware of his limitations. As he summarized the Jaredite record, he compared himself unfavorably to one of the authors of the Jaredite plates. Moroni worried that his imperfections would cause future readers to reject his writings, and he shared his anxiety with God in prayer: Behold, thou hast not made us mighty…
Three Ways the Savior Turns Our Weaknesses Into Strengths – Ether 12:27
When Moroni expressed his anxiety that his “weakness in writing” would cause some people to reject the Book of Mormon, the Savior responded with a reassuring promise: If men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me;…
Why Is It Important to Know That God’s Grace Is Sufficient?
While writing a history of the Jaredite people, the prophet Moroni experienced some self-doubt. “The Gentiles will mock at these things,” he protested to God. He described the awkwardness of his hands, and compared the words he had written to the eloquent writings of the brother of Jared (Ether 12:23-25). God responded forcefully: “Fools mock,…
Moroni’s Excellent Hope
Moroni had every reason to despair. His people had been destroyed, and he was alone. Yet he wrote extensively about the hope that we receive through the Spirit of the Lord, which helps us endure challenges and which prepares us to return to God’s presence
❖ Moroni’s farewell – Ether 12:38-41
That the Grace of God…May Be and Abide in You Forever – Ether 12:41
41 And now, I would commend you to seek this Jesus of whom the prophets and apostles have written, that the grace of God the Father, and also the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, which beareth record of them, may be and abide in you forever. Amen. (Ether 12:41) At the end of…
Old Testament Foundations
Dry Bones
As disciples of Christ, we can in our day rise above those ancient Israelites who moaned, “Our bones are dried, and our hope is lost.” Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “A Perfect Brightness of Hope,” General Conference, April 2020 In one of Ezekiel’s many visions, he found himself in the middle of a valley full of…
“I Will Build Thee an House”
Sometimes we need to be reminded just how unequal our relationship with God is. King Benjamin taught that if we serve God with all of our souls for the rest of our lives, we would still be “unprofitable servants.” God has already given us far more than we could ever hope to repay, and the…
“Thou Mighty Man of Valour”
Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf has shared the following words of advice: I learned in my life that we don’t need to be “more” of anything to start to become the person God intended us to become. God will take you as you are at this very moment and begin to work with you. All you need…
“Slow of Speech”
Enoch was shocked when God called him to preach the gospel. “Why is it,” he asked, “that I have found favor in thy sight, and am but a lad, and all the people hate me; for I am slow of speech; wherefore am I thy servant?” (Moses 6:31). Communication effectiveness can’t be measured, and it’s easy to be hypercritical as…
New Testament Parallels
Strengthening the Foundation of Our Faith
Moroni, Alma, and Paul all indicate that faith involves hoping for something which you can’t see. Paul adds that faith is the foundation or evidence for that hope. We build faith by having more experiences with God and by doing things which require faith.
Faith Halls of Fame
Both the Bible and the Book of Mormon provide lists of people who exercised great faith. These lists illustrate that God provides various blessings through faith, that people can exercise faith together, and that faith can help us grow closer to God.
Good Things to Come
Disciples of Jesus Christ embrace promises which have not yet been fulfilled and move forward with confidence. We visualize a bright future and trust in the Savior, who Paul called our “high priest of good things to come.”
Grace Be to You
The greatest blessing we can wish for another person is God’s grace. Paul begins and ends his epistles with some variation of the phrase, “Grace be to you.” Mormon and Moroni also use this phrase. We can also pray for others to receive God’s grace.
Charity
Charity means recognizing things that are valuable and treating them accordingly. Jesus gave His life for us because He had charity for us: He recognized our value. We must emulate Him in that way to receive the blessings He has prepared for us.
As They Went
Jesus didn’t immediately heal the ten lepers. He instructed them to go to the priest, who could assess their health. “As they went, they were cleansed.” Miracles often happen only after we demonstrate our faith through action.
“Bring Them to Me”
Miracles often begin with a recognition of inadequacy. The apostles had only five loaves and two fishes, but Jesus said, “Bring them to me.” Michelle Craig said, “What you have to offer is more than enough…if you rely on the grace of God.”
Talent
Five talents, two talents, one talent. The wealth was not evenly distributed. But it didn’t matter, because this wasn’t a permanent gift. The owner was merely leaving town, and he had entrusted three of his servants to look after his wealth in his absence. What were they to do with all this money? He didn’t…
How Can I “Always Abound in Good Works?”
We are all imperfect. We make mistakes every day, and we all wish we had more knowledge, more skill, and more wisdom. But even in our imperfect state, we are all capable of doing good works. After the people of King Benjamin prayed and received a forgiveness of their sins, Benjamin taught them that they…
Church History Connections
“None Shall Slumber”
In 1837, Thomas B. Marsh was concerned about the state of the Church. In Missouri, church members had been driven from their homes. In Ohio, many members and even church leaders were becoming disaffected. As president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, Thomas must have felt a deep desire to help curb the chaos…
“Fools Mock”
Included in Alma’s list of soul-searching questions to the people of Zarahemla was the following: “Is there one among you that doth make a mock of his brother, or that heapeth upon him persecutions?” Alma added, “Wo unto such an one, for he is not prepared, and the time is at hand that he must repent or he cannot…
So Great Was His Faith in God – Ether 12:20-21
20 And behold, we have seen in this record that one of these was the brother of Jared; for so great was his faith in God, that when God put forth his finger he could not hide it from the sight of the brother of Jared, because of his word which he had spoken unto…
Weak Things
The scriptures teach that God uses the weak things of the world to accomplish miracles. He does this for three reasons. 1. Weak people are more willing to accept His help. 2. Other people recognize His hand. 3. Everyone is empowered to participate.
Feeling Condemned
Joseph Smith prayed because he felt inadequate to his divine calling. Nephi offered a similar prayer, detecting a contrast between his behavior and the miracles he had seen. Feelings of inadequacy can be helpful if they turn us toward the Source of grace.
Faith and Witnessing
God told Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris that they would see the gold plates after they had obtained faith. Faith is a gift of God, but it still requires effort on our part to obtain it.
All Posts Referencing Ether 12
- Moses’ Objections (3/28/2026)
- The Trial of Your Faith (2/24/2026)
- Commandments and Trust (2/13/2026)
- “All the People Hate Me” (1/29/2026)
- In Derision (10/26/2025)
- “Be Thou Humble” (10/9/2025)
- Convinced of Our Ungodly Deeds (9/14/2025)
- Seeing the Face of God (8/27/2025)
- Unselfish Talent Development (7/25/2025)
- That Through Him All Might Be Saved (7/11/2025)
- “They Will Not Open Their Mouths” (6/10/2025)
- A Regular History (5/17/2025)
- Faith and Witnessing (2/23/2025)
- “To Disabuse the Public Mind” (1/14/2025)
- Weak Things (1/11/2025)
- On the Day After Christmas (12/26/2024)
- Farewell…Until (12/21/2024)
- Ether’s Courage (11/29/2024)
- Gratitude and the Book of Ether (11/28/2024)
- Strengthening the Foundation of Our Faith (11/27/2024)
- Faith Comes First (11/26/2024)
- Ether and the Books of Kings (11/21/2024)
- Moroni’s Excellent Hope (11/6/2024)
- “Like the Dog to His Vomit” (9/22/2024)
- How the Savior Succors Us (6/16/2024)
- Looking Forward with An Eye of Faith (6/13/2024)
- “As Often as My People Repent” (5/31/2024)
- Developing Christlike Attributes (11/25/2023)
- Her Perfect Work (11/19/2023)
- Faith and Works (11/15/2023)
- Faith Halls of Fame (11/11/2023)
- Good Things to Come (11/10/2023)
- Grace Be to You (9/23/2023)
- Sufficient and Abounding Grace (9/21/2023)
- Charity (9/3/2023)
- The Bond of Perfectness and Peace (6/23/2023)
- Abide (6/9/2023)
- “Is It I?” (5/31/2023)
- As They Went (5/3/2023)
- Rivers of Living Water (4/28/2023)
- “Bring Them to Me” (3/31/2023)
- Baptized with Fire (1/29/2023)
- Dry Bones (10/30/2022)
- “I Will Build Thee an House” (6/22/2022)
- “Thou Mighty Man of Valour” (6/2/2022)
- “Slow of Speech” (1/19/2022)
- The Living Christ and the Book of Mormon (12/26/2021)
- “None Shall Slumber” (10/10/2021)
- Seeing as We Are Seen (7/7/2021)
- John Whitmer, Record-keeper (6/25/2021)
- Out of Weakness… (6/5/2021)
- Talent (6/3/2021)
- “Fools Mock” (5/2/2021)
- “My Grace Is Sufficient” – Ether 12:26-27 (2/19/2021)
- Three Ways the Savior Turns Our Weaknesses Into Strengths – Ether 12:27 (11/29/2020)
- “A More Excellent Way” – Ether 12:11 (11/27/2020)
- “I Will Show Unto Them Their Weakness” – Ether 12:27 (11/24/2020)
- Righteousness (11/22/2020)
- The Jaredite Generations (11/18/2020)
- “If There Was No Mistake” – 3 Nephi 8:1-2 (9/15/2020)
- “They Never Would Shed Blood More” – Alma 53:11 (8/11/2020)
- “I Am Infirm” – Alma 31:30 (7/12/2020)
- “That I Might Rid My Garments of Your Blood” – Mosiah 2:27-28 (4/17/2020)
- What Is Meekness? (12/22/2019)
- Why Do Quotes from the King James Version Appear in the Book of Mormon, Even Ones that Joseph Smith Later Altered in his Translation of the Bible ? (12/9/2019)
- What Do We Know About God’s Love for Us? (12/2/2019)
- How Can I “Always Abound in Good Works?” (11/26/2019)
- How Can I Be More Hopeful? (8/25/2019)
- Why Is It Important to Know That God’s Grace Is Sufficient? (7/24/2019)
- What Should I Do When I Feel Inadequate? (7/12/2019)
- Why Does God Command Us to Pay Tithing? (6/7/2019)
- What’s Wrong with Seeking Signs? (5/22/2019)
- How Can I Be More Humble? (5/13/2019)
- What Does It Mean to Be Steadfast? (4/23/2019)
- What Can We Learn from the Prayers Recorded in the Book of Mormon? (3/28/2019)
- What Can We Learn About Coming Unto Christ from the Brother of Jared? (2/15/2019)
- How Does the Savior Invite Us to Come Unto Him? (2/12/2019)
- What Does It Mean for Our Garments to Be “Washed White Through the Blood of the Lamb?” (2/1/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Teach About Grace? (1/28/2019)
- What Are Some Examples of Faith in the Book of Mormon? (1/12/2019)
- Why Are Some Blessings Conditional on Our Faith? (1/7/2019)
- Moroni’s Message About Faith – Ether 12 (9/27/2018)
- Always Abounding in Good Works – Ether 12:4 (9/26/2018)
- If There Are Faults – Title Page (9/3/2018)
- That the Grace of God…May Be and Abide in You Forever – Ether 12:41 (6/18/2017)
- Because of Our Weakness – Ether 12:23, 26, 35-37 (6/17/2017)
- Partakers of the Heavenly Gift – Ether 12:6-9 (6/16/2017)
- He Could Not Be Restrained – Ether 12:2 (6/15/2017)
- “If There Be No Faith” – Ether 12:12 (10/21/2016)
- This Love Which Thou Hast Had – Ether 12:33-34 (3/31/2016)
- He Told Me in Plain Humility – Ether 12:39 (3/26/2016)
- A More Excellent Hope – Ether 12:32 (3/12/2016)
- “An Anchor to the Souls of Men” – Ether 12:4 (3/6/2016)
- So Great Was His Faith in God – Ether 12:20-21 (3/3/2016)
- If There Be No Faith – Ether 12:12 (3/2/2016)
- After the Trial of Your Faith – Ether 12:6 (3/1/2016)
- My Grace Is Sufficient – Ether 12:27 (2/14/2016)
- Fools Mock – Ether 12:23-26 (12/16/2015)
- That They Might Have Charity – Ether 12:36-37 (12/15/2015)
- An Anchor to the Souls of Men – Ether 12:4 (12/12/2015)
- With an Eye of Faith – Ether 12:19 (12/11/2015)
- Ether 12:9 Partakers of the Gift (12/23/2014)