History repeats itself as Shule’s son Omer is taken captive by his son Jared. When Jared’s brother’s conquer his army and liberate his father, Jared pleads for his life and is pardoned. But his ambitions remain, and his daughter devises a plan, making use of ancient oaths to establish a secret combination.
Here, Moroni interrupts the narrative to provide a warning for us: Secret combinations destroy civilizations. The Lord never works through secret combinations. When they begin to appear among us, we should beware.
Chapter Outline
- Jared takes his father captive, then loses a battle against his brothers (v. 1-8)
- Jared’s daughter prompts the establishment of a secret combination (v. 9-18)
- Moroni’s editorial note: Secret combinations destroy civilizations (v. 19-26)
My Takeaways
- Be a hopeful realist. Strive to see things as they really are and to be optimistic about what you can achieve with God’s help.
- Do not value group loyalty over conscience, and avoid situations where loyalty is enforced by fear.
- Jesus can help us become righteous.
Featured Blog Posts
❖ Moroni’s warning – Ether 8:24-26
What Are Secret Combinations?
I wrote yesterday that responding to guilt appropriately is essential for our eternal happiness. Anything which encourages us to ignore our feelings of guilt is harmful to us in the long run. As Alma warned his son Corianton, “Ye cannot hide your crimes from God; and except ye repent they will stand as a testimony against…
Your Awful Situation
A secret combination is a group of people who are oath-bound to hide one another’s sins. Moroni warned us to be aware of these groups and not to let them spread. We do this by valuing integrity over loyalty and by not hiding or rationalizing wrongdoing.
New Testament Parallels
Rivers of Living Water
Jesus testified that He is the source of “living water,” which is the love of God. When we come to Him, He not only quenches our thirst, He also makes it possible for us to share that living water with others.
All Posts Referencing Ether 8
- King of the Mountain (11/23/2024)
- Your Awful Situation (11/22/2024)
- Ether and the Books of Kings (11/21/2024)
- “Like the Dog to His Vomit” (9/22/2024)
- Sense and Insensibility (2/10/2024)
- Rivers of Living Water (4/28/2023)
- My Brother’s Keeper (1/15/2022)
- Glory (12/28/2021)
- Mother Eve (12/4/2021)
- The Ancient of Days (10/13/2021)
- “Armed with Righteousness” – 1 Nephi 14:14 (4/30/2021)
- Righteousness (11/22/2020)
- The Jaredite Generations (11/18/2020)
- “He Hath Lied Unto Us” – Alma 10:28, Alma 12:3 (6/12/2020)
- What Is Wisdom? (12/13/2019)
- What Are Secret Combinations? (6/25/2019)
- What Do We Know About the Jaredite Plates? (5/26/2019)
- Awake to a Sense of Your Awful Situation – Ether 8:24-25 (5/27/2018)
- Secret Combinations – Ether 8:22-23 (5/26/2018)
- “The Fountain of All Righteousness” – Ether 8:26 (6/11/2017)
- The Fountain of All Righteousness – Ether 8:26 (12/6/2015)