Book of Mormon
Covenant of Christ
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7 And now it came to pass, after some years had passed away, and there came a man among the people of Nephi whose name was Sherem. 2 And it came to pass that he began to preach among the people and to declare unto them that there should be no Christ. And he preached many things which were flattering unto the people, and this he did that he might overthrow the doctrine of Christ. 3 And he labored diligently that he might lead away the hearts of the people, insomuch that he did lead away many hearts. And he knowing that I, Jacob, had faith in Christ, who should come, he sought much opportunity that he might come unto me. 4 And he was learned, that he had a perfect knowledge of the language of the people; wherefore, he could use much flattery and much power of speech, according to the power of the Devil. 5 And he had hope to shake me from the faith, notwithstanding the many revelations and the many things which I had seen concerning these things; for I truly had seen angels and they had ministered unto me. And also I had heard the voice of the Lord speaking unto me in very word from time to time; wherefore, I could not be shaken.
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7 Some years later, a man came among the Nephites named Sherem. 2 He began to preach among the people and tell them there would be no Christ. He preached many things to deceive the people, and he did this to overthrow Christ’s doctrine. 3 He worked hard to mislead the hearts of the people, and he deceived many of them. Because he knew that I, Jacob, had faith in Christ who was to come, he sought every opportunity to confront me. 4 He was well educated with a comprehensive vocabulary and spoke eloquently; as a result, he could be very persuasive and convincing when speaking, inspired by the accuser’s power. 5 He was hoping to shake me from the faith, despite the many revelations and numerous things God had given to me. I had in fact seen angels who ministered to me. I had also heard the Lord’s voice actually speaking to me from time to time; therefore I couldn’t be shaken.
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6 And it came to pass that he came unto me, and on this wise did he speak unto me, saying, Brother Jacob, I have sought much opportunity that I might speak unto you, for I have heard and also know that thou goest about much, preaching that which ye call the gospel or the doctrine of Christ. 7 And ye have led away much of this people, that they pervert the right way of God, and keep not the law of Moses, which is the right way, and convert the law of Moses into the worship of a being which ye say shall come many hundred years hence. And now behold, I, Sherem, declare unto you that this is blasphemy; for no man knoweth of such things, for he cannot tell of things to come. And after this manner did Sherem contend against me. 8 But behold, the Lord God poured in his spirit into my soul, insomuch that I did confound him in all his words. 9 And I said unto him, Deniest thou the Christ which shall come? And he said, If there should be a Christ, I would not deny him; but I know that there is no Christ, neither has been, nor ever will be. 10 And I said unto him, Believest thou the scriptures? And he said, Yea. 11 And I said unto him, Then ye do not understand them, for they truly testify of Christ. Behold, I say unto you that none of the prophets have written nor prophesied, save they have spoken concerning this Christ. 12 And this is not all. It has been made manifest unto me, for I have heard and seen, and it also hath been made manifest unto me by the power of the holy ghost; wherefore, I know if there should be no atonement made, all mankind must be lost.
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6 He came to see me and said this: Brother Jacob, I’ve sought repeatedly to come and see you, because I’ve heard and understand you travel a great deal, preaching what you call the gospel or Christ’s doctrine. 7 You’ve misled many of the people, so they corrupt and pervert God’s right way and don’t keep the Law of Moses, which is the right way. You misinterpret the Law of Moses into the worship of a being who you say will come hundreds of years from now. Now I Sherem declare to you this is blasphemy; no one knows about such things because it’s impossible to predict future events. Sherem argued this way with me. 8 But the Lord God poured His Spirit into my soul to such a degree that I proved him wrong in everything he said. 9 I asked him: Do you deny Christ, who is to come? He replied: If there were a Christ, I wouldn’t deny Him; but I know that there’s no Christ — there hasn’t been a Christ, and there will never be a Christ. 10 I asked him: Do you believe the scriptures? He replied: Yes. 11 I said to him: Then you don’t understand them since they testify truthfully of Christ. I tell you that no prophet has written or prophesied without speaking about Christ. 12 And this isn’t everything. I’ve been shown, have heard, and seen by the power of the Holy Ghost and therefore I know that if there were no atonement made, all mankind would certainly be lost.
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13 And it came to pass that he said unto me, Shew me a sign by this power of the holy ghost in the which ye know so much.
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13 Then he said to me: Show me a sign by this power of the Holy Ghost that lets you know so much.
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14 And I said unto him, What am I that I should tempt God to shew unto thee a sign in the thing which thou knowest to be true? Yet thou wilt deny it because thou art of the Devil. Nevertheless, not my will be done, but if God shall smite thee, let that be a sign unto thee that he has power, both in Heaven and in earth, and also that Christ shall come. And thy will, O Lord, be done, and not mine.
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14 I said to him: Who am I to put God to the test to show you a sign about things you already know to be true? You would still deny it because you belong to the accuser. Nevertheless, I don’t want it, but if God strikes you, let that be a sign to you that He has power in both heaven and earth and that Christ will come. And may it happen, O Lord, according to Your will, not mine.
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15 And it came to pass that when I, Jacob, had spoken these words, the power of the Lord came upon him, insomuch that he fell to the earth. And it came to pass that he was nourished for the space of many days. 16 And it came to pass that he said unto the people, Gather together on the morrow, for I shall die; wherefore, I desire to speak unto the people before I shall die.
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15 When I had said these words, the Lord’s power descended on him and he collapsed helplessly onto the ground. He received care for many days. 16 Then he asked the people: Come together tomorrow because I’m going to die — I would like to speak to the people before I die.
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17 And it came to pass that on the morrow, the multitude were gathered together. And he spake plainly unto them, and denied the things which he had taught them, and confessed the Christ, and the power of the holy ghost, and the ministering of angels. 18 And he spake plainly unto them that he had been deceived by the power of the Devil. And he spake of hell, and of eternity, and of Eternal punishment. 19 And he said, I fear lest I have committed the unpardonable sin, for I have lied unto God; for I denied the Christ and said that I believed the scriptures, and they truly testify of him. And because I have thus lied unto God, I greatly fear lest my case shall be awful but I confess unto God.
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17 On the following day, when a crowd had assembled, he spoke openly to them, denying what he had taught them and acknowledging Christ, the power of the Holy Ghost, and the ministering of angels. 18 He admitted openly that he had been deceived by the accuser’s power. He also spoke about hell, eternity, and eternal punishment. 19 Then he said: I’m afraid I’ve committed the unpardonable sin, because I’ve lied to God, denied Christ, and claimed I believed the scriptures — and they testify truthfully of Him. Because I’ve lied to God in this way, I’m very afraid of my position before Him, so I’m making this confession before God.
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20 And it came to pass that when he had said these words, he could say no more, and he gave up the ghost. 21 And when the multitude had witnessed that he spake these things as he was about to give up the ghost, they were astonished exceedingly, insomuch that the power of God came down upon them and they were overcome, that they fell to the earth. 22 Now, this thing was pleasing unto me, Jacob, for I had requested it of my Father who was in Heaven, for he had heard my cry and answered my prayer.
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20 After he said this, he was unable to speak anymore and he died. 21 When the crowd heard him say this as he was about to die, they were very astonished, so much so that God’s power descended on them and they were overcome, bowing down to the ground. 22 Now this pleased me, because I asked my Father in heaven for it to happen. He heard my cry and answered my prayer.
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23 And it came to pass that peace and the love of God was restored again among the people, and they searched the scriptures and hearkened no more to the words of this wicked man. 24 And it came to pass that many means were devised to reclaim and restore the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth, but it all were vain; for they delighted in wars and bloodsheds, and they had an eternal hatred against us, their brethren. And they sought by the power of their arms to destroy us continually; 25 wherefore, the people of Nephi did fortify against them with their arms and with all their might, trusting in the God and the Rock of their salvation. Wherefore, they became as yet conquerors of their enemies.
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23 And so peace and God’s love were restored among the people. They carefully studied the scriptures and stopped listening to this evil man’s words. 24 There were many plans made to reclaim and restore the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth; but our plans were all fruitless because they had permanent hatred for us, their relatives, and took pleasure in wars and slaughter, frequently trying to kill us with their weapons. 25 So the Nephites prepared to defend themselves with their weapons and all their strength, trusting in God, the Rock of their Salvation. As a result, up to this time, we were able to defeat our enemies.
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26 And it came to pass that I, Jacob, began to be old. And the record of this people being kept on the other plates of Nephi, wherefore, I conclude this record, declaring that I have written according to the best of my knowledge by saying that the time passed away with us, and also our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream, we being a lonesome and a solemn people, wanderers cast out from Jerusalem, born in tribulation in a wild wilderness, and hated of our brethren, which caused wars and contentions. Wherefore, we did mourn out our days.
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26 Then I began to grow old. And because this people’s history is kept on Nephi’s other plates, I’ll conclude this record. I declare I’ve written to the best of my knowledge. Our time and lives came and went like a dream to us, since we’re a lonesome, careful people, wanderers thrown out of Jerusalem, born in difficulty in wild, unsettled lands, and hated by our relatives, which has led to wars and conflicts. Therefore our lives were filled with sorrow.
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27 And I, Jacob, saw that I must soon go down to my grave; wherefore, I said unto my son Enos, Take these plates. And I told him the things which my brother Nephi had commanded me, and he promised obedience unto the commands. And I make an end of my writing upon these plates, which writing has been small. And to the reader I bid farewell, hoping that many of my brethren may read my words. Brethren, adieu.
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27 When I sensed I was going to die soon, I told my son Enos: Take control of these plates. I related to him the things my brother Nephi had commanded me to do, and he promised to obey the same commands. So I conclude my brief writing on these plates and say goodbye to the reader, hoping many of my people will respect my words. Brothers and sisters, farewell.