pgs. 132 and 133...O be wise; what can I say more?

CHAPTER 6

The Lord shall recover Israel in the last days—Then the world shall be burned with fire—Men must follow Christ to avoid the lake of fire and brimstone. Between 544 and 421 B.C.

1 And now, behold, my brethren, as I said unto you that I would prophesy, behold, this is my prophecy—that the things which this prophet ^aZenos spake, concerning the house of Israel, in the which he likened them unto a tame ^bolive-tree, must surely come to pass.

2 And the day that he shall set his hand again the second time to ^arecover his people, is the day, yea, even the last time, that the ^bservants of the Lord shall go forth in his ^cpower, to ^dnourish and prune his ^evineyard; and after that the ^fend soon cometh.

3 And how ^ablessed are they who have labored ^bdiligently in his vineyard; and how ^ccursed are they who shall be cast out into their own place! And the ^dworld shall be ^eburned with fire.

4 And how merciful is our God unto us, for he remembereth the house of ^aIsrael, both roots and branches; and he stretches forth his ^bhands unto them all the day long; and they are a ^cstiffnecked and a gainsaying people; but as many as will not harden their hearts shall be saved in the kingdom of God.

5 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I beseech of you in words of soberness that ye would repent, and come with full purpose of heart, and ^acleave unto God as he cleaveth unto you. And while his ^barm of mercy is extended towards you in the light of the day, harden not your hearts.

6 Yea, today, if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts; for why will ye ^adie?

7 For behold, after ye have been nourished by the good ^aword of God all the day long, will ye bring forth evil fruit, that ye must be ^bhewn down and cast into the fire?

8 Behold, will ye reject these words? Will ye reject the words of the ^aprophets; and will ye reject all the words which have been spoken concerning Christ, after so many have spoken concerning him; and ^bdeny the good word of Christ, and the power of God, and the ^cgift of the Holy Ghost, and quench the Holy Spirit, and make a ^dmock of the great plan of redemption, which hath been laid for you?

9 Know ye not that if ye will do these things, that the power of the redemption and the resurrection, which is in Christ, will bring you to stand with ^ashame and ^bawful ^cguilt before the bar of God?

10 And according to the power of ^ajustice, for justice cannot be denied, ye must go away into that ^blake of fire and brimstone, whose flames are unquenchable, and whose smoke ascendeth up forever and ever, which lake of fire and brimstone is ^cendless ^dtorment.

11 O then, my beloved brethren, repent ye, and enter in at the ^astrait gate, and ^bcontinue in the way which is narrow, until ye shall obtain eternal life.

12 O be ^awise; what can I say more?

13 Finally, I bid you farewell, until I shall meet you before the ^apleasing bar of God, which bar striketh the wicked with ^bawful dread and fear. Amen.

CHAPTER 7

Sherem denies Christ, contends with Jacob, demands a sign, and is smitten of God—All of the prophets have spoken of Christ and his atonement—The Nephites lived out their days as wanderers, born in tribulation, and hated by the Lamanites. Between 544 and 421 B.C.

1 And now it came to pass after some years had passed away, there came a man among the people of Nephi, whose name was ^aSherem.

2 And it came to pass that he began to preach among the people, and to declare unto them that there should be ^ano Christ. And he preached many things which were flattering unto the people; and this he did that he might ^boverthrow 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 ^alearned, that he had a perfect knowledge of the language of the people; wherefore, he could use much ^bflattery, and much power of speech, according to the ^cpower of the devil.

In Chapter 6 Jacob testifies of the truth of the Allegory of the Olive Tree. Afterwords he says "O be wise, what can I say more?" I'm sure many prophets have felt this way. They just want their people to see the wisdom of living the commandments of God and serving him. Of course, it isn't easy today and it wasn't then either because in chapter 7 Sherem shows up. He is the first of three "antichrists" that we meet in the Book of Mormon. He is definitely a smooth operator! He tells the people in flattering words that there is no Christ. I'm actually surprised when I think there are only 3 antichrists in the whole Book of Mormon. How do you think that compares with how many there are today?