The Voice of the Father

The Voice of the Father

 Book of Mormon, Ether 4:4

 4 Behold, I (Moroni) have written upon these plates (the sealed portion) the very things which the brother of Jared saw; and there never were greater things made manifest than those which were made manifest unto the brother of Jared.

The Sealed Portion, TSP  

The Final Testament of Jesus Christ

CHAPTER 41 59-89

An explanation of the true character of the Christ and of the Father. The voice of the Father is given differently than the voice of mortal prophets. People need prophets because they won’t listen to the Spirit, which is the voice of the Father.

59 And now, I will give unto you examples of this thing both in the record of the Jews, and also in the record of my father which hath already come forth among you. And these examples have been hidden from you because of your wickedness and the stumbling blocks that the Lord hath placed before you.

60 But I will explain these things unto you in plainness, and ye shall see your errors and take notice of your ignorance of those things that ye should have understood. But without the Spirit to guide you in your understanding, there is no way that ye could have understood these things.

61 Behold, the written word hath caused much contention among you because of the way that these words have been written and given unto you. But if ye would not have the spirit of contention among you, then ye would have understood these things.

62 And because ye had this contention, which is contrary to the spirit of Christ, then ye did not have the spirit of Christ, and therefore, could not understand these things when they were presented unto you already in plainness.

63 And now, I would that ye should make reference to the words of my father, Mormon, which he hath given unto you concerning the coming of Jesus Christ unto the people who were gathered in the land of Bountiful after he was resurrected.

64 And now, I would that ye should know that the Father hath suffered that the children of men be given the opportunity to hear His words by those whom they will accept as His mouthpiece.

65 And I have already shown unto you that if the children of men are willing, then they can receive the words of God directly from His mouth, even from the Holy Ghost, who is one with the Father in all things, and is the voice of the Father, and is the way that the Father hath established to teach unto the children of men His will in all things.

66 And this way He hath established so that His children will not give undeserved praise and glory to their other brothers and sisters, who did not create them, nor do they have anything to do with their eternal salvation, except it be giving His words unto them that they might turn to Him and keep His commandments, which were given so that they might have joy and happiness.

67 And because the children of men do not recognize the way which the Father hath established to teach them, even that they cannot hear and understand his voice, He hath suffered that they be taught the only way that they might understand and accept His words.

68 And He hath suffered that the children of men should worship others of their brothers, even the holy prophets who have been sent unto them, that they might at least have some contact with Him and receive His word in some way.

69 Now, this communication with the Father, even the desire of the Son to turn the people to their Father, was given as an example in the record of my father, and he wrote, saying: And now it came to pass that there was a great multitude gathered together, of the people of Nephi, round about the temple which was in the land Bountiful; and they were marveling and wondering one with another, and were showing one to another the great and marvelous change which had taken place.

70 And they were also conversing about this Jesus Christ, of whom the sign had been given concerning his death.

71 And it came to pass that while they were thus conversing one with another, they heard a voice as if it came out of heaven; and they cast their eyes round about, for they understood not the voice which they heard; and it was not a harsh voice, neither was it a loud voice; nevertheless, and notwithstanding it being a small voice it did pierce them that did hear to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn.

72 And it came to pass that again they heard the voice, and they understood it not.

73 And again the third time they did hear the voice, and did open their ears to hear it; and their eyes were towards the sound thereof; and they did look steadfastly towards heaven, from whence the sound came.

74 And behold, the third time they did understand the voice which they heard; and it said unto them: Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name; hear ye him.

75 And now, I, Moroni, give unto you an explanation of these things. For behold, whose voice did the people hear that testified unto them of His Son? Was it not the voice of the Father?

76 And why is it that they did not understand this voice when it was given unto them the first time? And even a second time it was given unto them and they did not understand it. And this voice was given unto them by their loving Father in heaven, who loveth them all and desireth to give unto all of His children His words by His own mouth.

77 And the voice of the Father is not a harsh voice, like the voice of a prophet at times, neither is it a loud voice, with which a prophet at times doth proclaim his message and teacheth repentance. But it was a small voice that did pierce them that did hear to the center, insomuch that there was no part of their frame that it did not cause to quake; yea, it did pierce them to the very soul, and did cause their hearts to burn.

78 And this burning was caused because the voice was recognizable by the spirit of these people, but the flesh could not understand these things, because it was not heard in their ears as they were accustomed to receiving communication.

79 Now behold, these people understood the voice of Jesus, of whom they had been given the signs and the testimonies of the prophets, to whom they had listened with the means of communication of which they were accustomed in the flesh.

80 And they did previously, to this time, yea, even just before the Father made an attempt to speak unto them with His own voice, they did hear the voice of Christ in the darkness.

81 Now, why is it that these people could hear the voice of Christ in the darkness, when he spoke unto them from the heavens, but they could not perceive and understand the voice of the Father, when He spoke unto them from the same heavens in the light?

82 And what is it that the Father was trying to tell the people, even through the manner of communication that they could not understand, yea, even through this still small voice?

83 Behold, these things were shown unto the people that were preserved in the land of Bountiful as a similitude of those things which are upon the earth.

84 For the Father made twice the attempt to speak unto His children, but they could not understand the words which He gave unto them. And they did not know Him, therefore, they did not recognize His voice.

85 Nevertheless, He knew that they were conversing about His Son, even Jesus Christ, who Samuel the Lamanite had prophesied would come into the world. And they were conversing about Jesus Christ just before they heard the voice of the Father speak unto them from the heavens.

86 And the Father knew that these people were not ready to hear from His own mouth that which He would gladly teach unto them. For He knew that they could not listen to that still small voice that spoke directly to their spirit— He being the Creator of their spirits—and not to their ears, which were of the flesh.

87 And when He had made the attempt twice, He turned them over to the Son, that He might teach them through His Son. And He spoke unto them this time in the manner of communication that they could understand in their wickedness.

88 And for this reason, it is written: And behold, the third time they did understand the voice which they heard; and it said unto them: Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased, in whom I have glorified my name; hear ye him.

89 And with this the Father gave the children of men the opportunity to hear His words the only way that they could understand them, even the way that they had been taught by their customs and their traditions. Nevertheless, it was better that they hear His words in this way, than that they should not hear any of His words.