"When Ye Shall Rend That Veil of Unbelief": A Typological Reading of Ether 3 and 4

by Matthew Scott Stenson

Overview

Abstract: In the book of Ether, the prophet Moroni "Christianizes" the Jaredite story, inserting extensive Christian elements into an original text that predates the house of Israel, the Nephite nation, and the Christian era. In this paper, a typological and intertextual method is used to show how Moroni uses the words of Christ in Ether 3 and 4 to exhort his Gentile readers to embrace the Nephite record when it is manifest to them that they might receive even greater things (divine truths). Specifically, Moroni uses the brief account of the brother of Jared atop Mount Shelem to illustrate how Gentiles may "rend the veil of unbelief" and gain perfect knowledge of all things ever revealed. As the Lord revealed his finger to the brother of Jared, so also the Book of Mormon, itself a portion of the word of the Lord, will come forth to try their faith. Those Gentiles who believe and come to know with perfectness of its truthfulness are positioned to lay hold of even greater things than these through Christ. The value of this reading is to clarify Moroni's effort to adapt the early Jaredite history to a later event—the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and its implications.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940184581514
Publisher:	Interpreter Foundation
Publication date:	02/27/2025
Series:	Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship , #64
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	362 KB

About the Author

Matthew Scott Stenson holds a PhD in English from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. His dissertation work centered on John Milton’s intertextuality in Paradise Lost. Scott teaches Composition and Literature at Tennessee Tech Universityand serves on his stake’s high council. In addition to his articles published in Interpreter, he has published articles in such journals as BYU Studies Quarterly, Christianity and Literature, Dialogue, and The Religious Educator.