In the sometimes dark and ominous panorama of the history of nations in iniquitous decline, we still view the beacons of prophetic light that glow in the darkness to teach profound lessons: that faith is the foundation of all righteousness, that the humble are strengthened through the grace of Christ, that the righteous can look forward to the resplendent glory of the New Jerusalem and the renewed Jerusalem, and that prophecy will ever be confirmed—both to the everlasting blessing of the faithful as well as the everlasting punishment of those who reject the Lord and rebel against His Spirit.
We watch in horror as the Jaredite nation, consumed by their recalcitrant wickedness, is swept off this continent as prophesied by the messengers of the Lord (see Ether 2:8), their downfall being anchored in the commitment to evil combinations of conspiratorial malice and anger (see Ether 15:22)—totally divorced from the Spirit of the Lord (Ether 15:19). Yet in all of this bleakness, we discover an opposite kind of anchor: the magnificent illumination of the fire of faith and the glow of hope as it prospers in the souls of those with an unceasing commitment to the Lord and eternal fidelity to covenant principles: “Wherefore, whoso believeth in God might with surety hope for a better world, yea, even a place at the right hand of God, which hope cometh of faith, maketh an anchor to the souls of men, which would make them sure and steadfast, always abounding in good works, being led to glorify God” (Ether 12:4). Once again, the Book of Mormon shows us “a more excellent hope,” one that can lead us to receive “an inheritance in the place which [God has] prepared” (Ether 12:32).