Pride is a dominant theme of the Book of Mormon. It is a central issue in the warnings of the Lord to the people of the latter days: “And if ye seek the riches which it is the will of the Father to give unto you, ye shall be the richest of all people, for ye shall have the riches of eternity; and it must needs be that the riches of the earth are mine to give; but beware of pride, lest ye become as the Nephites of old” (D&C 38:39). Elder Dallin H. Oaks speaks about the danger of the pride of comparison:
When the Lord showed him the thoughts of the people, the prophet Jacob told them that he “must testify unto [them] concerning the wickedness of [their] hearts” (Jacob 2:6). After reminding them how they had been blessed to obtain riches, Jacob condemned the effect of their riches on their thoughts and their behavior:
“And because some of you have obtained more abundantly than that of your brethren ye are lifted up in the pride of your hearts, and wear stiff necks and high heads because of the costliness of your apparel, and persecute your brethren because ye suppose that ye are better than they” (Jacob 2:13).
In this passage Jacob defined the elements of the pride of comparison: (1) a person obtains something more abundantly than others; (2) he is lifted up in pride because of this possession; and (3) he persecutes others because he supposes he is better than they. Jacob underlined the seriousness of this kind of pride when he pleaded, “Let not this pride of your hearts destroy your souls!” (Jacob 2:16).
In the Book of Mormon accounts, the pride of comparison resulted most frequently from the acquisition and use of riches, such as by wearing fine apparel. Thus, Alma the Younger gave this description of the Nephites in the land of Zarahemla, who “began to wax proud” because of their possessions, including their flocks, their gold, and their fine apparel: “The people of the church began to be lifted up in the pride of their eyes, and to set their hearts upon riches and upon the vain things of the world, that they began to be scornful, one toward another” (Alma 4:8). (Pure in Heart [Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1988], 97)
Pride, the universal sin, is at the crux of almost every other sin. Pride is expressed in arrogance, haughtiness, self-love, vanity, and egotism. Because pride involves man setting his will against God’s, it creates enmity between God and man. The sin of pride is directly opposed to the Christlike quality of humility. President Ezra Taft Benson pointed out where pride carries us afoul at the crossroads of life: “Pride is characterized by ‘What do I want out of life?’ rather than by ‘What would God have me do with my life?’ It is self-will as opposed to God’s will. It is the fear of man over the fear of God” (“Cleansing the Inner Vessel,” Ensign, May 1986, 6–7). In the Book of Mormon, pride is the downfall of the Jaredite and Nephite peoples, and pride can be our downfall as well if we are not careful. Prideful thoughts are so powerful that they can lead to sinful thoughts and behavior, such as selfishness, greed, lust, jealousy, power-seeking, envy, and a whole host of related sins. This is why the Lord continually counsels us against pride (see Proverbs 16:18; James 4:6; Alma 1:32; Moroni 8:27; D&C 23:1). Pride can destroy our very souls.