In His kindness and mercy, the Lord sent prophets to warn the people of Shule’s kingdom. At first they reviled and mocked the prophets; however, the prophets were protected by the righteous king’s proclamation. Shule’s people then heeded the prophets’ warnings and repented, thus avoiding the destruction that would have come as a result of their rejection of the prophets’ message.
President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency explained why the Lord warns His children of their wickedness: “Because the Lord is kind, He calls servants to warn people of danger. That call to warn is made harder and more important by the fact that the warnings of most worth are about dangers that people don’t yet think are real” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1998, 40; or Ensign, Nov. 1998, 32).
Prophets and Their Messages Are Frequently Rejected
Why do prophets often get mocked and reviled? Elder Robert D. Hales of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles explained:
“Prophets must often warn of the consequences of violating God’s laws. They do not preach that which is popular with the world. …
“Why do prophets proclaim unpopular commandments and call society to repentance for rejecting, modifying, and even ignoring the commandments? The reason is very simple. Upon receiving revelation, prophets have no choice but to proclaim and reaffirm that which God has given them to tell the world” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1996, 52; or Ensign, May 1996, 37).
Elder L. Aldin Porter of the Presidency of the Seventy explained another reason people often reject the prophet’s counsel. He explained that people erroneously believe that prophetic warnings interfere with their agency: “Some complain that when the prophets speak with clarity and firmness, they are taking our agency away. We are still free to choose. But we must accept the consequences of those decisions. The prophets do not take away our agency. They simply warn us of what the consequences of our choices will be. How foolish it is to fault the prophets for their warnings” (in Conference Report, Oct. 1999, 82; or Ensign, Nov. 1999, 66).