“Jared Set His Heart Upon the Kingdom and Upon the Glory of the World”

Brant Gardner

Redaction: While the text contains no indication that this moralizing is Moroni’s, it is consonant with Moroni’s editorial methods and is also unlikely to have been in the original tale. I have already commented on Moroni’s moral agenda—that history ought to prompt righteousness rather than disobedience. Like Mormon in dealing with the Nephite/Lamanite wars just before the Messiah’s visit to the Nephites, Moroni presents details of political intrigue for the same basic reason but with a heavier hand. He spells out how Jaredite prosperity cycles operate in relation to the land’s promise. Now he explains that, because Jared’s intentions are wicked (his heart is set on worldly “glory”), he will use wicked means to achieve them.

Second Witness: Analytical & Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon, Vol. 6

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