Eight (1813)The Lord doeth that which is good among the children of men; and he doeth
nothing save it be plain unto the children of men; and he inviteth them all to
come unto him and partake of his goodness; and he denieth none that come
unto him, black and white, bond and free, male and female; and he
remembereth the heathen; and all are alike unto God, both Jew and Gentile.^81This concept presents the people with the real truth, i.e., something that has been
true since the foundation of the world: God treats all people equally regardless of their
race, color, gender, social status, upbringing, or whether they are religious (Jew) or not
(Gentile). The Book of Mormon gives the people who believe in the Bible an opportunity to
consider something that the Bible does not teach; and because it is presented in biblical
prose, they are at least more likely to consider it. Being thus presented in a way that they
are accustomed to, the people are given the opportunity to accept or reject the new
information with lessened prejudicial aforethought.
Many will say, “I do not believe this to be true, because the Bible says that God has
chosen the Jew over the Gentile; that the man is more important than the woman; that those
who are black are cursed, and those who are in bondage deserve to be.” These people have
formed a “veil of unbelief.”^82 They do not believe that what has already been established in
their minds is false. Being thus prejudiced, they then harden their hearts against the
possibility that the new concept might be true.^83
With the presentation of the Book of Mormon, however, Bible-believers are given the
choice of whether to hold onto their beliefs, or to believe something new,^84 the
responsibility of choice then lying solely with the individual. Does God act in the manner
described in the Bible, or how the Book of Mormon presents the character of God? As a
result of the presentation from the Book of Mormon, is the person going to be continually
prejudiced against the Gentile, female, bond, and black, or treat them with equality?^85 The
reader is emotionally immersed into the storyline because of its continuity with Bible
stories, beliefs, and concepts. Being entranced in its presentation, the reader
subconsciously opens his or her mind to new concepts of real truth disguised in religious
and biblical rhetoric. The Book of Mormon uses this technique throughout its presentation.
Ultimately, the Book of Mormon counters everything the Bible presents that causes
problems in human society. However, it consistently offers the choice between “good” and
“evil,” allowing the reader the ultimate decision. It gives the reader the opportunity to
choose between “peace and life eternal”^86 —which could be obtained if one treated others
with the same respect as advanced humans treat each other—or being “delivered to the
hardness of one’s heart and the blindness of their mind,” until they literally destroy
themselves both temporally and spiritually.
Along with the sealed portion of the Book of Mormon^87 (a part of the book not given to
the world until the year 2004), the Book of Mormon truly is,
a great and marvelous work among the children of men; a work which shall
be everlasting, either on the one hand or on the other—either to the
convincing of them unto peace and life eternal, or unto the deliverance of
them to the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds unto
their being brought down into captivity, and also into destruction, both
temporally and spiritually, according to the captivity of the devil, of which I
have spoken.^88