< Mosiah 10 >
v. 18 For this very cause has king Laman, by his cunning, and lying craftiness, and his fair promises, deceived me, that I have brought this my people up into this land, that hey may destroy them; yea, and we have suffered these many years in the land.
Mistakes have been made
What Zeniff is admitting: Zeniff had good intentions — he wanted peace and to reclaim the ancestral lands — but he had blind spots:
1. “Cunning”: Means calculated, strategic manipulation. The Lamanite king understood Zeniff’s personality and exploited it.
2. “Lying craftiness”: A phrase that emphasizes deliberate deception.This wasn’t misunderstanding — it was a planned trap.
3. “Fair promises”: Flattery, diplomacy, and “we can live in peace together.” Promises of safety and cooperation were used as bait. In other words: Zeniff is admitting that he was outplayed emotionally, politically, and diplomatically.
Why This Line Is So Important
This is one of the rare moments in scripture where a leader:
It sets up the entire “Zeniff cycle,” where:
Something to know: Good intentions don’t protect you from skilled manipulators. Righteous desires don’t exempt you from needing discernment.
In large institutions (governments, churches, universities, corporations), leaders tend to:
This isn’t uniquely LDS.
It’s a feature of institutional self-preservation.
So why doesn't the LDS church admit more wrongdoing?
Because:
This was always my big hang up with trek.
Clearly Brigham Young made a mistake as did the local leaders with sending the Willie and Martin Handcart companies late in the season. If they had listened to Levi Savage, all of that could have been avoided.
Francis Webster famously stood up and pushed back against the critics saying that the sacrifice and suffering was worth their becoming aquainted with God in their extremus.
I'm grateful God can consecrate leader's mistakes to the good of those they lead into misery. However, it doesn't mean leaders shouldn't learn from their mistakes and repent of their failures.
I think it's silly we don't make one of the lessons of trek the principles that Zeniff so freely teaches us here. One of those principles is to listen to those who have wisdom and experience, even if we are their leader. No place for arrogance as a leader, in fact, a good leader doesn't let their pride lead them into bad decisions..
Mistakes have been made
What Zeniff is admitting: Zeniff had good intentions — he wanted peace and to reclaim the ancestral lands — but he had blind spots:
1. “Cunning”: Means calculated, strategic manipulation. The Lamanite king understood Zeniff’s personality and exploited it.
2. “Lying craftiness”: A phrase that emphasizes deliberate deception.This wasn’t misunderstanding — it was a planned trap.
3. “Fair promises”: Flattery, diplomacy, and “we can live in peace together.” Promises of safety and cooperation were used as bait. In other words: Zeniff is admitting that he was outplayed emotionally, politically, and diplomatically.
Why This Line Is So Important
This is one of the rare moments in scripture where a leader:
- openly admits he was naïve,
- acknowledges he got manipulated,
- and takes responsibility for a mistake that affected generations.
It sets up the entire “Zeniff cycle,” where:
- his overtrust →
- Lamanite exploitation →
- Nephite bondage →
- Limhi’s suffering →
- Alma’s parallel deliverance narratives.
Something to know: Good intentions don’t protect you from skilled manipulators. Righteous desires don’t exempt you from needing discernment.
In large institutions (governments, churches, universities, corporations), leaders tend to:
- avoid clear admissions of wrongdoing,
- downplay past errors,
- frame changes as “continuing revelation” or “policy updates,”
- and prioritize cohesion over vulnerability.
This isn’t uniquely LDS.
It’s a feature of institutional self-preservation.
- President Uchtdorf: “Mistakes have been made.”
- President Oaks: “I know that the history of the church… includes episodes that we are not proud of.”
So why doesn't the LDS church admit more wrongdoing?
Because:
- Institutional inertia resists vulnerability.
- They fear loss of authority.
- They fear fracturing the membership.
- They sincerely believe God was still guiding them, even amid mistakes.
- They frame change as revelation, not correction.
- Admitting error contradicts the cultural expectation of prophetic certainty.
This was always my big hang up with trek.
Clearly Brigham Young made a mistake as did the local leaders with sending the Willie and Martin Handcart companies late in the season. If they had listened to Levi Savage, all of that could have been avoided.
Francis Webster famously stood up and pushed back against the critics saying that the sacrifice and suffering was worth their becoming aquainted with God in their extremus.
I'm grateful God can consecrate leader's mistakes to the good of those they lead into misery. However, it doesn't mean leaders shouldn't learn from their mistakes and repent of their failures.
I think it's silly we don't make one of the lessons of trek the principles that Zeniff so freely teaches us here. One of those principles is to listen to those who have wisdom and experience, even if we are their leader. No place for arrogance as a leader, in fact, a good leader doesn't let their pride lead them into bad decisions..