< Mosiah 2 >
v. 9 ... for I have not commanded you to come up hither to trifle with the words which I shall speak, but that you should hearken unto me, and open your ears that ye may hear, and your hearts that ye may understand, and your minds that the mysteries of God may be unfolded to your view.
Hearken
Shema (שְׁמַע) is the root idea behind the English scriptural word “hearken.”
Deuteronomy 6:4 (“Shema”)
“Hear, O Israel…”
Hebrew shema = hearken (listen + obey)
In Hebrew:
If you have not obeyed, you have not ‘heard.’
So shema carries all of these meanings at once: Hear, Pay attention, Understand, Internalize, Respond, Obey
Shema is the covenant verb
King Benjamin doesn't want us to triffle with his words, he wants us to listen with the intention to obey.
The Shema is the single most important confession of faith in Judaism — the core declaration that God is one, that He is their God, and that His people must love Him completely. It is both a prayer and a covenant formula.
1. The Text of the Shema
The Shema comes from Deuteronomy 6:4–5: Hebrew: שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָד
Transliteration (for those of us who can't read Hebrew): Shema Yisrael, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad.
English: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”
It is not passive hearing, it is covenental listening
Jesus Quoted the Shema
When asked “What is the greatest commandment?” Jesus begins by quoting the Shema:
Mark 12:29–30
“Hear, O Israel…”
“And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength.”
Jesus adds “mind”, clarifying the Hebrew word me’ōd (might, muchness).
The Shema in the Book of Mormon
The Shema logic appears everywhere:
Hear → Love → Obey → Blessings
Hearken
Shema (שְׁמַע) is the root idea behind the English scriptural word “hearken.”
Deuteronomy 6:4 (“Shema”)
“Hear, O Israel…”
Hebrew shema = hearken (listen + obey)
In Hebrew:
If you have not obeyed, you have not ‘heard.’
So shema carries all of these meanings at once: Hear, Pay attention, Understand, Internalize, Respond, Obey
Shema is the covenant verb
King Benjamin doesn't want us to triffle with his words, he wants us to listen with the intention to obey.
The Shema is the single most important confession of faith in Judaism — the core declaration that God is one, that He is their God, and that His people must love Him completely. It is both a prayer and a covenant formula.
1. The Text of the Shema
The Shema comes from Deuteronomy 6:4–5: Hebrew: שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ יְהוָה אֶחָד
Transliteration (for those of us who can't read Hebrew): Shema Yisrael, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai Echad.
English: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”
It is not passive hearing, it is covenental listening
Jesus Quoted the Shema
When asked “What is the greatest commandment?” Jesus begins by quoting the Shema:
Mark 12:29–30
“Hear, O Israel…”
“And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength.”
Jesus adds “mind”, clarifying the Hebrew word me’ōd (might, muchness).
The Shema in the Book of Mormon
The Shema logic appears everywhere:
- “Hearken unto the word…” (Nephi, Jacob, Benjamin)
- “Open your ears that ye may hear…” (Mosiah 2:9)
- “If you will hearken, you shall be blessed…”
- “If ye will hear His voice…”
Hear → Love → Obey → Blessings
v. 11 ... to serve you with all the might, mind and strength which the Lord hath granted unto me.
All we got (מְאֹד (me’ōd)
Might, muchness, totallity
This word appears in the Shema - (Deuteronomy 6:5):
“Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy might (מְאֹד).”
Traditionally translated as “might,” but the Hebrew meaning is much richer and means with everything you've got, all your willpower, all your intesnsity
All we got (מְאֹד (me’ōd)
Might, muchness, totallity
This word appears in the Shema - (Deuteronomy 6:5):
“Love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy might (מְאֹד).”
Traditionally translated as “might,” but the Hebrew meaning is much richer and means with everything you've got, all your willpower, all your intesnsity
v. 17 And beyond, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.
Matthew 25:40
Matthew 25:40
v. 22 ... therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you.
A poor wayfaring man of grief
A man is serving, helping the poor wayfaring man of grief, the least of these....but no matter what he gives, he gets more in return:
v. 2: bread / manna
v. 3: water / living water
v.4 shelter / sleeps in the garden of eden
v.5: physical healing / healing the heart
v.6: the man dies for his friend
v.7: his eternal reward (life / eternal life)
There is no such thing as sacrifice, because we always receive something greater in return (God doth immediately bless you). That idea can make those sacrifices a little easier.
All of this is to lead us to the grand conclusion: the final cookie that God desires us to give back to Him.
v.24: Therefore of what have ye to boast?
v.25: Can you say ought of yourselves
Humility -
Mosiah 1:11 - this is a diligent people, they are righteous. They are living in peace. Everything is good. It's very tempting to start feeling prideful. Hey, we're good people, we're doing pretty good here. Righteous people, living in peace, can be lifted up in pride. They start to take personal credit for their success. King Benjamin wants to stop that problem before it even starts.
Gratitude, humlity, servivce, obedience are the great shield from pride.
A poor wayfaring man of grief
A man is serving, helping the poor wayfaring man of grief, the least of these....but no matter what he gives, he gets more in return:
v. 2: bread / manna
v. 3: water / living water
v.4 shelter / sleeps in the garden of eden
v.5: physical healing / healing the heart
v.6: the man dies for his friend
v.7: his eternal reward (life / eternal life)
There is no such thing as sacrifice, because we always receive something greater in return (God doth immediately bless you). That idea can make those sacrifices a little easier.
All of this is to lead us to the grand conclusion: the final cookie that God desires us to give back to Him.
v.24: Therefore of what have ye to boast?
v.25: Can you say ought of yourselves
Humility -
Mosiah 1:11 - this is a diligent people, they are righteous. They are living in peace. Everything is good. It's very tempting to start feeling prideful. Hey, we're good people, we're doing pretty good here. Righteous people, living in peace, can be lifted up in pride. They start to take personal credit for their success. King Benjamin wants to stop that problem before it even starts.
Gratitude, humlity, servivce, obedience are the great shield from pride.
v. 23 And now, in the first place, he hath created you, and granted unto you your lives, for which ye are indebted unto him.
Mosiah 2: 23, 24, 34 - describes the feeling we get when somebody does a favor or something nice for us. Like at Christmas when people bring us a plate of cookies. When that happens, you typically feel like you have to give something back to them. Here, King Benjamin reminds us that we have been given so much from our Heavenly Father.
Can you find God's cookie plate in 20-22? What are some of the blessings that God has given us?
v20: God has created you
v20: kept and preserved you
v20: caused that you should rejoice
v20: granted you to live in peace
v21: created you
v21: preserving you day by day
v21: air that we breath
v21: ability to choose (agency)
v21: abiltiy to move
v22: prosperity
v22: blessings from keeping the commandments
What else has God blessed you with?
Important to think about your cookie plate from God
Any cookies we can give back to God? What can we give back to God in return?
v19: Thank your Heavenly King!
v20: Thank Him with all your soul. (Gratitude).
v21: Serve Him (Service) - v.17 - serve one another - Matthew 25:40
v22: Keep His Commandments (Obedience).
Do our offerings to God make us even? No, v.21: we're unprofittable servants...kind of like kids giving janky gifts to their parents
In God's kingdom, its not about the bottom line, it's about the employee ... we are meerly unprofittable, and that's ok, because God is not trying to turn a profit. He's trying to make us like Him.
Mosiah 2: 23, 24, 34 - describes the feeling we get when somebody does a favor or something nice for us. Like at Christmas when people bring us a plate of cookies. When that happens, you typically feel like you have to give something back to them. Here, King Benjamin reminds us that we have been given so much from our Heavenly Father.
Can you find God's cookie plate in 20-22? What are some of the blessings that God has given us?
v20: God has created you
v20: kept and preserved you
v20: caused that you should rejoice
v20: granted you to live in peace
v21: created you
v21: preserving you day by day
v21: air that we breath
v21: ability to choose (agency)
v21: abiltiy to move
v22: prosperity
v22: blessings from keeping the commandments
What else has God blessed you with?
Important to think about your cookie plate from God
Any cookies we can give back to God? What can we give back to God in return?
v19: Thank your Heavenly King!
v20: Thank Him with all your soul. (Gratitude).
v21: Serve Him (Service) - v.17 - serve one another - Matthew 25:40
v22: Keep His Commandments (Obedience).
Do our offerings to God make us even? No, v.21: we're unprofittable servants...kind of like kids giving janky gifts to their parents
In God's kingdom, its not about the bottom line, it's about the employee ... we are meerly unprofittable, and that's ok, because God is not trying to turn a profit. He's trying to make us like Him.
v. 32 But, O my people, beware lest there shall arise contentions among you, and ye list to obey the evil spirit, which was spoken of by my father Mosiah.
Peacemakers needed
April 2023 – Peacemakers Needed - Russell M. Nelson: “Contention violates everything the Savior stood for and taught. It is a tool of the adversary. The adversary delighteth in the hearts of the contentious…We can literally change the world—one person, one family, one neighborhood at a time—when we reject contention.” “When the Spirit is present, there is no contention.Contentions, arguments, and disagreements drive the Spirit away--every time.”
“Contention is a choice.
Peace is a choice.
We choose to be angry.
We choose to be contentious.
We can also choose not to be.”
Peacemakers needed
April 2023 – Peacemakers Needed - Russell M. Nelson: “Contention violates everything the Savior stood for and taught. It is a tool of the adversary. The adversary delighteth in the hearts of the contentious…We can literally change the world—one person, one family, one neighborhood at a time—when we reject contention.” “When the Spirit is present, there is no contention.Contentions, arguments, and disagreements drive the Spirit away--every time.”
“Contention is a choice.
Peace is a choice.
We choose to be angry.
We choose to be contentious.
We can also choose not to be.”
v. 41 And moreover, I would desire that ye should consider on the blessed and happy state of those that keep the commandments of God. For behold, they are blessed in all things, both temporal and spiritual...
Happiness
- v.41 - the path to happiness is obedieence to the commandments. There is only one guaranteed path to happiness (in this life and the next). Since we can control our obedience, we can also control our happiness. Happiness is the object and design of our existense; and will be the end thereof, if we puruse the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God. - Jospeh Smith Jr - teachings of the prophet p 256-257
Think of a time when either gratitude, service, obedience or humility brought you happiness? What happened?
How could you show God more gratitude this week?
Who could you serve?
How could you be more obedient?
How can you be humble even when things are going well?
Happiness
- v.41 - the path to happiness is obedieence to the commandments. There is only one guaranteed path to happiness (in this life and the next). Since we can control our obedience, we can also control our happiness. Happiness is the object and design of our existense; and will be the end thereof, if we puruse the path that leads to it; and this path is virtue, uprightness, faithfulness, holiness, and keeping all the commandments of God. - Jospeh Smith Jr - teachings of the prophet p 256-257
Think of a time when either gratitude, service, obedience or humility brought you happiness? What happened?
How could you show God more gratitude this week?
Who could you serve?
How could you be more obedient?
How can you be humble even when things are going well?