Book of Mormon Commentary - 1 Nephi 11

by Don R. Hender

Nephi has desired to see and understand that which his father Lehi hath seen in the vision/dream of the tree of life. In chapters 11-14 Nephi is given that understanding in vision, which is 'overlaid' the vision of the tree of life, revealing to Nephi things which pertain to the history of the descendants of the house of Joseph, whom Nephi is a member of. And it is taken from the 'vision of all' which becomes evident at the end of Nephi's vision when the 'angel guide' instructs Nephi that many things he has seen will be seen by John the Apostle and that also all that which Nephi is to see next, Nephi is not to write because it is give to John to write [book of Revelation]. And then Nephi is told that many 'others' have seen 'all things' as well. At that point it becomes evident that what Nephi has been seeing is being taken from the 'Vision of All', that many have seen such, such as Mahonri Moriancumr who has written the whole of it. And it is the source of the likely affinity that Nephi has with Isaiah, for Isaiah had seen such as will.

When Nephi's vision begins, it is the Lord, that is the spirit of the Lord, himself who begins Nephi's vision experience, and when Nephi recognizes that it is the Lord, and that the Lord's spirit is in the form of a man, that is when the Lord departs and turns the vision over to an angel to finish guiding Nephi though the vision. As the 'vision of all' upon which this is based, it seems that some like Mahonri Moriancumr have seen the whole of the 'vision of all' from beginning to end. And the brother of Jared was assigned to write the whole of the vision. Others have been given 'guided tours' of the vision, not that they are not seeing the 'vision of all', it is that specific things are being emphasized to their view and their attention according to that which the Lord whats them to pay attention to. This is something to observe when a 'prophet' speaks of his vision, if they talk about being 'quided by an angel through the vision' or not.

Scriptural Text [& Editorial]
Commentary & Explanation
Footnotes ~ References ~ JST
            CHAPTER 11

Nephi sees the Spirit of the Lord and is shown in vision the tree of life—
He sees the mother of the Son of God and learns of the condescension of God—He sees the baptism, ministry, and crucifixion of the Lamb of God—He sees also the call and ministry of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. [Between 600 and 592 B.C.]

Nephi sees Jehovah of the Old Testament, even the spirit's form as the form of man—The Lord shows Nephi in vision the tree of life—Nephi sees the virgin mother of the Son of God—Nephi learns somewhat concerning the condescension of God being the expression of the Love of God—
Nephi sees the mortal mission of Jesus Christ, his baptism, his ministry among men and the crucifixion of the Lamb of God—
Nephi also sees the call and ministry of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. [Between 592 and 590 B.C. ~ That is, after the imprisonment of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 37:4 & 15/1 Nephi 7:14) and Lehi's departure from the valley of Lemuel (1 Nephi 16:12).] [About 592 B.C.]
1 FOR it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat apondering in mine heart I was bcaught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high cmountain, which I never had before seen, and upon which I never had before set my foot.
2 And the Spirit said unto me: Behold, what adesirest thou?
3 And I said: I desire to behold the things which my father asaw.

 1a D&C 76:19; TG Meditation
   b Dan. 8:2; 2 Cor. 12:2 (1-4);
      Rev. 21:10; 2 Ne. 4:25; Moses 1:1
   c Ex. 24:13 (12-13); Deut. 10:1; Ether 3:1
 2a Zech. 4:2 (1-6)
 3a 1 Ne. 8:2
4 And the Spirit said unto me: aBelievest thou that thy father saw the btree of which he hath spoken?
5 And I said: Yea, thou knowest that I abelieve all the words of my father.
6 And when I had spoken these words, the Spirit cried with a loud voice, saying: Hosanna to the Lord, the most high God; for he is God over all the aearth, yea, even above all. And blessed art thou, Nephi, because thou bbelievest in the Son of the most high God; wherefore, thou shalt behold the things which thou hast desired.

 4a Mosiah 5:1-2
   b 1 Ne. 8:10-12; 1 Ne. 15:22 (21-22)
 5a 1 Ne. 2:16
 6a Ex. 9:29; Deut. 10:14; 2 Ne. 29:7;
      3 Ne. 11:14; D&C 55:1; Moses 6:44
   b TG Believe
7 And behold this thing shall be given unto thee for a asign, that after thou hast beheld the tree which bore the fruit which thy father tasted, thou shalt also behold a man descending out of heaven, and him shall ye witness; and after ye have witnessed him ye shall bbear record that it is the Son of God.
8 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me: Look! And I looked and beheld a tree; and it was like unto the atree which my father had seena; and the bbeauty thereof was far beyond, yea, exceeding of all beauty; and the cwhiteness thereof did exceed the whiteness of the driven snow.
9 And it came to pass after I had seen the tree, I said unto the Spirit: I behold thou hast shown unto me the tree which is aprecious above all.

 8athe Spirit said unto me: Look! And I looked and beheld a tree; and it was like unto the tree which my father had seen When Nephi recorded Lehi's dream of the Tree of Life into his small plates record, it was but an abridgment of Lehi's dream, for Nephi did not write all the words of his father. Lehi's dream may have been 'specifically' given to emphasize the 'Tree of Life' but certainly with Nephi being given to understand Lehi's dream, it is to be considered that Nephi is seeing the same vision only being guided to see more in detail either that which Lehi had not paid attention to or that Lehi had not either spoken of or some of that which Nephi had left out. Between the two vision, that in truth are but one and the same vision, the vision of all, it is to be considerded that when one sees such an 'all encompassing vision, often all certain things stand out, are revealed, or are paid attendtion to. Nephi seems to be in the process of seeing and being given more that Lehi's 'dream', but still that which Nephi is being given is still 'overlaid' upon that which Lehi saw as well.  7a TG Signs
   b TG Testimony; TG Witnesses
 8a 1 Ne. 8:10
   b TG Beauty
   c 1 Ne. 8:11
 9a 2 Ne. 11:22-25
10 And he said unto me: What desirest thou?
11 And I said unto him: To know the ainterpretation thereof—for I spake unto him as a man speaketh; for I beheld that he was in the bform of a man; yet nevertheless, I knew that it was the Spirit of the Lorda; and he spake unto me as a man speaketh with anotherb.

 11a he was in the form of a man; yet nevertheless, I knew that it was the Spirit of the Lord Nephi, like the brother of Jared, Abraham, Moses and others, sees the Lord and he is in the 'form of a man' though still yet a spirit. This is from Nephi's perspective. Yet from an eternal perspective it would be proper to say that God created man after the image of his Spirit, which is what the Lord so stated unto the brother of Jared. That is that image which man is created in has a head, shoulders, knees and toes, eyes, ears, mouth and nose. This is the actual form and shape of the spirit and the body is made to house that spirit which is in that same image. Why would it not be? When a case is made to hold an object of a unique shape and form tightly and form fitting, it is designed in the very image of that object. So precisely is the physical body of man made to fit the spirit of man, that if the body and spirit were sat side by side, one could hardly tell the difference between the two in terms of the simularity of the physical body to the spirit body.
 11b he spake unto me as a man speaketh with another In various places of the Old Testament it is stated that the Lord spake to man as one man would so speak unto another (Genesis 12:7; Genesis 18:1 & 22-33; Genesis 32:30; Exodus 24:10; Exodus 33:11; Numbers 12:8; Deuteronomy 34:10; Isaiah 6:1; Ezekiel 1:26; Amos 9:1; 2 Nephi 11:2; 2 Nephi 16:5; Alma 19:13, Etc.). There should be nothing so very remarkable or not understood about this occurance, for indeed God is a man in terms of gender and being and he does so appear and speak words to be heard of men both in Old Testament as in New Testament time, and both in times of the Book of Mormon as in our own times of latter-days. 		 11a Gen. 40:8
     b TG Spirit Body
12 And it came to pass that he said unto me: Look! And I looked as if to look upon him, and I saw him not; for he had gone from before my presencea.
13 And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the great city of Jerusalem, and also other cities. And I beheld the city of Nazareth; and in the city of aNazareth I beheld a bvirgin, and she was exceedingly fair and white.

 12a I saw him not; for he had gone from before my presence So as to not perplex, the spirit of the Lord Jehovah withdraws from Nephi at the time that he will appear in the vision as the coming Lord in mortality as Jesus Christ. That the Lord could have stayed as the monitor of the vision while still being also seen in the vision is likely, for we do see our selves in our own presence upon photographs and video imagery. Certainly the visionary capabilities of the God are no less capable.  13a Matt. 2:23
     b Luke 1:27 (26-27); Alma 7:10
14 And it came to pass that I saw the aheavens open; and an angel came down and stood before me; and he said unto me: Nephi, what beholdest thou?
15 And I said unto him: A virgin, most beautiful and fair above all other virgins.

 14a Ezek. 1:1; 1 Ne. 1:8 (6-11)

Mary: 'Mother of God' or 'Mother of the Son of God'?

     'Was Mary the Mother of God or was she the Mother of the Son of God?' Perhaps the better way of asking this question to achieve the most accurate answer would be to ask, "Was Mary the Mother of God and also the Mother of the Son of God?" And then the answer would be a simple 'YES!' Often the manner of the asking of the question actually precludes the possibility of giving the correct true respose. Jesus experienced this disceptive question of the Pharasees and Scribes. Thus when asked with the 'or' in the question above, it makes it imposible to give a straight forward honest answer to the question. And this is because that Mary was the Mother of JESUS who is the same as JEHOVAH of the Old Testament. Thus Mary is both the Mother of the God Jehovah in the flesh as Jesus and Mary is also the Mother of the Son of the God Elohim after the manner of the flesh, in fact HIS, Elohim's Only Begotten Son after the manner of the flesh.

What the confusion is, is that many people do not have a clear and truth understanding of the nature of the Godhead. And this is because of the traditional Christian 'Doctrine of the Trinity' as innovated and contrived by the prevailing Bishops of that theological concept centered out of Alexandrea of Egypt and backed by a pagan concept of three gods in one god of the Greek and Roman cults. A true reconstruction of history would not show that the 'Doctrine of the Trinity' was conceded and approved at the first council at Nicea in 325 A.D. In fact, that formula first presented by Bishop Eusebius of Ceasarea had stated the 'creed' a 'baptismal creed' in a manner which did represent God the Father, the Son Jesus Christ as two separte beings, and also so concerning the Holy Ghost. The council edited Eusebius' original formula but were committed to agree that their 'rewrite' did not change the fact that Father, Son and Holy Ghost were in fact corporally three separate and distinct beings. And it was not until the next council which occurs, after the deaths of Constantine and Eusebius, 386 A.D., that there was the final determination which made of the three but one being. A four part understanding of 'The Gospel of Early Christianity' may be read to more fully cover this matter.

Simply stated there are three members of the Godhead and they only form a unity in purpose and mind, NOT in one being for they are three separate and distinct beings (D&C 130:22-23).

    God the Father of Spirits is Elohim. HE is 'Our Father Who Art In Heaven' to whom Jesus taught us to pray to. HE is the Father of our spirit, we are all his spirit children, including Jesus who is the same as Jehovah, the Ministering Spirit God of the Old Testament. Elohim being of the Celestial Order, having a glorified body of flesh and bone which houses His Spirit and Intelligence, was of that advanced state in Heaven and he would not regress to being a lesser mortal being. Thus in the pre-existence or First Estate before the foundation of the world, He selected one from among his spirit children, his first born spirit son, to stand and act in his stead in all things. To which position the Father did anoint, consecrate, fore-ordain and empower Jehovah to do and be as only those who do pertain to this temporal mortality ministers unto it (D&C 130:5).

    God the Son is both Jesus Christ of the New Testament and Jehovah of the Old Testament. He stands in the stead of the Father (Lev. 16:32) in all things pertaining to this temporal creation from its very creation, which as Jehovah he performed under the direction of his Father Elohim. As Jehovah he is our Ministering God, our only True Immediate God, whom we worship as the Intercessor, Advocate, Mediator, and connecting God between Heaven and Earth, he being given at the only means and way by which man might return to heaven after their spirit having come into this temporal existence or second estate by temporal birth. As Jesus Christ, which name means 'Jehovah Deliver or Redeemer the Anoited Messiah of the Father, Jesus, performs the atonement which enables man to become reconciled with God, have his sins removed upon repentence and by grace elevated back into the immortal resurred state of glory to receive eternal life and glory in the celestial state of heaven. Thus Jehovah was God, the God of the Old Testament in behalf of his LORD and Our Father in Heaven (Ps 110:1) standing in the stead of the Father in all things as the Ministering God of this temporal Second Estate, doing and speaking for the Father, even as the Father, having been so empowered by the Father.

    God the Holy Ghost or Holy Spirit works to commune between God and Man, Heaven and Earth, transending between God Elohim and also Jehovah in Heaven and Man on earth. He is still but a spirit being and his functions and duties are many in the work and glory of God (Moses 1:39). To go into so many of his positional duties and performances is beyond quick comment here. In short he enables the interaction(s) between God in Heaven and man on earth.

Now of import is to understand that Jehovah/Jesus acting and standing in the stead of the Father in all things, will carry upon himself all the names and titles of God, that is God the Father, from Creator, to Mighty God, to Everlasting Father, etc., which the Father doth posses with the exception that Jesus/Jehovah is not Elohim and is not God the Father of Spirits. He did not bare himself as spirit son or mortal son of Mary as he is in those both the Firstborn Son of the Father in the Spirit and the Only Begotten Son of the Father in the flesh. Likewise from the perspective of the Father, He maintains and carries upon Himself all the names and titles that Jesus carries and in addition God the Father, Elohim, is God the Father of Spirits. Further, as it is Jesus/Jehovah who has been positioned as the Only Way by which man may return to God and Heaven, there is a necessity that in Jesus there is a fullness of the Godhead bodily, that is he as need be as the only Intercessor, Advocate and Mediator who stands in the position in the stead of the Father, he must hold all those powers and attributes of the Godhead in himself, he being 'the only way given' by God the Father and to none other, there is no other way under heaven so given.

16 And he said unto me: Knowest thou the acondescension of God?a
17 And I said unto him: I know that he loveth his children; nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all thingsa.
18 And he said unto me: Behold, the avirgin whom thou seest is the bmothera of the Son of God, after the manner of the fleshb.

The Condescension of God 
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." ~ John 3:16

First, the Condescension of God involves both the sacrifice of the Father and of the Son. By His selecting his first born spirit Son to be His only Begotten Son, God the Father took upon Himself to make that great sacrifice of offering His Beloved Son to be the Sin Offering of the Eternal Plan of Exaltation. Abraham's sacrifice of Issac was a similitude of that offering from the vantage point of the Father. But Issac was a young man of strength, and it took his willingness as well. Thus the Condescension of God also involves the volentary act of the Son, being willing to so offer Himself to be that Sin Offering of the Eternal Plan of Exaltation.

Second, the Condescension of God is not just the fact of 'God being willing to condescend to come down upon the earth from heaven'. If fact Jesus Christ who is the same as Jehovah, like all of the Father's spirit children of the First Estate did of necessity need to come down to the Second Estate to obtain His own body of flesh and bone just as the rest of us did. The Condescension of God is not centered in the fact that God came down to earth but that God the Son came descending below all in order to take upon Himself the sins of the world, a sinless sacrifice for all in a direct one to one atonement for the fall of Adam. This is the primary and central points of the Condescension of God, that he became a sinless offering suffering for the sins of this Second Estate, taking the full punishment for those sins, enabling man to be relieved from that burden which separated him from God. And further to over come the this physical death which Adam did bring into the world, enabling man to rise and stand again as a resurrected being of body and soul in the presence of God washed clean and sanctified before God, free of the sins of this fallen Second Estate. That is the central theme of the Condescension of God, the atonement and the resurrection, not merely the fact of coming to earth for we all needed to pass through this estate. But that Christ by the accomplishment of his mission became Jehoshua, JESUS, Jehovah in whom Salvation is come unto the world for the redemption of man, condescending to pass below all things, taking upon himself the punishment for the filth of the sins of the world that the world might be redeemed through Him. This is the Condescension of God. This is the love of God for His Children on the part of the Father and for His 'brothers and sisters' upon the part of the Savior. For no greater love hath a man that he is willing to lay down his own life for the sake and benefit of others, and not only to lay down his life, but to condescend below all things, taking upon Himself the penalty of suffering for the sins of the world acting as the surrogate scape goat vicariously performing as the sacrificial lamb, suffering the pains of punishment for the sins of the world that all others would not need so suffer. Thus he enabled fallen man to return to the presence of the Father, to attain to the Father's kingdoms of glory and immortality that they might live again forever without sin in joy and happiness forever more.

Critical Understanding 
A critical understanding one must have to appreciated the 'condescension of God' is that it was God, even the God of the Old Testament, the Eternal Father of the temporal creation, Jehovah; who came down, condescended, to take upon himself flesh and blood in order to so redeem his people, that two thirds part of the host of heaven who did follow after him in the preexistent war in heaven. When Mary, the mother of God, held the Christ Child in her arms, it was Jehovah whom she held, the very God of Abraham, the creator of heaven and earth. (See also 'Mary, Mother of God' in the third column)
 16a Knowest thou the condescension of God? Who can comprehend the the things of God and the works of the Almighty? Man cannot in and of himself so comprehend and understand, for such is not given to the darkness of the natural man to so see, but it is by the eyes and understanding of the spirit which is in man that man might come to so see and understand. Nephi sees by that power of the Spirit as it carries him away to see and hear and know and understand. We can have this experience as we read the words of Nephi as that same spirit engraves them upon our hearts and minds, upon those fleshy tablets of the spirit within man.
 17a I do not know the meaning of all things As Nephi, like us, had some understanding of the mission of the promised Messiah, He did not know, understand and comprehend all things. Exactly how is it possible that the suffering of one man can atone for the sins of all mankind? We can speak about it and that it is a one to one correlation compensating for the fall of Adam, but 'How is it done?' 'How is it accomplished?' That through Jesus Christ's suffering my sins are forgiven by the grace of God and I need not suffer the just pains and punishments for those sins is still a matter of faith for each one of us as it is beyond our full comprehension and appreciation as to exactly how it is done. We have faith and belief that it is so, God help our unbelief. But we do not know all things as to how it is so. Yet, as Nephi who did not know the meaning of all things, we too do believe.

 18a the virgin whom thou seest is the mother Another one of those things which we do not know or fully comprehend is in how it is that a virgin could give birth and be a mother, little alone the mother of the Son of God. It is contradictory to the understood laws of man how a virgin could become a mother, at least in the days of Nephi and the days of the birth of Chirst it was totally uncomprehensible. It was totally a matter of faith that Mary was still a virgin but yet she did conceive and deliver a son. Today's science offers a bit more comprehension that a woman who has never known a man could in fact be inseminated, become pregnant and give birth. But still we do not know all things as to just how the exact process was accomplished but that Mary was overpowered by the Holy Ghost and she did conceive and that child which was conceived was the literal Son of God the Father of us all as the father of our spirits, but father only to Christ in this Second Estate, His Only Begotten Son.
 18b after the manner of the flesh This phrase could be interpreted many ways. Some could consider it to be carnal in nature. Others could consider it meant that Mary was not technically a virgin as the natural way of man was indeed accomplished by her. But still in keeping with all the scriptures which pronounce Mary to be a virgin throughout until after the birth of Christ and her first time with her husband Joseph, there is yet another more acceptable interpretation. The natural manner of the flesh is for the actual DNA germ of the Father to fertilize the egg of the woman. That is the natural way of the flesh. Jesus Christ inherited from His Father, God the Father, the Father's DNA which enable Christ to have the power over death that he could resurrect and be made alive after death. He had the power over death. Adam while in the garden was endowed with that same DNA which enabled him to live forever, thus through some other process of the fall which we do not fully comprehend, Adam was 'changed' that he became subject to death. Just what corruptive element was introduced which resulted in Adam then being able to die whereas before in the garden he could live forever and unless which was introduced, Adam would have lived forever in ' his sin; we do not know nor comprehend. In deed, we like Nephi, do not know the meaning of all things as God knows them.

 16a 1 Ne. 11:26;
      TG Jesus Christ, Condescension of
 18a Luke 1:34 (34-35); TG Foreordination;
      TG Jesus Christ, Prophecies about;
    b Matt. 1:16; Mosiah 3:8; Alma 19:13;
      TG Jesus Christ, Birth of

Mary, Mother of God 
In the original 1830 Book of Mormon verse 18 read, "Behold, the virgin which thou seest, is the mother of God, after the manner of the flesh." The added words 'the son of' were added by Joseph Smith during his life time in such later editions of the Book of Mormon from 1837-1844. The wrong impression is given by those who would state that those were doctrinal changes and corrected 'errors' in the original Book of Mormon. Nothing could be further from the truth. First, is it incorrect to refer to Mary as the 'mother of God'? NO! The Catholic and other sects do so refer to Mary as the 'mother of God'. And in understanding the 'Condescension of God' it is important to realize that Jesus was and is the same God, Jehovah, of the Old Testament and that He Jehovah did so condescend to take upon himself flesh and bone, He bring but a God of Spirit in the Old Testament time, in order to so redeem his people. So just why did Joseph Smith add the words 'the son of'? It ought to be noted that either statement is true, Mary was the mother of God and Mary was the mother of the son of God. Jesus was the Only Begotten Son of God in the flesh. That 'Father God' was Elohim, the Father of all the spirits of all men as well as being the Father of Jesus. Jesus was not the father of himself. Jehovah was not the father of Jesus. This takes a true understanding of the nature of the Godhead, there being three separate and distinct beings, (1) God the Father of Spirits and Father of Jesus, (2) Jesus the Son of God, the Firstborn of the spirit children of the Father of Spirits who is the Anointed of the Father to act by the power of God in the stead of the Father as the ministering God of the temporal creation as Jeohvah, he being as one so pertaining unto it as God among us, the spirit children (see D&C 130:5 that only those who do pertain unto this estate do minister unto it) and the Only Begotten Son of that Father in the flesh, and then (3) the third is the Holy Ghost who still is only a spirit being, which allows him to do the assigned work that he does do as the Holy Spirit.
    Thus Joseph Smith was NOT correcting the Book of Mormon by this addition, he was clarifying that the baby Jesus was the Son of God as well as being the same as the Spirit God of the Old Testament, Jehovah. Why Joseph Smith may have felt this addition as being needful may have more to do with the acceptable readability of the Book of Mormon to the 'undoctrined' investigating reader. The concept of Mary being 'the mother of God' is a highly familar Catholic position which many have been objected to by some Protestant factions who rejected such papal position and doctrine that Mary was the mother of God, and while she was the mother of the Son of God as Peter so testified, they may see the early Book of Mormon truth of Mary being the mother of God in terms of the condescension of God as being Catholic and unacceptable. Thus Joseph's clarification may have been to aid the investigator to not reject the Book of Mormon before gaining a testimony of it. Certainly the Book of Mormon in later references confirms that Jesus was the same as Jehovah and even the very Eternal God of the creation, and that is He who Mary was the mother of, after the manner of the flesh. And who better to 'add' doctrinal clarity to the Book of Mormon text than God's 'modren' latter day prophet-translator, the Prophet Joseph Smith?
19 And it came to pass that I beheld that she was carried away in the Spirit; and after she had been carried away in the aSpirit for the space of a time the angel spake unto me, saying: Look!
20 And I looked and beheld the virgin again, bearing a achild in her armsa.

"Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel [God with us]." ~ Isaiah 7:14

  20a I looked and beheld the virgin again, bearing a child in her arms Mary was a virgin throughout. She was a virgin to begin with. Her conception was by the power of God and she knew no man, that is her conception was a virgin conception. She was a virgin all during her carrying the child. She was a virgin at the child's birth. And as Nephi stated, he was 'the virgin bearing a child in her arms. Thus she was a virgin after the child's birth for Joseph knew her not until after the proper period of cleansing required by the Law of Moses.
Though not to be conceived as the method of conception, if science today can artificially insemenate a women with a needle, certainly the power of God can effect a conception without the status of the virgin being violated. All the scriptures state it this was that a 'virgin as to give birth'. No man knew her. Joseph was the first. The conception which placed the seed of God within Mary was accomplished by the power of God and not by the natural course after the flesh. As stated Mary was a virgin throughout and Joseph was the first man that Mary knew. And she did not know him until well after the birth of JESUS, the Son of God. 		 19a Matt. 1:20; Luke 1:35
 20a Luke 2:16

The Eternal Father and The Son of the Eternal Father

     As already explained above, Jesus/Jehovah who stands in the stead of the Father in all things, does also bare all the names and titles of the Father except that Jesus/Jehovah is not God the Father of Spirits. Thus, in that Jesus/Jehovah stands as our 'Ministering God' in the stead of the Father, he may be called by the name title of 'The Eternal Father', 'The Everlasting Father', 'The Father of Creation' and soforth. In like manner all these same names and titles also apply to and are used by the Father, Elohim, Our Father Who Art In Heaven. Thus Jesus/Jehovah can be both referred to as 'the Eternal Father' and also he may be referred to as 'the Son of the Eternal Father. Both are correct.

21 And the angel said unto me: Behold the aLamb of God, yea, even the bSon of the Eternal cFather! Knowest thou the meaning of the dtree which thy father saw?
22 And I answered him, saying: Yea, it is the alove of God, which bsheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men; wherefore, it is the cmost desirable above all things.
23 And he spake unto me, saying: Yea, and the most ajoyous to the soul.

 21a TG Jesus Christ, Lamb of God
     b TG Jesus Christ, Divine Sonship
     c TG God the Father—Elohim/Eloheim
     d 1 Ne. 8:10; Alma 5:62
 22a TG God, Love of
     b Moro. 8:26
     c 1 Ne. 11:9
 23a TG Joy

The Eternal Father! 
In the 1837 edition, the second edition of the Book of Mormon, Joseph Smith added the words 'the son of', which turned the son of Mary from being "the Eternal Father' to 'the son of the Eternal Father'. Why? It IS NOT a correction as some would suggest. Both Elohim, God the Father of Spirits, and Jehovah, God of Creation and the eventual Messiah Jesus Christ, share the name/title of 'Eternal Father'. In the Doctrinal Exposition by the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles delivered in 1916, it is stated that, "Elohim in the Father in very sence in which Jesus Christ [Jehovah] is so designated, and distinctively He is the Father of spirits." Jesus/Jehovah is the
God of the Old Testament, the Firstborn son of the Father of Spirits in the preexistence and the Only Begotten Son of God the Father of Spirits in the flesh. The topic of the 'Condescension of God' is best understood from the fact that is was Jehovah, the God of the Old Testament who came down as the Messiah to save his children, whom he was the creator of. So why did Joseph add clarification is verse 18 and 21 where in 1830 the Book of Mormon so stated in relationship to the condescension of God, that Mary was the mother of God and that the child she bore was 'the Eternal Father!'. The nature of God was not well understood by the 'lay Christian' and many a Protestant would likely find it a stumbling block to use such strong 'Catholic' perspectives as 'Holy Mary the Mother of God'. Many saw Jesus merely as 'the son of God'. Which he is, but he is also the same as Jehovah the God of the Old Testament and that God Jehovah is he who condescended to come down, be born of women and to take upon himself the sins of man.
24 And after he had said these words, he said unto me: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Son of God agoing forth among the children of men; and I saw many fall down at his feet and worship him.
25 And it came to pass that I beheld that the arod of iron, which my father had seen, was the bword of God, which cled to the fountain of dliving waters, or to the etree of lifea; which waters are a representation of the love of God; and I also beheld that the tree of life was a representation of the love of God.

 25a the fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life A metaphoric analogy often breaks down or does not give a complete representation of the 'real life' thing that it is being given as a symbol of. And thus any number of metaphoric similes may be given to help understand that which is of an otherwise intangible reality. Consider the 'matter' of an idea entering into the mind of man unto his understanding of that idea, concept or principle of reality. In this case both the fountain of living water and the fruit and tree of life are give a simile metaphoric analogies of the life giving light that the Spirit of God exudes to the spirit or soul of man.

The reality of the Spirit of God entering in to communicate with the mind, heart and soul, or the spirit of man is just one such intangible reality. That is to help communicate what it is tangible life symbols may be give in representation of the intangible to make it more understandable to a person. Now a person can understand the physical nature of being thirsty or hungry. So to help a person understand the soul's need for spirit communication, likening of simile of the fruit of a tree or the water of a pure fountain may be used to help a person come to realize that the receiving of the Spirit of God to the soul and/or spirit of man is as the drinking in of pure water that satisfies a thirst or the benefit of some wonderful fruit when the soul or spirit of a man does 'hunger' for the communication or the entering in of the Spirit of God to his own spirit. Thus the tangible world is often drawn above to given some reality to that which is often intangible in nature.

 24a Luke 4:14-21
 25a See especially JST Rev. 2:27
     b 1 Ne. 8:19
     c TG Guidance, Divine
     d TG Living Water
     e Gen. 2:9; Prov. 11:30 (22-30);
       Moses 4:28, 31
26 And the angel said unto me again: Look and behold the acondescension of God!
27 And I looked and abeheld the Redeemer of the world, of whom my father had spoken; and I also beheld the bprophet who should prepare the way before him. And the Lamb of God went forth and was cbaptized of him; and after he was baptized, I beheld the heavens open, and the Holy Ghost come down out of heaven and abide upon him in the form of a ddove.
28 And I beheld that he went forth ministering unto the people, in apower and great glory; and the multitudes were gathered together to hear him; and I beheld that they cast him out from among them.
29 And I also beheld atwelve others following him. And it came to pass that they were bcarried away in the Spirit from before my face, and I saw them not.

 26a 1 Ne. 11:16;
       TG Jesus Christ, Condescension of
 27a 2 Ne. 25:13
     b Mal. 3:1; Matt. 11:10;
       John 1:6-7; 1 Ne. 10:7-10
       2 Ne. 31:4-18; D&C 35:4
     c TG Jesus Christ, Baptism of
     d TG Holy Ghost, Dove, Sign of
 28a D&C 138:26
 29a 1 Ne. 12:9; 1 Ne. 13:40 (24-26, 40);
       TG Apostles
     b 1 Ne. 14:30
30 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the heavens open again, and I saw aangels descending upon the children of men; and they did minister unto them.
31 And he spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the Lamb of God going forth among the children of men. And I beheld multitudes of people who were asick, and who were afflicted with all manner of diseases, and with bdevils and cunclean spirits; and the angel spake and showed all these things unto me. And they were dhealed by the power of the Lamb of God; and the devils and the unclean spirits were cast out.

 30a TG Angels
 31a TG Sickness
     b Mark 5:15-20; Mark 7:30;
       Mosiah 3:6 (5-7); Morm. 9:24
     c TG Spirits, Evil or Unclean
     d TG Healing

The Everlasting God and The Son of the Everlasting God

     Again, as explained above, the name title 'Everlasting God' may be and is used by both Jesus/Jehovah and Elohim, the Father of Spirits. Thus Jesus/Jehovah may be himself called 'Everlasting God' and he may also be called 'the Son of the Everlasting God' where the 'Son' refers to him, Jesus/Jehovah and the Everlasting God references Elohim, Our Father in Heaven. In the 1830 edition verse 32 did not have 'the son of' in front of 'the everlasting God'. In that sense, it would be referring directly to Jesus with Jesus using one of the same names he and the Father do share. Either is a true and correction statement only with a different perspective being the point at hand. Jehovah, who is the same as Jesus Christ, may be called the 'everlasting God' or 'everlasting Father'. Elohim, Our Father in Heaven also uses that name and may be called as the 'everlastng God' or 'everlasting Father'. And Jehovah as Jesus, who is the Son of God, may therefore also be called 'the Son of the everlasting God'. It is all a matter of perspective. What would have been interesting is if Joseph Smith in his alteration of the 1830 Book of Mormon would have used both by stating both that 'the Lamb of God' was both 'the everlasting God' and 'the son of the everlasting God'. But even then they who have been caught in the false concept of the false doctrine of the 'Doctrine of the Trinity' would be but confused and not understand or at least chose not to understand.

32 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked and beheld the Lamb of God, that he was ataken by the people; yea, the Son of the everlasting Goda was bjudged of the world; and I saw and bear record.
33 And I, Nephi, saw that he was alifted up upon the cross and bslain for the sins of the world.

 32a the Son of the everlasting God Jesus can be correctly called 'the Son of the everlasting God' where the 'everlasting God' is referring to Elohim the Father of Spirits, Our Father in Heaven. Also, in that Jesus/Jehovah does stand in the stead of the Father in all things as though he was/is the Father, all the names and titles of the Father may also be applied directly to Jesus/Jehovah. So Jesus can also be called 'the everlasting God' himself. Both the Father and Son, being two separated and distinct beings, may both be called by the same name. To make it simple, we can use the Father's names when refering to 'Jr.' is 'Jr.' is so called by the same name of the Father. Right?  32a TG Jesus Christ, Betrayal of
     b Mark 15:19 (17-20); Luke 9:44-45
 33a Luke 18:31; 2 Ne. 10:3;
       Mosiah 3:9-10; 3 Ne. 27:14
     b TG Jesus Christ, Atonement through
       TG Jesus Christ, Death of
34 And after he was slain I saw the multitudes of the earth, that they were gathered together to afight against the apostles of the Lamb; for thus were the twelve called by the angel of the Lord.
35 And the multitude of the earth was gathered together; and I beheld that they were in a large and spacious abuilding, like unto the building which my father saw. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Behold the world and the wisdom thereof; yea, behold the house of Israel hath gathered together to bfight against the twelve apostles of the Lamba.
36 And it came to pass that I saw and bear record, that the great and spacious building was the apride of the world; and it bfell, and the fall thereof was exceedingly great. And the angel of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Thus shall be the destruction of all nations, kindreds, tongues, and people, that shall fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

 35a Behold the world and the wisdom thereof; yea, behold the house of Israel hath gathered together to fight against the twelve apostles of the Lamb Often we do point the finger at the Jews for crucifying the Lord. But consider who it was that fought against the apostles and the church of God which caused it to fall to apostasy, to be overcome and devoured by those who were the scattered children of Israel, as they among the nations did rise up also to bring down that institution of God established by Christ and delivered unto his apostles to take to the world. And the wisdom of the world did condend with it and destory it to the extent that by the second centry A.D., the church had fallen prey to opposition of the world and thereafter that wisdom of the world, of the scattered of Israel did corrupt it and shape it in the image that they would have it be.  34a Mark 13:13; 1 Cor. 4:9 (6-13)
 35a 1 Ne. 8:26; 1 Ne. 12:18
     b Micah. 3:5; D&C 121:38
 36a TG Pride
     b TG Earth, Cleansing of; TG World, End of
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