- Relationship to Book of Mormon explained.
- And for a testimony that the things that they had said are true they have brought twenty-four plates which are filled with engravings, and they are of pure gold.
- 27) And they brought a record with them, even a record of the people whose bones they had found; and it was engraven on plates of ore.
- 28) And now Limhi was again filled with joy on learning from the mouth of Ammon that king Mosiah had a gift from God, whereby he could interpret such engravings; yea, and Ammon also did rejoice.
- Mosiah takes a break to translate the plates he had received from Limhi. The records are given to into Alma, the Younger's care.
- And now, I will speak unto you concerning those twenty-four plates, that ye keep them, that the mysteries and the works of darkness, and their secret works, or the secret works of those people who have been destroyed, may be made manifest unto this people; yea, all their murders, and robbings, and their plunderings, and all their wickedness and abominations, may be made manifest unto this people; yea, and that ye preserve these interpreters.
- And Nephi, the son of Helaman, had departed out of the land of Zarahemla, giving charge unto his son Nephi, who was his eldest son, concerning the plates of brass, and all the records which had been kept, and all those things which had been kept sacred from the departure of Lehi out of Jerusalem.
- 1) And now I, Moroni, proceed to give an account of those ancient inhabitants who were destroyed by the hand of the Lord upon the face of this north country.
- 2) And I take mine account from the twenty and four plates which were found by the people of Limhi, which is called the Book of Ether.
- 3) And as I suppose that the first part of this record, which speaks concerning the creation of the world, and also of Adam, and an account from that time even to the great tower, and whatsoever things transpired among the children of men until that time, is had among the Jews—
- 4) Therefore I do not write those things which transpired from the days of Adam until that time; but they are had upon the plates; and whoso findeth them, the same will have power that he may get the full account.
- 5) But behold, I give not the full account, but a part of the account I give, from the tower down until they were destroyed.
- 6) And on this wise do I give the account. He that wrote this record was Ether, and he was a descendant of Coriantor.
- And the Lord spake unto Ether, and said unto him: Go forth. And he went forth, and beheld that the words of the Lord had all been fulfilled; and he finished his record; (and the hundredth part I have not written) and he hid them in a manner that the people of Limhi did find them.
- Now I, Moroni, after having made an end of abridging the account of the people of Jared, I had supposed not to have written more, but I have not as yet perished; and I make not myself known to the Lamanites lest they should destroy me.
- Reasons that the Book of the Brother of Jared was not on the Plates of Ether
Notes
These plates were also described as being gold. There were, reportedly, 24 plates in the codex.
We do not have all of this record, as portions describing the creation of the world and its early history, were deemed by Moroni to be redundant. He included what he felt to be the most important part of the record within the Book of Mormon as the Book of Ether, with some commentary.
Cross-References