Piercing eye, nakedness and dust

I will circle back to several themes from previous posts on this blog, but from a new perspective. Jacob 1:19 started this train of thought that I will try to run the reader of this post through:

19 And we did magnify our office unto the Lord, taking upon us the responsibility, answering the sins of the people upon our own heads if we did not teach them the word of God with all diligence; wherefore, by laboring with our might their blood might not come upon our garments; otherwise their blood would come upon our garments, and we would not be found spotless at the last day.

Jacob 1:19

The voice of Jacob is quite unique. There are certain phrases and themes that he brings up that are proportionally much more frequent than other Book of Mormon prophets. This is one of them. (In case you are curious, others are “anxious” and “anxiety” and the lake of fire and brimstone). He repeats this notion of garments and sin as he starts his sermon in Jacob 2:2. But he also says something similar in 2 Nephi 9:44.

44 O, my beloved brethren, remember my words. Behold, I take off my garments, and I shake them before you; I pray the God of my salvation that he view me with his all-searching eye; wherefore, ye shall know at the last day, when all men shall be judged of their works, that the God of Israel did witness that I shook your iniquities from my soul, and that I stand with brightness before him, and am rid of your blood.

2 Nephi 9:44

Perhaps I am reading too much into this verse because my mind is still stuck in the creation account. But I believe that this account was so fundamental to the Book of Mormon prophets that perhaps most other symbolism somehow was predicated on that story. Both of these quoted verses talk about the last day, which may be contrasted by the “first day” when man fell and discovered their nakedness. From that perspective, notice how Jacob wants God to view him with his all-searching eye after taking off his garments, instead of hiding like Adam and Eve who did not want God to see their nakedness. There is an ancient myth among both Jews and Christians that Adam and Eve wore garments of light in the Garden of Eden before the fall. Perhaps this is the brightness that Jacob will stand with at the last day after removing his earthly garments full of blood-stains from the people, having overcome the effects of the fall through the atonement, his righteousness and labors. For the unrepentant, the all-searching eye of God is not as pleasant. Still Jacob (hat-tip to Lord Wilmore who pointed out the relevance of verse 21 too):

15 O that he would show you that he can pierce you, and with one glance of his eye he can smite you to the dust!…
21 And all flesh is of the dust; and for the selfsame end hath he created them, that they should keep his commandments and glorify him forever.

Jacob 2:15, 21

This all-piercing eye of God that can see our nakedness or brightness and smite us to the dust (from whence we are taken) or lift us up as a consequence, made me think of the people of King Benjamin. They could see themselves and smote themselves to the dust!

1 And now, it came to pass that when king Benjamin had made an end of speaking the words which had been delivered unto him by the angel of the Lord, that he cast his eyes round about on the multitude, and behold they had fallen to the earth, for the fear of the Lord had come upon them.
2 And they had viewed themselves in their own carnal state, even less than the dust of the earth. And they all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all things; who shall come down among the children of men.

Mosiah 4:1-2

Notice how they in humility chose to fall to the dust instead of being smitten by the all-piercing eye when they viewed themselves. Instead of wearing their blood-stained clothes or having their nakedness exposed, they let the atoning blood purify them.

Mosiah 4 is full of references to the creation, which underscores my point that these ideas of the all-searching eye, nakedness and dust linked back to creation and the fall. “Dust of the earth” is a creation motif, and in addition to the creation reference at the end of verse 2, we get further references in verses 5, 7, 9 and 12. Lord Wilmore made an astute observation reading the draft of this post pointing out that King Benjamin had been awakened by an angel in the previous chapter, who brought him good news about the coming of “Jesus Christ…the Creator of all things from the beginning” (Mosiah 3:8). After delivering the message from the angel about the salvation through Christ, the people “awaken to a sense of [their]… fallen state” (Mosiah 4:5). This double awakening is another manifestation of the fractal pattern that permeates King Benjamin’s relation to God and his people, as explained in this post.

There is an interesting cross-reference in Mosiah 4:2 to Nehemiah 9:1. Here, the people of Israel realize that they have not followed the law. They have viewed themselves and therefore understood that they are sinners. Here is what they do

1 Now in the twenty and fourth day of this month the children of Israel were assembled with fasting, and with sackclothes, and earth upon them.

Nehemiah 9:1

This is a common ancient Israelite practice that we find in several Old Testament passages. Wearing sackcloth is a sign of mourning. This is often preceded by rending their normal clothes. They go back to the initial state of nakedness. In addition they put earth, dust or ashes on their heads. “Earth” in this verse is the Hebrew, ‘adamah’, which Adam was taken from. This gesture is the equivalent of the people of King Benjamin falling to the earth and considering themselves less than the dust.

I am starting to see this ancient practice as a kind of reset function, to put it in more modern terms. The fall of man was a curse, but a necessary one. With the help of the atonement it was the start of man’s journey back to God’s presence that they enjoyed before the fall. Here they could be scrutinized by his all-searching eye and not only be “not ashamed” (Genesis 2:25) but even stand before him with brightness.

When you sin and don’t even realize it, God could smite you to the dust with only one glance. But in his mercy He usually doesn’t, but rather gives you the chance to get to a place where you can view yourself and realize that you are on the wrong path. When you voluntarily reset back to the initial state, naked and in the dust, the atonement of Christ can jump start a new attempt.

We will return to Jacob once again for a summary.

14 Wherefore, we shall have a perfect knowledge of all our guilt, and our uncleanness, and our nakedness; and the righteous shall have a perfect knowledge of their enjoyment, and their righteousness, being clothed with purity, yea, even with the robe of righteousness.

2 Nephi 9:14