The Sealed Book from the Mormon Plates
Acts of the Three Nephites
CHAPTER 1
Written by Jonah, the son of Nephi, a disciple of Jesus, and given to Mormon at the time the three disciples ministered to me and my son, Moroni.
1 When we try to understand God's proceedings from a human perspective, the rest of the story told to us looks a fable, unless God gives the children of men, according to their attention and diligence, to know its mysteries.
2 Concerning this, behold, it was prophesied by the prophets of old, that these records would be sealed; kept and preserved by the hand of the Lord until they were brought to the knowledge of all nations, tribes, tongues, and peoples, that they might know the mysteries of God contained therein.
3 And now, before you suppose that this is foolish; I want to remind you that there are many mysteries that remain hidden, which no one knows but God himself. And behold, it was by the wisdom of God that these records were preserved; with the purpose of increasing the knowledge of his people in the fullness of times; being an instrument in the hands of God to accomplish his great and eternal designs among the children of men.
4 Remembering still, that the foolishness presented by God in the course of all dispensations was the means by which the Lord confounded the wise men and teachers of the law among his people, to do his work among those who, according to the attention and diligence that if they dedicate, come to understand their mysteries, and to bring salvation to their souls.
5 Those, therefore, who do not harden their hearts when these records are finally revealed to the children of men, will be endowed with wisdom to understand the greater part of the word already revealed, until it is given to know the mysteries of God in its fullness. But those who harden their hearts when these records appear among them, even the knowledge they possess of the first set of books revealed, will become obtuse in their minds, until they know nothing of their mysteries.
6 This record, therefore, which is granted now to the children of men, is a great and important mystery of the mysteries of God, and for this reason you can not suppose in your intellect, that it be easy to understand, because the things written here do notfollow the events in chronological order, but, as with all the other scriptures left to us by the ancient prophets, future events are set in front of the prevailing affairs, and then again to intertwine in the same plot of history that is being written the present
and the past so that, according to the dictates of the heavens, this entanglement of information, will compose the substance of faith in the feelings of those whose heart is receptive to the word of God through the Holy Spirit.
7 So desire to remember what was said by Alma, that "faith is not perfect knowledge". The same is true of these words of mine. At first, you can not be sure of them until you awaken your spiritual faculties, testing the words of this record as a result of what was written by the ancient prophets, and exercise a particle of faith in your quest for knowledge of the mysteries of God, still though you only have the desire to know the truth behind my words, and let this desire operate in your heart and mind, until you comprehend the fullness of these mysteries, so that you may with all diligence add to your faith the virtue of this new perception.