Why the Book of Mormon Contains the Fullness of the Gospel

By Dwight on July 14, 2024 in Baptism, Deceptions, Obedience, Ordinances, Repentance, Scriptures

By bringing forth the Book of Mormon in these latter days, the Lord restored the fullness of the gospel and thereby established His words in one.[1] This He did by joining the records of a righteous branch of Joseph (Jacob’s son) in Joseph’s land to that of the records of the prophets and apostles in the Bible. [2]

I Nephi 3:197-200 – And the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb; Wherefore, they both shall be established in one; For there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth; And the time cometh that he shall manifest himself unto all nations, both unto the Jews, and also unto the Gentiles; And after he has manifested himself unto the Jews and also unto the Gentiles; then he shall manifest himself unto the Gentiles, and also unto the Jews, And the last shall be first, and the first shall be last.

But just how did the Lord establish His words in one by joining the Book of Mormon to the Bible? The joining of multiple witnesses establishes a given fact—in this case, His words.[3]

II Nephi 11:135 – Wherefore, the Lord God will proceed to bring forth the words of the book; and in the mouth of as many witnesses as seemeth him good, will he establish his word; and wo be unto him that rejecteth the word of God.

The Book of Mormon was brought forth in these latter days specifically to convince both Gentile and Jew, including a remnant of Lehi’s posterity, that the records of the prophets and of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are true.

I Nephi 3:191 – And after it had come forth unto them, I beheld other books which came forth by the power of the Lamb, from the Gentiles unto them, unto the convincing of the Gentiles, and the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the Jews, who were scattered upon all the face of the earth, that the records of the prophets and of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are true.

These sacred records of the Nephites, in effect, have vindicated the records of the prophets and apostles preserved in the Bible. Jesus Christ confirmed the veracity of the Book of Mormon to Joseph Smith, Jr., in a revelation on the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper,[4] in which He declared that the Book of Mormon contains the fullness of His everlasting gospel.

D&C 26:1d-2b – … Moroni, whom I have sent unto you to reveal the Book of Mormon, containing the fullness of my everlasting gospel; to whom I have committed the keys of the record of the stick of Ephraim …

In other words, the Book of Mormon is not a supplemental volume of His words; rather, it verifies in every point our Lord’s gospel found in the Bible.[5]

Our Lord’s statement about the Book of Mormon containing the fullness of His everlasting gospel is consistent with the witness of the book itself. For in it, we read that the fullness of the gospel would come to the Gentiles in the latter days by way of these records[6]—not by way of the Bible alone, which they already had in their possession.[7]

I Nephi 3:16-19 – Yea, even my father spake much concerning the Gentiles, and also concerning the house of Israel, that they should be compared like unto an olive tree, whose branches should be broken off, and should be scattered upon all the face of the earth. Wherefore he said it must needs be that we should be led with one accord into the land of promise, unto the fulfilling of the word of the Lord that we should be scattered upon all the face of the earth. And after the house of Israel should be scattered, they should be gathered together again;[8] Or, in fine, after the Gentiles had received the fullness of the gospel, the natural branches of the olive tree, or the remnants of the house of Israel, should be grafted in,[9] or come to the knowledge of the true Messiah, their Lord and their Redeemer.

I Nephi 3:184-189 – For behold, saith the Lamb, I will manifest myself unto thy seed, that they shall write many things which I shall minister unto them, which shall be plain and precious; And after thy seed shall be destroyed and dwindle in unbelief, and also the seed of thy brethren; behold, these things shall be hid up, to come forth unto the Gentiles by the gift and power of the Lamb; And in them shall be written my gospel, saith the Lamb, and my rock and my salvation; And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; And if they endure unto the end, they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; And whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.

I Nephi 4:16-19 – And now, the thing which our father meaneth concerning the grafting in of the natural branches through the fullness of the Gentiles, is, that in the latter days, when our seed shall have dwindled in unbelief, yea, for the space of many years and many generations, after the Messiah shall be manifested in body unto the children of men, then shall the fullness of the gospel of the Messiah come unto the Gentiles, and from the Gentiles unto the remnant of our seed; And at that day shall the remnant of our seed know that they are of the house of Israel, and that they are the covenant people of the Lord; And then shall they know and come to the knowledge of their forefathers, and also to the knowledge of the gospel of their Redeemer, which was ministered unto their fathers by him; Wherefore, they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer, and the very points of his doctrine, that they may know how to come unto him and be saved.

Joseph Smith, Jr., received this same witness from Moroni[10] the night he first learned about these ancient records from the Lord’s messenger.[11] Since that time, Joseph and the members of the church of Christ in these last days retained in their own records the Lord’s witness that this book does indeed contain the fullness of His gospel.[12]

D&C 17:2a-2g – After it was truly manifested unto this first elder [Joseph Smith, Jr.] that he had received a remission of his sins, he was entangled again in the vanities of the world; but after repenting, and humbling himself, sincerely, through faith, God ministered unto him by an holy angel whose countenance was as lightning, and whose garments were pure and white above all other whiteness, and gave unto him commandments which inspired him, and gave him power from on high, by the means which were before prepared, to translate the Book of Mormon, which contains a record of a fallen people, and the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, and to the Jews also, which was given by inspiration, and is confirmed to others by the ministering of angels, and is declared unto the world by them, proving to the world that the Holy Scriptures are true, and that God does inspire men and call them to his holy work in this age and generation, as well as in generations of old, thereby showing that he is the same God yesterday, today, and forever. Amen.

It is not surprising then that following Joseph’s death, the church would continue to affirm the Lord’s witness concerning the Book of Mormon for all the world to read.

D&C 113:3b,3c – In the short space of twenty years he [Joseph Smith, Jr.] has brought forth the Book of Mormon, which he translated by the gift and power of God, and has been the means of publishing it on two continents: has sent the fullness of the everlasting gospel which it contained, to the four quarters of the earth;

Priesthood members especially had been commissioned by the Lord to teach the principles of the gospel while keeping this essential truth squarely in mind: that the Book of Mormon contains the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

D&C 42:5a – And again, the elders, priests, and teachers of this church shall teach the principles of my gospel which are in the Bible and the Book of Mormon, in which is the fullness of the gospel;

Although the Bible[13] had been in the possession of the Gentiles for many generations before the church was organized and established on April 6, 1830,[14] the Lord had promised to bring forth the words of a sealed book by which He would restore the fullness of His gospel to the Gentiles and to a remnant of the house of Israel.[15]

Isaiah 29:11,12 – And it shall come to pass, that the Lord God shall bring forth unto you the words of a book; and they shall be the words of them which have slumbered. And behold, the book shall be sealed; and in the book shall be a revelation from God, from the beginning of the world to the ending thereof.

II Nephi 11:84-86 – For those who shall be destroyed shall speak unto them out of the ground, and their speech shall be low out of the dust, and their voice shall be as one that hath a familiar spirit; For the Lord God will give unto him power, that he may whisper concerning them, even as it were out of the ground; and their speech shall whisper out of the dust. For thus saith the Lord God: They shall write the things which shall be done among them, and they shall be written and sealed up in a book, and those who have dwindled in unbelief shall not have them, for they seek to destroy the things of God;

II Nephi 12:80-83 – For after the book of which I have spoken shall come forth, and be written unto the Gentiles, and sealed up again unto the Lord, there shall be many which shall believe the words which are written [i.e. the Book of Mormon]; and they shall carry them forth unto the remnant of our seed. And then shall the remnant of our seed know concerning us, how that we came out from Jerusalem, and that they are descendants of the Jews. And the gospel of Jesus Christ shall be declared among them; wherefore, they shall be restored unto the knowledge of their fathers, and also to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, which was had among their fathers. And then shall they rejoice; for they shall know that it is a blessing unto them from the hand of God;

This restoration of the fullness of the everlasting gospel in the latter days was revealed to John, the disciple and Apostle of Jesus Christ.[16]

Revelation 14:6,7 – And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,[17] Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come; and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.

Peter was inspired to point forward to this time of refreshing, which he said God had spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

Acts 3:19-21 – Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord. And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

James wrote to the twelve tribes of Israel to be patient until the latter rain foretold by Joel[18] would descend upon them all. James had sent his message to all twelve tribes after the day of Pentecost, the former moderate rain, pointing them to a future fulfillment of the latter rain.

James 1:1-4 – James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into many afflictions; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

James 5:7,8 – Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain. Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts; for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

Such a restoration or refreshing of the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ was necessary, in part,[19] because many parts which are plain and most precious of His gospel and many of His covenants had been removed from the Bible prior to this time, causing a great many people during the intervening years to stumble … insomuch that Satan hath great power over them.

I Nephi 3:166-170 – Wherefore, these things go forth from the Jews in purity unto the Gentiles, according to the truth which is in God: And after they go forth by the hand of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, from the Jews unto the Gentiles, thou seest the foundation of a great and abominable church, which is most abominable above all other churches; For behold, they have taken away from the gospel of the Lamb many parts which are plain and most precious; And also many covenants of the Lord have they taken away; And all this have they done that they might pervert the right ways of the Lord; that they might blind the eyes and harden the hearts of the children of men:

I Nephi 3:174,175 – Thou seest because of the many plain and precious things which have been taken out of the book, which were plain unto the understanding of the children of men, according to the plainness which is in the Lamb of God; Because of these things which are taken away out of the gospel of the Lamb, an exceeding great many do stumble, yea, insomuch that Satan hath great power over them;

As a result of these plain and most precious parts having been taken away, many generations of people had strayed from the Lord’s ordinances and broken His everlasting covenant.[20] In reply to this falling away and in preparation of His coming in glory,[21] the Lord raised a voice of warning in these latter days, calling for a return to His everlasting covenant and the ordinances thereof so that His righteousness might be established on the earth.[22]

D&C 1:3c,3d – Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear; prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh; and the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth; and the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people; for they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant; they seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness,

Although few would initially receive the Book of Mormon,[23] the Lord nevertheless restored the fullness of His gospel to both Gentile and Jew by way of the records of a righteous branch of the house of Israel—a record of a branch He had reserved unto Himself for this purpose.[24]

I Nephi 3:184-189 – For behold, saith the Lamb, I will manifest myself unto thy seed, that they shall write many things which I shall minister unto them, which shall be plain and precious; And after thy seed shall be destroyed and dwindle in unbelief, and also the seed of thy brethren; behold, these things shall be hid up, to come forth unto the Gentiles by the gift and power of the Lamb; And in them shall be written my gospel, saith the Lamb, and my rock and my salvation; And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; And if they endure unto the end, they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; And whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.

I Nephi 4:14,15 – Behold, I say unto you, that the house of Israel was compared unto an olive tree, by the Spirit of the Lord which was in our fathers; And behold, are we not broken off from the house of Israel; and are we not a branch of the house of Israel?

II Nephi 11:40-43 – Wherefore, for this cause hath the Lord God promised unto me that these things which I write, shall be kept and preserved, and handed down unto my seed, from generation to generation, that the promise may be fulfilled unto Joseph, that his seed should never perish as long as the earth should stand. Wherefore, these things shall go from generation to generation as long as the earth shall stand; and they shall go according to the will and pleasure of God; And the nations which shall possess them, shall be judged of them according to the words which are written; For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; For we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

From the foregoing scriptures, we see that the Lord has clearly and consistently shown the members of His church that they are to view and represent the Book of Mormon as containing the fullness of His gospel. Through this precious book, the Lord did not simply restore a knowledge of His gospel and covenants which had been lost or taken away from the Bible. Jesus Christ brought forth the Book of Mormon as a self-contained revelation of the fullness of His everlasting gospel. He brought it forth as His new covenant with the ancient northern (Ephraim) and southern (Judah) kingdoms of Israel.[25]

Through the teaching and testimonies that it contains, this plain and precious book fully presents our Lord’s gospel. The teachings, doctrines, principles, ordinances, and covenants upon which His gospel is founded are all represented in it for us to fully understand and enjoy His gospel. Thus, any teaching, doctrine, principle, ordinance, covenant, etc., that is not clearly represented in this book is simply not a part of the fullness of His gospel. Are you convinced as was Nephi and the prophets of old were convinced?

I Nephi 3

190 And it came to pass that I beheld the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the book of the Lamb of God which had proceeded forth from the mouth of the Jew; And I beheld that it came forth from the Gentiles unto the remnant of the seed of my brethren;

191 And after it had come forth unto them, I beheld other books which came forth by the power of the Lamb from the Gentiles unto them, Unto the convincing of the Gentiles and the remnant of the seed of my brethren, And also to the Jews which were scattered upon all the face of the earth, That the records of the prophets and of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are true.

192 And the angel spake unto me, saying: These last records which thou hast seen among the Gentiles shall establish the truth of the first, which are of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, and shall make known the plain and precious things which have been taken away from them;

193 And shall make known to all kindreds, tongues and people that the Lamb of God is the Eternal Father and the Savior of the world, and that all men must come unto Him or they cannot be saved;

194 And they must come according to the words which shall be established by the mouth of the Lamb;

195 And the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb;

196 Wherefore, they both shall be established in one;

197 For there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth;

198 And the time cometh that He shall manifest Himself unto all nations—both unto the Jews, and also unto the Gentiles;

199 And after that He hath manifested Himself unto the Jews, and also unto the Gentiles, Then He shall manifest Himself unto the Gentiles, and also unto the Jews;

200 And the last shall be first, and the first shall be last.

201 And it shall come to pass that if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that He shall manifest Himself unto them in word and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks, if it so be that they harden not their hearts against the Lamb, and if it so be that they harden not their hearts against the Lamb of God, they shall be numbered among the seed of thy father,

202 Yea, they shall be numbered among the house of Israel;

203 And they shall be a blessed people upon the Promised Land forever;

204 They shall be no more brought down into captivity,

205 And the house of Israel shall no more be confounded;

206 And that great pit which hath been digged for them by that great and abominable church which was founded by the devil and his children, that he might lead away the souls of men down to hell,

207 Yea, that great pit which hath been digged for the destruction of men shall be filled by those who digged it unto their utter destruction, saith the Lamb of God—

208 Not the destruction of the soul, save it be the casting of it into that hell which hath no end—

209 For behold, this is according to the captivity of the devil, and also according to the justice of God upon all those who will work wickedness and abomination before Him.

210 And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me, Nephi, saying: Thou hast beheld that if the Gentiles repent, it shall be well with them;

211 And thou also knowest concerning the covenants of the Lord unto the house of Israel;

212 And thou also hast heard that whoso repenteth not must perish;

213 Therefore, wo be unto the Gentiles if it so be that they harden their hearts against the Lamb of God,

214 For the time cometh, saith the Lamb of God, ‘that I will work a great and a marvelous work among the children of men—

215 A work which shall be everlasting, either on the one hand or on the other,

216 Either to the convincing of them unto peace and life eternal, or unto the deliverance of them to the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds, unto their being brought down into captivity and also unto destruction, both temporally and spiritually, according to the captivity of the devil of which I have spoken.

[1] II Nephi 11:40 with Ether 6:6-8 & Alma 21:54-60; see D&C 26:1d-2b with D&C 17:2a-2g

[2] “Why Look to ‘the Stick of Joseph’ as a Standard.” | Ch 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Ch 5 | Ch 6 | Ch 7 | Ch 8 |

[3] cf. Ether 2:3 with II Nephi 11:135

[4] It is highly significant that this declaration about the Book of Mormon containing the fullness of the gospel is found in instruction on observing the sacrament. Jesus Christ established the sacrament as the ordinance by which His church is to remember Him, saying of the wine, “This cup is the new testament in my blood” (Luke 22:20). In D&C 26, the Lord, then, is connecting the Book of Mormon directly to His new covenant.

[5] I Nephi 4:16-29 with III Nephi 9:92

[6] I Nephi 3:18,19, 3:184-205, I Nephi 4:16-29, II Nephi 12:80, etc. with Revelation 14:6,7 & I Nephi 3:239-251

[7] I Nephi 3:157-175 with II Nephi 12:45-64

[8] See Jeremiah 31:10,11 with Ezekiel 37:1-28.

[9] See Romans 11:15-36 with Ezekiel 37:1-28.

[10] cf. II Nephi 14:2,3 with Moroni 7:30-34 & Mark 12:28-32

[11] RLDS Church History, Vol. 1, Ch. 2, pg. 13

[12] cf. D&C 17:1a with D&C 1:4e, D&C 12:5a,5b, D&C 34:3c-4e, D&C 39:3e, D&C 45:4b,4c, etc.

[13] Joseph Smith, Jr., had not as yet completed the inspired revision of the Bible at the time D&C 42 was given. So, the Bible spoken of in this section was the KJV. After the Book of Mormon was published, however, the Lord moved upon Joseph Smith, Jr., to revise the Bible to restore many of the precious things that had been lost, thereby fulfilling a prophecy recorded in Mormon 3:30.

[14] See D&C 17:1a-1c & D&C 19:1a-1c with D&C 1:4a-5g & D&C 3:16a-18

[15] cf. II Nephi 11:125-147 & D&C 26:1d-2b with Isaiah 42:9,10, 43:18,19, 48:6-19, 57:19 & 59:20,21; see also Isaiah 11:10,11 with Isaiah 49:6 & Isaiah 60:1-3; also Ether 1:107-117 with III Nephi 12:1-5 & III Nephi 13:1-5