Ether 10
People in this chapter
Ether 10 covers more kings than any other chapter in the book. Moroni gives some of them a single verse. It reads best as a pattern: a king who remembers the Lord rebuilds the people; a king who serves himself crushes them; captivity follows; someone breaks free; the cycle starts again.
Tap any highlighted phrase to jump to the commentary that unpacks it.
Ether 10:1-4To Build Up Again a Broken People
1And it came to pass that Shez, who was a descendant of Heth—for Heth had perished by the famine, and all his household save it were Shez—wherefore, Shez began to build up again a broken people. 2And it came to pass that Shez did remember the destruction of his fathers, and he did build up a righteous kingdom; for he remembered what the Lord had done in bringing Jared and his brother across the deep; and he did walk in the ways of the Lord; and he begat sons and daughters.
Heth and all his family died in the famine except Shez. Shez rebuilt the people. He remembered what had happened to his ancestors and what the Lord had done for Jared and his brother, so he built a righteous kingdom.
3And his eldest son, whose name was Shez, did rebel against him; nevertheless, Shez was smitten by the hand of a robber, because of his exceeding riches, which brought peace again unto his father. 4And it came to pass that his father did build up many cities upon the face of the land, and the people began again to spread over all the face of the land. And Shez did live to an exceedingly old age; and he begat Riplakish. And he died, and Riplakish reigned in his stead.
Shez's oldest son, also named Shez, rebelled against him but was killed by a robber. The father built many cities and lived a long life. His son Riplakish became king.
Ether 10:5-8Grievous to Be Borne
5And it came to pass that Riplakish did not do that which was right in the sight of the Lord, for he did have many wives and concubines, and did lay that upon men's shoulders which was grievous to be borne; yea, he did tax them with heavy taxes; and with the taxes he did build many spacious buildings. 6And he did erect him an exceedingly beautiful throne; and he did build many prisons, and whoso would not be subject unto taxes he did cast into prison; and whoso was not able to pay taxes he did cast into prison; and he did cause that they should labor continually for their support; and whoso refused to labor he did cause to be put to death. 7Wherefore he did obtain all his fine work, yea, even his fine gold he did cause to be refined in prison; and all manner of fine workmanship he did cause to be wrought in prison. And it came to pass that he did afflict the people with his whoredoms and abominations. 8And when he had reigned for the space of forty and two years the people did rise up in rebellion against him; and there began to be war again in the land, insomuch that Riplakish was killed, and his descendants were driven out of the land.
Riplakish was a wicked king. He had many wives, taxed the people heavily, and built fancy buildings. Anyone who could not pay was put in prison and forced to work. After forty-two years the people rebelled, and he was killed.
Ether 10:9-18Justice unto the People, but Not unto Himself
9And it came to pass after the space of many years, Morianton, (he being a descendant of Riplakish) gathered together an army of outcasts, and went forth and gave battle unto the people; and he gained power over many cities; and the war became exceedingly sore, and did last for the space of many years; and he did gain power over all the land, and did establish himself king over all the land. 10And after that he had established himself king he did ease the burden of the people, by which he did gain favor in the eyes of the people, and they did anoint him to be their king. 11And he did do justice unto the people, but not unto himself because of his many whoredoms; wherefore he was cut off from the presence of the Lord. 12And it came to pass that Morianton built up many cities, and the people became exceedingly rich under his reign, both in buildings, and in gold and silver, and in raising grain, and in flocks, and herds, and such things which had been restored unto them.
Years later Morianton, a descendant of Riplakish, took over the land by war. He lightened the people's burdens and was fair to them. But he was immoral in his own life, so he was cut off from the Lord's presence, even though the people became rich.
13And Morianton did live to an exceedingly great age, and then he begat Kim; and Kim did reign in the stead of his father; and he did reign eight years, and his father died. And it came to pass that Kim did not reign in righteousness, wherefore he was not favored of the Lord. 14And his brother did rise up in rebellion against him, by which he did bring him into captivity; and he did remain in captivity all his days; and he begat sons and daughters in captivity, and in his old age he begat Levi; and he died. 15And it came to pass that Levi did serve in captivity after the death of his father, for the space of forty and two years. And he did make war against the king of the land, by which he did obtain unto himself the kingdom. 16And after he had obtained unto himself the kingdom he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord; and the people did prosper in the land; and he did live to a good old age, and begat sons and daughters; and he also begat Corom, whom he anointed king in his stead. 17And it came to pass that Corom did that which was good in the sight of the Lord all his days; and he begat many sons and daughters; and after he had seen many days he did pass away, even like unto the rest of the earth; and Kish reigned in his stead. 18And it came to pass that Kish passed away also, and Lib reigned in his stead.
Morianton's son Kim was a bad king, and his brother took him captive. Kim's son Levi spent forty-two years in captivity, then won back the kingdom and ruled well. Levi's son Corom was also good. Then Kish and Lib reigned.
Ether 10:19-28Never Could Be a People More Blessed
19And it came to pass that Lib also did that which was good in the sight of the Lord. And in the days of Lib the poisonous serpents were destroyed. Wherefore they did go into the land southward, to hunt food for the people of the land, for the land was covered with animals of the forest. And Lib also himself became a great hunter. 20And they built a great city by the narrow neck of land, by the place where the sea divides the land. 21And they did preserve the land southward for a wilderness, to get game. And the whole face of the land northward was covered with inhabitants. 22And they were exceedingly industrious, and they did buy and sell and traffic one with another, that they might get gain.
Lib was a good king. In his day the poisonous serpents were destroyed, and the people could hunt in the land to the south. They built a great city and worked hard, trading with each other.
23And they did work in all manner of ore, and they did make gold, and silver, and iron, and brass, and all manner of metals; and they did dig it out of the earth; wherefore, they did cast up mighty heaps of earth to get ore, of gold, and of silver, and of iron, and of copper. And they did work all manner of fine work. 24And they did have silks, and fine-twined linen; and they did work all manner of cloth, that they might clothe themselves from their nakedness. 25And they did make all manner of tools to till the earth, both to plow and to sow, to reap and to hoe, and also to thrash. 26And they did make all manner of tools with which they did work their beasts. 27And they did make all manner of weapons of war. And they did work all manner of work of exceedingly curious workmanship. 28And never could be a people more blessed than were they, and more prospered by the hand of the Lord. And they were in a land that was choice above all lands, for the Lord had spoken it.
The people mined metals, made cloth and tools, and became very skilled. Moroni says no people could be more blessed, and that it was the Lord who prospered them.
Ether 10:29-34Captivity All the Remainder of His Days
29And it came to pass that Lib did live many years, and begat sons and daughters; and he also begat Hearthom. 30And it came to pass that Hearthom reigned in the stead of his father. And when Hearthom had reigned twenty and four years, behold, the kingdom was taken away from him. And he served many years in captivity, yea, even all the remainder of his days. 31And he begat Heth, and Heth lived in captivity all his days. And Heth begat Aaron, and Aaron dwelt in captivity all his days; and he begat Amnigaddah, and Amnigaddah also dwelt in captivity all his days; and he begat Coriantum, and Coriantum dwelt in captivity all his days; and he begat Com. 32And it came to pass that Com drew away the half of the kingdom. And he reigned over the half of the kingdom forty and two years; and he went to battle against the king, Amgid, and they fought for the space of many years, during which time Com gained power over Amgid, and obtained power over the remainder of the kingdom.
Lib's son Hearthom lost the kingdom after twenty-four years and spent the rest of his life as a captive. His son, grandson, and later descendants also lived in captivity, until a descendant named Com won back half the kingdom, and then all of it.
33And in the days of Com there began to be robbers in the land; and they adopted the old plans, and administered oaths after the manner of the ancients, and sought again to destroy the kingdom. 34Now Com did fight against them much; nevertheless, he did not prevail against them.
In Com's time, robbers appeared. They used the old secret plans and oaths to try to destroy the kingdom. Com fought them often but could not defeat them.
Research trail
Sources & further study
These references support the historical, linguistic, manuscript, and contextual notes in this chapter. Scripture remains the primary text; external sources are provided so readers can inspect the research directly.
- JareditesAn overview of the Jaredite kings and their history.
- BurdenScriptures on burdens laid on others, and the Savior's light burden, for verse 5.
- ChastityBackground for the sins that cut Morianton off from the Lord's presence (v. 11).
- RememberScriptures on remembering the Lord, the reason Shez could rebuild (v. 2).
Where this echoes in Scripture
To Build Up Again a Broken People
- Ether 7:27He remembered the great things that the Lord had done for his fathers in bringing them across the great deep.
- Mosiah 4:11Always retain in remembrance, the greatness of God... and his goodness and long-suffering towards you.
- Psalm 147:3He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
- Isaiah 58:12Thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach.
Grievous to Be Borne
- Matthew 23:4They bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders.
- Matthew 11:28-30Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden... For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
- Mosiah 11:2-3He had many wives and concubines... And he laid a tax of one fifth part of all they possessed.King Noah among the Nephites.
- Mosiah 2:14That ye should not be laden with taxes, and that there should nothing come upon you which was grievous to be borne.King Benjamin's contrasting example.
- 1 Kings 12:4Thy father made our yoke grievous.
Justice unto the People, but Not unto Himself
- Matthew 16:26What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
- 1 Samuel 16:7Man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.
- Jacob 2:24David and Solomon truly had many wives and concubines, which thing was abominable before me, saith the Lord.
- Doctrine and Covenants 121:45Let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God.
Never Could Be a People More Blessed
- Deuteronomy 8:11-14Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God... and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied.
- Helaman 12:2At the very time when he doth prosper his people... then is the time that they do harden their hearts.
- Ether 9:33That they should hedge up the way that the people could not pass.The serpents Lib's people were finally free of.
- Ether 2:10This is a land which is choice above all other lands.
Captivity All the Remainder of His Days
- Ether 6:23Surely this thing leadeth into captivity.
- Ether 8:22Whatsoever nation shall uphold such secret combinations, to get power and gain... they shall be destroyed.
- Helaman 6:30He doth carry on his works of darkness and secret murder, and doth hand down their plots... from generation to generation.
- 2 Nephi 1:13Shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound.