Joy and Sorrow

In Lehi’s famous teachings to his son Jacob, he suggested a connection between “happiness” and “misery” (see 2 Nephi 2:11, 13).  I think we see in the scriptures various examples of how both feelings of great joy and feelings of great sadness can go together.  For instance, when the Savior visited the Nephites we read that He “groaned within himself, and said, Father, I am troubled because of the wickedness of the people of the house of Israel.”  And yet just a few verses later He told them, “Behold, my joy is full” and He wept because of His love and happiness for them (3 Nephi 17:14, 20-21).  Similarly, when He was teaching the disciples several chapters later, He remarked, “Behold, my joy is great, even unto fulness, because of you, and also this generation; yea, and even the Father rejoiceth, and also all the holy angels, because of you and this generation.”  He was filled with happiness because of the righteousness of this people.  And yet two verses later He said, “It sorroweth me because of the fourth generation from this generation, for they are led away captive by him even as was the son of perdition” (3 Nephi 27:30, 32).  At the very same moment that He said His joy was full, He also expressed great sorrow because of the wickedness of those Nephites who would live several generations later. 

                The Pearl of Great Price gives another similar account.  As Enoch saw the great wickedness of the world, He also saw the terrible sadness that God felt.  He was told, “The whole heavens shall weep over them, even all the workmanship of mine hands; wherefore should not the heavens weep, seeing these shall suffer?”  The sadness was contagious and Enoch remarked, “I will refuse to be comforted” because of the great destruction that was coming upon the children of men.  And yet, in a sudden change of feeling, the Lord said, “Lift up your heart, and be glad” (Moses 7:37, 44).  The Lord then rejoiced in those who were righteous, saying, “Blessed are they of whom I have spoken, for they shall come forth with songs of everlasting joy” (Moses 7:53).  Somehow the Lord was able to feel great sadness even unto weeping while at the same time rejoicing over the coming atonement and the salvation of the righteous. 

                The Book of Mormon has another example of this dichotomy of feeling in the account of the people of Mosiah.  When Alma came back finally to join them in Zarahemla, the people “were struck with wonder and amazement” and “they knew not what to think.”  They were filled with “exceedingly great joy” because of the miraculous delivery of Alma and his people.  But they “shed many tears of sorrow” because of those of the people of Limhi who had been slain by the Lamanites.  And yet “they did raise their voices and give thanks to God” because of God’s power of deliverance.  This didn’t change the fact that they “were filled with pain and anguish for the welfare” of the Lamanites who were so wicked (Mosiah 25:7-11).  When I read those verses part of me thinks, “Can’t you make up your mind how you feel?!”  And yet they truly did feel great joy and great sorrow at the same time.  Life will inevitably be filled with much sorrow here in our mortal probation, but the key is to be able to also find the great joy in the gospel that can be ours at the same time.  And I think that we will find that, at least in this life, where there is joy there is also sorrow.