Humility and Knowledge

Perhaps one of the lessons that we learn from the account in Moses 1 is that humility enables us to gain great knowledge from the Lord.  In this chapter, Moses saw God "face to face" and then beheld "the world and the ends thereof, and all the children of men which are, and which were created" before his vision ended and the Lord departed (v2, 8).  It was after this incredible encounter that Moses seemed to have been overcome with a sense of humility.  All alone, without the Lord, he said, "Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing I never had supposed" (v10).  He sensed the great chasm between his own meager strength and the glory of God, and he was deeply humbled by this.  It was this humility I believe that helped protect him from Satan's subsequent onslaught and then allowed him to receive an even greater revelation from the Lord.  He was able to recognize that Satan did not have the glory that the Lord had, and then he persisted in his humble petition to the Lord: "I will not cease to call upon God, I have other things to inquire of him" (v18).  The initial revelation Moses received did not puff him up in pride but helped him realize all the more his dependence on the Lord.  In that humble state the Lord came to him again, and this time he saw not only this earth but many earths: “And he beheld many lands; and each land was called earth, and there were inhabitants on the face thereof” (Moses 1:29).  Because of his humility Moses was given even greater knowledge from the Lord.

               There are many other scriptures that connect humility with gaining knowledge and wisdom.  In the preface to the Doctrine and Covenants the Lord said, "And inasmuch as they were humble they might be made strong, and blessed from on high, and receive knowledge from time to time" (D&C 1:28).  Humility gives us strength and enables us to gain knowledge from on high.  In the revelation concerning the school in Zion, the Lord spoke of those who “are truly humble and are seeking diligently to learn wisdom and to find truth" (D&C 97:1).  When Alma taught the poor among the Zoramites, he told them, "I say unto you, it is well that ye are cast out of your synagogues, that ye may be humble, and that ye may learn wisdom; for it is necessary that ye should learn wisdom" (Alma 32:23).  Humility is a prerequisite for true wisdom.  When Alma taught Zeezrom he connected knowledge with not hardening one’s hart "And therefore, he that will harden his heart, the same receiveth the lesser portion of the word; and he that will not harden his heart, to him is given the greater portion of the word, until it is given unto him to know the mysteries of God until he know them in full.  And they that will harden their hearts, to them is given the lesser portion of the word until they know nothing concerning his mysteries; and then they are taken captive by the devil, and led by his will down to destruction” (Alma 12:10-11).  If we don’t harden our hearts (i.e. we are humble) the Lord can impart more of His word unto us.  The writer of Proverbs put it this way: "When pride cometh, then cometh shame: but with the lowly is wisdom….  He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding. The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility" (Proverbs 11:2, 15:33).  Simply put, humility begets wisdom, and if we really want knowledge from the Lord, we must come to Him with great humility.