Blessed Art Thou

One of the things we see in the Book of Mormon is the way that the Lord and his angels give praise to mortals. We see this in just the second chapter of the book when the Lord said to Lehi, “Blessed art thou Lehi, because of the things which thou hast done; and because thou hast been faithful and declared unto this people the things which I commanded thee, behold, they seek to take away thy life.” Later he also said to Nephi after he prayed, “Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart” (1 Nephi 2:1, 19). Later in a vision the Spirit said to Nephi, “Blessed art thou, Nephi, because thou believest in the Son of the most high God; wherefore, thou shalt behold the things which thou hast desired” (1 Nephi 11:6). An angel gave these words of praise to King Benjamin, “I am come to declare unto you the glad tidings of great joy. For the Lord hath heard thy prayers, and hath judged of thy righteousness, and hath sent me to declare unto thee that thou mayest rejoice” (Mosiah 3:3-4). When Alma (the Elder) prayed diligently for help, the Lord said this in praise of him and his people, “Blessed art thou, Alma, and blessed are they who were baptized in the waters of Mormon. Thou art blessed because of thy exceeding faith in the words alone of my servant Abinadi. And blessed are they because of their exceeding faith in the words alone which thou hast spoken unto them. And blessed art thou because thou hast established a church among this people; and they shall be established, and they shall be my people. Yea, blessed is this people who are willing to bear my name; for in my name shall they be called; and they are mine. And because thou hast inquired of me concerning the transgressor, thou art blessed” (Mosiah 26:15-19). The Lord called them blessed seven times in this response and praised their righteousness. Later when an angel came to Alma’s son Alma he also received divine praise for his efforts to keep the commandments: “Blessed art thou, Alma; therefore, lift up thy head and rejoice, for thou hast great cause to rejoice; for thou hast been faithful in keeping the commandments of God from the time which thou receivedst thy first message from him” (Alma 8:15). He openly celebrated Alma’s efforts (and subsequently gave him another task).

               Several other passages also show how the Lord praised mortals. The Lord blessed Nephi (son of Helaman) for his tireless missionary efforts: “Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee, unto this people. And thou hast not feared them, and hast not sought thine own life, but hast sought my will, and to keep my commandments. And now, because thou hast done this with such unwearyingness, behold, I will bless thee forever” (Helaman 10:4-5). When Jesus was among the Nephites he praised them for their faith: “I perceive that ye desire that I should show unto you what I have done unto your brethren at Jerusalem, for I see that your faith is sufficient that I should heal you.” After healing them and praying for them he said, “Blessed are ye because of your faith. And now behold, my joy is full” (3 Nephi 17:8, 20). The Lord also extolled the brother of Jared for his faith: “Because of thy faith thou hast seen that I shall take upon me flesh and blood; and never has man come before me with such exceeding faith as thou hast;… Because thou knowest these things ye are redeemed from the fall; therefore ye are brought back into my presence; therefore I show myself unto you” (Ether 3:9, 13). The Lord likewise praised Moroni for his faithfulness: “If they have not charity it mattereth not unto thee, thou hast been faithful; wherefore, thy garments shall be made clean. And because thou hast seen thy weakness thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father” (Ether 12:37). All of these passages remind us that we should willingly praise others for the good things that they do. And they also suggest that the Lord will likewise commend our righteous efforts as we listen to what His Spirit has to say to us personally.