Moroni 10:3-5

3 Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how amerciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and bponder it in your chearts.

4 And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would aask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not btrue; and if ye shall ask with a csincere heart, with dreal intent, having efaith in Christ, he will fmanifest the gtruth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost.

5 And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may aknow the btruth of all things.

We are supposed to ask if these things are NOT true, right? I always knew that... But what I never noticed before were the semantics that suggest that if we pray and ask if they are NOT true, the truth of THAT (i.e., the truth of the implicit statement, 'these things are NOT true') will be manifested unto us.

Is that why so many people join the Church? Because they ask if these things are not true and the HG confirms it? Ha, ha :)

I think a lot (can't speak for everyone) of people believe we need to as if it IS true. But yes, I tried my best to simulate the feeling and asked if it was NOT true, and I got the burning in the bosom!

Yes, you've noticed that "NOT" part too.

That's what I've thought too. Maybe the holy ghost told them its not true but they thought it was saying it is true.

One of those confusing things like the Devil appearing in the temple saying something to the effect of - "if these people don't keep all these commandments, then they have comitted to be mine" creepy

Maybe they are making the opposite choices of what they should be making?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/19/2012 11:11AM by smithscars.

It is just a figure of speech that is not as commonly used as it once was.

"is this not true" = "this is true"

Other examples, where we use a contracted form:
"you're coming, aren't you?" (it used to be "...are you not?")

"isn't this the right way to get there?" ("is not this the right...")

Smith, and whomever else wrote the BoM with him, were no literary giants, so the clarity of the question is muddled by his inclusion of the phrase in the wrong place.

Then either way the answer will default to mormonism being true?

So asking: God is this true?...Yes God is this not true? ...Yes Mean the same thing, yes the church is true.

Confusing