2 Nephi 11-16

Lesson Quotes
President Boyd K. Packer

“Do not stop reading! Move forward through those difficult-to-understand chapters….even if you understand very little of it.  Move on, if all you do is skim and merely glean an impression here and there” (“The Things of My Soul, Ensign, May 1986).

President Gordon B. Hinckley

"As I contemplate this marvelous structure, adjacent to the temple, there comes to mind the great prophetic utterance of Isaiah:

“And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.

“And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. …

“O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord” (2 Nephi 12:2–3, 5).

I believe that prophecy applies to the historic and wonderful Salt Lake Temple. But I believe also that it is related to this magnificent hall. For it is from this pulpit that the law of God shall go forth, together with the word and testimony of the Lord” (President Gordon B. Hinckley “The Great Millennial Year” Oct. 2000).

President Thomas S. Monson

“If you have not yet been to the temple or if you have been but currently do not qualify for a recommend, there is no more important goal for you to work toward than being worthy to go to the temple. Your sacrifice may be bringing your life into compliance with what is required to receive a recommend, perhaps by forsaking long-held habits which disqualify you. It may be having the faith and the discipline to pay your tithing. Whatever it is, qualify to enter the temple of God. Secure a temple recommend and regard it as a precious possession, for such it is.

“Until you have entered the house of the Lord and have received all the blessings which await you there, you have not obtained everything the Church has to offer. The all-important and crowning blessings of membership in the Church are those blessings which we receive in the temples of God.

“Now, my young friends who are in your teenage years, always have the temple in your sights. Do nothing which will keep you from entering its doors and partaking of the sacred and eternal blessings there. I commend those of you who already go to the temple regularly to perform baptisms for the dead” (Thomas S. Monson, “The Holy Temple—a Beacon to the World,” Ensign, May 2011, 93).

President Boyd K. Packer:

“Brother Widtsoe reaffirmed that ‘those who give themselves with all their might and mind to this [family history] work receive help from the other side. Whoever seeks to help those in the other side receives help in return in all the affairs of life.” (Boyd K. Packer, The Holly Temple, 252).

Elder Spencer V. Jones 

“At times, consequences of sin may appear to be very subtle to the sinner. We may even convince ourselves … that no one will be able to detect our sins and that they are well concealed. But always to our Heavenly Father and often to spiritually sensitive leaders, parents, and friends, our sins are glaringly apparent.

“While attending a youth fireside with Elder Richard G. Scott, I noticed five youths scattered among the congregation whose countenances or body language almost screamed that something was spiritually amiss in their lives. After the meeting, when I mentioned the five youths to Elder Scott, he simply replied, ‘There were eight’” (“Overcoming the Stench of Sin,” Ensign, May 2003, 88).

President Dallin H. Oaks

“The book of Isaiah contains numerous prophecies that seem to have multiple fulfillments. … The fact that many of these prophecies can have multiple meanings underscores the importance of our seeking revelation from the Holy Ghost to help us interpret them” (“Scripture Reading and Revelation,” Ensign, Jan. 1995, 8).

President Spencer W. Kimball described the telephone call in which President J. Reuben Clark Jr. of the First Presidency informed him that he had been called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles:

“’Oh, Brother Clark! Not me? You don’t mean me? There must be some mistake.  I surely couldn’t have heard you right.’ This as I sank past the chair to the floor…..

“’Oh, Brother Clark! It seems so impossible.  I am so weak and small and limited and incapable’” (Spencer W. Kimball in Edward L. Kimball and Andrew E. Kimball Jr.  Spencer W. Kimball: Twelfth President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints [1977], 189).