Ether

 Ether 1

Cry unto the Lord in your language

He hears you, your words and your intent

Cry unto the Lord for deliverance

Wants to bless you to the greatest extent

Cry unto the Lord for your families

That their wants and their needs may be met

Cry unto the Lord in faithfulness

See his greatest miracles yet

Go onto the Lord with desire

For a life that his choice above all

Then be faithful and seek for this blessing

You’ll receive, and he’ll never recall

Ether 2

Thy hand has brought me forth, but I forget

The source from which my blessings ever flow

Thy word, thy power I’ve witnessed and I know

Forget me not, O Lord, I’m stubborn yet

Thou has chastened me, I’m glad the smart

Repenting of the evil, drawn near to thee

Call upon thy name in humble plea

Attune to thee my mind and wandering heart

I’ll go to work and build a better life

Direct my hand to do thy will in whole

Fill my breast with air and fill my soul

Light my journey, keep it free of strife

I know the way it’s rough, I’ll trust, I’ll pray 

Pass through the deep to find a promised day

Ether 3

Ascending to the temple of the Lord

My best yet meager offering present

Unworthy of thy grace, yet I repent

And seek to do thy will and keep thy word

I know, O Lord, that thou can do all things

Touch this modest offering, I pray

With thy power that shines as light of day

Dispel the fear that faithless darkness brings

In this holy place thou comes to me

I see thy hand, thy whole, no hidden part

Astonished, with a humble, broken heart

That with these mortal eyes that I can see

Now, I know of thee, there is no doubt

My worship is perfected, true, devout

Ether 4

Come, O house of Israel to me

I’ll manifest the great things set for thee

Since the world’s foundation they were laid

Because of unbelief from you it’s stayed

Rend your veil of unbelief, repent

Your heart is hard, your mind on evil bent

Call upon the father in my name

With broken heart, my covenant reclaim

Repent! All ye ends of the Earth

Come onto me, believe and find rebirth

Be baptized in my name and cleansed by fire

For this is what my gospel doth require

Blessed are they found faithful unto me

They’ll dwell with Israel eternally

Ether 5

I translate these plates

Precious words from the dust

Commanded of the Lord to keep hidden

A solitary burden

But what relief 

What excitement

As I read:

And unto three shall they be shown

In the mouth of three witnesses

Shall they be established

To help carry the burden

Of translation

Of proclamation

To carry these words forth

Now our witness to the world

Ether 6

Furious the crashing waves

Beat and drive and sink

Buried neath the waters mass

Our journey to the brink

We followed all thy strict commands

Prepared our little fleet

And trust in thy protection

As the future comes, we meet

Thy light shines forth midst darkness

We sing a song of praise

For though we’re tossed and beaten

Our hopes are ever raised

We’re seeking out a promised land

Where we can worship free

And know, for us to get there

These days of trial must be

Ether 7

A family divided

Brother, fighting brother

Son against father

Dividing the nation

A prophet is called

With voice raised

Warning unto repentance

Peace in his words

Ether 8

Infected with a secret ill

A hidden sickness lies

Beneath the surface, spreading quick

The devil’s favourite guise

A secret combination, who

Reject all righteousness

Under oath and shadowed cloak

Commit great wickedness

If left untreated, overcome

The people, septic, die

With lies and evil in their hearts 

No life or light survives 

Ether 9

The cureloms and cumons

Were useful as could be

Were they llamas or alpacas 

Or mammoths possibly?

The horses and the asses

The elephants as well

Domesticating wildlife 

To prosper where they dwell

The land was full of riches

Of fruit and grain and gold

Silks and all fine linens

They prospered, bought and sold

And thus the Lord did pour out

The blessings on the land

A choice place meant for everyone

Who, with the righteous stand

Ether 10

Kingdoms come and kingdoms go

So righteousness does ebb and flow

A king is raised and with his creed

The people follow, take his lead

In times now passed or future days

The same repeating lesson plays

The Lord will prosper and provide

When we follow him, our guide

Ether 11

Many prophets prophesied 

Of their destruction, great

Except if they repent and turn

And all their sins forsake 

The prophets were rejected, fled

Then hunted, put to death

The prophets mourned, withdrew themselves

Withheld their saving breath

Choosing to reject the call

The people fell away

Were driven from the promised land

Now dead and in decay 

Ether 12

My body’s weak, I trip and fall

My heart is weak, I fear

My mind is weak, I dwell on sin

My words fall insincere 

A thorn was given in my flesh 

To torture and remind

That I am nothing on my own

A greater strength must find

But in my weakness as I turn

In true humility 

Unto the Saviour, Healing One

My weakness blesses me

Sufficient is His grace each day

In humble prayer I plead

That he may turn my weakness strong

And in my suffering freed

Ether 13

New Jerusalem shall be built

In this place, the promised land

Blessed are they who dwell there in

Prospered by his hand

For they are clean, their garments white

Through the blood of the Lamb

They are numbered among the covenant seed

They follow the great I Am

Gathered in from all the Earth

His remnant people found

The first are last, the last are first

In one eternal round

Ether 14

Cursed be the land for sin

All things now slip away

A tool, a sword upon the shelf

It’s gone and will not stay

Selfishness pervades and grows

Stealing, common place

Honesty forgotten, lost

Evil is embraced

In wickedness now ripening

Destruction imminent

War and bloodshed all around

Unwilling to repent

Ether 15

Knowing only strife and death

The taste of war

Bitter and unsatisfying

We no longer even hunger 

For peace

Long has passed our time

To turn

We march onward, ragged

Into the very jaws of hell

Into darkness

Into death itself

Forgotten now in faded memory

The light

The life

Who suffered death that we may not

We reject him

And now partake this bitter cup

Of sin and death

Alone