Chapter 11—Wo, Woe, Whoa!
Lehi’s formal commission as a prophet began when he was given glorious visions and read about his people’s sins in a heavenly book. Filled with the Lord’s spirit, he said, “Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations!” If they did not repent now, they would “be destroyed” (1 Nephi 1:12–13).
God never executes wrath without plentiful warnings, so we must learn to recognize His voice in the many ways He speaks to us. Scripture is filled with the urgent message to repent and return to Him.
Also called to deliver a difficult message, Jacob implored people to repent. “Do not say that I have spoken hard things against you; for if ye do, ye will revile against the truth; for I have spoken the words of your Maker. I know that the words of truth are hard against all uncleanness; but the righteous fear them not, for they love the truth and are not shaken” (2 Nephi 9:40). Proclaiming repentance is a heavy burden His servants bear. “Yea, it grieveth my soul . . . that I must testify unto you concerning the wickedness of your hearts. And also it grieveth me that I must use so much boldness of speech concerning you” (Jacob 2:6–7).
When wickedness prevails, bold declarations of “woe” and misery are the last resort to reach hardened hearts. Biblically, a woe is a judgment, a warning of condemnation or impending doom. If unheeded, it results in calamity or curses. Woe, like its variant whoa, includes commands to stop a behavior. In Old English, woes are lamentations that result from affliction, distress, or sorrow. In spite of their prominence in scripture, most do not believe these cautionary woes apply to them.
Like Lehi, Ezekiel was given a divine book to read. He too was filled with the spirit and was commanded to declare that a wrathful judgment would come if warnings went unheeded. Ezekiel prophesied of broken alliances, desolation, and destruction when iniquity overtakes then rules the land. A sobering warning to Christendom, people and property will be destroyed by “ruthless men” who spare none.
Inhabitants of the promised land are under a solemn obligation to uphold divine principles. Woes are decreed against those who oppose God’s Constitutional laws, bring unfounded lawsuits, support oppression, or engage in priestcraft. Dismissing or corrupting His laws removes all promise of protection. “This people shall keep my commandments, saith the Lord of Hosts, or cursed be the land for their sakes” (Jacob 2:29).
Warnings against greed, lust, priestcraft, deception, error, covetousness, and false worship permeate scripture, and are directed to covenant makers. “Wo be unto you because of your wickedness and abominations!” (Helaman 7:27). King Benjamin cautions to not “obey that evil spirit . . . spoken of by our fathers” because it is “a lying spirit.” Sin causes men to withdraw “from the Spirit of the Lord” until “the Lord hath no place in him for he dwelleth not in unholy temples.” In other words, believing lies allows ‘that evil spirit’ to replace the Lord’s spirit, making us a defiled and unholy temple. And so, “there is a wo pronounced upon him who listeth to obey that spirit” (Mosiah 2:32, 36–37, 4:14, Alma 30:42) because the Spirit could no longer “preserve them . . . for they had fallen into a state of unbelief and awful wickedness” (Helaman 4:24–25).
“Wo be unto them that shall pervert the ways of the Lord, for they shall perish except they repent” (Moroni 8:16). Perversion does not have to be intentional to bring penalties. Simply preaching His word when we do not understand it perverts it. “I say unto you, wo be unto you for perverting the ways of the Lord! For if ye understand these things ye have not taught them; therefore ye have perverted the ways of the Lord” (Mosiah 12:26).
Paul knew serious repercussions resulted by not teaching truth: “Woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16). Paul’s zealous allegiance to a church—even if originally founded on priesthood, ordinances, scripture, revelation, and divine manifestations—could not bring salvation. God required something that Paul’s religion had lost over time—total obedience to exactly what He revealed. Suppressing true points of His doctrine leads us from God, but the subtlety by which knowledge diminishes escapes notice of those who remain asleep.
Without knowledge, there is no power. Without power, there is no godliness. Without godliness, ordinances are invalid and we forfeit eternal life. Whosoever “resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation” (Romans 13:2).
Not long before the resurrected Christ appeared to the Nephites, the priesthood degenerated so much that when “men inspired from heaven” boldly testified “of the sins and iniquities of the people,” instead of repenting many “were exceedingly angry . . . and those who were angry were chiefly the chief judges and they who had been high priests and lawyers,” experts in religious law and scholarship (3 Nephi 6:20–21).
The Greek word for hypocrisy has roots in acting out a part, but its ancient word group carries a sense of interpreting or explaining. Biblical equivalents imply corrupting or profaning. Hypocrites interpret according to their own understanding, like an actor who interprets then performs in character. His interpretation can be persuasive but error.
The same Spirit that reveals scripture must be used to interpret it, but most rely on their own understanding. Hypocrisy leads to apostasy so false prophet-priests “shall receive the greater damnation” (Matthew 23:14), as will their “many” followers who “join with them in hypocrisy” (Daniel 11:34, NASB).
Christ often chastised hypocrites for being self-righteousness and blind to their own wickedness. “Thou shalt hate everything that is not pleasing to God. Thou shalt hate all hypocrisy” (Barnabas 19:2) because it robs others of salvation, so His judgments are just. “Wo unto them that are deceivers and hypocrites, for, thus saith the Lord, I will bring them to judgment. Behold, verily I say unto you, there are hypocrites among you who have deceived some, which has given the adversary power . . . The hypocrites shall be detected and shall be cut off, either in life or in death, even as I will; and wo unto them” (D&C 50:6–8). To them the ultimate—a triple wo—is proclaimed.
Living His gospel as He revealed it offers the protection and promise that the devil “shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo” (Helaman 5:12). With eternal life at stake—and so many obstacles in the only path to Him—the need for repentance has never been greater. We need Christ for it is He who “delivers us from this present evil world” (Galatians 1:4) and “from the power of darkness” (Colossians 1:13).
God never executes wrath without plentiful warnings, so we must learn to recognize His voice in the many ways He speaks to us. Scripture is filled with the urgent message to repent and return to Him.
[True prophets] act as God’s messenger and make known God’s will. The[ir] message was usually prefaced with the words, ‘Thus saith Jehovah’ . . . It was also the prophet’s duty to denounce sin and foretell its punishment . . . He was, above all, to be a preacher of righteousness. When the people had fallen away from a true faith in Jehovah, the prophets had to try to restore that faith and remove false views about the character of God and the nature of the Divine requirement.When plain and simple words do not work, harder language must be employed. Nephi “knew that I had spoken hard things against the wicked, according to the truth; and the righteous have I justified . . . Wherefore, the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the very center” (1 Nephi 16:2). Samuel declared, “Ye are angry with me and do seek to destroy me and have cast me out from among you” because of the “hard” words he spoke against them (Helaman 14:10).
Also called to deliver a difficult message, Jacob implored people to repent. “Do not say that I have spoken hard things against you; for if ye do, ye will revile against the truth; for I have spoken the words of your Maker. I know that the words of truth are hard against all uncleanness; but the righteous fear them not, for they love the truth and are not shaken” (2 Nephi 9:40). Proclaiming repentance is a heavy burden His servants bear. “Yea, it grieveth my soul . . . that I must testify unto you concerning the wickedness of your hearts. And also it grieveth me that I must use so much boldness of speech concerning you” (Jacob 2:6–7).
When wickedness prevails, bold declarations of “woe” and misery are the last resort to reach hardened hearts. Biblically, a woe is a judgment, a warning of condemnation or impending doom. If unheeded, it results in calamity or curses. Woe, like its variant whoa, includes commands to stop a behavior. In Old English, woes are lamentations that result from affliction, distress, or sorrow. In spite of their prominence in scripture, most do not believe these cautionary woes apply to them.
Like Lehi, Ezekiel was given a divine book to read. He too was filled with the spirit and was commanded to declare that a wrathful judgment would come if warnings went unheeded. Ezekiel prophesied of broken alliances, desolation, and destruction when iniquity overtakes then rules the land. A sobering warning to Christendom, people and property will be destroyed by “ruthless men” who spare none.
Wo, wo, wo unto this people. Wo unto the inhabitants of the whole earth except they shall repent; for the devil laugheth, and his angels rejoice . . . because of their iniquity and abominations! (3 Nephi 9:2)False gods, works of their hands, and all they set their hearts on will be destroyed, “and they will know that I am the Lord” (Ezekiel 30:19, NLT). “A sword will come against Egypt and there will be anguish . . . [when] its wealth is taken away and its foundations are torn down.” Even “the men of the covenant land will fall by the sword” and “those who support Egypt will fall, and its proud strength will collapse . . . This is the declaration of the Lord God” (Ezekiel 30:4–6, HCSB). A type for modern America, Egypt prospers above all nations for a time but loses its power through iniquity. They forsake God but follow corrupt leaders. Egypt “signifies that which is forbidden” (Abraham 1:23).
Inhabitants of the promised land are under a solemn obligation to uphold divine principles. Woes are decreed against those who oppose God’s Constitutional laws, bring unfounded lawsuits, support oppression, or engage in priestcraft. Dismissing or corrupting His laws removes all promise of protection. “This people shall keep my commandments, saith the Lord of Hosts, or cursed be the land for their sakes” (Jacob 2:29).
Warnings against greed, lust, priestcraft, deception, error, covetousness, and false worship permeate scripture, and are directed to covenant makers. “Wo be unto you because of your wickedness and abominations!” (Helaman 7:27). King Benjamin cautions to not “obey that evil spirit . . . spoken of by our fathers” because it is “a lying spirit.” Sin causes men to withdraw “from the Spirit of the Lord” until “the Lord hath no place in him for he dwelleth not in unholy temples.” In other words, believing lies allows ‘that evil spirit’ to replace the Lord’s spirit, making us a defiled and unholy temple. And so, “there is a wo pronounced upon him who listeth to obey that spirit” (Mosiah 2:32, 36–37, 4:14, Alma 30:42) because the Spirit could no longer “preserve them . . . for they had fallen into a state of unbelief and awful wickedness” (Helaman 4:24–25).
“Wo be unto them that shall pervert the ways of the Lord, for they shall perish except they repent” (Moroni 8:16). Perversion does not have to be intentional to bring penalties. Simply preaching His word when we do not understand it perverts it. “I say unto you, wo be unto you for perverting the ways of the Lord! For if ye understand these things ye have not taught them; therefore ye have perverted the ways of the Lord” (Mosiah 12:26).
Paul knew serious repercussions resulted by not teaching truth: “Woe is unto me if I preach not the gospel!” (1 Corinthians 9:16). Paul’s zealous allegiance to a church—even if originally founded on priesthood, ordinances, scripture, revelation, and divine manifestations—could not bring salvation. God required something that Paul’s religion had lost over time—total obedience to exactly what He revealed. Suppressing true points of His doctrine leads us from God, but the subtlety by which knowledge diminishes escapes notice of those who remain asleep.
Without knowledge, there is no power. Without power, there is no godliness. Without godliness, ordinances are invalid and we forfeit eternal life. Whosoever “resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation” (Romans 13:2).
His divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness . . . through the knowledge of Him who hath called him. There could not anything be given, pertaining to life and godliness, without knowledge. Woe! woe! woe to Christendom!—especially [prophets] and priests if this be true.Evil’s cunning hides the terrible reality that any variance from what God decreed removes priesthood and breaks the covenant designed to deliver us from the depths of misery and wo. God commanded Joseph to join no church that had only “a form of godliness,” for “the Everlasting Covenant was broken” because of it. “As the covenant which they made unto me has been broken, even so it has become void and of none effect. And wo to him by whom this offense cometh” (D&C 54:4–5).
Woe to you who alter the true words and pervert the everlasting covenant and consider themselves to be without sin. (1 Enoch 99:2)Adding to or taking from what God reveals keeps us in Satan’s power. Charged to preserve what He revealed, priests alter His ordinances and gospel, believing reform is their prerogative, even their duty. They “have become like those who remove the bound . . . No man that approaches them shall be free from guilt.” Priests “defile their holy spirit and open their mouth with a blaspheming tongue against the laws of the Covenant of God saying, ‘They are not sure’,” or fixed. To believe God’s laws and ordinances can change is blasphemy. God cannot change so the priesthood is rebuked. “You have committed blasphemy and iniquity” (1 Enoch 94:9), turning people “away from following God.”
Not long before the resurrected Christ appeared to the Nephites, the priesthood degenerated so much that when “men inspired from heaven” boldly testified “of the sins and iniquities of the people,” instead of repenting many “were exceedingly angry . . . and those who were angry were chiefly the chief judges and they who had been high priests and lawyers,” experts in religious law and scholarship (3 Nephi 6:20–21).
The worst sinners, according to Jesus, are . . . religious leaders with their insistence on proper dress and grooming, their careful observance of all the[ir] rules, their precious concern for the status symbols . . . The haircut becomes the test of virtue in a world where Satan deceives and rules by appearances.They deceive many with outward show but no inward conversion. Smooth words, worldly success, and seeming piety of people and priests deceive many but God sees through their pretense.
The Greek word for hypocrisy has roots in acting out a part, but its ancient word group carries a sense of interpreting or explaining. Biblical equivalents imply corrupting or profaning. Hypocrites interpret according to their own understanding, like an actor who interprets then performs in character. His interpretation can be persuasive but error.
The same Spirit that reveals scripture must be used to interpret it, but most rely on their own understanding. Hypocrisy leads to apostasy so false prophet-priests “shall receive the greater damnation” (Matthew 23:14), as will their “many” followers who “join with them in hypocrisy” (Daniel 11:34, NASB).
Christ often chastised hypocrites for being self-righteousness and blind to their own wickedness. “Thou shalt hate everything that is not pleasing to God. Thou shalt hate all hypocrisy” (Barnabas 19:2) because it robs others of salvation, so His judgments are just. “Wo unto them that are deceivers and hypocrites, for, thus saith the Lord, I will bring them to judgment. Behold, verily I say unto you, there are hypocrites among you who have deceived some, which has given the adversary power . . . The hypocrites shall be detected and shall be cut off, either in life or in death, even as I will; and wo unto them” (D&C 50:6–8). To them the ultimate—a triple wo—is proclaimed.
O the wise, and the learned, and the rich, that are puffed up in the pride of their hearts, and all those who preach false doctrines, and all those who commit whoredoms, and pervert the right way of the Lord, wo, wo, wo be unto them, saith the Lord God Almighty, for they shall be thrust down to hell! (2 Nephi 28:15)Through the Fall, all are “made partakers of misery and woe” (Moses 6:48) but only through “the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ” can we receive eternal life. His “matchless power, and his mercy, and his long-suffering towards us” are generous considering the fate of sinners is to be “cut off . . . [and] consigned to a state of endless misery and wo” (Alma 9:11). Because God cannot interfere with our right to choose, if we repeatedly reject His invitation, He is bound to give us according to our desire, even if it means we remain separated from Him eternally, forfeiting the joy we are meant to receive.
Living His gospel as He revealed it offers the protection and promise that the devil “shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo” (Helaman 5:12). With eternal life at stake—and so many obstacles in the only path to Him—the need for repentance has never been greater. We need Christ for it is He who “delivers us from this present evil world” (Galatians 1:4) and “from the power of darkness” (Colossians 1:13).
Now if this is boasting, even so will I boast; for this is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from everlasting wo. Yea, blessed is the name of my God. (Alma 26:36)
For footnotes and references, click HERE.