CRIME AND PUNISHMENT

Adam and Eve were married by God the Father in the Garden eastward in Eden. Father
was an exalted being.  Spirit Beings are not authorized to perform such ordinances. Their ceremony was evidently performed by Father. That their marriage is acknowledged we learn from Genesis 3:30. (See Today's English Version, TEV) An ancient document, one of the Nag Hammadi tractates confirms crucial doctrines, it is the Hypostasis of the Archons it states: "And the fleshly woman, [having been deceived by the Serpent who gave her the fruit of the tree] took from the Tree. She ate and gave to her husband with her." (Foerster p. 47)  In the Garden they were not spirits, but had a body of flesh and bone, they were non-mortal, not yet mortal, and not immortal. "Their bodies of flesh and bone were made in the express image of God." (Elder Nelson, quoted in Campbell p. 32) Were they married soon after Adam was introduced to Eve? (Foerster p. 46; Abraham 5:19) Was the Garden of Eden a Temple? (Campbell p. 56) A metaphor for this marriage may be in Moses 3:23-24. "Adam named his wife Eve for they had become one." This could indicate they were married before she was given the name Eve! (TEV 2:24; (Reyburn p. 75) "The marriage of Adam and Eve was a reality and God performed it." (Petersen p. 5) In all cases the emphasis is mine.

On this earth Eve is the first of all women. "And Adam called his wife's name Eve, because she was the mother of all living; [for] thus have I, the Lord God, called the first of all women, who[which] are many." (Gen. 3:20; JST 3:26; Moses 4:26; Anderson 119 p. 47) The word many refers to the Adam and Eves of all previous and future worlds. Likewise, Adam was the First Born Man on this earth. (Abraham 1:3) He was the First Father, and they were the first parents. Recall Luke 3:37-38) "Adam, which was the son of God."

This is a challenge for all the anthropological efforts to derive Adam and Eve from the many forms of pre-Adamic man-like beings. This is one of the objections to the 1872 twist Darwin gave to his 1854-56 theory of evolution and natural selection. It is evident that any man-like beings before 4,000 BC, are not included in the Family of God, and do not have a birth and nurturing history in the Celestial Kingdom, or pre-earth spirit world, nor do they qualify for the type of life as Adam and Eve came to know with the expectations of becoming like God. Would these pre-Adamic beings, therefore, be classified as animals?  Most likely.  

THE CRIME - NAKED IN THE GARDEN

Adam and Eve were caught naked in the Garden of Eden. (Forester p. 47) They acknowledged they had eaten of the fruit of the forbidden tree. (Moses 4:5-6; Anderson p. 46; Reyburn p. 88) They knew they would be expelled from the Garden. But before being conducted out of the Garden, Father taught them a great deal that they needed to know, and finished some sacred aspects of the marriage ceremony and added priesthood garments to what they already had. "For Adam, and also for his wife, did I, the Lord God, make garments from coats of skins and clothed them."  (Anderson 119, p. 47; Gen 3:23; JST 3:26; Moses 4:27).  To get animal skins for garments of any kind, it involved a sacrifice. Since Adam knew how to sacrifice animals after he had left the Garden, (Moses 5:5) did he learn the procedure for the sacrifice of animals from the Father when, in order to get skins to clothe them with the proper garments, animals were killed? This would have been the first deaths on this earth, the first blood shed in similitude of the coming sacrifice of Christ. Did Adam learn the nature of the garments and the pattern for their preparation at this time? Was it the same pattern used by Melchezedek when he clothed Abraham with Garments of skins like those made by God for Adam? (Graves p. 124)  Was it the same pattern used by Jacob in the garment he prepared for Joseph? "Did Jacob get the pattern from his grandfather [Abraham]?" (Maclaurin p. 34) Is the pattern used by all temple going Mormons to the present? (See Erickson, The Garment of Joseph, Web site Nov 2005)  "This clothing was for protection and was specific to the earthly sojourn of Adam and Eve. They were robed in this clothing before they were sent forth from the Garden." (Campbell p. 92) 

THE PUNISHMENT

Their punishment was banishment from the Garden. The loss of the easy life. "The agent for driving Adam and Eve was the Lord rather than some other heavenly personality ...[while in the garden...Adam and Eve]...had enjoyed a personal relationship with the Lord. On the occasion of their banishment, He apparently escorted them out personally." (Draper p. 55) This was done by Father himself. "So I drove out man, and I placed at the east of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword which turned every way to guard the way of the tree of life." (Gen. 3:2, JST 3:29; Moses 4:29) Rafael was the angel with the flaming sword; see the CD or cassette, THE ANGEL RAFAEL. In another legend, the Sofar Noah claims it was Raphael who handed Noah, after the flood, a ‘medical book', which may have been the famous Sefer Raziel, the Book of the Angel Raziel.  "Among other high offices, Raphael is...the guardian of the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden." In one account it is the Father that directs Jehovah to place the Angel with the flaming sword to guard the tree of Life to prevent access to it by Adam and Eve.

Being driven personally from the Garden, and from the presence of Deity, was only part of the punishment.  "And now we see that by this that our first parents were cut off both temporally and spiritually from the presence of the Lord." (Alma 42:7; Anderson p. 48) Both Adam and Eve were then further cursed. (Genesis TEV 3:17-19; Reyburn pp. 94-96; Anderson p. 52) In the first four chapters of Genesis the word ‘God' or ‘Lord' as translated into English "translates Hebrew ‘Elohim' which is sometime rendered ‘gods'...or ‘divine beings'." (Reyburn p. 84) Mormons would understand that Elohim  refers to Father. Late in the fourth chapter of Genesis [Gen 4:26] Jehovah, or Yaweh is referred to. "...the text makes it clear that it was in Enosh's time that the name of Yahweh was invoked, called on, prayed to, praised, worshiped. That is, God was prayed to by the name Yahweh." (Reyburn  p. 129) From there you know the rest of the story. Today you are part of it whether your know it or not.   

INSTRUCTIONS IN AND FROM THE GARDEN

The First Principles and Ordinances of the Gospel were introduced to Adam (Moses 6:51-52; Acts 2:38; D&C 49:11-14; Anderson p. 52) And unto Adam was given all of "the keys of salvation." (D&C 78:16) An interesting question and answer exchange takes place between Adam and the Lord, [Elohim in the original Hebrew], but most likely in these instances the Lord referred to is Christ. (Anderson p. 52-53, vs. 52-63)  "We know from modern revelation that Adam and Eve entered into covenants with God while they were in the Garden. At the very least, they participated in the new and everlasting covenant of marriage—being sealed for time and all eternity by God the Father, himself. Thus it is quite likely that they also received at least part of their endowments in Eden." (Gaskill p. 9) At look at Facsimile No. 2, Figure 3, in the Book of Abraham we find "the grand Key-words of the Holy Priesthood, as revealed to Adam in the Garden of Eden. They had significant knowledge and accountability in Eden." (Gaskill p. 31) Look over some of the other panels indicated, you will find the upraised hands, the compass and the square and other emblems of a sacred ceremony.  Since initiatory rites, including getting the garment of the Priesthood followed soon after the fall, (Graves p. 147) the balance of the ceremonies and instruction would have followed. Was there a repetition of certain aspects or elements of the ceremonies after the fall and being cast out the Garden? They also received instructions about the respective missions of the Holy Ghost, the beloved Son and the Eternal Father. (Moses 6:58-63; Anderson p. 53-63)

ADAM AND EVE'S FIRST TWO GENERATIONS OF CHILDREN

We have the following account in Moses, Chapter 5, in the Pearl of Great Price; these details are not found in Genesis. Is it to much to expect to find something like this in some ancient document to confirm that these revelations and changes Joseph Smith received and recorded were correct?

"1. And it came to pass that after I, the Lord God, had driven them out that Adam began to till the earth, and to have dominion over all the beasts of the field, and to eat his bread by the sweat of his brow, as I the Lord had commanded him. And Eve, also his wife, did labor with him." (Moses 5:1)  [Note that Eve joined Adam in the work required to till and prepare the ground for harvesting food]

" 2. And Adam knew his wife, and she bare unto him sons and daughters, and they [the sons and daughters] began to multiply and to replenish the earth." (Moses 5:2) Note that this would provide children and grand-children for Adam and Eve, Genesis gives no hint of these earlier children before the birth of Cain. Is it too much to expect an ancient document would confirm the existence of these children born before Cain?  Since it is believed that a restoration has been made then such doctrines left out and deleted along the way should turn up in ancient sources. So convincing is the restoration that this is keen expectation!

"3. And from that time forth, the sons and daughters of Adam began to divide two and two [paired off in marriage] in the land, and to till the land, and to tend flocks, and they also begat sons and daughters [grandchildren to Adam and Eve." (Moses 5:3)  Note that this is a second affirmation that a third generation, or grandchildren, was now present with Adam and Eve. "The blessings of posterity that were received by Adam and Eve were also received by the second generation [and the third] proving the continuity of God's promises in response to his earlier commandments" (Draper p. 56) to replenish the earth. All of this while they were still sufficiently close to the Garden to hear the Voice of the Lord directing them from that glorious place. As they were faithful at this time and had learned all things, it is concluded they all participated in the new and everlasting covenant of marriage themselves. So when they apostasized the descent was horrendous.

"4. And Adam and Eve, his wife, called upon the name of the Lord, and they heard the voice of the Lord from the way toward the Garden of Eden, speaking unto them, and they saw him not; for they were shut out from his presence." (Moses 5:4)  They evidently had, before this event, often heard the voice of the Lord, and instructions continued to come from the Lord as long as they were near the Garden. Their move to Adami-ondi-Ahmen 70 miles north of the Garden region was sometime after this. There they built a new altar.

"5. And he gave unto them commandments, that they should worship the Lord their God, and should offer the firstlings of their flocks, for an offering unto the Lord. And Adam was obedient unto the commandments of the Lord." (Moses 5:4-5)

It seems that these commandments were given soon after their departure from the garden. Then followed the birth of two generations of Adam's children. Modern revelation, as noted below, modifies this to indicate that this was an early commandment before or at about the time the first children were being born, in fact not long after Adam and Eve had been expelled from the garden.  No doubt the commandment also included that it was the Firstling of the flocks that would be sacrificed, a further similitude of Christ. Adam and Eve had seen how this was to be done because God had sacrificed animals in the Garden in order to make special sacred garments for Adam and Eve. (Moses 4:27)  Since Adam had learned how to sacrifice he did not seem to need further instructions in that procedure.

"6. And after many days an angel of the Lord appeared unto Adam, saying: why does thou offer sacrifices unto the Lord? And Adam said unto him; I know not, save the Lord commanded me." (Moses 5:6) Evidently the Lord gave Adam a commandment, expecting him to obey it, without telling him why or what it was all about, in this he surely was being tested, and the angel sent to make the query was part of that testing, and they were found obedient.

"7. And then the Angel spake, saying: This thing [the sacrifice] is a similitude of the sacrifice of the Only Begotten of the Father, which is full of grace and truth." No doubt other redemptive doctrines were also taught at that time.

"8. Wherefore, thou shalt do all that thou doest in the name of the Son, and thou shalt repent, and call upon God in the name of the Son forever more.

"9.  And in that day the Holy Ghost fell upon Adam which beareth record of the Father and the Son saying: I am the only Begotten of the Father from the Beginning, henceforth and forever, that as thou hast fallen thou mayest be redeemed, all mankind [the children being born and those to be born, in fact the entire earth family], even as many as will." "With it (the baptism) Hibil-Ziwa baptized the first man Adam and it was preserved throughout the ages for the elect righteous." (Foerster p. 283)

"10. And in that day Adam blessed God and was filled, and began to prophesy [Children were there to hear this beginning of prophecies by Adam] concerning all the families of the earth, saying: Blessed be the name of God, for because of my transgression my eyes are opened, and in this life I shall have joy, and again in the flesh I shall see God." From the Mandean's we get something familiar:  "You have shown us that which the eye of man has (not yet) seen, and allowed us to hear that which the human ear has (not yet) heard. You have freed us from death and united us with life, released us from darkness and united us with light, you have rescued us from evil and joined us to good.  You have revealed the way of life to us and made us walk in the path of kusta [justice] and faith." (Foerster pp.  253-254)

"11. And Eve, his wife, heard all these things and was glad, saying Were it not for our transgression we never should have had seed, and never should have known good and evil, and the joy of our redemption, and the eternal life which God giveth unto all the obedient.

"12. And Adam and Eve blessed the name of God, and they made all things known unto their sons and their daughters." (Moses 5:7-12) Just as they had been instructed to do.

THE PROMISE 

As these first children were born and multiplied and grandchildren were born to them, a significant promise was made to Adam and his family. A revelation was given to the Prophet Joseph Smith, in the presence of six elders, at Fayette, New York, some days before September 30, 1830, which date was the first conference of the church since its beginning in June 1830.  It includes: "41. Wherefore, I, the Lord God, caused that he should be cast out from the Garden of Eden, from my presence, because of his transgression, wherein he became spiritually dead, which is the first death, even that same death which is the first death, which is spiritual, which shall be pronounced upon the wicked when I shall say: Depart, ye cursed.  42. But, behold, I say unto you that I, the Lord God, gave unto Adam and unto his seed, that they should not die as to the temporal death, until I, the Lord God, should send forth angels to declare unto them repentance and redemption, through faith on the name of mine Only Begotten Son." (D&C 29:41-42)  Note that angels, plural, were sent to teach Adam and his children, just as indicated in Alma 12:29. Can we expect ancient documents to confirm that angels, with different names, were sent and did instruct Adam and Eve and their children?  "43. And thus did I, the Lord God, appoint unto man the days of his probation—that by his natural death he might be raised in immortality unto eternal life, even as many as would believe." (D&C 29:43)  "And the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God...and their time was lengthened." (2 Ne. 2:19-25)  None of this history is preserved in Genesis or the Jewish record. But in other ancient records, not in the present cannon of scriptures, they are present.  They will be referred to.

SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS

Special instructions were also given to Adam and Eve in the Garden and out of the Garden. We find specific information that confirms Mormon doctrine in the Apocalypse of Adam translated by Foerster. These instructions came from three men with authorization and priesthood. "For I saw three men before me...in their nature [glory] they surpassed those whom I had seen. They came to me and appeared to me, saying to me: ‘Arise, Adam, out of the sleep of death. And hear about the Aeon [eternity] and the seed [Christ] of that man [Christ] to whom life has come, who came [or who would come] forth from you and from Eve your consort [wife]." (Foerster p. 16)  Adam knew he had fallen under the dominion of death. "But now my son Seth, will I reveal to you what those [three] men revealed to me, who I saw before me earlier." (Foerster p. 17)  What Adam taught Seth is easily understood by a temple going Mormon but hardly by anybody else. (See Foerster p 22-23)  Or by those perhaps acquainted with Early Christian

Jewish Christianity. (Pritz  preface)  Besides the Nag Hammadi texts quoted above, the Mandeans also knew about these three men who came to teach Adam and Eve. "Do not hearken to the teaching of the false prophets, who set themselves up as ‘prophets of kusta' and make themselves equal to the three uthras [angels], who came into the world. Their [Lucifer's and his angels] radiance is no radiance at all, their [the three men] garment is a garment of fire." (Foerster p. 297) Note the form of angels of both types:

"For the angels of imperfection take the same form as us, the three messengers, who have come..." (Foerster p. 297)

It was Nephi who informed moderns about the pre-existent role played by the twelve apostles and the leadership thereof. "And he also saw twelve others following him [Christ], and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament." (l Nephi l:10)  The brightness of the three men who appeared to Adam exceeded the brightness of a being appearing to Adam, (Foerster p. 16) saying he is the God of this Earth. "But their Great one is blind. Because of his might and his ignorance and his arrogance he said in his [vanity], ‘I am God; there is none beside me,' When he said this, he sinned against the All. And this speech reached up to Imperishability. But lo! A voice came forth from Imperishability, saying. ‘You are wrong Samael,' which is, ‘the God of the blind'."  (Bullard pp. 19-21)  Samael is another name for Satan.  Satan himself sent messengers or ministers, to Adam. (Milik p. 124) "They pervert the First Doctrine (suta) and cast lies, falsehood, and disorder into the world and call themselves prophet (nibihe) and say: ‘We are messengers (slihe)." (Foerster pp. 296-297)  But, true messengers they were not! 

THE TIME OF GREAT INSTRUCTIONS:

It is clear that of the first two generations of the children of Adam and Eve none of them died until the promises were fulfilled. They were all instructed by Adam and Eve. "And Adam and Eve blessed the name of God, and they made all things known unto their sons and their daughters." (Moses 5:12) Note that God participated in this instruction, and sent "forth Angels [plural] to declare ...repentance and redemption." D&C 29:42) "Therefore he sent angels to converse with them, who caused men to behold of his glory" (Alma 12:29) "Therefore God conversed with men, and made known unto them the plan of redemption, which had been prepared from the foundation of the ‘world." (Alma 12:30) Complete and thorough instructions were given to those first descendants of Adam and Eve, so they would be left without any excuse. (Alma 12:31-36) Some of them beheld his glory, and others had glorious visions But God "...promised eternal damnation for those who would not believe and not repent." (D&C 29:44-45)  

Enoch had a thorough knowledge of the details of Adam's history and instructions and recounts these details, especially the details of the superlative discourse from divinity Adam received just before his own baptism and so applicable to day. (Moses 6:51-68)  It was Enoch who recounted the details of the plan of Salvation taught to Adam and the requirements to gain salvation, and the actual baptism of Adam. (Moses 6:62-65)  From the Nag Hammadi sources some have concluded: "(l) not-knowing, forgetfulness, oblivion of the Father ...[was] the real ‘original sin'." (Helmbold p. 43)  Without the visions given to Joseph Smith of all these events and doctrines we would be in the same darkness that pervades most of Christianity concerning these things.  The ancient documents clearly demonstrate that the primitive church and those that soon followed had most of this knowledge. How, why and when did they lose it all? (Reynolds)

THE SON OF MAN AND MAN OF HOLINESS

Adam and Eve were instructed in one unique doctrine. Of extreme importance and interest is the identification of Jesus Christ as the Son of Man and the only begotten of the Father, and the Father as Man of Holiness. (Moses 6:57)  Since this doctrine is unclear and essentially missing from the New Testament, it has led to endless debates. But ancient documents confirm one of Father's names is ‘Man'. "Some positive attributes and metaphors do apply to him: Light, Life, Spirit, Father, the Good—but not Creator, Ruler, Judge [which applies to Christ]. Significantly, in some systems, one of his secret names is ‘Man'."  (Jonas p. 268) and " ‘Man' as an eternal, precosmic principle (even identified with the First Being himself)." (Jonas p. 268) "...the supreme and transmundane God, himself often called ‘Man'." (Jonas p. 270)  Through the visions given to Joseph Smith we are informed of things lost and forgotten by man, but they were had among the first two generations of Adam's posterity. Their fall from such knowledge is a great descent. Enoch had been given a detailed vision of all the doings, and therefore all that was taught them, of the children of men. (Moses 7:41) Some new data in Dead Sea Scroll research (VanderKam),  and Aramaic sources. ( Levey)  will permit a more detailed study of Son of Man in the future. The Jews understood who the Son of Man was more clearly than the records indicate later Christians did.  (VanderKam p.190) In the first century there maybe an original reference to "my son the Messiah." (cf 4 Ezra &;28-29;  VanderKam p. 188)  Satan tried to pan himself off to Moses that he was "the Only Begotten, worship me." (Moses l:19)  Moses didn't buy it. Why do others do so?

Anti-Mormons get bent out of shape when they learn that it is accepted that Lucifer is also a spirit son of God, and therefore a brother to all mankind and a younger brother of Christ, who because of his rebellion was cast out and can never have a mortal body. Yet, this doctrine was well known in the first and second centuries. "This is the first Archon [evil leader], he who took a great strength from his mother; [establishing a mother in heaven!] and he went away from her and turned away [rebelled] from the regions where he was born [as a spirit son]." (Giversen p. 65) ..."This archon who was weak had three names: the first name is Ialtabaoth; the second is Saklas; the third is Samael, [the blind god], but he was ungodly in his ignorance which is in him for he said: ‘I am God and there is no other God but me' for he was ignorant of his strength, the place from which he came." (Giversen p 67)  "Therefore he called himself ‘God'. But he was not obedient to that place form which he came." (Giversen p. 69) Christian Churches do not understand all this. But Mormons do.

"An angel of God who was in authority in the presence of God, who rebelled against the Only Begotten Son whom the Father loved and who was in the bosom of the Father, was thrust down from the presence of God and the Son. And was called perdition, for the heavens wept over him—he was Lucifer, a son of the morning.[which means early born, Christ is called The Son of the Morning, he is the First Born in the Spirit World. Lucifer was an early born spirit.]." (D&C 76: 25-26) Surely one who grieved and wept was Mother.  What an unusual story!  Lucifer, Satan, Samael, a son of God, an early born son in the Spirit World, rebelled and was thrust out. And the heavens wept! To discovery this story in these ancient documents is overwhelming. "But when the mother had recognized the veil of darkness because he [an early born son] was not created perfect and she knew that her partner did not agree with her, she grieved [wept] with much weeping and the whole Pleroma [spirit world] heard the prayer of her [grieving]." (Giversen p. 73)  "...and lo, he is fallen! Is fallen, even a son of the morning!" (D&C 76:28)

LUCIFER'S FIRST RECORDED APPEARANCE AMONG MORTAL MEN

Not until after this complete instruction from Adam and Eve, from Angels sent by God, from the voice and person of God himself, and all other aspects of teaching, with the promise none would die until thorough instructions on the Gospel was an accomplished fact, was Lucifer allowed to work his fury among men. Though we learn from one source he pestered Adam and Eve soon after they were expelled from the Garden, in the Garden he asserted the fact that he was a brother to Adam and Eve and the God of this Earth.. Studies of the Enoch materials from Qumran include  "From the time the devil fell from the glory of the Father and lost his own glory, he sat upon the clouds, and sent his ministers, even angels flaming with fire, unto men from Adam, even to Enoch." (Milik p. 124; D&C 76:25-28) Whoever taught that ministers had been sent early on to Adam and Eve? And by no less a personage than Lucifer himself!  As soon as he was permitted to do so "Satan came among them, saying: I am also a son of God; and he commanded them, saying, Believe it not; [the doctrines they had received about the gospel] and they believed it not and they loved Satan more than God, And men began from that time forth to be carnal, sensual, and devilish." And they totally ignored the Holy Ghost.  (Moses 5:13-14)  "This is the first mention of Lucifer's activities [in canonical records] among mortals." (Draper p. 62) While the promise was that they would not die until their instruction had been completed, it does not say that they were not tempted, they had their free agency, and Satan may have laid the foundations for his eventual activity in all his fury as signaled by Moses 5:13. There is also the reference in 2 Nephi  where it talks about the "being [Satan] who beguiled our first parents, who transformeth himself nigh unto an angel of light and stirreth up the children [the first children] of men unto secret combinations of murder and all manner of secret works of darkness." (2 Ne. 9:9)

Because the great secret combinations were developed after the birth of Cain and even through Cain, it seems that Satan appeared as an ‘Angel of Light' more than once; early on to Adam and Eve and their first children, and then later to Cain and his descendants.  Satan was as effective then as he is at present, and even though "the Lord God called upon men by the Holy Ghost everywhere and commanded them that they should repent." (Moses 5:14) they heard not, they repented not!  They followed Satan, having no time for the Holy Ghost. Having no leisure for the Holy Spirit, or Holy Ghost, was one of the main reasons for their downfall. The ancient documents and the account in Moses agree on this, but the doctrines were lost or deleted from the Jewish record and are not there now.  Bit recent discoveries verify they were once had among men.

CAIN, ABEL AND SETH

And afterwards, after all of the above and the loss of at least two generations, Eve  bore Cain. (Moses 5:16; Gen. 4:1) and shortly thereafter she bore Abel. (Moses 5:17; Gen. 4:2)  "And it came to pass that Cain took one of his brother's daughters [a grandchild of Adam, a member of the third generation] to wife, and they loved Satan more than God." This information is not found in Genesis, in fact in Genesis (TEV) it states: "Cain and his wife had a son..."  (Gen, TV, 4:17; Reyburn p. 121)  "The narrator [Moses?] does not bother to explain how and where Cain got his wife." (Reyburn p. 121) Or who the brother was that had many daughters!  Since Abel had no issue, this women would have been a child of another brother, another son of Adam of the first generation. Moses 5 and 6 clears up a lot of things left out of Genesis. When Joseph had these omissions corrected by revelation, confirmation that he got it right surely must confirm that he was indeed a prophet. All of these little things contribute to show just how great Joseph Smith really was, and how necessary revelation was. "..a  conception of human history as the growing ingression of knowledge in the generations of man, and this requires revelation as a required vehicle of its progress. The need for revelation is inherent in the paralyzed innercosmic condition of the captive spirit, and its occurrence alters that condition." (Jonas p. 270) Adam continued to labor with his children, and "hearkened unto the voice of God, and called upon his sons to repent." (Moses 6:1) Some may have, most did not. Cain fathered a large posterity, (Anderson p. 60) all were evil. With many of his apostate brothers and their wives, he moved way east of Eden and built a city he called Enoch after the name of his first son. (Moses 5:41-42)  Secret combinations multiplied, to be a member one had to engage in homosexual activity. (Moses 5: 50-51; Draper p. 76) And after the great tragedy of Cain and Abel, "Adam knew his wife again, and she bare a son, and he called his name Seth." (Moses 6:2)  Seth was an entirely different story, a subject for future studies.

THE DOCUMENTS FROM NAG HAMMADI

Now let's examine some discoveries made since 1945 and mostly translated since 1974 for evidence that the essentials in the above discussion surrounding the fifth chapter of Moses are now available and confirm that Joseph did restore lost doctrines. In 1945, an Egyptian Arab named Mohammad, who had just committed a vengeance murder and was hiding out, and some other fellahin, looking for nitrous fertilizer near Nag Hammadi in Upper Egypt, found a jar that contained many documents. This was near where the south running railroad crosses the Nile River; one fourth of the way between Cairo and Luxor, (Robinson 1974, p. 3) This is where St. Pachomius started to build Monasteries [about 310 AD].  (Athanassakis p. 3) Pachomius, a convert to Christianity while on conscript duty with the Roman Army, built the first Christian Monasteries. Eventually ten were built in this region. Excavations of these started more than 25 years ago.

Mohammad and his fellow fellahin found thirteen [fragments of pages suggest at least fourteen] papyrus codices in an earthenware jar at the foot of Gebel-et Tarif. (Foerster p. 3)  Eleven of the codices were still in their leather binding, having been bound between 316 to 354 AD. Originally a "total of about 1,400 pages....[of which] we still possess around 1150 pages," (Foerster op, 3) they make up the Library of Nag Hammadi.  Eventually some 90 % of the discovery was retrieved. (Robinson 1974 p. 5) These "Gnostic books were probably manufactured, copied, and read by Christian monks in a monastery or monasteries founded by Pachomius.!" ( Pearson p. viii) 

A CUP OF TEA

Unaware of the value of the discovery the mother of Mohammad had used the leaves of one codex  "...as fuel for making their tea." (Foerster p. 3)  The codices found their way to various antiquity dealers.  Eventually they were brought to the attention of a specialist in Coptic in France, Jean Doresse, the first to study the discovery. (Robinson 1974 p. 3)  In Cairo Doresse met with Togo Mino, Director of the Coptic Museum of Cairo (See the CD or tape on Nag Hammadi) they eventually were able, through contacts and various antiquity dealers, (Robinson 1974 pp. 4-5) to retrieve some eleven of the codices. Even thouigh they did not have them all, together they announced the discovery in February 1948. (Doresse p. xii)  Early on there were difficulties, including a cholera epidemic, the Suez war, the smuggling of one or more of the missing codices into America, later into Europe, where it ended up in the Jung Institute in Zurich as a gift to the famous psychologist Carl Jung. Recognizing its importance,  Jung had the document translated by Gilles Quispel in Istanbul. Quispel provides a detailed account of the complexity and travels of what is now called the Jung Codex. (Quispel pp. 4-7)  Eventually the documents involved the United Nations, under UNESCO, and Dr. James M. Robinson (Robinson 2000, FORWARD), to get the Nag Hammadi discoveries at Chenoboskion, organized and eventually published. (Robinson 1974)  As a friend, James M. Robinson was kind enough that when one of the more than 50 scholars assigned the task of translation, commentary and research, was killed, many of the papers, essentially on the Sethian aspects of the documents, were sent to me. They will form the basis for future additions to this web site. The Jung Codex was eventually given back to the Cairo Museum.

There is a lot more to the story of the recovery of the documents and their translation, but it would require more space than can be allocated at this time. Probably the best summary is that provided by Jean Doresse himself. (Doresse pp. xi-xvii)

ONLY FOR THE INITIATES

This discovery at Nag Hammadi, is called the Gnostic Library.  It is not the only documents representing the Gnostics, which finally divided into at least 32 different groups "made known to use by the patristic texts." (Foerster p. 7) But it is one of the most important. "The Gnostic religion was not only a force that interacted with early Christianity and Judaism in their formative periods, but also a significant religious position in its own right. ....information for this movement are the so-called Nag Hammadi Codices...the texts literally begin where the Dead Sea Scrolls end...their discovery has been seen as equally significant...bringing...insights into Hellenistic Judaism and the roots of Christianity." (Robinson 2000, Preface)  "These are some of the original documents of the Gnostics. Until now we have known this religion almost solely from secondary sources, the reports of the Church Fathers." (Foerster p. 4) Among previous known documents, including "the writings of Askew and Bruce codices, [these were found in 1776 by the intrepid explorer James Bruce], evidently stand at the end of this development....The Gnostic literature was very extensive, and a large part of it, as secret writings, was accessible only to a few initiates and not to their opponents." (Foerster pp. 4-5)  "Many documents advance the claim to be a secret revelation by the risen Jesus before his Ascension." (Foester p. 9)

Quispel, who independently translated, the Jung Codex, which contains five important tractates, believes that many of the tractates of the Nag Hammadi originate in "Jewish heterodoxy ...and heterodox Judaism," (Quispel p. 19) and many of the Nag Hammadi texts had "to a great extent [been] Christianized," (Quispel p. 16), following "some early Christian writers, notably the Jewish Christian Hegisippus c. AD 150, [who] came to seek the origins of Gnosticism in heterodox Judaism." ( Quispel p. 19)  Most of the tractates seem to have been composed in Greek, before 120-150 AD, thereafter they were translated into Sahadic Coptic with bizarre and weird doctrines added.  They therefore represent religious thinking and ideas in circulation within the first centuries of the Christian movement and development.

"Before the discovery of the Nag Hammadi library, Gnosticism...had been seen in its essence as a Christian heresy...later Christian writers such as Adolf von Harnack, (1851-1930), saw Gnosticism as the ‘thorough-going Hellenization of Christianity." (Logan p. xiii)  Logan himself, a more recent writer, considers that Gnosticism "has a claim to being a religion in its own right, with its distinctive understandings of God, the world, humanity, and salvation." (Logan p. xix) Not being familiar with the LDS restoration, he does not know that what he singles out is precisely that which was lost in the first millennium after the death of Christ and restored in early 1830's by the Prophet Joseph Smith. Logan does describe the controversy surrounding the interpretation of the Gnostic Texts and lays a foundation for his own interpretation. (Logan pp. xviii-xxi)  

What people came to accept as canonized Christianity after 325 AD was the "powerful, and thus the more prevalent voice, only because the chorus of others has been muted." (Bauer p. xxi) With the new discoveries, the muted voices now sound out loud and clear, and confirm that another muted voice, the LDS Church, carries the banner of what was really taught in the primitive church. "Certain manifestations of Christian life [and doctrines] that the authors of the church renounce as ‘heresies' originally had not been such at all, but, at least here and there, were the only forms of the new religion—that is, for those regions they were simply ‘Christianity.'" (Bauer p. xxii)  "Orthodoxy [then and now] designates the preference of the given majority, while ‘heresy' is characterized by the fact that only the minority adhere to it." (Bauer p. xxii)  In a sense it describes the year 2006.   

THAT FATEFUL EASTER SUNDAY OF 367 AD

On Easter Sunday, 367 AD, Athanasius of Alexandria, (296-372), issued an edict. "Even the Festal Letter of Athanasius (from 367 CE containing a clear acknowledgement of the New Testament canon of twenty-seven book permits the reading of other literature." (Peter Balla, in McDonald p. 385) But he also commanded that certain other books, in fact many other books, containing doctrines not in the 27 books he put forth, be burned.  Rather than burn the listed books and comply with the edict, monks in Pachomius' Monasteries, put some of the banned books into a jar, sealed the lid with bituminous material and buried it; to be found in 1945. Athanasius was present during the Arian Controversy (320 AD), and during the first ecumenical council at Nicea (325 AD), eventually ascending in authority and power, four times banished from the church, and in hiding for many years, from Arian Emperors, finally obtaining papal authority of his own, which he abused by canceling 40 or more texts from the cannon of the New Testament. On what authority? Those deleted books and others, contained, mixed with perverted and bizarre ideas, much of what today is called the restored gospel. The recovery of the ancient books now provides confirmation of the modern restoration of doctrines. (See Moyer p 21-22)   

THE NATURE OF THE GODS

"In Codex II of Nag Hammadi, on page 86, 20-97, 23, a work has come down to us to which a title appended at the end reads: ‘The Hypostasis [nature] of the Archons [Gods, Rulers]." (Foerster p. 40)  ..."There follows a narrative, with some omissions, of the events in Gen. 4:1-5, the story of Adam's [first] children...[and afterwards they begot] Cain and Abel (91, 11-29)...and finally an interpretation of Gen 5:4 (Adam begot sons and daughters)." (Foerster p. 42)   Some time after the death of Able and at least after several generations were born to Cain (Gen 4:16-21) and not until Adam was 135 years old did he and Eve have Seth, (Gen. 4:24; 5:3) but not until after the loss of the first two generations of the children of Adam and Eve, and after the death of Abel, and after the total apostasy of Cain.   

Foerster provides in his translation of the Hypostasis of the Archons, the essentials of doctrine that confirm the additions to Genesis through revelation to Joseph Smith, and Moses 5, that Adam and Eve had children before Cain was born and answers other questions raised in the previous text.  

We take the following from Foerster's translation and commentary:

"They turned to their Adam. They took him (and) cast him out of Paradise. (Gen. 3:23a) with his wife. For there is no blessing with them because they, too are under the curse. But they cast men [children born to Adam and Eve] into great toils and troubles of life (cf. Gen. 3:17-19), that their men [the early children born to Adam and Eve] should become attached to life and have NO LEISURE TO DEVOTE THEMSELVES TO THE HOLY SPIRIT. But afterwards she gave birth to their son Cain. And Cain tilled the ground." (Foerster pp. 47-48)  In this quote three things are stated:  1. Men were cast into toils and troubles.  These were children of Adam and Eve.  'Men' is in the plural, and Adam and Eve had the company of those early children.  2. They, these children, or men, took no time to avail themselves of the Holy Ghost. 3. Afterwards, or after men had been cast into toils and troubles and lost the Holy Ghost, by lack of accessing him and not taking the time to do so, Cain is born. "Again he [Adam} knew his wife. She became pregnant again (and) gave birth to Abel. But Abel was a herdsman." (Foerster p. 48)  Seth was born some time after the episode where Cain killed Abel.  From there you know the story.

From Bullard we take another translation:

 "They turned to their Adam, they seized him, they caste him out of the Garden with his wife, because there is no blessing for them, since they are under the curse as well. But they cast men into great distractions and pains in life, so that their men should be preoccupied with life, and not have time to attend on the Holy Spirit. But after these things she bore their son Cain. But Cain worked the ground." (Bullard p. 29)  Like the previous translation

the history, and doctrinal issues raised show Joseph Smith got it right.

And for another version, we use the translation by Bentley Layton, in James M. Robinson's Vol. 2, Edited works of the Nag Hammadi Library:

"They turned to their Adam and took him and expelled him from the garden along with his wife; for they have no blessing, since they too are beneath the curse. Moreover they threw mankind into great distraction and into a life of toil, so that their mankind might be occupied by worldly affairs, and might not have the opportunity of being devoted to the holy spirit. Now afterwards, she bore Cain, their son; and Cain cultivated the land." (Layton p. 245, in Robinson 2000 Vol. 2)  This text is the clearest translation and agrees the closest to that contained in the 5^th Chapter of Moses and the works of Joseph Smith.  

All three translations verify the doctrines that Adam and Eve had at least two generations of children who went astray and lost contact with the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost, and all before the birth of Cain.  These other children would have provided the wife for Cain that Genesis leaves up in the air.

These translations and others that are referred to, all confirm that doctrines elucidated in the Book of Mormon, in the 5^th Chapter of Moses, and in the Doctrine & Covenants, are all consistent and reflect what ancient documents now assert that anciently these details were known. Haven been lost, the need of revelation to restore them was required. Now that revelation has restored them these past 170 years, ancient documents now recovered disclose the errors of those who disbelieve and attack the veracity of the Mormon texts.  

NOREA, A DAUGHTER OF ADAM AND EVE

But we need a further witness that the children of Adam were also taught. The Hypostasis of the Archons, informs us of the birth of a daughter. "Again Eve became pregnant and bore Norea, and said: ‘He has begotten a virgin for me, as a help for generations upon generations of men. This is the virgin whom the powers have not defiled. Then men began to multiply and increase." (Foerster p. 48)  An episode involving Norea and an angel interceding on her behalf, confirms the Book of Mormon statement that Angels were sent to visit Adam and Eve and their children as noted above. "But Norea turned in the power of God, She cried out with a loud voice and said to the Holy One, the God of the All. ‘Help me against the Archons of unrighteousness and rescue me out of their hands.' [Lucifer was always trying to get to any and all of the Children of Adam and Eve. Many recognized, like Norea, he was a leader of the unrighteous]. At once the angel came down from heaven and said to her: ‘Why are you crying up to god? Why do you boldly advance upon the Holy Spirit?' Norea said: ‘Who are you?' The Archon of unrighteousness had departed from her. He said; ‘I am Eleleth, the wisdom, the great angel, who stands before the Holy Spirit. I have been sent to speak with you and to rescue you out of the hands of the lawless ones. And I shall teach you about your root [origins]'." (Foerster p. 49)  Eleleth is one of the seven great Angles to attend God. Then a great deal more is said, and the conversation with the Angel is most interesting. Plainly, the Angel teaches her doctrines of the Plan of Salvation and internal hope. He tells her "There is a curtain [veil] between those above and the aeons which are below." (Foerster p. 50)  He tells her about the sin of Samael, the blind god, and his not so bright future. (Foerster p. 50)  Clearly Eleleth is a different angel than the one who appeared and asked Adam and Eve about their sacrifices and taught them about the similitude of the sacrifice Christ himself would make. And why should Eleleth teach Norea about her origins unless she also had a  pre-existence, where she had been born and nurtured as a spirit preparatory to being given life on earth?  By giving her knowledge about the veil he says something about a subject about which most Christians know nothing today. Subtle details in the Doctrines restored by Joseph are found in these ancient documents again and again.  But clearly, they are only for the informed to understand. Are you one of the informed?  

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Source that have an * before them are LDS Souces, all others are non-LDS

Athanassakis, Apostolos N., The Life of Pachomius, SBL, Scholars Press, Missoula, Montana, 1975

*Andersen, Todd G., Genesis Made Whole, Best Books Publishing, Provo, Utah 1989

Bullard, Roger A., The Hypostasis of the Archons, W. de Gruyter & Co, Berlin, 1970

Bauer, Walter, Orthodoxy and Heresy in Earliest Christianity"  Fortress Press, Philadelphia, 1971

*Campbell, Beverly, Eve and  The Choice Made in Eden, Bookcraft, Salt Lake City, 2003

Doresse, Jean, The Secret Books of the Egyptian Gnostics, Viking Press, New York, 1960

*Draper, Richard D., S. Ken Brown, & Michael D. Rhodes, The Pearl of Great Price, A Verse-by-Verse Commentary, Deseret Book, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2005

Foerster, Werner,  Transl. by R. Mcl. Wilson, Gnosis, 11. Coptic and Mandean Sources, Oxford at the Clarendon Press, London 1974

Giversen, Soren,  Apocryphon Johannis, Prostant Apud Mujnksgaard, Copenhaen 1963)

Graves, A.,&  R. Patan,  Hebrew Myths, 1963

Helmbold, Andrew K., The Nag Hammadi Gnostic Texts and the Bible, Baker House Books, Grand Rapids, Michigan 1967

Jonas, Hans, Philosophical Essays, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood, New Jersey 1974

Levey, Samson H., The Messiah: An Aramaic Interpretation, The Messianic Exegesis of the Targum, Hebrew Union College, Jerusalem, 1974

Logan, Alistair H. B., Gnostic Truth and Christian Heresy,  Hendrickson, Peabody, Mass. 1996

MacLaurin, E. C. B., Joseph and Asaph, Vetus Testamentum, Vol. XXV Jan. 1975, No. l, E. J., Brill, Leiden  1975

McDonald, Lee Martin, and James A. Sanders, Ed. The Canon Debate, Hendrickson, Peabody,  Mass., 2002

Milik, J.T., Ed. The Books of Enoch, Aramaic Fragments of Qumran Cave 4, Oxford, at the Clarendon Press, London, 1976

Moyer,  Elgin S., Who Was Who in Church History, Moody Press, Chicago 1962

Pearson, Berger A., Int. The Life of Pachomius, Scholars Press, Missoula, Montana 1975

*Petersen, Mark E., Adam Who was He? Deseret Book Co., Salt Lake City, Ut. 1976

Pritz, Ray A., Nazarene Jewish Christianity, Magnes Press, E.J. Brill, Hebrew University, Jerusalem 1988

Quispel, Gilles., Gnostic Studies, Vol. l., Istanbul and Leiden, 1974

Reyburn, William D., & Euan McG. Fry,  A Translator's  Handbook on Genesis, United

Bible Society, New York, 1992

*Reynolds, Noel B., Ed. Early Christians in Disarray, FARMS, BYU, Provo, Utah, 2005

Robinson, James M.,  1974, The Nag Hammadi Codices, Institute for Antiquity and Christianity for the Smithsonian Institution Exhibit, Claremont, Claremont, Calif. 1974

.........................Ed. 2000, The Coptic Gnostic Library, Vol. l, Brill, Leiden 2000

.........................Ed. 2000, Bentley Layton in, The Coptic Gnostic Library, Vol.2, Brill, Leiden 2000

VanderKam, James C., Ed. Messianism;  in Dead Sea Discoveries, Vo. 2, No. 2, E. J., Brill,  Leiden,  June 1995