Adam and Eve Books 1 & 2 - Worthy of Zion

The Pearl of Great Price is a book unique to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is a compilation of books by Moses, Abraham, Matthew 24, and Joseph Smith History. The Book of Moses came from Joseph Smith’s translation of the bible (often referred to as the “inspired translation”. The Book of Abraham came from Joseph Smith translated Egyptian papyri found with mummies and sold to the church. Matthew 24 came from the Joseph Smith-inspired translation of the bible. And of course, there is the history of Joseph Smith that details the founding of the church.

The story of Adam and Eve are found in two of those four books; Abraham and Moses. It is also found in Genesis in the Bible. The more I learn about the gospel of Jesus Christ, the more I learn there are three things God likes to show his prophets. First, the beginning, or the story of Adam and Eve. Second, the middle, or the meridian of time. The life and sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The Atonement that overcame the fall in the beginning. Third, the end. The second coming. The culmination of all God’s works. God will fulfill the promises he made in the beginning. That brings us back to the beginning, the story of Adam and Eve.

Did you also know that the story of Adam and Eve is told in the Apocryphal?

What is the Apocryphal someone may ask? It is a collection of scriptures that were taken out of the bible because they were deemed as not inspired, nor could their author be confirmed. That is pretty interesting. Consider a book like Adam and Eve. It would be five to six thousand years old. It would have existed through the flood. Before the written word, these stories would have been passed orally for thousands of years until someone wrote it on papyri or metal plates. Is it any different than the early books of the bible? Would they not have been passed the same way? Namely Genisis?

Joseph Smith inquired of the Lord about doing an inspired translation of the Apocrypha similar to what he did with the bible. Here is what the Lord told him in Doctrine and Covenants 91

1 Verily, thus saith the Lord unto you concerning the Apocrypha—There are many things contained therein that are true, and it is mostly translated correctly;

2 There are many things contained therein that are not true, which are interpolations by the hands of men.

3 Verily, I say unto you, that it is not needful that the Apocrypha should be translated.

4 Therefore, whoso readeth it, let him understand, for the Spirit manifesteth truth;

5 And whoso is enlightened by the Spirit shall obtain benefit therefrom;

6 And whoso receiveth not by the Spirit, cannot be benefited. Therefore it is not needful that it should be translated. Amen.
Doctrine and Covenants 91 (churchofjesuschrist.org)

It is with that spirit I have approached the books of the Apocrypha. I started listening to the 1st and 2nd Books of Adam and Eve over the weekend while working around the house.

It’s been like a bomb going off in my head. How could this exist and the world not accept it? There are so many things in it that validate the translations by Joseph Smith.

Outline of the text: The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: The First Book of Adam and Eve (sacred-texts.com)

Adam and Eve: The Forgotten Books of Eden Index (sacred-texts.com)

In short, Adam and Eve are expelled from the Garden of Eden in the beginning of the first book. The Lord commands them to live in The Cave of Treasures. From there an interesting story takes place. There are a few things taking place.

They are learning to follow the Lord
They are learning to live outside the Garden [XII]
They are seeking to die [IX, X, XXV]
They are seeking to return to the Garden [X, XI, XXI]
They are both curious and scared of their new world [VII, XIX]
They are continually interacting with Satan [XVII, XVIII, XLV]

There are a few things that really shocked me.

The creation
The Atonement of Jesus Christ [XIV, XXIV, XXXI, XLIX]
The divine origin of Satan [XXVII]
The covenant with Adam that he would return to the garden when the work was finished. [XXVI]
They worshiped God [XXIII]

COVENANTS

“O Adam, I have made My covenant with thee, and I will not turn from it; neither will I let thee return to the garden until My covenant of the great five days and a half is fulfilled.”
https://sacred-texts.com/bib/fbe/fbe012.htm

“I have made thee a promise; when that promise is fulfilled, I will bring thee back into the garden, thee and thy righteous seed.”
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter X (sacred-texts.com)

God told Adam that his posterity would return to the garden in 5500 years. Now, we know it is closer to 6000 years, but we also know Adam lived about 930 years. But this story says over and over they were only out of the garden for days. It is mentioned multiple times.

“O Adam, all this misery which thou hast wrought upon thyself, will not avail against My rule, neither will it alter the covenant of the 5500 years.”
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XXI (sacred-texts.com)

This is interesting… talk of tokens.

AFTER these things God said unto Adam, “Thou didst ask of Me something from the garden, to be comforted therewith, and I have given thee these three tokens as a consolation to thee; that thou trust in Me and in My covenant with thee.

2 “For I will come and save thee; and kings shall bring me when in the flesh, gold, incense and myrrh; gold as a token of My kingdom; incense as a token of My divinity; and myrrh as a token of My suffering and of My death.

11 These three things did God give to Adam, on the third day after he had come out of the garden, in token of the three days the Lord should remain in the heart of the earth.
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XXXI (sacred-texts.com)

ATONEMENT

Then there is this… Jehovah, Jesus Christ telling Adam that he will come down and atone for sin.

4 “But I will. When I shall come down from heaven, and shall become flesh of thy seed, and take upon Me the infirmity from which thou sufferest, then the darkness that came upon thee in this cave shall come upon Me in the grave, when I am in the flesh of thy seed.

5 “And I, who am without years, shall be subject to the reckoning of years, of times, of months, and of days, and I shall be reckoned as one of the sons of men, in order to save thee.”
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XIV (sacred-texts.com)

4 Then came the Word of God to Adam, and said unto him, “O Adam, as thou hast shed thy blood, so will I shed My own blood when I become flesh of thy seed; and as thou didst die, O Adam, so also will I die. And as thou didst build an altar, so also will I make for thee an altar on the earth; and as thou didst offer thy blood upon it, so also will I offer My blood upon an altar on the earth.

5 “And as thou didst sue for forgiveness through that blood, so also will I make My blood forgiveness of sins, and blot out transgressions in it.
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XXIV (sacred-texts.com)

7 “And, again, as regards the Water of Life thou seekest, it will not be granted thee this day; but on the day that I shall shed My blood upon thy head in the land of Golgotha.

8 “For My blood shall be the Water of Life unto thee, at that time, and not to thee alone, but unto all those of thy seed who shall believe in Me; that it be unto them for rest for ever.”
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XLII (sacred-texts.com)

8 “And this sign, O Adam, will happen to Me at My coming upon earth: Satan will raise the people of the Jews to put Me to death; and they will lay Me in a rock, and seal a large stone upon Me, and I shall remain within that rock three days and three nights.

9 “But on the third day I shall rise again, and it shall be salvation to thee, O Adam, and to thy seed, to believe in Me. But, O Adam, I will not bring thee from under this rock until three days and three nights are passed.”
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XLIX (sacred-texts.com)

SATAN

The serpent was once the most beautiful creature. Maybe that is why it was so tempting to Eve?

5 And, whereas it had been the most beautiful of all beasts, all of which stood dumb at its beauty, it was now abhorred of them
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XVII (sacred-texts.com)

Satan can mimic God and Light. He lies to Adam in order to deceive him.

WHEN Satan, the hater of all good, saw how they continued in prayer, and how God communed with them, and comforted them, and how He had accepted their offering–Satan made an apparition.

2 He began with transforming his hosts; in his hands was a flashing fire, and they were in a great light.

3 He then placed his throne near the mouth of the cave because he could not enter into it by reason of their prayers. And he shed light into the cave, until the cave glistened over Adam and Eve; while his hosts began to sing praises.

4 And Satan did this, in order that when Adam saw the light, he should think within himself that it was a heavenly light, and that Satan’s hosts were angels; and that God had sent them to watch at the cave, and to give him light in the darkness.

12 No sooner had Adam said this, than an angel from God appeared unto him in the cave, who said unto him, “O Adam, fear not. This is Satan and his hosts; he wishes to deceive you as he deceived you at first. For the first time, he was hidden in the serpent; but this time he is come to you in the similitude of an angel of light; in order that, when you worshipped him, he might enthrall you, in the very presence of God.”

14 And the angel said to Adam, “This hideous form has been his ever since God made him fall from heaven. He could not have come near you in it; therefore did he transform himself into an angel of light.”
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XXVII (sacred-texts.com)

This is really interesting. It expounds upon the idea that Adam was exalted like God. Then Satan deprived him of that exaltation and the Godhead. Adam was deprived of Glory. Note: I think the LDS faith is the only one that believes Adam was Michael the Archangel and worked side by side with Jesus Christ to create the earth. We are also the only ones that believe in exaltation and that man can achieve an exalted state. Yet it is said so here.

5 Again said God unto him, “See, O Adam, how Satan has exalted thee! He has deprived thee of the Godhead, and of an exalted state like unto Me, and has not kept his word to thee; but, after all, is become thy foe. It is he who made this fire in which he meant to burn thee and Eve.

6 “Why, O Adam, has he not kept his agreement with thee, not even one day; but has deprived thee of the glory that was on thee–when thou didst yield to his command?

7 “Thinkest thou, Adam, that he loved thee when he made this agreement with thee? Or, that he loved thee and wished to raise thee on high?

8 “But no, Adam, he did not do all that out of love to thee; but he wished to make thee come out of light into darkness, and from an exalted state to degradation; from glory to abasement; from joy to sorrow; and from rest to fasting and fainting.”
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XLV (sacred-texts.com)

There are some really interesting things that happen here related to what happened in the pre-existence and what is happening on Earth. Between the power that Satan has and the power he desires. At the same time, God is promising Adam and his posterity exaltation. This is crazy because so much of it falls right in line with the Plan of Salvation the LDS church teaches.

These are almost like the words Cain said of Abel. Yet, it was Satan saying it of Adam. If Adam looses his inheritance, maybe God will give it back to Satan because he has to at that point. Oh how wrong he is. He repeatedly speaks of his “HOSTS” and as we know 1/3rd of the hosts of heaven followed Satan. That could have been 1/3rd literally or a third part.

8 The earth shall be rid of him; and shall be left to me alone; so that when he is dead he may not have any seed left to inherit the kingdom that shall remain my own realm; God will then be in want of me, and He will restore me to it with my hosts.
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There are things Satan can not do.

5 “O Adam, ask him who deceived thee, to give thee the divine nature he promised thee, or to make thee a garden as I had made for thee; or to fill thee with that same bright nature with which I had filled thee.

6 “Ask him to make thee a body like the one I made thee, or to give thee a day of rest as I gave thee; or to create within thee a reasonable soul, as I did create for thee; or to remove thee hence to some other earth than this one which I gave thee. But, O Adam, he will not fulfil even one of the things he told thee.
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter LVI (sacred-texts.com)

TIME OUT OF THE GARDEN

End of thirty days – The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XXXII (sacred-texts.com)

Five-and-thirty days – The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XXXII (sacred-texts.com)

Forty-two days – The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XXXIII (sacred-texts.com)

Fifty Days – The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter L (sacred-texts.com)

OTHER STUFF

There was a comment that the figs from the garden grew as large as a watermelon. This reminded me of the book Visions of Glory talking about the fruit growing in the New Jerusalem. It grew much larger being watered by the Tree of Life.

2 And the weight of each fig was that of a water-melon; for the fruit of the garden was much larger than the fruit of this land.
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XLI (sacred-texts.com)

God compares these events to the last days. There will be burning all around us. There will be no deliverance at his coming. Only God’s word will make a way for us.

10 “Then shall ye see the burning of his fire, that will thus be burning around you and your seed. There shall be no deliverance from it for you, but at My coming; in like manner as thou canst not now go into thy cave, by reason of the great fire around it; not until My Word shall come that will make a way for thee on the day My covenant is fulfilled.
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter XLV (sacred-texts.com)

Adam and Eve made garments of animal skins.

8 And so it was, by God’s order; they became garments for Adam and Eve, and He clothed them withal.

9 From that time the nakedness of their bodies was covered from the sight of each other’s eyes.
The Forgotten Books of Eden: The First Book of Adam and Eve: Chapter LII (sacred-texts.com)

COVENANTS

ATONEMENT

SATAN

TIME OUT OF THE GARDEN

OTHER STUFF

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