Open a copy of the Book of Mormon,
and you'll see two things right away:
"The Testimony of Three Witnesses"
and "The Testimony of Eight Witnesses."
Who were these men?
What is their testimony?
And why is it important?
Let's go back in time.
In 1823, an angel named Moroni told Joseph Smith to retrieve
the gold plates.
However, there was a condition: Joseph had to protect them.
As part of this, Joseph was told to not show
the plates to anyone unless God gave him permission.
And God wasn't giving Joseph permission,
so nobody could see them--not Joseph's wife, not his parents,
not even the secretary writing down Joseph's translation.
Time went by.
As Joseph translated the words of the Book of Mormon,
he noticed scriptural passages like this:
"The [plates] shall be hid from the eyes of the world, ...
the eyes of none shall behold it save it be that three witnesses
shall behold it, by the power of God ... ;
and they shall testify to the truth of the book. ...
And there is none other which shall
view it, save it be a few."
2 Nephi chapter 27, verses 12 through 13.
Joseph prayed about it, and God gave approval for three men
to see the plates: Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris,
and David Whitmer.
Oliver and Martin had both served as scribe to Joseph.
When angry mobs harassed Joseph and his wife,
David invited the Smiths to stay in his father's house.
All three believed that Joseph Smith was a prophet.
Together, they went into the nearby woods and prayed.
The angel Moroni appeared with the plates
to Oliver, David, and Joseph.
David Whitmer said, "We were overshadowed by a light more
glorious than that of the sun. ...
I saw [the gold plates] as plain as I see you now."
Shortly after, he appeared again,
this time to Joseph and Martin.
Later, Joseph received permission
to show the plates to additional witnesses.
This time Joseph gathered a group of eight trusted
men from his friends and family, and he handed them the plates.
They turned the pages and ran their fingers
over the engravings.
The two groups recorded their experiences
in "The Testimony of Three Witnesses"
and "The Testimony of Eight Witnesses."
Every copy of the Book of Mormon includes their words
right at the front, addressed to all nations, kindreds, tongues,
and people.
They testify the gold plates were real.
And even though some of the witnesses
would later leave the Church for various reasons, all 11 of them
stood by their testimony of the plates for their entire lives.
Why are these testimonies important?
The 11 men were fulfilling the law of witnesses.
As Paul explained in the New Testament,
"In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word
be established."
In other words, when God wants His children to know something,
He sends multiple people to testify.
Thanks to the testimony of the men who saw the gold plates,
we don't have to rely solely on Joseph Smith's testimony.
We have multiple witnesses affirming
that the gold plates were real and the Book of Mormon is true.
All of us can receive a personal witness that the Book of Mormon
is true.
The Holy Ghost can teach every one of us what is true.
In fact, at the end of the Book of Mormon,
the prophet Moroni makes a promise to anyone who reads
the Book of Mormon: if we "ask God, the Eternal Father,
in the name of Christ, if these things are ... true ... ,
he will manifest the truth of it unto you,
by the power of the Holy Ghost."
God loves us, we are His children,
and He wants us to know His truth.
Because of the Holy Ghost and the testimony
of righteous people, we can.
Now you know.