Ether — Chapter 10
1 Heth and his family had all died in the famine, except for Shez. Shez began to build up his people again.
2 Shez remembered the way his ancestors had been destroyed, so he ruled his people righteously. Shez remembered how the Lord had brought Jared and his brother across the sea, so he kept the Lord’s commandments. He had sons and daughters.
3 His oldest son, who was also called Shez, rebelled against him. That son was so rich that a robber killed him, so his father had peace in the land again.
4 Shez built many cities all over the land, and many people lived all over the land. Shez lived to be very old, and then he had a son named Riplakish. When Shez died, Riplakish became the new king.
5 Riplakish did not keep the Lord’s commandments. He had many wives and kept other women, and made his people pay many taxes. He built many large buildings with the tax money he made people pay.
6 He built himself a very beautiful throne. He also built many prisons. He threw all the people who would not pay their taxes into prison and made them work in prison. He killed whoever would not work.
7 He got many of his beautiful things, and his gold, from the work done in the prisons. The people were very unhappy because of his sins and wickedness.
8 When Riplakish had been king for forty-two years, his people rebelled against him, and there was war in the land again. Riplakish was killed and his children were all chased out of the land.
9 After many years, Morianton (one of Riplakish’s descendants) gathered together an army of people who had been chased out, and fought a war with the people. He took many cities. The war got worse and worse, and lasted for many years. He finally won the war, and became king over all the land.
10 When he became king, he did not make the people pay so many taxes, so they liked him, and let him be their king.
11 He was good and fair to his people, but not to himself. He committed so many sexual sins that he was cut off from God.
12 Morianton built many cities, and the people became very rich while he was king. They had many buildings, and lots of gold and silver, and grain, and flocks and herds, and other things which they had gotten back.
13 Morianton lived to be a very old man, and then he had a son named Kim, who was the next king. Kim did not keep God’s commandments, so he was not blessed.
14 Kim’s brother rebelled against him, and took him prisoner. He was a prisoner all his life, and had many children while he was a prisoner. When he was old, he had a son named Levi. Then he died.
15 After Levi’s father died, he was a prisoner for forty-two years. Then Levi made war against the king, and won the kingdom for himself.
16 After Levi won the kingdom, he kept the Lord’s commandments, and the people prospered. He lived to be very old, and had sons and daughters. He had a son named Corom who became the next king.
17 Corom kept the Lord’s commandments all his life, and had many sons and daughters. After he had lived a long time, he died, and Kish became the new king.
18 Then Kish died, and Lib became king.
19 Lib also kept the Lord’s commandments. While he was king, all the deadly snakes were destroyed, so the people were able to go into the south lands to hunt the many animals in the forests there. Lib became a great hunter, too.
20 They built a big city by the narrow part of the land where the sea divides the land in two.
21 All the south lands were saved for hunting, while all the north lands were filled with people.
22 They worked very hard, making and selling things to each other so they could get rich.
23 They made things out of gold and silver and iron and brass and all kinds of metals that they dug out of the ground. They made big hills in the places they dug for the gold and silver and iron and copper and other metals. They made many beautiful things.
24 They made clothes for themselves from silk and linen and beautiful cloth.
25 They made all kinds of farm tools for plowing and planting and hoeing and threshing.
26 They made tools to use with their animals.
27 They also made all kinds of weapons. Everything they made was very interesting to see.
28 The Lord blessed them very much and the people prospered. They lived in a wonderful land, as God said.
29 Lib lived many years and had sons and daughters, including a son named Hearthom.
30 Hearthom was the next king. After he had been king for twenty-four years, the kingdom was taken away from him, and he was a prisoner for the rest of his life.
31 Hearthom had a son named Heth, who was a prisoner all his life. Heth had a son named Aaron, who was a prisoner all his life. Aaron had a son named Amnigaddah, who was a prisoner all his life. Amnigaddah had a son named Coriantum, who was a prisoner all his life, and Coriantum had a son named Com.
32 Com became king over half the kingdom. After he had been king over half the kingdom for forty-two years, he made war against the other king, Amgid. Com fought Amgid for many years, and then finally defeated him and won the rest of the kingdom.
33 There began to be robbers again while Com was king, and they brought back all the old evil promises and secrets, and tried to destroy the kingdom.
34 Com fought hard against them, but he could not defeat them.
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