What Is "the Bitter Cup"?

[Bernard Gui]

3 Nephi 10 Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the prophets testified shall come into the world.

 11 And behold, I am the light and the life of the world; and I have drunk out of that bitter cup which the Father hath given me, and have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world, in the which I have suffered the will of the Father in all things from the beginning.

 

What is the "bitter cup which the Father hath given me"?

What does " have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world" mean?

 

 

 

[bluebell]

Preliminary thoughts:

The bitter cup is the atonement-the suffering of all of our sins.

Glorifying the Father is what occurs when Heavenly Father's will is done. Especially in regards to the Atonement because bringing about the exaltation of mankind adds to the glory of God.

[Guest]

What is the "bitter cup which the Father hath given me"?

What does " have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world" mean?

Pain and Death...the wages of sin.

[Rob Osborn]

What is the "bitter cup which the Father hath given me"?

What does " have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world" mean?

Physical and spiritual/emotional suffering which led to his physical death.

[pogi]

What does " have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world" mean?

 

I like what blueblell says in regard to this, but I would add that Christ could have rightfully glorified himself and demanded glory from us in such an unfathomably heroic act, but instead he chose to give all glory to the father and commanded that we do the same.

[JLHPROF]

What is the "bitter cup which the Father hath given me"?

 

 

Exactly what it sounds like - a horribly unpleasant task that someone is required to undertake.  Nothing more or less.

 

 

What does " have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world" mean?

 

Moses 1:39 For behold, this is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man.

God's work and glory come from leading his children to eternal life and exaltation.  Christ provided that glory to the father by taking our sins and allowing us to achieve eternal life.

[Nofear]

What is the "bitter cup which the Father hath given me"?

What does " have glorified the Father in taking upon me the sins of the world" mean?

To my understanding:

• We are self-existent and our most fundamental self is uncreate
• Corruption cannot put on incorruption (2 Nephi 9:7)

In of ourselves, we are incapable of changing the flawed aspects of our core self. The Atonement, in a way we do not understand at all, was the mechanism whereby all corrupt aspects of our fundamental/intelligent self can be changed. Through the sanctification power of the Atonement we quite literally become a new person, born again, different, better.

 

EDIT: I might add that however the Savior did the Atonement that made a fundamental core change possible for us, it was painful and not at all easy.

Edited December 3, 2014 by Nofear