The very first message the angel delivered, in which we certainly rejoice, is a restatement of the condescension of Deity—that Almighty God, the Lord Omnipotent himself, would come down from his throne, become mortal, and show miraculous powers of healing sick bodies, raising dead bodies, curing disabled bodies, and rescuing possessed bodies from evil spirits. But what kind of a God is willing to come down and experience temptation, pain, anguish, and suffering for the wickedness of his people? He would suffer to a greater degree than normal humans can endure, even bleeding from every pore of his body due to his deep anguish for all the sins of the Father’s children (Luke 22:44; D&C 19:18).
All this was part of what Elder Neal A. Maxwell called “the awful arithmetic of the Atonement”; Jesus’ suffering was “as it were, enormity multiplied by infinity.” 6
A detailed description follows, so there can be no mistaking exactly who he is: His name will be Jesus Christ, and he is the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth (on his title of Father see commentary at 2 Nephi 19:6–7 and Mosiah 15:2–9), the Creator, and his mother’s name will be Mary (Hebrew Miriam). His name is his role: Jesus (Hebrew Yeshua) means “savior” or “salvation,” and Christ (Hebrew Mashiakh, or Messiah) means “Anointed One.” He is, therefore, the “Anointed Savior” who rescues all humankind from physical death, and his atoning blood rescues all who will repent from spiritual death.