Nehor encouraged priestcrafts and self-promotion to gain riches and honor. Nehor’s example shows that we should be suspicious of those who seek personal fame or wealth from their preaching. Nephi previously defined priestcraft: “Priestcrafts are that men preach and set themselves up for a light unto the world, that they may get gain and praise of the world; but they seek not the welfare of Zion. Behold, the Lord hath forbidden this thing” (2 Nephi 26:29–30).
Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles also defined priestcraft for teachers in the Church: “Anything you or I do as an instructor that knowingly and intentionally draws attention to self—in the messages we present, in the methods we use, or in our personal demeanor—is a form of priestcraft that inhibits the teaching effectiveness of the Holy Ghost. ‘Doth he preach it by the Spirit of truth or some other way? And if it be by some other way it is not of God’ (D&C 50:17–18)” (“Seek Learning by Faith” [an evening with Elder David A. Bednar, Feb. 3, 2006, 4, www.ldsces.org).