Two elements of Moroni’s instructions stand out. First, he warns Joseph against the temptations for worldly gain and, as Joseph reports, tell him that “I must have no other object in view in getting the plates but to glorify God.” Moroni had written a similar warning at the end of verse 14. In verse 15, Moroni states that the one who brings forth the plates must have “an eye single to [God’s] glory.” Moroni thus delivered the same message twice, once in writing and the second time in person.
Obviously, these Moroni-to-Joseph communiqués were translated when the task was almost completed. Prizing the text more than the monetary value of the plates was certainly required as Joseph began his work, but presumably the temptation diminished over time as the work progressed. Therefore, this admonition, which would be almost the last passage the future translator would read, is somewhat misplaced here. However, it shows Moroni’s working method; he recorded the material as it came to his mind, not from a systematic outline.