Because of his exceeding faith, the brother of Jared sees that the Lord will take upon Himself flesh and blood. Never before has one come before the Lord with so much faith (see also Ether 3:9; compare Ether 12:9). Other prophets had seen the Lord God Jehovah, including Adam, Seth, Enoch, Noah, and probably others prior to the time period of the Jaredites (around 2000 BC). We have already cited the words of President Joseph Fielding Smith, who concludes that the manifestation of the Lord to the brother of Jared had not until then happened with such a degree of fulness (see the commentary after Ether 3:9). Daniel Ludlow contributes this added thought: that the Lord “is essentially saying in Ether 3:15 that he has never had to show himself unto man before. This interpretation gains additional weight when considered in connection with the following verses: Ether 3:9, 19–20, 26. In these verses the Lord makes it very clear that the brother of Jared came before him with greater faith than any other man (Ether 3:9), that the brother of Jared ‘could not be kept from within the veil’ (Ether 3:20), and that the Lord ‘could not withhold anything from him, for he knew that the Lord could show him all things’ (Ether 3:26)” (A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon [Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1976], 318).