This is the theme that allows Moroni to connect this letter with the previous one that he has entered. In Moroni 8: 27-28 Mormon had written that the Nephites needed to humble themselves and repent, but that they would not. In Mormon 8:29 he specifically notes that if they persist in that condition, “they must perish.” In this letter, Mormon is repeating that same theme, but the condition of destruction is even closer.