Testifying with “sharpness, ’ as Moroni is here using the word, does not mean he was being contentions or mean-spirited. It means direct and to the Point. It means not couched in soft, comfortable language but focused on what needs to be said more, than on how to say it.
It means unveiling wickedness and proclaiming against it in clarity-leaving no room for misunderstanding. ”Reproving betimes with sharpness, when moved upon by the Holy Ghost“ (D&C 121:43) is a divine charge.
Such testifying is ”sharp“ in that the power behind the words is the power of the Holy Ghost, therefore they have a,”more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword“ (Alma 31:5).
The Lord’s words are ”quick and powerful, sharper than a two-edged sword, to the dividing asunder of both joints and marrow’ (D&C 11:2). The sharp words of the Lord pierce to the very center of the soul.
To the wicked such sharpness is painful (see 1 Nephi 16:2; 2 Nephi 9:40), and they desire smooth and soothing words. Smooth words, however, do not stir the souls nor prick the conscience of men. Mormon confirmed this when he declared to Moroni that when he did not use sharpness in his teaching of them they not only ignored his words but also became hardened to them.