The Know

Several important doctrines that are incomplete or ambiguous in the Bible are taught with clarity and detail in the Book of Mormon. One such doctrine is the Fall of Adam and Eve, a central component of the Plan of Salvation. Without an understanding of the Fall, no understanding of the Atonement can be complete. 

In his instruction to his young son Jacob, Lehi gave a detailed exposition of this doctrine and lays the foundation on which later Book of Mormon prophets would build. Lehi’s teaching connects the Fall of Satan from heaven to the Fall of man on earth (2 Nephi 2:17–18) and indicates that the Fall brought on the conditions of mortality, death, and opposition. 

Lehi also stressed a positive side to the Fall, teaching that it is only through the Fall that Adam and Eve could have children, allowing us all to come into the world and experience joy (2 Nephi 2:22–25).

Lehi taught that while man inherited a fallen nature, we nonetheless are not “totally depraved,” as opposed to what has been generally understood and preached concerning of the Fall since the time of Augustine. Instead, we understand from Lehi's teachings that we all now have the freedom to choose “liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil” (2 Nephi 2:27). 

For many readers today, Lehi’s teachings may well seem unique and original, but he told Jacob that his teachings about the Fall are based on “the things which I have read” (2 Nephi 2:17), presumably from the plates of brass. The origins of Lehi’s understanding, therefore, came from sources already available to him.

In trying to understand the background to the Book of Mormon’s teachings on the Fall, one LDS scholar, Stephen D. Ricks, examined portrayals of Adam and the Fall in ancient Jewish writings that were not included in the Bible.1 After giving several examples, Ricks provided the following summary of teachings common to both the Book of Mormon and later Jewish texts:

1. Satan’s expulsion from the presence of God was a necessary precondition for the temptation and Fall (see 2 Nephi 2:17–18;Life of Adam and Eve 12–17).

2. Adam’s fall resulted in the conditions of mortality (see 2 Nephi 2:19; 2 Baruch).

3. Man becomes “natural,” i.e., predisposed to sin, but he remains free (2 Nephi 2:26–27; Mosiah 3:19).

4. Adam’s transgression resulted in expulsion from paradise (see Alma 42 [also see 2 Nephi 2:19]; Apocalypse of Moses 28:3).2

These extra-biblical texts come from the era scholars call the Second Temple Period, which is after the time Lehi left Jerusalem. This commonality between Lehi’s teachings and later Jewish texts on the Fall suggests that these doctrines may indeed have been present several hundred years earlier than is periously thought.

Indeed, Bruce M. Pritchett Jr. has found that careful investigation shows that hints of the doctrine can be found in Old Testament writings that likely come from before or around Lehi’s time.3 Pritchett specifically examined Psalms 82:7, Hosea 6:7, Job 31:33, and Ezekiel 28:11–19 as references to the Fall, noting that the Hebrew ke-ʾādām, translated as “like man” in the KJV, could just as easily be read as “like Adam.” Based on his analysis, Pritchett concluded:

Though the Old Testament never refers to Adam’s sin by using the word fall, it does teach or reflect the following basic elements of this doctrine in various scriptures: (1) that Adam’s sin resulted in a metamorphosis from immortality to mortality, (2) that mankind inherited its mortal state from Adam, (3) that all mankind has fallen into sin, and (4) that evil and suffering in the world could be for man’s benefit as well as his punishment.4

Pritchett also noted that “three of these four scriptures (excluding Hosea 6:7) mention the fall of Adam in close connection with the fall of Satan.”5

While these are merely bread crumbs compared to the doctrinal feast that Lehi lays out, it does suggest that there was a foundational understanding of the Fall upon which Lehi could expound.

Moreover, Lehi’s understanding of the Fall may have ultimately stemmed from ancient temple teachings. Kevin Christensen has pointed out that several ideas presented in 2 Nephi 2 are considered to be part of ancient “temple theology,” as proposed by biblical scholar Margaret Barker. This notion includes “not only a discussion of Eden and the creation, but also of the fall of Adam … the fallen angels, the atonement of the Messiah, the Holy One, and coming judgment.”6

John W. Welch notes, “Several of the main doctrines taught by Lehi seem to echo and presage temple types and teachings.” Welch finds that is not only true about 2 Nephi 2, but throughout Lehi’s various discourses found in 2 Nephi 1–4. Lehi’s central themes “are readily at home in the context of the ancient temple typologies.”7 Significantly, three of the four Old Testament passages used by Pritchett—from the Psalms, Job, and Ezekiel—are believed by some scholars to be connected to the temple.8

The Why

As people try to understand better the origins of Lehi’s doctrines relating to the Fall, several interesting things come to light. First, it is worth pointing out that the concepts Lehi teaches in this connection are at home in ancient Israelite and early Jewish beliefs. While Lehi brings these ideas together and expounds on them like no one else before or since, the core ideas were present and available within the Hebrew tradition. 

Second, as a byproduct of the first, it becomes apparent that this fuller doctrine of the Fall is not an innovation of either Lehi or Joseph Smith. Rather, it is part of the many plain and precious truths that were lost and find restoration in the Book of Mormon (see 1 Nephi 13:26–42). 

Third, recognizing its roots in the Israelite temple tradition is an important clue about the nature of Nephi’s record. It is shortly after this discourse that Nephi reports that his people began making a temple (see 2 Nephi 5:16), and not long afterwards Nephi begins writing his record (see 2 Nephi 5:30–32). 

Finally, knowing the connection to ancient temples helps us see the relationship to modern temple worship and the essential elements of the plan of salvation. Like Lehi’s discourse, contemporary Latter-day Saint temple practices relate to themes of creation, fall, and atonement. Altogether, these insights offer all readers precious perspectives that enhance one’s appreciation of the beauty and power of Lehi’s sacred words to his son Jacob. 

• 1. Stephen D. Ricks, “Adam’s Fall in the Book of Mormon, Second Temple Judaism, and Early Christianity,” in The Disciple as Scholar: Essays on Scripture and the Ancient World in Honor of Richard Lloyd Anderson, ed. Stephen D. Ricks, Donald W. Parry, and Andrew Hedges (Provo: FARMS, 2000), 595–606.
• 2. Ricks, “Adam’s Fall in the Book of Mormon,” 601.
• 3. Bruce M. Pritchett Jr., “Lehi’s Theology of the Fall in Its Preexilic/Exilic Context,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 3/2 (1994): 49–83. This article was based on Pritchett’s honors thesis. See Bruce Michael Pritchett Jr., Lehi’s Theology of the Fall in its Pre-Exilic/Exilic Context (honors thesis, Brigham Young University, 1989).
• 4. Pritchett, “Lehi’s Theology of the Fall,” 77.
• 5. Pritchett, “Lehi’s Theology of the Fall,” 58.
• 6. Kevin Christensen, “The Temple, the Monarchy, and Wisdom: Lehi’s World and the Scholarship of Margaret Barker,” in Glimpses of Lehi’s Jerusalem, ed. John W. Welch, David Rolph Seely, and Jo Ann H. Seely (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 2004), 461.
• 7. John W. Welch, “The Temple in the Book of Mormon: The Temples at the Cities of Nephi, Zarahemla, and Bountiful,” in Temples of the Ancient World: Ritual and Symbolism, ed. Donald W. Parry (Salt Lake City, Utah: Deseret Books and FARMS, 1994), 322.
• 8. For the Psalms, see David J. Larsen, “Ascending into the Hill of the Lord: What the Psalms Can Tell Us About the Rituals of the First Temple,” in Ancient Temple Worship: Proceedings of the Expound Symposium 14 May 2011, ed. Matthew B. Brown, Jeffrey M. Bradshaw, Stephen D. Ricks, and John S. Thompson (Orem, UT and Salt Lake City, UT: Interpreter Foundation and Eborn Books, 2014), 171–188. For Job, see Mack C. Stirling, “Job: An LDS Reading,” in Temple Insights: Proceedings of the Interpreter Matthew B. Brown Memorial Conference—The Temple on Mount Zion, 22 September 2012, ed. William B. Hamblin and David Rolph Seely (Orem, Utah: Interpreter Foundation and Eborn Books, 2014), 99–143. Ezekiel was a temple priest. See Kevin Christensen, “Prophets and Kings in Lehi’s Jerusalem and Margaret Barker’s Temple Theology,” Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 4 (2013): 187.

The Know

After arriving in the Promised Land, Nephi records that his father, Lehi, instructed and blessed his posterity shortly before passing away (2 Nephi 1:1–4:12). Early Jewish literature is filled with many examples of what is sometimes called testamentary literature. Generally dating from 200 BC to AD 500, these “testaments” are modeled after Jacob’s last blessing and cursing of his sons in Genesis 49. 

According to James H. Charlesworth, “No binding genre was employed by the authors of the testaments, but one can discern among them a loose format.” That format involves:

The ideal figure faces death and [1] causes his relatives and intimate friends to circle around his bed. He occasionally informs them of his fatal flaw and [2] exhorts them to avoid certain temptations; he typically [3] instructs them regarding the way of righteousness and [4] utters blessings and curses. Often he illustrates his words—as the apocalyptic seer in the apocalypse—with [5] descriptions of the future as it has been revealed to him in a dream or vision.1

This format can be easily demonstrated from several of the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, which are among the earliest examples of testamentary literature.2

Take for example, the Testament of Joseph, who was one of the twelve patriarchs of Israel.

1. The introduction says, “A copy of the testament of Joseph. When he was about to die, he called his sons and his brothers…” (1:1),3 proceeding from there to give lengthy instruction.
2. The patriarch Joseph tells, at length, the story of his resisting temptation from Potiphar’s wife, occasionally adding specific warnings and exhortations about sin (e.g., 7:8; 10:1–6).
3. His narrative is also laced with many instances of righteous instruction, such as his counsel, “in every act keep the fear of God before your eyes and honor your brothers” (11:1; cf. 2:4–7; 3:4; 4:3, 6; 9:3; 10:1–6; 11:1–7; 17:2–8).
4. He also promises blessings, saying, “If you live in accord with the Lord’s commands, God will exalt you with good things forever” (18:1, the blessings continue throughout 18:1–4).
5. Finally, the testament closes out with an apocalyptic prophecy (19:1–11).

These can each be seen, albeit sometimes only subtly, in Genesis 49.4 This same format can also be found in Lehi’s testament.

1. Gathers together relatives and close friends shortly before his death. Nephi says Lehi did “speak many things” to his gathered family and members of his group. This included Laman, Lemuel, their posterity, Sam, the sons of Ismael, Zoram, Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph (2 Nephi 1:28; 2:1; 3:1; 4:1, 3, 9–11).

It is clear throughout his discourses that he is about to die, as he frequently speaks of how he “must soon lay down in the cold and silent grave” (2 Nephi 1:14; cf. 1:21; 2:30; 4:5). Nephi confirms, “after my father, Lehi, had spoken unto all his household … he waxed old. And … he died, and was buried” (2 Nephi 4:12).

2. Exhorts them to avoid temptations. Lehi lectures his older sons about “their rebellions upon the waters” (2 Nephi 1:2). He encourages them to “awake,” and “shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound” (2 Nephi 1:13) and “observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord” (2 Nephi 1:16). He warns them of the consequences if they fail to keep the commandments (2 Nephi 1:20; 4:4). He counsels all his posterity to “not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh” (2 Nephi 2:29).

3. Instructs them in the ways of righteousness. Lehi speaks of the Lord, saying “his ways are righteousness forever” (2 Nephi 1:19) and encourages his sons to “put on the armor of righteousness” (2 Nephi 1:23). He teaches them the plan of salvation (2 Nephi 2), and instructs, “I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments; and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit” (2 Nephi 2:28).

4. Utters blessings and curses. Lehi speaks of blessings and curses throughout his discourse. He warns Laman and Lemuel of the curses that will befall them if they do not keep the commandments (2 Nephi 1:18, 22) and leaves them a conditional blessing (2 Nephi 1:28–29). He also blesses Zoram (2 Nephi 1:30–31), Jacob (2 Nephi 2:3–4), and Joseph (2 Nephi 3:3, 25). For the children of Laman and Lemuel, he pronounces a blessing on them while cursing their parents (2 Nephi 4:5–9).

5. Descriptions of the future as revealed in a dream or vision. Lehi begins, “I have seen a vision, in which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed” (2 Nephi 1:4). Lehi then prophesies about the future of the promised land (2 Nephi 1:6–12). He also shares an extensive prophecy from Joseph of Egypt describing many future events (2 Nephi 3). According to Lehi, 

Joseph truly saw our day. And he obtained a promise of the Lord, that out of the fruit of his loins the Lord God would raise up a righteous branch unto the house of Israel; not the Messiah, but a branch which was to be broken off, nevertheless, to be remembered in the covenants of the Lord that the Messiah should be made manifest unto them in the latter days, in the spirit of power, unto the bringing of them out of darkness unto light—yea, out of hidden darkness and out of captivity unto freedom. (2 Nephi 3:5, emphasis added)

Lehi also says that Joseph prophesied about restoring the House of Israel (2 Nephi 3:13, 24).

Interestingly, in the Armenian version of the Testament of Joseph, Joseph was said to have prophesied that a portion of Israel “cried out to the Lord, and the Lord led them into a fertile, well-watered place. He led them out of darkness into Light” (19:3). From there, the patriarch sees the gathering of Israel (19:4–7). As in Lehi’s account, the Greek version of the Testament of Joseph indicates that Joseph knew of the coming Messiah and that the Messiah would not be from his own posterity, but Judah’s (19:8).

The Why

This comparison is interesting for multiple reasons. First, it illustrates that in some ancient Jewish traditions, it was normal and expected that the patriarch of the family would gather together his family and bless, instruct, exhort, and prophesy to them before passing away. In this, Lehi’s behavior was as expected.5

Second, it illuminates Lehi as the patriarch of a new, separate branch of Israel. While not all, many of the figures in testamentary literature are patriarchal figures from Israel’s past. In portraying Lehi in this role, Nephi is solidifying the Lehites as an independent branch of Israel. This was a lasting legacy among Book of Mormon peoples. John W. Welch has explained, 

Seeing Lehi in the patriarchal tradition is borne out by the fact that Lehi was remembered by Nephites from beginning to end as “father Lehi.” … Since Lehi is the only figure in the Book of Mormon called “our father,” this designation appears to be a unique reference to Lehi’s patriarchal position at the head of Nephite civilization, society, and religion.6

Third, it is interesting that in both Lehi’s discourse and the Testament of Joseph, Joseph seems to prophesy of a portion of Israel being broken off and led to a land of promise, the gathering of Israel, and the Messiah from the tribe of Judah. The prophecy cannot currently be traced back to Lehi’s time, let alone all the way back to Joseph of Egypt. Yet, this comparison illustrates that some well-documented ancient traditions are consonant with the Book of Mormon. 

Finally, it provides an example for fathers and patriarchs today. The tradition, initially but briefly present in Genesis 49, was not maintained and developed only by the Jews after their return to Jerusalem in the Second Temple period but was called upon extensively and effectively by Lehi in the sixth century BC. Building from there, later prophets in the Book of Mormon followed Lehi’s example, as Alma does in Alma 36–42 and Helaman does in Helaman 5:5–13. Latter-day Saint fathers today also follow these patriarchal examples as they bless, instruct, exhort, and testify to their children and grandchildren.

• 1. James H. Charlesworth, Introduction to Testaments Section, in The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, 2 vols., ed. James H. Charlesworth (Peabody, Mass.: Henrickson Publishers, 1983), 1:773, brackets added.
• 2. For background and translation of the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, see H.C. Kee, “Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs: A New Translation and Introduction,” in The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, 1:775–828. All quotations will come from this edition.
• 3. All references to chapter and verse in the Testament of Joseph.
• 4. In Genesis, Jacob (1) "called unto his sons" to gather together (49:1-2); (2) his words to Reuben warn against instability (49:4), and his words to Simeon and Levi condemn "cruelty," murder, anger, and wrath (49:5–6); (3) he speaks of waiting for the Lord's salvation (49:18) and his words to Joseph illustrate the blessings of leaning on the strength of "the mighty God of Jacob," and the "stone of Israel" (49:24); (4) the bulk of the chapter is blessings (49:8–12, 13, 19–26, 28) and cursings (49:4, 7, 15); (5) All his words to his sons are about "that which shall befall you in the last days" (49:1), but the blessings to both Judah (49:8–12) and Joseph (49:22–26) are particularly prophetic.
• 5. While the testamentary literature is from a period later than Lehi’s own day, it ultimately stems from Genesis 49, which could have been on the brass plates. Both the Nephites and the later Jews may have developed "testament" traditions independently based upon Genesis 49 as a model.
• 6. John W. Welch, “Lehi’s Last Will and Testament: A Legal Approach,” in Second Nephi, The Doctrinal Structure, ed. Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: BYU Religious Studies Center, 1989), 69–70.

The Know

2 Nephi 4:16-35, known by many Book of Mormon readers as “Nephi’s Psalm,”1 expresses Nephi’s personal hopes, joys, sorrows, and trials. Interestingly, Nephi's Psalm shares many parallels, in both style and wording, with Psalms of the Old Testament.2

LDS scholar Matthew Nickerson3 established that Nephi’s Psalm fit the biblical psalm type termed “individual lament,” which has five structural units: 1) invocation, 2) complaint, 3) confession of trust, 4) petition, and 5) vow of praise.4

• Invocation: 2 Ne 4:16-17
• Complaint: 2 Ne 4:17-19
• Confession of Trust: 2 Ne 4:20-30
• Petition: 2 Ne 4:31-33
• Vow of Praise: 2 Ne 4:34-35

LDS scholars Kenneth Alford and D. Bryce Baker have highlighted similarities in the structure and language of 2 Nephi 4 to wording found in the sequence of Psalms 25 to 31.5 This group of psalms is mostly composed of individual laments and also songs of praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. Some of the shared language includes:

One important aspect of the series of Psalms 25 to 31 is their focus on the themes of temple and covenant.6 According to Psalms scholar Peter Craigie, Psalms 25 and 28 should be read in the context of a covenant-making ceremony (see, e.g. 25:10, 14; 28:4, 7). Craigie notes: 

The attitude of trust is the key to the psalmist’s preparation, for trust signifies dependence and hope based upon the covenant character of God. He trusts because God is faithful as the God of the covenant promises; he trusts because those who have trusted in the past have experienced the presence and help of God.7

As part of this covenant-making process, the psalmist typically does five things:

1. He recognizes his sins
2. He pleads for forgiveness so that the covenant curses come not upon him, but that they fall upon his enemies, the wicked
3. He dedicates himself to keeping the covenant/commandments of the Lord
4. He petitions the Lord to guide him in the right way
5. He rejoices because of the Lord’s help and thanks/praises God

Nephi's Psalm shares all of these covenant-making features.

The preceding is only a small sampling of the many parallels in structure, language, and themes that are shared between the Psalm of Nephi and the Psalms of the Old Testament. It is clear that Nephi had oral or written knowledge of the wording and style of those biblical psalms (especially those that may have been contained on the Plates of Brass) and that he very skillfully utilized this literary knowledge in the writing of his own poetical and soul-felt composition.

The Why

Readers can draw deep spiritual strength from Nephi's Psalm as they relate to the five phases typically present in the covenant language of the Psalms. People are encouraged to honestly recognize their sins, shortcomings, and faults, as Nephi confidently confronted his own challenges and anger. Worshippers then find in Nephi a role model for sincere pleading with the Lord for forgiveness. They then see Nephi rededicating himself to his covenants with God, and committing himself to follow the right path. Finally, the faithful then openly express their joy in gratitude for the goodness and redemption of the Lord.

In this psalm, Nephi shows that he was a skilled author and a brilliant student of the Scriptures. All of his writings regularly demonstrate his ability to integrate scriptural words and phrases. The fact that the "Psalm of Nephi" borrows so extensively from a number of different biblical psalms is evidence that Nephi knew and cherished many of the biblical Psalms, that he joyously used them in his daily life and writing, and that the inspired words of the Scriptures, including the Psalms, were very dear and comforting to Nephi.

Finally, the fact that Nephi structures his psalm on the pattern of some of those in the Bible that deal with temple and covenant imagery should indicate to us that the temple is truly a place of refuge from the storms of our lives and that there is safety and direction in keeping the covenants that we make there.

• 1. The appellation “Nephi’s Psalm” appears to have been coined by Sidney Sperry in Sidney B. Sperry, Our Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Stevens & Wallis, 1947), 110–11.
• 2. Steven Sondrup conducted a study on these verses in order to evaluate their poetical value. He noted that the passage contains structure, rhythm, parallelism, chiasms, verbal pairings, couplets, triplets, and other features of intentional poetic structuring. Furthermore, Sondrup concluded that “logical, formal or conceptual units are set parallel one to another” as they are in the Hebrew poetry of the Old Testament. See Steven P. Sondrup, “The Psalm of Nephi: A Lyric Reading,” BYU Studies 21, no. 3 (1981): 357-372. Formatting added.
• 3. Matthew Nickerson, “Nephi’s Psalm: 2 Nephi 4:16–35 in Light of Form-Critical Analysis,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 6, no. 2 (1997): 26–42, at 30.
• 4. For examples in the psalms of “individual laments” with this basic structure, see Pss 3, 5-7, 9, 12-14, 17, 22, 25, 28, 31, 35, 38, 39, 51, 53-58, 61, 64, 69-71, 77, 83, 86, 88, 102, 109, 130, 139-44.
• 5. Kenneth L. Alford and D. Bryce Baker, “Parallels between Psalms 25–31 and the Psalm of Nephi,” in Ascending the Mountain of the Lord, 312–28. See also John Hilton III, “Old Testament Psalms in the Book of Mormon,” in Ascending the Mountain of the Lord: Temple, Praise, and Worship in the Old Testament (2013 Sperry Symposium), ed. Jeffrey R. Chadwick, Matthew J. Grey, and David Rolph Seely (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University; Salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2013), 291–311.
• 6. Although not so much in Psalm 31, these themes are clear in all of the other psalms in this series.
• 7. Peter C. Craigie and Marvin E. Tate, Psalms 1-50, World Biblical Commentary, vol. 19, Bruce M. Metzger, gen. ed. (Second Edition; Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2004), 218.

The Know

Some time after their arrival in the New World, Nephi and his followers separated themselves from the Lamanites and established a small community of believers (2 Nephi 5:5–15). The Book of Mormon reports that at that time, Nephi constructed a temple. “And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon save it were not built of so many precious things; for they were not to be found upon the land, wherefore, it could not be built like unto Solomon’s Temple. But the manner of the construction was like unto the temple of Solomon; and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine” (2 Nephi 5:16).

Some have wondered whether building a temple outside of Jerusalem would’ve been appropriate for devout Israelites following the Law of Moses. At least three different antagonists of the Book of Mormon during Joseph Smith’s lifetime immediately attacked the Nephite record for supposedly contravening biblical law, which these critics insisted forbade building any temples outside of Jerusalem.1 Others have also wondered how it would have been logistically possible for a small band of Nephites to build a temple “after the manner of Solomon,” which took years of intensive, large-scale labor to construct.2

Although unknown in Joseph Smith’s day, archaeological work has now uncovered that ancient Israelites did, in fact, construct temples “after the manner of Solomon” at locales outside of Jerusalem and even outside the land of Israel, for that matter. According to William J. Hamblin and David Rolph Seely, “Archaeologists have uncovered evidence of at least four Israelite temples not mentioned in the Bible that flourished during [the time before Lehi].” These temples have been found at Megiddo, Arad, Lachish, and Beersheba.3

Concerning the temple at Arad, for instance, Philip J. King and Lawrence E. Stager write, “The temple [is] dedicated to the God of Israel” and consists of a tripartite structure with “a forecourt, main hall, and Holy of Holies,” the same as Solomon’s Temple. While the temple at Arad is not entirely like Solomon’s Temple (it is a “broad-room” type as opposed to the Jerusalem temple’s “long-room” type layout), it shared enough similarities in architecture and function to be unmistakable as an authentic Israelite temple, complete with its own force of administrative priests.4

What’s more, the Bible itself “describes at least eleven buildings that can be identified as shrines dedicated to the worship of Yahweh,” as Hamblin and Seely clearly showed. Their list includes holy places at “Shiloh, Dan, Bethel, Gilgal, Mizpah, Hebron, Bethlehem, Nob, Ephraim, Ophrah, and Gibeah.”5 Thus, in addition to actual temples, ancient Israelites were evidently not hesitant to construct smaller places outside of Jerusalem for worshipping the Lord. 

But perhaps the most famous, and, for the Book of Mormon, most important, example of an ancient Israelite temple being built outside of Jerusalem is the temple that was built by Jewish refugees on the island of Elephantine in Egypt. As confirmed by a corpus of letters written by the Jews living on the island to officials back in Judah, the community had been ransacked by the pagan Egyptians, and local leaders requested redress. “[A] very fragmentary column [in one of the papyri] referred to Temple sacrifices and included a three-fold petition, apparently for protection and the Temple’s reconstruction,” as reported by a leading Jewish scholar Bezalel Porten.6

Yet another letter in that collection refers explicitly to the temple (and the sacrificial ordinances occurring there) a number of times, and “bare traces of the temple itself may have been uncovered in recent excavations.”7 Although the temple at Elephantine post-dates Lehi’s departure from Jerusalem by about two centuries, it gives strong evidence that ancient Jews were not reticent to build sanctuaries outside of even the land of Israel itself when necessary.

The Why

The evidence of ancient Israelites building temples outside of Jerusalem indicates that Nephi was not breaking from established custom in his construction of a temple in the New World.8 Nephi was undoubtedly well-versed in the scriptures and religious practices of his day and knew the importance of having the blessings of the temple in both his life and the lives of his followers. Following an indisputable precedent, he maintained continuity with his Israelite heritage by building a temple where he and his small band of followers could focus their love, devotion, sacrifices, and obedience to God.

The evidence from Elephantine  supports the veracity of the Book of Mormon’s report that Israelite refugees built temples outside of the land of Israel. Following the destruction of Solomon’s Temple, certain Jews in Egypt built a small temple to continue religious practices in the community, precisely as the Nephites did, as recorded in the Book of Mormon. 

As Hugh Nibley explained, “The discovery of the Elephantine documents in 1925 showed that colonies of Jews actually did flee into the desert in the manner of Lehi, during his lifetime, and for the same reasons; arriving in their new home far up the Nile, they proceeded to build a replica of Solomon’s Temple, exactly as Lehi did upon landing in the New World.” Speaking of the Nephites, Nibley accordingly summarized elsewhere, “In all these things they were simply following in the established line without any break from the past.”9

Righteous Israelites in antiquity were a temple-building people. In their poverty, they constructed a tabernacle in the wilderness as the Lord commanded them to do. Wanting to keep the Lord’s presence central in their personal lives and  community, the observant Israelites transported that precursor of the temple with them as they wandered for forty years in the desert and even long after they had settled in their promised land. Once the time was right, Solomon built a permanent temple in Jerusalem. In a similar manner, Nephi and his people followed this pattern of consecrated devotion once they had reached the land of promise given to them by the Lord their God.

• 1.“[The Book of Mormon] represents the temple worship as continued in his new land of promise contrary to every precept of the Law, and so happy are the people of Nephi as never to shed a tear on account of excision, nor to turn an eye toward Jerusalem or God’s temple.” Alexander Campbell, “Delusions,” Millennial Harbinger 2, no. 2 (7 February 1831): 92. “[The Book of Mormon] represents the temple service continuing in this land, contrary to every precept of the divine law to the Jews in the Bible.” “Mormonism,” New York Weekly Messenger and Young Men’s Advocate (29 April 1835). “[The Book of Mormon] finds the North American Indians . . . building temples five thousand miles from Jerusalem, where alone the Jews were to worship, but [also] offering sacrifice, and performing all the functions of the priesthood acceptably to the Lord, and still exhorting each other to keep the law of Moses.” James H. Hunt, Mormonism: Embracing the Origin, Rise and Progress of the Sect, with an Examination of the Book of Mormon; Also, Their Troubles in Missouri, and Final Expulsion from the State (St. Louis: Ustick & Davies, 1844), 86.
• 2. See for instance the argument along these lines entertained by B. H. Roberts, Studies in the Book of Mormon, 2nd ed., ed. Brigham D. Madsen (Salt Lake City: Signature Books, 1992), 259–261. Brant Gardner and Mark Wright have responded to this concern by noting that Nephi’s temple could conceivably have been “after the manner of Solomon’s” in cosmic, ritual function and perhaps basic architectural layout (although later Nephite temples would have almost certainly adopted and followed Mesoamerican temple patterns), not necessarily scale and grandeur, which they acknowledge would have been practically impossible for the small Nephite colony to replicate. See Brant Gardner, Second Witness: Analytical and Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Greg Kofford Books, 2007), 2:101–104; Mark Alan Wright, “Axes Mundi: Ritual Complexes in Mesoamerica and the Book of Mormon,” Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 12 (2014): 81–82.
• 3. William J. Hamblin and David Rolph Seely, Solomon’s Temple: Myth and History (London: Thames and Hudson, 2007), 33.
• 4. Philip J. King and Lawrence E. Stager, Life in Biblical Israel (Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2001), 338; William G. Dever, What Did the Biblical Writers Known And When Did They Know It? (Grand Rapids, Mich.: William B. Eerdman’s Publishing, 2001), 181. “Several priestly families at Arad, with names identical to such families in the Bible, are, in fact, known from the ostraca, or inscribed potsherds, one of which also mentions the ‘house/temple of Yahweh’.”
• 5. Hamblin and Seely, Solomon’s Temple, 33.
• 6. Bezalel Porten, “Petition for Reconstruction of Temple(?) (Draft),” in The Context of Scripture, Volume III: Archival Documents from the Biblical World, ed. William W. Hallo (Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2003), 123.
• 7. Porten, “Request for Letter of Recommendation (First Draft), in The Context of Scripture, Volume III, 125.
• 8. Hugh Nibley, “Two Shots in the Dark,” in Book of Mormon Authorship: New Light on Ancient Origins, ed. Noel B. Reynolds (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1982), 108.
• 9. Hugh Nibley, An Approach to the Book of Mormon, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley: Volume 6 (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1988), 160. See also Hugh Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon: Semester 1 (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1993), 285–86.

The Know

Nephi consecrated his brother Jacob to the priesthood shortly after their group separated from the followers of Laman, Lemuel, and Ishmael. They established itself in the Land of Nephi. A temple was built and, somewhat reluctantly, Nephi was acclaimed the first Nephite king (2 Nephi 6:2). 

In that context, Jacob delivered a sermon that began with a recital of certain words that he found in Isaiah 49–52. “I will read you the words of Isaiah. And they are the words which my brother has desired that I should speak unto you. And I speak unto you for your sakes, that ye may learn and glorify the name of your God” (2 Nephi 6:4).

The themes discussed by Jacob in this speech (which begins in 2 Nephi 6 and ends in 2 Nephi 10) include such covenant or coronation motifs as the creation, holy garments, the name of God, sacrifice, fasting, God’s judgment, and the remembrance of God’s covenant.

Although some have read these chapters without wondering about the possible backgrounds of the discourse, one Latter-day Saint scholar has looked closely at Jacob’s sermon to do just that. John S. Thompson has discovered the speech contains elements which discernibly parallel salient features of the ancient Israelite autumn festivals (especially the Feast of Tabernacles or Sukkot).

Thompson begins his study by observing that 2 Nephi 6–10 follows the covenant/treaty pattern which is now widely recognized as being found “throughout much of the ancient Near East.” This pattern consists of: 

1. A preamble
2. A historical overview and covenant speech
3. Defining the stipulations of the covenant
4. Promising blessings and cursings for upholding or breaking the covenant
5. A witness formula, and 
6. A recording of the covenant.1

The presence of these elements in Jacob’s sermon is significant, Thompson insists, because such grounds Jacob’s speech in a specific context. “The presence of the covenant pattern in Jacob’s sermon raises the question, Under what circumstances would Jacob have made such a speech,” including quoting these specific passages from Isaiah? 

The answer: “The presence of this structure in Jacob’s sermon” strongly suggests he is delivering it during the Feast of Tabernacles, where, according to some scholars, this same pattern was sometimes followed anciently by the children of Israel in renewing their covenant with Jehovah or in installing a new earthly king.2 Thompson concludes, “From the structure and themes of 2 Nephi 6–10, one may conclude that Jacob’s speech was given in connection with a covenant-renewal celebration that was most likely performed as part of the traditional Israelite autumn festivals required by the law of Moses.”3

In speaking about a covenant-renewal celebration, Thompson is referring to an event where members of a covenant community renew their covenants with God and rededicate themselves to keep his commandments. An example of this can be seen in Joshua 24, where Joshua gathered “all the tribes of Israel” to renew their covenants before claiming the land of Canaan as their inheritance (Joshua 24:1). This included swearing loyalty to and faith in the Lord and not worshipping other gods. 

Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. (Joshua 24:14–15)

Considering that this sermon was delivered at a time when the Nephites were similarly establishing themselves in a new land, it becomes clear that Jacob’s words reflect this ancient Israelite religious covenant-renewal custom. Thompson identifies these sections of Jacob’s sermon as containing the covenant-renewal elements: 

1. preamble = 2 Nephi 6:1–4
2. historical overview = 2 Nephi 6:5–9, 22
3. stipulations of the covenant = 2 Nephi 9:23–26
4. blessings and cursings = 2 Nephi 9:27–43
5. witness formula = 2 Nephi 9:44
6. the recording of the covenant = 2 Nephi 9:52.4

In addition, Jacob’s use of words from Isaiah 49–52 and other passages (such as Leviticus 16, 23; Deuteronomy 31; Isaiah 55) makes sense in light of the fact that these chapters also “reflect much of [the] traditional scenario” involving the enthronement of earthly kings during the autumn festivals.5 Such elements include: 

1. creation in Isaiah 51:13 = 2 Nephi 8:13
2. the name of God in Isaiah 51:15 = 2 Nephi 8:15 
3. the voice of God’s servant in Isaiah 50:10 = 2 Nephi 7:10
4. the law in Isaiah 51:4 = 2 Nephi 8:4
5. judgment in Isaiah 51:4–5 = 2 Nephi 8:4–5
6. deliverance in Isaiah 50:2 = 2 Nephi 7:2

This is not to say that all covenant-renewal ceremonies are coronation and autumn festivals or that all autumn festivals involve coronations and covenant-renewal ceremonies. Rather, it is to say that these separate phenomena are believed to have overlapped in the world of ancient Israel and appear to overlap in Jacob’s sermon.

The Why

Appreciating the complexity of Jacob’s interweaving of these themes and texts is interesting and useful at several levels. For one thing, these identifiable motifs obviously connect the Book of Mormon to the culture of ancient Israel, which reinforces the book’s antiquity and consistency with the biblical record, helping these two books to become one in our hands today. 

The importance and function of righteous kingship is also a strong teaching touched on many times in the Book of Mormon, and so it isn’t hard to assume that Jacob’s sermon served as a theological and ritual precedent for later Nephite kings to follow. For example, many of the same points found in Jacob’s sermon and similar covenant-renewal ceremonies would be incorporated into King Benjamin’s own speech four centuries later in Nephite history (Mosiah 2–6).6

Ultimately, Jacob’s speech highlights the focus the Nephites maintained in  reinforcing faith in Christ. Thompson concludes, “Since Israelite festivals were included in the law of Moses, the Nephites likely carried them out with full understanding that the elements of the festival all typify of Christ and point to his coming.”7

Developing faith in Christ, both for the ancient Nephites and for modern Latter-day Saints, includes making, keeping, and renewing sacred covenants. Just as modern religious holidays (such as Easter and Christmas) include specific themes and cultural practices, so too ancient religious holidays or festivals (such as the Feast of Tabernacles) included specific themes and cultural practices which appear in the Book of Mormon, reminding us to choose to serve the Lord and keep his covenant.

• 1. John S. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 124–127.
• 2. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” 127.
• 3. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” 143.
• 4. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” 126–27. See also the commentary offered by Brant Gardner, Second Witness: Analytical and Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2007), 2:157–159.
• 5. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” 140.
• 6. See primarily John W. Welch and Stephen D. Ricks, ed., King Benjamin’s Speech: “That Ye May Learn Wisdom” (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998).
• 7. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” 144.

The Know

Neither the Old nor New Testaments make any mention of the Plan of Salvation by name, nor is there any detailed description of this plan anywhere in the Bible. Indeed, the word “plan” never occurs in the King James Bible. Although, the term may have come from the original Greek text's phrase “counsel and foreknowledge of God” in Acts 2:23.

The Book of Mormon, however, has several detailed outlines of the Father's foundational and eternal plan. For example, the plan frequently appears in the book of Alma, where Alma the Younger teaches “the plan of redemption” to Zeezrom (see Alma 12), Ammon laid out this “plan” to King Lamoni (Alma 18:39), and Aaron teaches “the plan of redemption” to Lamoni’s father (Alma 22:13).

Later, Alma’s companion Amulek explained “the great plan of the Eternal God” to the Zoramites (Alma 34:9), and Alma testifies of the “plan” to his son Corianton (mentioning the word “plan” ten times in Alma 39–42).1

While Alma, the High Priest of Zarahamla, made great use of the doctrine of the plan, he was not the first Nephite priest to do so. The first explicit exposition of the plan was made much earlier by Jacob, Nephi’s younger brother and first priest of the temple in the city of Nephi. Jacob calls it “the merciful plan of the great Creator,” and “the plan of our God” (2 Nephi 9:6, 13). 

As Jacob described, the plan goes back to the very beginning, centering around “the great Creator” who would allow “himself to become subject unto man in the flesh, and die for all men, that all men might become subject unto him” (2 Nephi 9:5). This would be “an infinite atonement” because “save it should be an infinite atonement this corruption could not put on incorruption” (2 Nephi 9:7). 

This atonement is necessary, Jacob explained, because “death hath passed upon all men” and thus, “there must needs be a power of resurrection.” This mortal state came about “by reason of the fall” (2 Nephi 9:6).

Without an atonement, the effects of the fall would have remained to an endless duration” meaning, "flesh must have laid down to rot and...to rise no more” (2 Nephi 9:7). Jacob further explained that without a means of redemption would leave “our spirits … subject to that angel who fell from before the presence of the Eternal God, and became the devil.” In other words, without the atonement we would have become like that fallen angel (2 Nephi 9:8–9). 

But God’s merciful plan of salvation, redemption, and happiness provides “a way for our escape from the grasp of this awful monster; yea, that monster, death and hell” (2 Nephi 9:10).  That escape is through the atonement, which forces death and hell to “deliver up their dead” “by the power of the resurrection of the Holy One of Israel” (2 Nephi 9:12).

After this, “they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God” (2 Nephi 9:15). 

As Jacob concluded this part of his covenant speech, he explained that at the judgment, “they who are righteous shall be righteous still, and they who are filthy shall be filthy still.” The filthy “shall go away into everlasting fire, prepared for them” (2 Nephi 9:16). Meanwhile, “the righteous, the saints of the Holy One of Israel, they who have believed in the Holy One of Israel, they who have endured the crosses of the world, and despised the shame of it, they shall inherit the kingdom of God, which was prepared for them from the foundation of the world, and their joy shall be full forever” (2 Nephi 9:18).

Tracing Jacob’s understanding of the plan back one generation earlier, it appears that his inspired summation carried forth the influence of his father’s instructions to him in 2 Nephi 2. Although Lehi never called it a “plan,” he taught these same doctrines in his final blessing to Jacob. In that father’s blessing, Lehi taught, “the way is prepared from the fall of man, and salvation is free” (2 Nephi 2:4).  He explained the atonement, that the Holy Messiah “offereth himself a sacrifice for sin” and “layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise” (2 Nephi 2:7–8). 

Lehi further explained the coming judgment, noting that after the resurrection, “all men come unto God; wherefore, they stand in the presence of him, to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which is in him” (2 Nephi 2:10). Lehi taught that there are ultimately two outcomes, “liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men” or “captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil” (2 Nephi 2:27). 

Lehi is also the one who taught Jacob “that an angel of God, according to that which is written, had fallen from heaven; wherefore, he became a devil, having sought that which was evil before God” (2 Nephi 2:17), and that “he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself” (2 Nephi 2:27). These, and others, are the same doctrines taught by Jacob as “the merciful plan of the great Creator” (2 Nephi 9:6). 

Though they taught the same doctrines, Lehi’s emphasis was focused more on the fall, opposition, and the agency afforded to all to choose between good and evil. Jacob, meanwhile, put more emphasis on the atonement, resurrection, and the eternal outcome from choosing either righteousness or filthiness. Alma, reflecting the needs of his time, emphasized repentance, redemption, justice and mercy, and the resultant happiness that the righteous will enjoy in the rest of the Lord. 

The Why

Comparing the teachings of Lehi, Jacob, Alma and other Nephite leaders is instructive. We learn that, although Jacob was the first to use the word plan to describe the relationship between the creation, fall, and atonement, he was not the first to understand that relationship.

Understanding this interrelationship came to Lehi through revelation, especially as he was admitted into the heavenly council and was allowed to read the heavenly book setting forth the plan, the judgments, and the mercies of God (see 1 Nephi 1:8–19). Jacob passed this sacred knowledge on, just as his father Lehi had blessed him to (see 2 Nephi 2:8).

The doctrines of the great plan may have been especially important to Jacob. These teachings were the final testament he personally received from his father before he passed away.2 Jacob would still have been relatively young when he lost his father to death, and for this reason he may well have especially treasured these precious teachings and took greatest care to pass them along to his people. 

Moreover, the awareness and portrayal of the plan are also related to the temple. The temple in Jerusalem was the background for Lehi’s prophetic counsel to his sons;3 and Jacob and Alma were responsible for the temples in the cities of Nephi and Zarahemla, closely aligning their teachings with their high priestly duties. 

Latter-day Saint temples today continue to be places that teach God’s eternal plan his children. Everything in the temple—from the architecture, to the instructive dramatizations, to the covenantal ordinances preformed there—teaches and makes effective the Plan of Salvation. Jacob’s role as priest gave him special insights and responsibilities to administer these doctrines.  

At the same time, we recognize that different Book of Mormon writers taught the plan differently. Even when comparing the teachings of a son with the counsel given to him by his father, we find that each has different emphasis. The differences likely stem from the circumstances in which their respective blessings or discourses were given. 

For instance, Lehi’s blessing was given to a son whose older brothers had provided completely opposing models for how to live. No wonder Lehi focused on agency, opposition, and the consequences of sin. Jacob, meanwhile, was a temple priest, likely speaking to his people on the Day of Atonement.4 His emphasis on the Messiah’s atonement, therefore, is also only natural. 

In sum, we get a more complete view of the plan when we study Lehi and Jacob together. Adding Alma, Amulek, Ammon, Aaron, and others provides yet a fuller picture of the Lord’s eternal plan of mercy, justice, redemption, salvation, love, and happiness. This continues as we move on into modern revelation and other restoration texts which clarify important parts of the plan, such as the premortal life and the degrees of glory (see Doctrine and Covenants 76; Moses 4; Abraham 3). 

Having access to the fullness of the Plan of Salvation is one of the most profound and distinctive blessings that sets Latter-day Saints apart from the world. And it is the Book of Mormon that, first and foremost, repeatedly lays out the foundational doctrines of the Father’s plan. Making this Plan of Salvation known is one of the things the Book of Mormon does best.

• 1. See Alma 39:18; 41:2; 42:5; 42:8, 11, 13, 15 (2x), 16, 31. Ten was an important number in both the Bible and the Book of Mormon, where it often signified perfection or completeness. See John W. Welch, “Counting to Ten,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 12, no. 2 (2003): 42–57, 113–114.
• 2. or Lehi’s blessings as a “testament,” see Book of Mormon Central, “Should 2 Nephi Chapters 1–4:12 be Called the ‘Testament of Lehi’? (2 Nephi 3:3)” KnoWhy 29 (February 9, 2016).
• 3. See Book of Mormon Central, “How Did Lehi Learn So Much About the Fall? (2 Nephi 2:25),” KnoWhy 28 (February 8, 2016).
• 4. See Book of Mormon Central, “Did Jacob Refer to Ancient Israelite Autumn Festivals? (2 Nephi 6:4),” KnoWhy 32 (February 12, 2016).

The Know

acob, Nephi’s younger brother, in his epic discourse recorded in 2 Nephi chapters 6 through 10, used some powerful imagery to describe the formidable obstacles that face mortals on their path to eternal life. In 2 Nephi 9:10, 19 and 26, he repeatedly used the imagery of an “awful monster” to refer to death and hell, or, more straightforwardly, the death of the body and spiritual death.   

Although the use of the term "monster" is rare in the Bible, Daniel Belnap, BYU Professor of Ancient Scripture, stated, “The personification of death as a monstrous entity is not unique to the Book of Mormon, but found throughout the Bible.”1 Jacob recited Isaiah’s use  of similar imagery to depict the victory of God over “Rahab,” “the dragon,” and the Red Sea, “the waters of the great deep,” in order to demonstrate the Lord’s power to redeem his people from Isaiah 51:9–10 (2 Nephi 8:9–10).

Isaiah uses similar terms elsewhere to likewise portray the future triumph of Jehovah as He delivers Israel from the forces of evil. Isaiah 27:1 reads:

In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.

Another poignant example is in Psalms 89:8–10:

O LORD God of hosts, who is a strong LORD like unto thee? or to thy faithfulness round about thee
Thou rulest the raging of the sea: when the waves thereof arise, thou stillest them.
Thou hast broken Rahab in pieces, as one that is slain; thou hast scattered thine enemies with thy strong arm.

In Psalm 18, the psalmist compares “the snares” of death and hell to drowning in “many waters.” He recounted how only the Lord could save him.

The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid.
The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me.
In my distress I called upon the Lord, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.
…
He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters. (Ps 18:4–6, 16)

The word of the Lord recorded in Hosea 13:14, an early Israelite text, comes close to the language Jacob employed regarding what the “awful monster” represents:

I will ransom them from the power of the grave (Heb. sheol, “hell”); I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction … 

These symbols of Rahab, the (Sea) Dragon, Leviathan (a sea monster), the raging waves of the sea, and other similar imagery are found not only in the Old Testament but also in ancient Near Eastern literature generally.2 Together, they all symbolized the powers of chaos, or those forces that endanger the lives of mortal beings, and are personifications or symbols of death and hell.

A version of the ancient Near Eastern myth of divine combat known as the Canaanite Baal-Cycle, as recorded in writings on tablets found at Ugarit (modern Ras Shamra, Syria), depicts Mot (Death) and Yamm (Sea) as the demonic enemies of Baal, the king of the gods. Although at one point in the story Baal is swallowed up by Death, his ultimate victory over Death and the Sea ensures his reign as king.3

Finally, it can also be noted that there are Mesoamerican parallels to the idea of the “chaos monster.” John Sorenson has elaborated on the fact that ancient Mayan and Aztec myths depict “a monster and the waters in which it existed” that “symbolized chaos.” He noted that the “monstrous creature therein had been fought, defeated, and tamed by a beneficent divinity when the earth was created.” Sorenson compared this Mesoamerican “earth monster” to similar imagery in the ancient Near East.4

The Why

So, why did Jacob choose a “monster” as a symbol of death and hell, and why is this important for modern readers to contemplate? 

Contextually, Jacob knew that the people in his immediate listening audience would understand this analogy because it was common imagery in the Israelite and wider ancient Near Eastern culture from whence the family of Lehi had come not long before. 

Culturally, it is noteworthy that similar imagery is also found in Mesoamerica. The widespread use of this symbolism in the Old and New Worlds emphasizes a point of continuity between the imagery used by biblical prophets such as Isaiah and Hosea and the new setting of Lehi’s people in their land of promise.

Typically over time, the usage of such images in various civilizations tends to rise and fall in currency. Having survived as an impressionable youth the raging torrents of the “great deep,” Jacob himself would have been drawn emotionally to brooding menace of chaos, destruction, and death. Once vivid, however, this imagery seems to have faded somewhat as the Nephites settled in their new land, for this specific language never reappears in the Book of Mormon.

Distinctively, although not uncommon in the Bible and ancient world, what is unique about the use of this imagery in the Book of Mormon is the clarity with which Jacob explained how these symbols apply to the mortal human experience. Jacob left no doubt as he spelled out the significance of the analogy by explaining that these symbols represented both the physical and spiritual deaths – two universal obstacles that each person must face and overcome on the path to eternal life. Furthermore, Jacob went on to equate the monster with the devil and with the endless torment of the wicked (2 Nephi 9:19). 

Gratefully and optimistically, Jacob also described the reality of the victory of Jehovah over the Monster. He exclaimed: “O the greatness of the mercy of our God, the Holy One of Israel! For he delivereth his saints,” through the Atonement and the Resurrection, freeing all mankind from the power of death and hell, making it possible for everyone to overcome these disastrous barriers.

This understanding of Jacob’s use of the imagery of the chaos monster adds credence to the doctrine and historicity of the Book of Mormon. Modern readers can well appreciate this powerful depiction of how Christ, our Redeemer and Savior, helps us conquer and overcome our greatest challenges and every obstacle to our eternal salvation. 

• 1. Daniel Belnap, “‘I Will Contend with Them That Contendeth with Thee’: The Divine Warrior in Jacob’s Speech of 2 Nephi 6–10,” Journal of the Book of Mormon and Restoration Scripture 17/1–2 (2008): 30.
• 2. Othmar Keel, The Symbolism of the Biblical World: Ancient Near Eastern Iconography and the Book of Psalms (London: SPCK, 1972), 47&ndasah;56, 73–75.
• 3. See Belnap, “I Will Contend,” 30-31. Also David E. Bokovoy and John A. Tvedtnes, Testaments: Links between the Book of Mormon and the Hebrew Bible (Tooele, UT: Heritage Press, 2003), 79-87; English translations of the Ugaritic tablets may be found in Simon B. Parker, ed., Ugaritic Narrative Poetry (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1994).
• 4. John L. Sorenson, Mormon’s Codex: An Ancient American Book (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book and NAMI, 2013), 455-458. See also idem., An Ancient American Setting for the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and FARMS, 1985), 187–188.

The Know

As part of his great speech, probably given on the occasion of Nephi’s coronation as king (2 Nephi 5:18),1 Jacob sublimely praised God, his many attributes, and his plan of salvation (2 Nephi 9:8–22). Jacob waxed so eloquent that Grant Hardy, a professor at the University of North Carolina at Asheville, dubbed a portion of this sermon () “A Hymn to the Holy One of Israel.”2

Amidst this inspiring praise, however, Jacob launched into an unexpected series of “woes” condemning various practices. From 2 Nephi 9:27–38, Jacob pronounced¬ ten “woes” against liars, murderers, idol worshippers, those who think they don’t need God due to wisdom or riches, and others. Because there are exactly ten of them, they have been called “Jacob’s Ten Woes,” and compared to the famous Ten Commandments given to Moses on Mount Sinai (see Exodus 20:3–17).3

John W. Welch explained, “Jacob apparently had the Decalogue of Deuteronomy 5 or Exodus 20 in mind when he wrote these words. The prohibitions against worshiping images, committing murder or adultery, and bearing false witness (see Exodus 20:4–6, 13–14, 16) are clearly present in Jacob’s sixth through ninth woes.”4

Jacob’s ten woes, however, are not a mere repetition or paraphrase of the Ten Commandments. “Whereas the Decalogue gave the law,” Welch observed, “Jacob went one step further by stressing the consequences of breaking the law. Furthermore, Jacob’s principles have been tailored as a revelation to his people and their needs.”5

The Why

The subtle but significant connection between the Ten Commandments and Jacob’s ten woes is important in understanding why Jacob included warnings about the consequences of sin in the midst of his lofty praise of God. At Sinai, God made a covenant with his people (see Exodus 19:5), as Jacob clearly understood. “The blessings of the covenant,” explained Old Testament scholar John L. Collins, “are contingent on the observance of the law.”6

Covenants in the ancient world followed a specific pattern in which the stipulations were laid out, and consequences of keeping or breaking the covenant were explained. At Sinai, the Ten Commandments were among “the stipulations of the covenant.”7Both blessings and cursins are also present in the covenant renewal at Mt. Ebal (see Deuteronomy 27–28).

Although not always noticed, Jacob actually told his listeners that his purpose in quoting Isaiah was “that ye might know concerning the covenants of the Lord that he has covenanted with all the house of Israel” (2 Nephi 9:1). The ten woes found in 2 Nephi 9:27–38, therefore, function as the list of stipulations and the consequences attached for violating that aspect of the covenant.8

Moreover, the full traditional ancient covenant pattern shaped Jacob’s speech.9 This full covenant formula teaches an important lesson, namely that the fullness of the gospel is not only about the goodness and blessings of God, it also deals with the consequences of sin.

Knowing the necessity of keeping and obeying one’s covenants with God, the Savior himself placed woes upon the Pharisees and scribes, calling them to repentance for their hypocritical violations of several requirements of the law (see Matthew 23).  The Savior also followed the pattern of declaring both blessings and cursings in his Sermon on the Plain (Luke 6:17-26).

As the world continues to move toward a more laissez-faire attitude toward many moral behaviors, people tend to refashion the image of God into the image of the world (see D&C 1:16). Often, the result is to emphasize only God’s love and mercy, while discounting or ignoring the stipulations and consequences. 

In contrast, Jacob’s powerful discourse reminds us not only of “the greatness of the mercy of our God … [who] delivereth his saints from that awful monster the devil, and death, and hell” (2 Nephi 9:29) but also of “the greatness and the justice of our God … [who] executeth all his words, and they have gone forth out of his mouth and his law must be fulfilled” (2 Nephi 9:17). 

God’s justice includes consequences for violating the law; his mercy is found in providing a Savior and allowing time for change and reconciliation. While repentance is always possible, it remains true that not all behavior is acceptable to the Lord. In his ten woes, Jacob identified several of those unacceptable behaviors and warns of the consequences to befall those who violate their covenants and do not repent.  

• 1. Book of Mormon Central, “How is Jacob’s Speech Related to Ancient Israelite Autumn Festivals?” KnoWhy 32 (February 12, 2016); John S. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 1998), 139–142.
• 2. Grant Hardy, ed., The Book of Mormon: A Reader’s Edition (Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 2003), 85.
• 3. John W. Welch, “Jacob’s Ten Commandments,” in Reexploring the Book of Mormon: A Decade of New Research, ed. John W. Welch (Salt Lake City and Provo, Utah: Deseret Book and FARMS, 1992), 69–72.
• 4. Welch, “Jacob’s Ten Commandments,” 70.
• 5. Welch, “Jacob’s Ten Commandments,” 70.
• 6. John J. Collins, Introduction to the Hebrew Bible (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004), 121.
• 7. Collins, Introduction to the Hebrew Bible, 125.
• 8. See Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob,” 126–127.
• 9. Book of Mormon Central, “How is Jacob’s Speech Related to Ancient Israelite Autumn Festivals?” KnoWhy 32 (February 12, 2016); Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob,” 124–127.

The Know

The Book of Mormon uses many names and titles for Jesus Christ. Latter-day Saint scholar Susan Easton Black counted over 100 different name-titles for the Savior in the Book of Mormon.1

Different Book of Mormon personalities display a preference for certain names and titles over others. “Of these names,” wrote John and Gregory Welch, “many were used exclusively by one author, while others were used almost universally.”2

Each name-title emphasizes different attributes of Christ. Thus, the names and titles preferred by each author often reflect the ways in which they most related to the Savior. John W. Welch explained, “Judging simply from the names and titles that they used in referring to the Lord, we can see that each Book of Mormon prophet related to and testified of Jesus in his own personal ways,” thus not only telling us about the Lord but also revealing things about themselves.3

Lehi, for example, used 17 different names for Christ.4 According to Welch, “Lehi’s terminology manifests greater variation than that of any other Book of Mormon prophet.”5 Amidst this variety, however, Welch discerned a concentration “around the redemptive and mediating functions”6 He notes how this helps us better understand Lehi himself:

These points take on added meaning in the context of Lehi’s personal experiences. To Lehi, who fled from Jerusalem and the lands of his inheritance, the Messiah would be, above all, a Messiah and a Redeemer who would come to restore the fallen, the lost, and the displaced. He would restore them to the lands of their inheritance.7

Lehi’s son Jacob had a slightly different focus. Jacob was consecrated a priest by his brother Nephi (see 2 Nephi 5:26). Jacob's concern about priestly matters such as holiness may be seen in the fact that Jacob used the divine title "Holy One of Israel" more than any other Book of Mormon writer.

Furthermore, Welch noticed, “Jacob’s priestly functions are reflected in the testimony that he bears of Christ.”8 For example, Jacob used the title of "Christ" in 2 Nephi 10:3, where he explained, “for in the last night the angel spake unto me that this should be his name” (2 Nephi 10:3).

The English word “Christ” comes from the Greek Christos (χριστός), which has the same meaning as Messiah, which comes from the Hebrew (משיח). In both languages the words mean “anointed one.” That the title of Christ was revealed to Jacob by an angel appears, at first glance, to suggest that a new name for the Messiah had been revealed. As earlier references to the “Messiah” make clear (see 1 Nephi 1:19; 10:4¬5, 7, 9–11, for example), the Nephites already knew that one of the Savior’s titles would be “anointed one.”

Jacob’s priestly functions may explain why an angel would go on to reveal the name or title “anointed one” to him. The temple, where Jacob’s address was delivered, was the place where the Lord chose to put his name (see Deuteronomy 12:11; 16:6). The priestly vestments, according to Exodus, included “a plate of pure gold,” engraven with the words “HOLINESS TO THE LORD” and fastened to the High Priest’s forehead (see Exodus 28:36–38).

Other sources, however, indicate that simply the name of God was engraven upon the head plate,9 and that during the Day of Atonement ritual, the high priest revealed the name of God.10

Jacob knew many different names and titles for the Lord. Perhaps wanting to protect the sacred nature of the name Yahweh (Jehovah), Jacob was asking to know which name or title to reveal to the people and engrave on his head plate. The name “anointed one” was especially appropriate. As a consecrated priest, “Jacob would have identified personally with the fact that Jesus was anointed to perform his holy and eternal atoning mission."11

While we cannot be certain what, if anything, was new about the name Christ—“anointed one”—that was revealed to Jacob, the association with the priestly head plate fits with the wider context of Jacob’s discourse in 2 Nephi 6–10. Margaret Barker explained, “There is a great deal in later tradition to suggest that the high priest when he wore the Name actually represented Yahweh, especially when he performed the atonement rituals.”12

Compatibly, the atonement is a major theme in Jacob’s address, which Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has called “one of the most definitive sermons on the Atonement recorded in any scripture.”13 Furthermore, the atonement rituals were part of the performances done during the autumn festivals, the likely occasion of Jacob’s address.14 Being the first high priest among the Nephites, and likely performing many of the necessary rites for the first time, the exact particulars—such as which name or title to use for God—would have been on Jacob’s mind.

Other similar reflections can be drawn out of the individualized usages of the names for Christ by each of the writers in the Book of Mormon. 

The Why

Knowing the name of God is a high spiritual honor and privilege. Moses asked and was told the name by which the Lord could be known. King Benjamin gave to his people the Savior's name, the knowledge of which distinguished them above all people. Keeping the name of God holy is one of the Ten Commandments. Knowing God's names and functions allows righteous individuals to call upon him for mercy, guidance, and deliverance.

Jesus Christ has many titles, representing his many roles in our lives and the great eternal plan. Everyone relates to the Savior and the atonement in their own, unique, individual ways. Often how we relate to Christ is shaped by our personal experiences and circumstances, changing over time as we learn, grow, and mature. It, therefore, should come as no surprise that this is true about each of the prophets in the Book of Mormon. 

Studying the different names for Christ that specific prophets used teaches us many things. It connects us to those prophets as real people who lived real lives—these are not wooden and stock characters. It reveals the varied personalities in the book and provides additional evidence for multiple authorship of that record. It illustrates the logic and consistency in the use of the 101 different names and titles used for Christ. 

When the circumstances of the individual prophets are considered and it appears that the names and titles chosen naturally fit the context of their testimonies and teachings of Jesus Christ, it is hard to imagine that these prophetic expressions are fabrications. Even seen as fiction, this subtle consistency is a clear indication of compositional sophistication beyond Joseph Smith’s writing ability. While seen as the genuine writings of real individual prophets, this intimate familiarity with particular attributes of Christ rings true as those individuals testify within the pages of this testament of Jesus Christ.    

• 1. Susan Easton Black, Finding Christ Through the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1987), 16–18.
• 2. John W. Welch and J. Gregory Welch, Charting the Book of Mormon: Visual Aids for Personal Study and Teaching (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1999), 44. There is no pagination, numbers refer to the chart number.
• 3. John W. Welch, “Ten Testimonies of Jesus Christ in the Book of Mormon” (FARMS Preliminary Reports, 1994), 3. Developed further in John W. Welch, “Ten Testimonies of Jesus Christ from the Book of Mormon,” in Doctrines of the Book of Mormon, ed. Bruce A. Van Orden and Brent L. Top (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1992), 223–242; reprinted in A Book of Mormon Treasury (Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and BYU Religious Studies Center, 2003), 316–342.
• 4. Welch and Welch, Charting the Book of Mormon, 46.
• 5. Welch, “Ten Testimonies of Jesus Christ,” 4.
• 6. Welch, “Ten Testimonies of Jesus Christ,” 4.
• 7. Welch, “Ten Testimonies of Jesus Christ,” 4.
• 8. Welch, “Ten Testimonies of Jesus Christ,” 7.
• 9. See discussion in Margaret Barker, The Great Angel: A Study of Israel’s Second God (Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1992), 98.
• 10. See discussion in Margaret Barker, King of the Jews: Temple Theology in John’s Gospel (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2014), 101–102.
• 11. Welch, “Ten Testimonies of Jesus Christ,” 7.
• 12. Barker, The Great Angel, 98.
• 13. Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant: The Messianic Message of the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1998), 67.
• 14. Book of Mormon Central, “How is Jacob’s Speech Related to Ancient Israelite Autumn Festivals? (2 Nephi 6:4)” KnoWhy 32 (February 12, 2016); John S. Thompson, “Isaiah 50–51, the Israelite Autumn Festivals, and the Covenant Speech of Jacob in 2 Nephi 6–10,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 139–142.

The Know

In order to “more fully persuade” others to “believe in the Lord their Redeemer,” Nephi selected, commented on, and likened the prophecies of Isaiah to his life and ministry, for the profit and learning of his family and future readers (1 Nephi 19:23).

Besides likening Isaiah, Nephi also incorporated the testimony of his brother Jacob concerning the coming of Jesus Christ into his narrative exposition on the nature of Christ and his gospel. Together these prophets constitute three separate yet unified voices in the Book of Mormon to satisfy God’s law of witnesses (cf. Deuteronomy 19:15). 

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland (a modern "special witness") recognized, “It is interesting to note that there were three . . . witnesses—special witnesses—not only of the divine origins of the Book of Mormon but also of Divinity himself. These early witnesses were Nephi, Jacob, and Isaiah, and it is not by coincidence that their testimonies appear so conspicuously at the beginning of this ancient record.”1

By Nephi’s reckoning, the reasoning behind including Isaiah and Jacob as additional witnesses was because they too, like Nephi, were special witnesses of the Messiah. “For [Isaiah] verily saw my Redeemer, even as I have seen him,” Nephi explained. “And my brother, Jacob, also has seen him as I have seen him.”

Together these three witnesses would “establish” the word of God to his people. “Nevertheless,” Nephi added, “God sendeth more witnesses, and he proveth all his words” (2 Nephi 11:2–3). As Elder Holland concluded, “The testimonies of Nephi, Jacob, and Isaiah have been given as the three great early witnesses who stand at the gateway to the Book of Mormon, declaring their testimony of Christ.”2

Together these early witnesses of Christ in the Book of Mormon paint a theology of anticipation, inviting even those who lived before Jesus’ advent to accept the gospel. Elder Holland identifies a number of interrelated doctrines expounded on by each of these prophets, including the key points of the doctrine of Christ, hope in Christ’s atonement and resurrection, and the atonement’s redemptive power.

The Why

Why would Nephi think it was important to use up precious space on his plates to include the testimonies of Jacob and Isaiah? Elder Holland reasoned, “One could convincingly argue that the primary purpose for recording, preserving, and then translating [this information on] the small plates of Nephi were to bring forth to the dispensation of the fullness of times the testimony of these three witnesses” in plainness and clarity (cf. 2 Nephi 25:4).

The more serious a given matther, the greater need there is for additional witnesses, which has been recognized by Elder Holland, “After reading these three witnesses from the small plates of Nephi, the reader knows two things in bold relief: that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, and that God will keep this covenants and promises with the remnants of the house of Israel. Those two themes constitute the two principal purposes of the Book of Mormon, and they are precisely the introductory themes addressed by Nephi, Jacob, and Isaiah.”3

By including additional witnesses for his message about Christ, Nephi was buttressing his  prophetic authority and veracity. He could have chosen no better than his trusted, faithful brother Jacob and the great seer Isaiah, whom Elder Holland rightly designated “by every standard the messianic prophet of the Old Testament.”4

Therefore, it can be said that the Book of Mormon is not just a book supported by witnesses (the Three and Eight Witnesses) but a book of witnesses (Nephi, Jacob, and Isaiah). “Standing like sentinels at the gate of the book,” Elder Holland concluded, “Nephi, Jacob, and Isaiah admit us into the scriptural presence of the Lord.”5

• 1. Jeffrey R. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 1997), 34.
• 2. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant, 95.
• 3. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant, 35. Compare Elder Holland's comments here with the observation by Joseph M. Spencer that links the three witnesses (Nephi, Isaiah, Jacob) with the angelic council associated with the temple and creation. Joseph M. Spencer, An Other Testament: On Typology (Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2016), 49–52.
• 4. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant, 75.
• 5. Holland, Christ and the New Covenant, 36.

The Know

The books of 1 and 2 Nephi include eighteen chapters of the Book of Isaiah (in addition to other quotations and paraphrases): Isaiah 2–14 and 48–51 either fully or in part. Nephi includes these passages from Isaiah in his record in order to help his audience understand important prophecies from the Lord regarding the future of the human race.1

Using his vision recorded in 1 Nephi chapters 11–14 as a framework, Nephi uses Isaiah as a witness to the visions of the future that he had also received from the Lord.  Latter-day Saint scholar John W. Welch termed this “the Nephite prophetic view.”2

Welch explained that there are four stages of this worldview that are apparent in 1 Nephi 11–14:

• Stage 1: Christ’s coming (1 Nephi 11);
• Stage 2: his rejection and the scattering of the Jews (1 Nephi 12);
• Stage 3: the day of the Gentiles (1 Nephi 13); and
• Stage 4: the restoration of Israel and the ultimate victory of good over evil (1 Nephi 14).3

This insight offers power in interpreting not only the words of Isaiah but also the prophetic outlook of all writers in the Book of Mormon.

For example, Nephi’s brother, Jacob, conveniently and consciously summarizes the four stages of the Nephite prophetic view in seven verses right near the beginning of his impressive covenant speech in 2 Nephi 6–10.

• 2 Nephi 6:9 (Stage 1, Christ’s coming): “the Lord God … should manifest himself unto them in the flesh”
• 2 Nephi 6:10 (Stage 2, Christ rejected): “after they have hardened their hearts … against the Holy One of Israel … they shall be smitten and afflicted”
• 2 Nephi 6:11-13 (Stage 3, the day of the Gentiles): “And blessed are the Gentiles … if it so be that they shall repent and fight not against Zion … they shall be saved”
• 2 Nephi 6:14-15 (Stage 4, restoration and victory): “the Messiah will set himself again the second time to recover them; … he will manifest himself unto them in power and great glory”

This prophetic overview of God’s plans for the House of Israel and all humanity lines up with and informs Nephi’s and Jacob’s understanding of Isaiah’s prophecies. When Nephi includes passages from Isaiah in his writing, he chooses chapters and verses that align with this prophetic view.

For example, the last four chapters of 1 Nephi deal with the future of Nephi’s people in their new land of promise.4 The order of the topics in these four chapters, 1 Nephi 19-22, tightly follow the order the same four stages found in 1 Nephi 11–14 and 2 Nephi 6.

Along with his presentation of this prophetic pattern, Nephi quotes Isaiah 48 and 49, which correspond to stages 2 and 3, respectively.

• 1 Nephi 19 (Stage 1): Christ’s coming, mission, suffering, crucifixion
• 1 Nephi 20/Isaiah 48 (Stage 2): rejection of Christ by the Jews, their scattering
• 1 Nephi 21/Isaiah 49 (Stage 3): the Lord’s plans for the Gentiles
• 1 Nephi 22 (Stage 4): the restoration of Israel and God’s victory over evil

The book of 2 Nephi contains a large block of quoted material, consisting of Isaiah 2–14. The following illustrates how the chapters from Isaiah that Nephi chose to utilize  can be aligned with elements in his paradigmatic four-stage prophetic view. Nephi will make this alignment evident as he interprets these passages in 2 Nephi 25-30, as is briefly illustrated as follows: 

• 2 Nephi 12-14/Isaiah 2-4 (Stage 4): the day of the Lord, the law going forth, the victory over evil (see 2 Nephi 29-30)
• 2 Nephi 15/Isaiah 5 (Stages 2 and 3): Jews taken into captivity, God’s wrath not turned away; “he will lift up an ensign to the nations” and 2 Nephi 16/Isaiah 6 (Stage 2): Jews reject Gospel, Lord has “removed men far away” (see 2 Nephi 26-27)
• 2 Nephi 17/Isaiah 7 (Stage 1): “A virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (see 2 Nephi 25)
• 2 Nephi 18/Isaiah 8 (Stage 3): Gentile powers have success over Israel
• 2 Nephi 19/Isaiah 9 (Stage 1): “The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light” … “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given”
• 2 Nephi 20-24/Isaiah 10-14 (Stage 4): “The Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people”; Babylon, the wicked and proud will be destroyed; Lucifer will be brought down; “the Lord hath founded Zion, and the poor of his people shall trust in it” (see 2 Nephi 29-30)

The Why

For many reasons, it is important and helpful to read Isaiah intelligently and insightfully. The Savior has commanded all people to take the words of Isaiah seriously. In 3 Nephi, Christ told the Nephites specifically:

And now, behold, I say unto you, that ye ought to search these things. Yea, a commandment I give unto you that ye search these things diligently; for great are the words of Isaiah (3 Nephi 23:1).

Attempting to get through the Isaiah chapters in 1 and 2 Nephi, however, is often considered one of the most difficult aspects of reading the Book of Mormon and, as a result, their sacred and significant messages are often bypassed. 

That is why Nephi’s prophetic worldview is so helpful. Understanding the Isaiah chapters is considerably easier when the reader utilizes a framework such as this. 

This is only one tool that can help even novice readers to get more out of their reading of Isaiah. But what better guide could a reader hope for than Nephi’s prophetic view and interpretive lens?

Nephi, through his faithfulness to the Lord, was blessed with a comprehensive vision of how history would play out for the human race, both for the House of Israel and for all the nations. He knew that the Prophet Isaiah had also been given incredible insight into these same future events and used his words as another witness to his prophecies.

Only a person with deep familiarity with a complicated text can summarize its contents concisely and incisively. And only an author who had seen such an overview of the prophetic framework for the history of God’s covenant people could render and utilize such a summary so effectively as one finds in the writings of Nephi. Better than any other accounting that has been suggested, all this explains why Nephi chose to quote the specific chapters from Isaiah that he did.

Further Reading

John W. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, Utah: FARMS, 1998), 19–45.

John W. Welch and J. Gregory Welch, Charting the Book of Mormon: Visual Aids for Personal Study and Teaching (Provo, Utah.: FARMS, 1999), charts 96-99.

• 1. The appearance of passages in the Book of Mormon from sections of the book of Isaiah labeled by scholars as “Second Isaiah” (Isaiah 40–55) has been the source of some criticism. It is beyond the scope of this KnoWhy to address these issues. For one take on the matter, please see John W. Welch, “Authorship of the Book of Isaiah in Light of the Book of Mormon,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 423–437.
• 2. John W. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 19–45.
• 3. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah,” 22.
• 4. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah,” 24.

The Know

The Isaiah quotations in the Book of Mormon follow, to a large extent, word-for-word the King James Translation. What might this tell us about the nature of the Prophet Joseph Smith’s translation of the plates? Royal Skousen’s work on the critical text of the Book of Mormon provides important clues about the Isaiah chapters which may help answer this question.1

By “textual criticism” scholars do not mean negatively judging the text, but rather using scholarly tools to study it closely. As Richard N. and R. Kendall Soulen explained, “The function and purpose of textual criticism is of a dual nature: (1) to reconstruct the original wording of [a given text]; and (2) to establish the history of the transmission of the text through the centuries.”2

By studying the original text of the Book of Mormon’s Isaiah chapters with the tools of textual criticism, Skousen has identified eight important findings.

First, “The base text for the Isaiah quotations in the Book of Mormon is indeed the King James Version of the Bible.”3 Whatever portions of Isaiah were accessible to Nephi on the brass plates and ultimately quoted on his small plates, it seems clear the translated English of the Book of Mormon text follows the KJV and is not a wholly original translation of Joseph Smith’s. The exact reasons for this remain debated by scholars,4 but the answer likely relates to what the Lord revealed to Joseph Smith in 1831: 

These commandments [the revelations that comprise the Doctrine and Covenants] are of me, and were given unto my servants in their weakness, after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding (Doctrine and Covenants 1:24). 

Later in 1842, the Prophet similarly remarked about the translation of a passage from the biblical book of Malachi: “I might have rendered a plainer translation to this, but it is sufficiently plain to suit my purpose as it stands” (D&C 128:18). The objective of translation is to speak with sufficient plainness to the main target audience.

Second, Skousen finds evidence in the  original Book of Mormon manuscript that shows that the Isaiah passages and other biblical quotations were “dictated by Joseph Smith; no physical copy was given to Oliver Cowdery to copy from.”5 This finding agrees with what the witnesses of the translation said, namely that Joseph Smith used no books or notes in bringing forth the Book of Mormon text. Likewise, Skousen also points out that this can be confirmed by Oliver Cowdery’s misspellings of certain words, which makes sense if he was hearing a text being dictated and not copying from a printed page.

Third, it is noteworthy that “the original Book of Mormon chapter divisions of the Isaiah quotations follow a larger thematic grouping, not the interruptive chapter system found in the King James Bible.”6 Said another way, “the original Book of Mormon chapter divisions ignore the chapter system found in the King James Bible.”7 Instead, as other scholars have noted, the Book of Mormon’s division of Isaiah follows an intricate and larger literary or thematic scheme.8

Fourth, “The original Book of Mormon text is closer to the King James Version.”9 By this Skousen means Oliver Cowdery made a few alterations, whether purposely or inadvertently, to the Isaiah quotations as he prepared the Printer’s Manuscript of the Book of Mormon for publication. As such, the Original Manuscript is closer to the KJV than subsequent editions of the text.10

Fifth, “The majority of differences between the Book of Mormon text and the Isaiah text are not associated with italicized words in the King James Version.”11 The significance of this remains a point of contention among scholars, since some changes do align with the italicized (supplied) word in the KJV, and how closely the Book of Mormon follows the KJV’s italics may indicate whether Joseph was directly copying from or subconsciously influenced by the KJV.12

Sixth, “Corrections in the original manuscript give very little evidence for the hypothesis that Joseph Smith altered the text while he supposedly read it off from a King James Bible.”13 Essentially, Skousen finds no evidence that Joseph Smith was consciously editing or correcting himself as he dictated the Isaiah passages in 2 Nephi.14

Seventh, “The few Isaiah passages that have been quoted more than once in the Book of Mormon may provide evidence for helping to restore the original reading.”15 Here Skousen has in mind the few instances where the Book of Mormon quotes the same Isaiah passage twice (such as Isaiah 11:4–9 in 2 Nephi 21:4–9 and again in 2 Nephi 30:9, 11–15). These cross-checks show a consistency in Joseph’s translation processes, as he would not have turned back to that block of text in his printed Bible as he wove those verses into Nephi’s explanation of that passage quoted earlier.

Eighth, “Joseph Smith’s ‘New Translation’ of the Bible used the 1830 edition of the Book of Mormon as a source for changing some of the corresponding biblical text in Isaiah.”16 From the available evidence it would appear that the Prophet based some of his revisions of the biblical text (called today the Joseph Smith Translation) on the Book of Mormon, not on the KJV. Skousen explains,

The Joseph Smith Translation . . . shows that Joseph Smith sometimes used the Book of Mormon text to make changes in the Isaiah text of the Bible. . . . It is not surprising that Joseph Smith viewed the Book of Mormon as an inspired text and thus felt free to use the Book of Mormon in altering the biblical text of Isaiah [in the JST]. But apparently he did not realize the extent to which his copy text, the 1830 edition, contained textual errors; as a consequence, these errors were carried over into the JST.17

The Why

Without a doubt, the words of Isaiah are difficult to interpret. They were probably hard for people in Isaiah's day to understand, and they are even harder to grasp today. But the Book of Mormon encourages and enables modern readers to find great value in Isaiah’s important prophecies. The sheer volume of Isaiah chapters in the small plates of Nephi tells us that Lehi, Nephi, and Jacob saw Isaiah (who died only about twenty years before Lehi was born) as the guiding star of Israelite prophets in their day.

Ancient scribes were, for the most part, extremely conscientious. Although changes could occur from one copy to another, it is impressive to see how close the Isaiah texts in Dead Sea Scrolls still conform to the Masoretic Hebrew over a thousand years later. This helps to explain why the Isaiah texts in the Book of Mormon conform substantially with those in the Bible. 

Where differences occur, scholars may wonder what those difference may or may not mean. This examination of minute variants is indeed a complex subject, and ordinary readers may well find the payoffs to be less than the effort required to delve deeply into this complex and arcane topic. It is still helpful and worth knowing, however, that such textual criticism provides insight into the textual history of our sacred Book of Mormon text, where every word counts. It also helps readers understand a little better how the text was revealed to the Prophet Joseph Smith.18

Even though this topic is indeed complex, these issues “never prevent us from understanding the spiritual message of the Book of Mormon.”19 In the details of the Book of Mormon’s text we can find joy and rich meaning, especially in Isaiah’s prophecies concerning the coming of the Redeemer and the gathering of Israel in the last days. We can likewise better appreciate the concentration and inspiration that went into the translation of the Book of Mormon on the part of the Prophet Joseph Smith and the meticulous diligence of his scribes who recorded his carefully dictated words.

• 1. Book of Mormon Central, “Are There Mistakes in the Book of Mormon?” KnoWhy 3 (January 4, 2016).
• 2. Richard N. Soulen and R. Kendall Soulen, Handbook of Biblical Criticism (Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011), 210.
• 3. Royal Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations of the Book of Mormon,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 373.
• 4. For another view, see Brant Gardner, The Gift and Power: Translating the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2011), 303–307.
• 5. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 377.
• 6. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 378.
• 7. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 378.
• 8. See for instance John Gee, “‘Choose the Things That Please Me’: On the Selection of the Isaiah Passages in the Book of Mormon,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, 67–94; David Rolph Seely, “Nephi’s Use of Isaiah 2–14 in 2 Nephi 12–30,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, 151–170; Grant Hardy, Understanding the Book of Mormon: A Reader’s Guide (New York, N. Y.: Oxford University Press, 2010), 58–86.
• 9. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 379.
• 10. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 381.
• 11. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 381, emphasis in original.
• 12. On this, see generally the sources above under “further reading” and Gardner’s book in note 5.
• 13. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 382.
• 14. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 385.
• 15. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 385.
• 16. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 387.
• 17. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 387–388.
• 18. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 389.
• 19. Skousen, “Textual Variants in the Isaiah Quotations,” 389.

The Know

The framework of Nephi’s prophetic vision (1 Nephi 11–14) informs his selection and interpretation of the Isaiah passages he quotes. In 1998 John W. Welch articulated a four-stage pattern in Nephi’s vision, which Welch dubbed “the Nephite prophetic view.”1 The first stage in the pattern “begins with the prophet foretelling how and when Jesus would come down in the flesh,” and how he would perform miracles, and be crucified.2

Nephi’s vision of the Savior in 1 Nephi 11 is the clearest prophecy of the coming of the Savior on record. Perhaps no other prophet before Christ knew the Savior so well. Yet, Nephi says that Isaiah “verily saw my Redeemer, even as I have seen him” (2 Nephi 11:2). What in Isaiah’s writings might make Nephi feel that Isaiah had seen the Savior as clearly as he had?

One answer is in Isaiah’s prophetic call. The Book of Mormon opens with Lehi’s vision of “God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels” with a Messianic figure “descending out of the midst of heaven” (1 Nephi 1:8–9). Nephi’s vision of the Savior, at the top of a high mountain, also appears to have been before the throne of God and his divine assembly.3

Isaiah too had his vision of God on his throne (2 Nephi 16; Isaiah 6), which is quite comparable to Lehi’s, and which Nephi quotes.4 In Isaiah’s call, one of the seraphim cleanses Isaiah to make him worthy to stand in the midst of the divine council (2 Nephi 16:6–7; Isaiah 6:6–7). Latter-day Saint biblical scholar David Bokovoy explained, “Though the literal identity of this fiery angelic being is ambiguous in the text, one possible LDS reading would interpret the seraph who cleanses Isaiah as an allusion to Christ.”5 Bokovoy further commented:

Interpreting the Lord seated upon the throne as God the Father and the seraph who heals Isaiah as an allusion to Christ would allow the chapter to serve as an illustration of Isaiah’s role as an eyewitness of Jesus who, as Nephi observed in his commentary, had been sent to testify of the Redeemer.6

This reading suggests that, like Lehi and Nephi, Isaiah’s witness of the Redeemer came as part of a divine council vision. This, however, does not offer the same kinds of details found in Nephi’s vision.

In his vision, Nephi saw a “virgin, most beautiful and fair above all other virgins … bearing a child in her arms” (1 Nephi 11:15, 20). Isaiah, too, saw that “a virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son” (2 Nephi 17:14; Isaiah 7:14). 

Isaiah also rejoiced, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (2 Nephi 19:6; Isaiah 9:6). Among the titles of the Messianic child are “Everlasting Father” and “Mighty God.” In the original text of the Book of Mormon, Nephi’s guide says that the virgin’s child is “the Lamb of God, yea, even the Eternal Father” (1 Nephi 11:21), and the “everlasting God” (1 Nephi 11:32).7

Nephi “beheld that he went forth ministering unto the people, in power and great glory” and yet, “They cast him out from among them” (1 Nephi 11:28). He was “taken by the people” and “judged of the world” (1 Nephi 11:32). Isaiah also spoke of the people rejecting the Lord, saying “this people refuseth the waters of Shiloah” (2 Nephi 18:6; Isaiah 8:6). For those who reject him, Isaiah said, the Lord is “a stone of stumbling, and for a rock of offense to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem” (2 Nephi 18:14; Isaiah 8:14).

In his subsequent explanation or midrash in 2 Nephi 25, Nephi tied several of these points together, about the coming of Christ (25:11–12), the importance of his names (25:19), and the pain of his being rejected (25:13–14). 

The Why

The prophet Isaiah saw and knew the Lord. The most important role of any prophet is to testify of Jesus Christ and his atoning mission. Noting that the name “Isaiah” means “the Lord is salvation,” Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has testified: “Isaiah was prepared from birth—and of course we would say from before birth—to testify of the Messiah and bear such witness of the divinity of Christ’s coming.”8

Nephi saw the Lord as well. Connecting Messianic passages in the opening chapters of Isaiah with the key elements in Nephi’s vision of the Savior draws these two testimonies together. Nephi saw in Isaiah a kindred spirit—another who, like him, had received profound advanced knowledge of the Redeemer. Thanks to his detailed vision of the Savior’s birth, life, ministry, and rejection, Nephi was able to see allusions to Christ in Isaiah’s writings clearly.

Reading Isaiah using Nephi’s prophetic framework illuminates Isaiah’s witness of the Savior. By using this pattern in his vision to select and interpret Isaiah, Nephi helps readers to see how and why Nephi read Isaiah Christologically, all of which brings clarity to readers today. 

• 1. Book of Mormon Central, “What Vision Guides Nephi’s Choice of Isaiah Chapters? (2 Nephi 11:2)” KnoWhy 38 (February 22, 2016); John W. Welch, “Getting Through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 19–45.
• 2. Welch, “Getting Through Isaiah,” 20.
• 3. Book of Mormon Central, “How Did God Call His Prophets in Ancient Times? (1 Nephi 15:8),” KnoWhy 17 (January 22, 2016); David E. Bokovoy, “‘Thou Knowest That I Believe’: Invoking The Spirit of the Lord as Council Witness in 1 Nephi 11,” Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 1 (2012): 1–23.
• 4. See Stephen D. Ricks, “Heavenly Visions and Prophetic Calls in Isaiah 6 (2 Nephi 16), the Book of Mormon, and the Revelation of John,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, 171–190.
• 5. David E. Bokovoy, “On Christ and Covenants: An LDS Reading of Isaiah’s Prophetic Call,” Studies in the Bible and Antiquity 3 (2011): 45.
• 6. Bokovoy, “On Christ and Covenants,” 45. Bokovoy also notes, “this proposal strengthens the tie between Isaiah’s and Lehi’s call narratives for … Lehi’s throne theophany specifically included a vision of God the Father seated upon the throne, followed by a personal interaction with Christ, one of the angelic host in the heavenly assembly.”
• 7. Royal Skousen, ed., The Book of Mormon: The Earliest Text (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2009), 29–30.
• 8. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland, “‘More Fully Persuaded’: Isaiah’s Witness of Christ’s Ministry,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, 4.

The Know

Mountains were sacred to ancient Israelites and were like natural temples.1 Hence, Moses ascended Mount Sinai to speak with the Lord (Exodus 19:3), and Jesus gave his famous sermon after he and his disciples had also gone up “into the mountain” (Matthew 5:1, Greek eis to oros.). 

Right after Nephi said he would quote Isaiah’s words to his people (2 Nephi 11:2) and soon after the completion of the temple in the city of Nephi (2 Nephi 5–10), the first Isaiah passage Nephi recorded spoke of the mountain of the Lord as a temple. Isaiah prophesied of a time “when the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.” 

Isaiah continued,

And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem (2 Nephi 12:2–3; Isaiah 2:2–3).

As Jeffrey R. Chadwick has recently stressed, Isaiah's primary concern in this prophecy was the temple in Jerusalem in the last days.2 Matthew Roper and John Gee have pointed out that because the land of Nephi, where his people built their temple (2 Nephi 5:16), was at a higher elevation,3 it would have been easy for Nephi to liken this prophecy to his situation and his people.4

Today, however, modern prophets have also seen the fulfillment of this passage in the establishment of Salt Lake City and its temple. In General Conference in April 1971, Elder LeGrand Richards, for instance, said of Isaiah 2:2 (2 Nephi 12:2), “How literally that has been fulfilled, in my way of thinking, in this very house of the God of Jacob right here on this block! This temple, more than any other building of which we have any record, has brought people from every land to learn of his ways and walk in his paths.”5

In the early days of the Church, Latter-day Saints came from all over the world to gather in Salt Lake City and receive the word and ordinances of God at the temple. More recently, Elder Robert D. Hales taught, “As Salt Lake City has hosted the 2002 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, we have seen a partial fulfillment of many prophecies. The nations of the earth and many of their leaders have come. They have seen us serving alongside our friends in this community and our neighbors of other faiths.”6

Speaking at the Conference Center shortly after it was built, President Hinckley taught, “I believe that prophecy applies to the historic and wonderful Salt Lake Temple. But I believe also that it is related to this magnificent hall. For it is from this pulpit that the law of God shall go forth, together with the word and testimony of the Lord.”7

Since it opened in April of 2000, Latter-day Saints from around the world have poured into the Conference Center to learn the ways of the Lord, be taught his law, and hear the word of God.

So, how can all these meanings be correct? 

Donald W. Parry, an Isaiah scholar and Latter-day Saint, believes, “The prophecy ultimately refers to the Salt Lake Temple, nestled in the hills and mountains, as well as the future temple of Jerusalem, which will be established in the mountains of Judea.” But he broadens the prophecy, allowing that “Isaiah’s prophecy of the ‘mountain of the Lord’ is fulfilled as temples are built throughout the world.”8

The Why

From these several examples, both ancient and modern, it becomes clear that in this case, and often, a prophecy may have multiple applications. Many of Isaiah’s prophecies have numerous meanings and have been fulfilled in different ways at different times. Why is this so? One reason may be the expansive foresight of Isaiah. Another reason may be found in the universal applicability of scripture. 

People from all walks of life, from all kinds of different times and places, can relate to the scriptures and liken them to their lives. Nephi “likened” Isaiah’s words to his own people, probably seeing his own temple as a house of the Lord. At the same time, he encouraged all his readers to liken Isaiah's teachings to themselves (2 Nephi 11:2, 8). 

Nephi recognized that many of Isaiah’s prophecies “shall be of great worth unto them in the last days” and recorded them for the good of those living in this time, long after his own (2 Nephi 25:8). Perhaps following Nephi’s lead and “likening” Isaiah, Latter-day prophets and apostles have recognized fulfillments today in various ways. 

Ultimately, other fulfillments are still in store. The final fulfillment of Isaiah 2:2–3 (2 Nephi 12:2–3) will likely come in the millennial day, the very point at which Nephi ends his interpretive sayings about the Isaiah chapters he has just quoted (see 2 Nephi 30:7–18). At that time, those who are “scattered” will “begin to gather” and “the things of all nations shall be made known; yea, all things shall be made known unto the children of men” (2 Nephi 30:7, 16).

• 1. L. Michael Morales, “The Tabernacle: Mountain of God in the Cultus of Israel,” in Ancient Temple Worship: Proceedings of the Expound Symposium, 14 May 2011, ed. Matthew B. Brown, Jeffrey M. Bradshaw, Stephen D. Ricks, and John S. Thompson (Orem, UT and Salt Lake City, UT: Interpreter Foundation and Eborn Books, 2014), 27–70;
• 2. Jeffrey R. Chadwick, "The Great Jerusalem Temple Prophecy: Latter-day Context and Likening Unto Us," in Ascending the Mountain of the Lord: Temple, Praise, and Worship in the Old Testament, ed. David R. Seely, Jeffrey R. Chadwick, and Matthew J. Grey (Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and Religious Studies Center, 2011), 367–383.
• 3. Book of Mormon Central, “Why Does Nephi Always Go Down to the Wilderness, and Up to Jerusalem? (1 Nephi 3:4)” KnoWhy 6 (January 7, 2016).
• 4. John Gee and Matthew Roper, “‘I Did Liken All Scriptures Unto Us’: Early Nephite Understandings of Isaiah and Implications for ‘Others’ in the Land,” in The Fulness of the Gospel: Foundational Teachings from the Book of Mormon, ed. Camille Fronk, Brian M. Hauglid, Patty A. Smith, and Thomas A. Wayment (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 2003), 58.
• 5. Elder LeGrand Richards, “In the Mountain of the Lord’s House,” April 1971 General Conference Address, online at lds.org.
• 6. Elder Robert D. Hales, “Out of Darkness into His Marvelous Light,” April 2002 General Conference Address, online at lds.org.
• 7. President Gordon B. Hinckley, “This Great Millennial Year,” October 2000 General Conference Address, online at lds.org.
• 8. Donald W. Parry, Visualizing Isaiah (Provo, UT: FARMS, 2001), 98.

The Know

God gave the prophet Nephi an expansive vision of the future of his people, of the House of Israel, and of all mankind (1 Nephi 11–14). The inspired perspective that he gained from this revelation was labeled “the Nephite Prophetic View” by LDS scholar John W. Welch, and can be divided into four distinct stages: 1) Christ's coming; 2) his rejection and the scattering of the Jews; 3) the day of the Gentiles; and 4) the restoration of Israel and ultimate victory of good over evil at the Second Coming.1

Reading the Isaiah chapters that Nephi recorded through the lens of "the Nephite Prophetic View" can illuminate what Nephi understood of Isaiah's prophecies and how he likened them to his own prophetic vision.

The second stage of this prophetic worldview involves the Jews rejecting Christ the Lord and his teachings and their subsequent scattering throughout the world. This consequential process encompasses those who were scattered both before and after the coming of Jesus Christ.

The last verses of 1 Nephi 11 record the revelation to Nephi that the Lamb of God would be arrested by those at Jerusalem, judged, lifted up on the cross, and slain (1 Nephi 11:32–33).

1 Nephi 12 then records, from Nephi’s perspective, what would happen to his particular branch of the House of Israel after they had been scattered and eventually dwindle in unbelief. Lehi’s posterity, like the rest of scattered Israel, “would languish in disbelief, be subjected to conflict, and grow in spiritual darkness and wickedness.”2

As the Book of Mormon then continues, Nephi and Jacob quoted selections from Isaiah that they saw as relevant to the four stages.3 For example, Jacob took up the prophetic view in 2 Nephi 6, and he describes the scattering stage in verses 8–11. He declares what the Lord had shown him:

And after they have hardened their hearts and stiffened their necks against the Holy One of Israel, behold, the judgments of the Holy One of Israel shall come upon them. And the day cometh that they shall be smitten and afflicted.

Wherefore, after they are driven to and fro, for thus saith the angel, many shall be afflicted in the flesh … they shall be scattered, and smitten, and hated; nevertheless, the Lord will be merciful unto them … 

Nephi revisited each of the four stages of his prophetic view in 1 Nephi 19–21. In 1 Nephi 20, he turned to Isaiah 48 to provide a further prophetic witness of stage 2. Isaiah 48 begins by depicting the “house of Jacob” in a state of apostasy. They “make mention of the God of Israel, yet they swear not in truth nor in righteousness” (v. 1). “They call themselves of the holy city, but they do not stay themselves upon the God of Israel” (v. 2). 

Israel, because of stiffneckedness, would pass through a period of darkness and persecution. Isaiah went on to prophesy that God would not leave Israel in this state forever. He declared the word of the Lord in saying:

Nevertheless, for my name’s sake will I defer mine anger, and for my praise will I refrain from thee, that I cut thee not off.

For, behold, I have refined thee, I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction (1 Nephi 20:9–10; Isaiah 48:9–10).

After quoting Isaiah 2-14 in 2 Nephi 12-24, Nephi again made use of his four-stage pattern in 2 Nephi 25–30. For example, in 2 Nephi 15, Nephi quoted Isaiah 5. Then, after he completes his large block of Isaiah quotation, Nephi explained in his own words how he sees stage 2 playing out. In 2 Nephi 25, he declared:

Wherefore, the Jews shall be scattered among all nations; yea, and also Babylon shall be destroyed; wherefore, the Jews shall be scattered by other nations.

And after they have been scattered, and the Lord God hath scourged them by other nations for the space of many generations, yea, even down from generation to generation … they shall be persuaded to believe in Christ, the Son of God, and the atonement, which is infinite for all mankind … (2 Nephi 25:15-16)

The Why

Nephi and his people were a part of the initial waves of the scattering of Israel because of apostasy. Jerusalem was destroyed and the people were scattered both before and after the coming of their Redeemer. Thus, the Nephites were acutely aware of the reality of being scattered. Therefore, Nephi provided his people and later readers of the Book of Mormon with three prophetic witnesses of the future of the House of Israel: (1) his own vision, (2) the testimony of his brother Jacob, and (3) the words of the great prophet Isaiah.

In reading the Isaiah chapters of 1 and 2 Nephi, along with the inspired commentary of Nephi and Jacob, the lens of “the Nephite Prophetic View” can give readers a useful tool for understanding what they are reading and why Nephi decided to include these specific points and chapters from Isaiah.   

The Lord communicated through these prophets the reality of the scattering of the House of Israel. At the same time, God promised that he would not forget his people and those who would have him as their God, no matter where they found themselves. Nephi and Jacob wanted their people, and all of their readers, to internalize what God has promised to do. 

The title page of the Book of Mormon declares that one of the book’s purposes is to help readers to “know the covenants of the Lord” and thus understand “that they are not cast off forever.” Just as scattered Israel would have to pass through “the furnace of affliction,” and yet will be redeemed and can be restored to a blessed state, so the Lord will always remember all his children and be willing to forgive and bless each and every one who returns and comes unto him.

Further Reading

Book of Mormon Central, “What Vision Guides Nephi’s Choice of Isaiah Chapters?” KnoWhy 38 (February 22, 2016)

Book of Mormon Central, "How Did Nephi Read Isaiah as a Witness of Christ's Coming?" KnoWhy 40, (February 24, 2016).

John W. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 19–45.

• 1. For an overview of these four stages, see Book of Mormon Central, “What Vision Guides Nephi’s Choice of Isaiah Chapters?” KnoWhy 38 (February 28, 2016)
• 2. John W. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah,” 21.
• 3. John W. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 19.

The Know

The Book of Mormon includes a stark portrayal of Satan, or the devil as he is more commonly called in the text.1 Satan’s main desire, according to Book of Mormon prophets, is to make “all men . . . miserable like unto himself” (2 Nephi 2:27). This he does by leading men and women into sin, lulling them into a carnal security, blinding them towards the things of God, and stirring up strife and contention in the hearts of the children of men.2

Some have wondered how the Book of Mormon has such a vivid depiction of Satan while the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible appears to lack a concrete conception of him.3 While it is true that Satan (or “the satan”) appears in such passages as Numbers 22, Job 1–2, Zechariah 3, and 1 Chronicles 21, biblical scholars have argued over whether this figure is necessarily an evil entity opposed to God, and, if so, whether his identity and function evolved over time in ancient Israelite religion.4

The non-Mormon biblical scholar G. J. Riley explained, “In the Hebrew Bible, one finds the concept of the ‘adversary’ (Heb. śāṭān) in two senses: that of any (usually human) opponent, and that of Satan, the Devil, the opponent of the righteous.”5 That śāṭān in Hebrew can refer to both mortal and divine adversaries (who may or may not always necessarily be evil) has led to conflicting interpretations of the Old Testament passages in which he appears.

Despite this ambiguity, there exist underlying conceptions from ancient Near Eastern mythology that may help us understand the role of Satan in the Bible. Riley explained, “The Biblical idea that God and the righteous angels confronted the opposition of a great spiritual enemy, the Devil backed by the army of the demons, had a long history and development in the ancient world. Very old stories of conflict among the gods are found in each of the cultures which influenced the Biblical tradition, and these stories . . . contributed to the concept of the Devil.”6 Riley mentioned specifically Mesopotamian and Canaanite myths that feature a head deity fighting back the forces of chaos, death, and evil as underlying elements in the biblical depiction of Yahweh fighting against “terrifying but legitimate spirits of calamity, disease, and death.”7

Indeed, it appears that ancient Israelites did possess an understanding of demons or other evil deities that opposed God (NRSV Leviticus 16:8; 17:7; Deuteronomy 32:17; Psalm 106:37–38; Isaiah 13:21; 34:14).8They likewise understood God as combatting sea monsters and waters that personified chaos and destruction (NRSV Psalm 74:12-17; 89:9-12; 93:3-4; Job 26:12-13; Isaiah 27:1; 51:9-10).9 In later biblical writings the chaos monster, "the great dragon" or "old serpent," would come to be explicitly identified as Satan (Revelation 12:1-11).

Turning to the Book of Mormon, it is important to note that Lehi “supposed” the existence of Satan based on reading something he encountered in the plates of brass. “And I, Lehi, according to the things which I have read, must needs suppose that an angel of God, according to that which is written, had fallen from heaven; wherefore, he became a devil, having sought that which was evil before God” (2 Nephi 2:17, emphasis added). It appears that Lehi was referencing this passage in Isaiah: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! Art thou cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations!” (2 Nephi 24:12; Isaiah 14:12).

The name rendered as “Lucifer” (Latin for “light-bearer”) in the Hebrew text is Helel ben Shachar (hēylēl ben šāḥar) and literally means “shining one, son of dawn.” This links him with “a Canaanite myth of the gods Helel and Shahar . . . who fall from heaven as a result of rebellion” (cf. Genesis 6:1–4),10 as well as a deity from the ancient Near East identified as “a star in the constellation . . . associated with Ištar and through which passes Venus” (cf. Job 38:6–7).11

The LDS biblical scholar David Bokovoy explained, “[Lehi] would need to have a biblical text that described a fallen angel. Such a view appears in Isaiah 14. This biblical passage is a lament, mocking the death of the Assyrian king from the time of Isaiah.” According to Bokovoy, “Even though this text refers directly to an Assyrian monarch who tried to make himself a divine being like the most High God, the taunt is based upon an ancient Canaanite motif of a literal divinity who tried to ascend to the throne of El, the highest god in the divine assembly.”12

Another LDS scholar, John A. Tvedtnes, wrote, “Lucifer’s attempt to sit on the holy mountain reflects his desire to become part of the heavenly council.”13 In the words of one biblical scholar, he tried to “sit enthroned on the mountain where the assembly of gods met . . . in effect as the king of the gods.”14 For his presumption, Lucifer, the mythological personification of perhaps the Assyrian king Sargon II (circa 722–705 BC),15 was cast down to the underworld, where he was to be stripped of his power and prestige, mocked by those he once oppressed, and ultimately defeated by Yahweh (Isaiah 14:15–23; 2 Nephi 24:15–23).

Knowing, as he did, the essential story of the fall of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden (2 Nephi 2:15–27), Lehi knew of “the captivity and power of the devil” (v. 27), who was “the father of all lies” (v. 18). He also knew that the devil and wickedness were in “opposition” to God and his righteousness (vv. 11–13). But where the devil had come from was not explicitly stated in Genesis.16 Perhaps puzzling over this very gap in the records known to him, and with the contextual background to Isaiah 14:12 in mind, it is easy to see how Lehi could have “supposed” the existence of the devil, an angel or divine being who opposed God and so fell to the lowest world (hell). Lehi’s cogent explanation was then picked up by his sons Nephi and Jacob and perpetuated and developed further by subsequent Book of Mormon prophets and authors.

The Why

By providing a clearer depiction of Satan than the Hebrew Bible, the Book of Mormon helps us recognize him and his tactics. “In addition to exposing the tactics and plans of Satan,” wrote Clyde James Williams, “the Book of Mormon gives clear and direct counsel on how to overcome him.”17With these two scriptural records combined, we are better prepared to withstand the Adversary and his minions.

On a theological or even literary level, the Book of Mormon appears to draw from Isaiah 14 in its own conception of Satan, which in turn drew some of its imagery or inspiration from a wider ancient Near Eastern mythological environment. Lehi thus seems to have made the same theological innovation that Jews returning from the Babylonian Exile not long after him would go on to make.

Or perhaps this conception of the Evil One was already beginning to circulate among the prophets in Jerusalem in Lehi’s day, thereby allowing it to emerge strongly and without any resistance in later biblical writings. Of course, the “historical approach to the concept of Satan as an evolutionary theological development in Judaism raises the question of whether the Book of Mormon’s references to the Devil should be seen as anachronistic,” but as Bokovoy has acknowledged, “a careful reading of the Book of Mormon, however, shows that in this instance, the Book of Mormon seems to reflect the way biblical scholars who read the Hebrew Bible critically understand this issue.”18

• 1.“Satan” appears 27 times in the Book of Mormon, beginning in 1 Nephi 13:29. “The devil” appears some 89 times in the Book of Mormon, beginning in 1 Nephi 12:17.
• 2. Clyde James Williams, “Satan,” in Book of Mormon Reference Companion, ed. Dennis L. Largey (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 2003), 701–703.
• 3. See for instance the comments by Blake Ostler, who argued that the strong presence of Satan in the Book of Mormon is a theological “expansion” by Joseph Smith as the inspired translator of the text. Blake Ostler, “The Book of Mormon as a Modern Expansion of an Ancient Source,” Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought 20, no. 1 (Spring 1987): 85–87.
• 4. See generally Peggy L. Day, An Adversary in Heaven: śāṭān in the Hebrew Bible, Harvard Semitic Monographs 43 (Atlanta, GA: Scholar’s Press, 1988); C. Breytenbach and P. L. Day, “Satan,” in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, ed. Karel Van Der Toorn, Bob Becking, and Pieter W. Van Der Horst (Leiden: Brill, 1999), 726–732.
• 5. G. J. Riley, “Devil,” in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, 247.
• 6. Riley, “Devil,” 244.
• 7. Riley, “Devil,” 245.
• 8. See the commentary by G. J. Riley, “Demon,” in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, 235–240.
• 9. On this point, see Stephen O. Smoot, "Council, Chaos, and Creation in the Book of Abraham,"Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 22, no. 2 (2013): 31–34.
• 10. Joseph Blenkinsopp, “Isaiah,” in The New Oxford Annotated Bible, 3rd ed., ed. Michael D. Coogan (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2001), 999. One thinks also in this instance of the angels who were said, in the Enoch literature (1 Enoch 6–11), to have fallen from heaven. See Christopher Rowland, The Open Heaven: A Study of Apocalyptic in Judaism and Early Christianity (Eugene, Oregon: Wipf and Stock, 1982), 93; P. W. Coxon, “Nephilim,” in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, 618–620.
• 11. J. J. M. Roberts, First Isaiah: A Commentary, Hermeneia: A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2015), 209.
• 12. David Bokovoy, Authoring the Old Testament: Genesis–Deuteronomy (Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2014), 209.
• 13. John A. Tvedtnes, The Most Correct Book: Insights from a Book of Mormon Scholar (Springville, UT: Horizon Publishers, 2003), 152.
• 14. Roberts, First Isaiah, 210.
• 15. Roberts, First Isaiah, 201, 207–209.
• 16. Many biblical scholars even maintain that the serpent in Genesis 3 is not necessarily evil, and therefore not the devil as understood in later Jewish and Christian interpretation, but is merely a crafty trickster animal (Genesis 3:1). For representative views along these lines, see James L. Kugel, How to Read the Bible: A Guide to Scripture, Then and Now (New York, N. Y.: Free Press, 2007), 51; R. S. Hendel, “Serpent,” in Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible, 746–747.
• 17. Williams, “Satan,” 702.
• 18. Bokovoy, Authoring the Old Testament, 208.

The Know

Nephi’s selection of specific Isaiah passages was neither random nor clumsy. The ancient prophet was concerned with imparting a specific visionary or prophetic view that “foresaw the future in four distinct stages.” Those four stages are: 1) Christ’s coming, 2) his rejection and the scattering of the Jews, 3) the day of the Gentiles, and 4) the restoration of the house of Israel.1

In each stage, Nephi “quoted a selection from Isaiah” because it conveyed themes and words which were “relevant to one of those stages.”2 John W. Welch identified the third stage in Nephi’s four stage view as the day of the Gentiles.3

1 Nephi 13 describes the period that can be called the day of the Gentiles, which is marked by such events as the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ. This stage in Nephi’s prophetic view of history serves as the preparatory stage for the eventual restoration of the house of Israel and the ultimate triumph of Zion over Babylon. 

As Welch observed, in illustrating this stage Nephi “draws heavily” from such passages of Isaiah.4 For instance, Isaiah 49 (quoted in 1 Nephi 21) spoke of God lifting up his hand to the Gentiles in order to have them support the remnants of scattered Israel who were “broken off” and “scattered abroad” (1 Nephi 21:1). This would result in Gentile kings and princes worshipping the Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 49:7); Israel being freed from spiritual and physical bondage (Isaiah 49:9), and carried by Gentile kings and queens as “nursing fathers” and “nursing mothers” (Isaiah 49:23). Nephi uses other passages from Isaiah to illustrate this stage as well, including Isaiah 8-10 and 29.

These scriptures, which the Book of Mormon utilizes, “apply directly to Nephi’s stage three,” which sets in motion the latter-day work of modern Gentiles in restoring the Gospel and preparing Israel for her restoration.5 Nephi would later go on to elaborate on how the day of the Gentiles would unfold, describing the coming forth of the Book of Mormon and including what modern Gentiles should do to avoid incurring God's judgment (2 Nephi 25–30).

The Why

One main stated purpose of the Book of Mormon is “to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations” (Book of Mormon Title Page). In order to accomplish this, Book of Mormon authors such as Nephi quoted extensively from other prophetic writings, most notably and consistently Isaiah, and interwove those quotations with his prophetic teachings. 

Although the words of Isaiah can be difficult to follow, when we take Nephi as our guide, Isaiah’s vast collection of prophecies can be clearly sorted out. Nephi's vision in 1 Nephi 11-14 informed his reading of Isaiah throughout, which explained how he were able to see the words of Isaiah so clearly and insightfully. 2 Nephi 10 and 26-28 are good examples as the Gentiles were particularly the focus of attention.

This visionary framework also explained why Nephi’s prophetic view is so effectively consistent. “The presence of this underlying consistency” in Nephi’s prophetic view of history “should not be particularly surprising to us,” explained Welch. After all, “the Nephite prophets claimed that all prophets prophecies essentially the same word of Christ” and acted as witnesses of Him.6

In addition to helping us develop our testimonies in Christ, Welch clarifies that “the Nephite prophetic view supplies modern readers with the big picture in understanding Isaiah.” This includes understanding what is meant by the "day of the Gentiles" and how the modern day fits in the larger scheme of sacred history.7 President Ezra Taft Benson taught, 

The Lord has designated these days in which we live as the “times of the Gentiles.” The Gentile nations are the so-called Christian nations—North and South America and the European nations from which we came. The “times of the Gentiles” refers to that period of time extending from when the gospel was restored to the world (1830) to when the gospel will again be preached to the Jews—after the Gentiles have rejected it.8

Today is the day or times of the Gentiles. Although many challenges exist that we must face in an increasingly sinful world, President Benson and other prophets, including Nephi, have assured us that the latter-day work of those of Gentile nations will prepare Israel for her eventual restoration.

Accounting for the use of Isaiah in the Book of Mormon has never been easy, but with Nephi’s framework in mind attentive readers can see why he said what he said and why that's so helpful to know.

• 1. John W. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 22.
• 2. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” 19.
• 3. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” 22.
• 4. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” 29.
• 5. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” 25.
• 6. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” 32.
• 7. Welch, “Getting through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” 32.
• 8. Ezra Taft Benson, “Prepare Yourself for the Great Day of the Lord,” New Era, May 1982, online at https://www.lds.org/new-era/1982/05/prepare-yourself-for-the-great-day-o...

The Know

Some readers of the Book of Mormon have wondered about the possible presence of so-called “others” (i.e. New World inhabitants not of Lehite, Mulekite, or Jaredite descent) in the text. Does the Book of Mormon portray the New World as essentially empty and devoid of others at the time of Nephi’s arrival? Or are there textual clues that the Lehites interacted with and were otherwise aware of others? 

Latter-day Saint scholars have argued for some time that the Book of Mormon indeed acknowledges the presence of others in the New World. Besides the overwhelming archaeological and historical evidence for non-Book of Mormon peoples inhabiting the Americas before and after the arrival of even the Jaredites, passages in the Book of Mormon can easily be interpreted as speaking of “others.”1

For instance, after naming everyone in the original Lehite group who followed him, Nephi said he was also followed by “all those who would go with me,” which were “those who believed in the warnings and the revelations of God” (2 Nephi 5:5–6). These words arguably make best sense if this final group of individuals are essentially non-Lehite converts, since Nephi had just catalogued everyone else from his immediate family as already having joined with or separated from him.

Other overlooked textual hints for the presence of “others” in the New World, noted John Gee and Matthew Roper, can be found in Nephi’s selection of Isaiah. “The words of Isaiah inscribed and rehearsed by Nephi and Jacob would have been especially meaningful to Nephi’s ancient American audience if there were other non-Lehite and non-Israelite peoples in the land of promise when they arrived.”2

For example, Gee and Roper pointed out that Nephi quotes Isaiah 14 in 2 Nephi 24, which begins, “For the Lord will have mercy on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land; and the strangers shall be joined with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob.” Because this quotation comes after Jacob’s own covenant speech that touched on the relationship between scattered Israel and the Gentiles (2 Nephi 6–10), Isaiah’s reference to “the strangers” who will join with God’s people may be significant for seeing “others” in the Nephite lands as well. 

“If we were in Nephi and Jacob’s audience,” Gee and Roper speculated, “how would we liken this scripture to our own situation as they invited them to do?” They answer by noting, “Isaiah’s prophecy would . . . suggest to the ancient [Nephites] that there were ‘strangers’ in the land who had joined or would join with them in accepting the teachings of Nephi and could be numbered with the house of Jacob.”3

Another hint comes from Nephi’s quotation of Isaiah 2, which contains the famous prophecy of the Lord’s house being established in the top of the mountains: “And it shall come to pass in the last days, when the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem” (2 Nephi 12:2–3; Isaiah 2:2–3). 

This passage was quoted not long after the early Nephites constructed their own temple in the land of Nephi.

The place called Nephi was located at a higher elevation than Zarahemla and was one of the highest points in all the land (at least none mentioned is ever said to be higher). So these “many people” of which Isaiah prophesied would have to “go up to the mountain of the Lord.” It was also a place where many people came, not only those Nephi describes as “my children and those who were called my people” (2 Nephi 5:14), and “the people who are now called Lamanites” (2 Nephi 5:14), but also those like Sherem who “came ... among the people of Nephi” (Jacob 7:1).4

In this instance, Nephi likened Isaiah 2, and in so doing invited “many people” and “all nations” (i.e. Lehite and non-Lehite inhabitants of the New World) to make covenants with God at the newly constructed temple in the land of Nephi.

The Why

In his selected quotations of Isaiah, Nephi himself may have seen references to the existence of these "others" and to their relationship with his own people. Understanding that these passages in the Book of Mormon may well speak of "others" in the New World is helpful in several ways.

In general, seeing these clues encourages readers of the Book of Mormon to pay closer attention to things that might otherwise be easily overlooked. Recognizing these textual nuances, such as references to “strangers” or others in the Book of Mormon, helps us avoid superficial readings. Doing so may even call into question certain assumed or culturally inherited readings, which in turn will lead to improved thinking about the Book of Mormon.

In particular, these clues make sense of the archeological and genetic data that indicate the presence of non-Book of Mormon people many thousands of years before the arrival of Nephi and his family.5 Rather than describing an empty continent, the Book of Mormon is a history of a small branch of scattered Israel at times interacting with its Gentile neighbors in the land.6

Finally, they help explain why Nephi selected some of the Isaiah passages which he did. As Gee and Roper stated,

Nephi and Jacob quoted the Isaiah passages found in the Book of Mormon dealing with the Gentiles because they found them directly relevant to the situation they found themselves in, having to deal with the Gentiles [i.e. “others”] surrounding them and because of their relationship to the covenant God made with the house of Israel. . . . By likening the scriptures to his people, Nephi sometimes reapplies to his day passages which Isaiah had intended for his day. We in turn follow the same pattern by applying those same scriptures to our day.7

• 1. See John Gee and Matthew Roper, “‘I Did Liken All Scriptures Unto Us’: Early Nephite Understandings of Isaiah and Implications for ‘Others’ in the Land,” in The Fulness of the Gospel: Foundational Teachings from the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, UT: Deseret Book, 2003), 52–55; John L. Sorenson, “When Lehi’s Party Arrived in the Land, Did They Find Others There?” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 1, no. 1 (1992): 1–34; Brant A. Gardner, “The Other Stuff: Reading the Book of Mormon for Cultural Information,” FARMS Review of Books 13, no. 2 (2001): 21–52; Matthew Roper, “Nephi's Neighbors: Book of Mormon Peoples and PreColumbian Populations,” FARMS Review 15, no. 2 (2003): 91–128; Brant Gardner, Second Witness: Analytical and Contextual Commentary on the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2007), 1:351–356; 2:6–13; Traditions of the Fathers: The Book of Mormon as History (Salt Lake City, UT: Greg Kofford Books, 2015), 154–158.
• 2. Gee and Roper, “‘I Did Liken All Scriptures Unto Us’,” 52.
• 3. Gee and Roper, “‘I Did Liken All Scriptures Unto Us’,” 57–58.
• 4. Gee and Roper, “‘I Did Liken All Scriptures Unto Us’,” 58.
• 5. On this, see “Book of Mormon and DNA Studies,” online at https://www.lds.org/topics/book-of-mormon-and-dna-studies?lang=eng.
• 6. Hugh Nibley, Lehi in the Desert/The World of the Jaredites/There Were Jaredites, The Collected Works of Hugh Nibley: Volume 5 (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1988), 250; John L. Sorenson, Mormon’s Codex: An Ancient American Book (Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2013), 104–108.
• 7. Gee and Roper, “‘I Did Liken All Scriptures Unto Us’,” 62.

The Know

As already discussed, much can be gained by comparing the themes in the "Nephite prophetic view" with Nephi's quotes from Isaiah.1 The fourth and final stage of the Nephite prophetic view “discloses the events and conditions that will prevail at the end times.”2 The main themes are God’s ultimate victory over evil, the reward of the righteous, and punishment of the wicked. 

In the final phase of his sweeping vision, Nephi saw “the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks” (1 Nephi 14:1). He also saw that the righteous Gentiles “shall be a blessed people upon the promised land forever,” that “the house of Israel shall no more be confounded” (1 Nephi 14:2), and that the great and abominable church will be destroyed (1 Nephi 14:3). These themes are repeated throughout 1 Nephi 14.

The final judgment of the Lord is also a frequent theme in Isaiah and is scattered throughout the Isaiah chapters Nephi quoted. Nephi’s long block quote of Isaiah begins with a prophecy about the “the last days, when the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be established” (2 Nephi 12:2; Isaiah 2:2).3 Here, Isaiah described the Lord establishing his kingdom (2 Nephi 12:1–5) and punishments to befall idol worshippers (2 Nephi 12:6–11; Isaiah 2:6–11).

Also relevant to this subject, Isaiah 10–11 (2 Nephi 20–21) contain prophecies of “the day of visitation” (2 Nephi 20:3; Isaiah 10:3) when the wicked will be visited with all kinds of punishments (2 Nephi 20:3–18; Isaiah 10:3–18). Isaiah then foretold the establishment of the Lord’s kingdom, explaining that “with righteousness shall he judge the poor” (2 Nephi 21:4; Isaiah 11:14), and that the people “shall not hurt nor destroy” and “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord” (2 Nephi 21:9; Isaiah 11:9). In his prophecy following his Isaiah quotation (2 Nephi 25–30), Nephi ended by drawing explicitly on Isaiah 11 when describing the last days (see 2 Nephi 21:5–9; 30:11–15).4

Several other Isaiah passages from 2 Nephi 12–24 (Isaiah 2–14) could be mentioned in this regard. In particular, Isaiah 14:19 (2 Nephi 24:19) describes the wicked as “an abominable branch.” Might this not have brought to Nephi’s mind the great and abominable church from his vision? Or the great and spacious building from his father’s dream, all which surrounded the great tree of eternal life?

The Why

Several prophets have described the events that will transpire in the last days. But in Nephi’s world, the prophet who had spoken most similarly to his vision of that future day was Isaiah. So, Nephi unsurprisingly, through careful selection off material from Isaiah, used him as a second witness, attesting that in the end the Lord will prevail, the righteous will be rewarded, and the wicked will be destroyed. 

Nephi’s fairly straightforward description of this process in 1 Nephi 14 helps readers better detect this pattern in the apocalyptic passages of Isaiah, which Nephi uses in 2 Nephi 12–24. Reading Isaiah’s more cryptic prose with the aid of Nephi’s prophecies clarifies and illuminates the teachings on the final judgment, God’s ultimate triumph, and the rewards or fates awaiting the righteous and wicked.

Latter-day prophets and apostles continue to warn and teach about the last days, stressing that many of the calamities ancient prophets like Isaiah and Nephi warned of are being fulfilled now.5 The common refrain is to prepare now, for we do not know exactly when the Lord will come. President Ezra Taft Benson taught:

Are we not witnessing the fulfillment of these signs today? The gospel is being extended to all nations which permit our missionaries to penetrate their countries. The Church is prospering and growing. Yet in undiminished fury, and with an anxiety that his time is short-and it is-Satan, that great adversary to all men, is attempting to destroy all we hold dear.6

President Benson acknowledged, "this is an unpleasant topic on which to dwell. I take no delight in its portrayal, nor do I look forward to the day when calamities shall come upon mankind. But these words are not my own; the Lord has spoken them." He was quick to note, "to an otherwise gloomy picture there is a bright side-the coming of our Lord in all His glory. His coming will be both glorious and terrible, depending on the spiritual condition of those who remain."7

Dallin H. Oaks pointed out, "the Lord declares that some of these signs are His voice calling His people to repentance." Elder Oaks taught, "We need to make both temporal and spiritual preparation for the events prophesied at the time of the Second Coming."8 The need for spiritual preparation constantly grows in this increasingly secular world. Prophets both ancient and modern have warned of impending dangers of the last days but have also marked the safe way forward.

• 1. Book of Mormon Central, “What Vision Guides Nephi’s Choice of Isaiah Chapters? (2 Nephi 11:2)” KnoWhy 38 (February 22, 2016); Book of Mormon Central, “How Did Nephi Read Isaiah as a Witness of Christ’s Coming? (2 Nephi 17:14),” KnoWhy 40 (February 24, 2016); Book of Mormon Central, “Why Do Early Nephite Prophets Speak about the Scattering of Israel? (2 Nephi 25:15),” KnoWhy 42 (February 26, 2016); Book of Mormon Central, “What is the Day of the Gentiles? (1 Nephi 21:22),” KnoWhy 44 (March 1, 2016).
• 2. John W. Welch, “Getting Through Isaiah with the Help of the Nephite Prophetic View,” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 22.
• 3. See Book of Mormon Central, “Has the Prophecy of the Lord’s House Established in the Mountains been Fulfilled? (2 Nephi 12:2),” KnoWhy 41 (February 23, 2016).
• 4. Welch, “Getting Through Isaiah,” 29–30.
• 5. See, for example, Ezra Taft Benson, “Prepare Yourself for the Great Day of the Lord,” New Era (May 1982); Dallin H. Oaks, “Preparation for the Second Coming,” address given at the April 2004 General Conference; both online at lds.org.
• 6. Benson, “Prepare Yourself."
• 7. Benson, “Prepare Yourself."
• 8. Dallin H. Oaks, “Preparation for the Second Coming.”

The Know

After his extensive quotation of Isaiah 2–14 (2 Nephi 12–24), Nephi not only interpreted these chapters (2 Nephi 25-30), but he also provided five keys to help his readers to better understand and delight in the words of the Judean prophet. Nephi was aware that “Isaiah spake many things which were hard for many of [his] people to understand,” but mainly because they did not understand “the manner of prophesying among the Jews” (2 Nephi 25:1). He wished that every person could be blessed with the spirit of prophecy.

Nephi began acknowledging that “there is none other people that understand the things which were spoken unto the Jews [by Isaiah] . . . save it be that they are taught after the manner of the things of the Jews” (2 Nephi 25:5). To help his readers better understand Isaiah’s writings “in plainness,” Nephi provided five “keys” that would benefit those who may otherwise be confused. Donald W. Parry helpfully summarizeds these keys as:

1. Understand the “manner of prophesying among the Jews” (v. 1)
2. Do not do “works of darkness” or “doings of abominations” (v. 2)
3. Be filled with the spirit of prophecy (v. 4)
4. Be familiar with the regions around Jerusalem (v. 6)
5. Live during the days that the prophecies of Isaiah are fulfilled (v. 7)1

This list involves both intellectual as well as spiritual factors. For example, Parry explained that understanding the manner of prophesying among the Jews (v. 1) includes understanding how the ancient authors of the Old Testament employed such tools as symbolism, metaphor, poetic devices, and prophetic speech patterns (key 1).2 Understanding Isaiah and other ancient prophets in this way requires serious mental exercise, including a close and perceptive reading of the text and, whenever possible, being aware of the original language as well as the historical and literary contexts of its composition.

Likewise, becoming familiar with the geography of ancient Israel (key 4) is primarily a studious pursuit. While those with the gift of seership may at times glimpse distant (in time and location) lands, most readers of the Bible will obtain a knowledge of the “regions round about” Jerusalem by reading commentaries, consulting atlases, or visiting the Holy Land.

At the same time, Nephi included spiritual preparation as the central key (key 3) to understanding Isaiah’s prophecies. He encourages readers to seek the gift of the spirit of prophecy, which “same spirit of prophecy provided or prompted the words of revelation to Isaiah.”3 To embrace this spiritual gift, readers must live worthy of the companionship of the Spirit of God and must shun the evil works of darkness and all unholy and impure practices (key 2). 

While intellectual endeavor might help some come closer to the spirit, ultimately the spirit of prophecy comes to those who exercise faith in Jesus Christ. “Individuals who possess the spirit of prophecy, or the testimony of Jesus, are, in a sense, prophets . . . in terms of possessing a personal, revealed testimony of Jesus Christ.”4 For Nephi, then, it’s not nearly enough to just comprehend the basic grammar or vocabulary of Isaiah. One must be attuned to God’s spirit, so “that they may know the judgments of God” and the other spiritual messages “according to the word which [Isaiah] hath spoken” (v. 3). 

Finally, reading Isaiah with an eye toward identifying fulfillments of his prophecies is also a key to understanding what Isaiah was talking about (key 5). Nephi concluded by mentioning that it helps to live in the days when prophecies are fulfilled. As the disciples of Jesus walked and talked with the resurrected Lord on the road to Emmaus, their eyes were opened because they could see how the words of Isaiah and the ancient prophets had come to pass (Luke 24:32). In a similar way, if our eyes are open to the world around us, we too might see how Isaiah's prophecies apply to our own lives.

The Why

Nephi listed his five keys because he wanted people to be able to experience the words of the prophets for themselves. President Brigham Young once remarked that the Saints haved the “privilege” to understand the scriptures with intimate and personal clarity:

Do you read the Scriptures, my brethren and sisters, as though you were writing them a thousand, two thousand, or five thousand years ago? Do you read them as though you stood in the place of the men who wrote them? If you do not feel thus, it is your privilege to do so, that you may be as familiar with the spirit and meaning of the written word of God as you are with your daily walk and conversation.5

Nephi knew from his own life that we must worship and serve God with all our heart, soul, and might (Deuteronomy 6:5). Thus, he knew that understanding “the full spirit and meaning of the written word of God” would require all of our faculties, both intellectual and faithful, working together. One of the Prophet Joseph Smith’s revelations admonished the Saints to “seek learning, even by study and also by faith” (D&C 88:118; cf. vv. 78–80).

Nephi taught his people these five keys because he knew that they really worked. He knew the manner in which his father Lehi and many prophets of the Lord spoke. He had seen how the hardheartedness and “works of darkness” of many in Jerusalem had prevented them from understanding and believing the prophecies of the band of prophets at that time. He sorrowed that his own brothers would not repent, forsake their unrighteousness, and come to understand. He himself had experienced the spirit of prophecy, had grown up in the regions around Jerusalem, and had lived to see many of Isaiah’s prophecies fulfilled as they applied to his own life and to the times of his own people. Of course, it helps to live in the time when these prophecies are fulfilled, but even at that, many people live at such times and do not look for, notice, or appreciate the words of the Lord’s prophets. 

This process of gaining understanding works for the writings of Isaiah as much as any other ancient or modern prophet. All who utilize these keys effectively can, as Nephi and Brigham Young invited, delightcan in the plainness delight of the words of Isaiah (2 Nephi 25:4–5). The great seer’s words, instead of being a confusing stumbling block, can subsequently instill deep and lasting faith in the Holy One of Israel.

Further Reading

Donald W. Parry, “Nephi’s Keys to Understanding Isaiah (2 Nephi 25:1–8),” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 47–65.

Avraham Gileadi, "Isaiah–––Key to the Book of Mormon," in Rediscovering the Book of Mormon, ed. John L. Sorenson and Melvin J. Thorne (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1991), 197–206.

• 1. Donald W. Parry, “Nephi’s Keys to Understanding Isaiah (2 Nephi 25:1–8),” in Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, ed. Donald W. Parry and John W. Welch (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998), 47.
• 2. Parry, “Nephi’s Keys to Understanding Isaiah (2 Nephi 25:1–8),” 48–55.
• 3. Parry, “Nephi’s Keys to Understanding Isaiah (2 Nephi 25:1–8),” 56.
• 4. Parry, “Nephi’s Keys to Understanding Isaiah (2 Nephi 25:1–8),” 57.
• 5. Brigham Young, “Progress in Knowledge, &c.,” in Journal of Discourses, 7:33.