A Study of the Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 3:6-11 In this discussion on how the seed of Joseph of Egypt would be preserved, Lehi quotes from records that they had (probably on the Brass Plates, their equivalent to the Old Testament) prophecies from Joseph of Egypt about a seer (or a prophet) who would preform a work of great value to his descendants. In this grouping of verses, it goes on to explain the significance of this particular work: the recipients of the work would come to know of covenants that the Lord had made with their forefathers. Joseph said that this seer would be great like unto Moses. His work would be different from that of Moses, specifically his task would be to bring forth and establish the word of God, both in revealing new records and in clarifying existing records. Again, Joseph reiterated that this work would be of great value to his posterity. The significance in Joseph's mind of being able to see this seer in modern times is that it gave him the reassurance of the fulfillment of a promis...

1 Nephi 13:10-19 In prophetic terms, Nephi is describing the colonization of America and the Revolutionary War. In this group of verses, there are two forces, both originating from God. the Spirit or power of God( I don't think the two are equal) and the wrath of God. Nephi also refers to the Spirit of the Lord and the power of the Lord. All these powers Nephi says that he saw working upon or with the events that transpired. Why was the wrath of God upon the seed of Nephi's brethren? Why did the Spirit of the Lord favor the Gentiles that came to America? From any historical stand point, it doesn't seem fair to derive an accurate conclusions. From scriptural accounts, we know that the ancestors of the Lamanites that remained had long ago rejected the true religion. The exiled Gentiles that came to find peace in America also were striving as best as they could to live the Christian faith as best they understood it. Then as we look forward only a few years, we see that among a...

As is the case with the two previous testimonies, the Prophet Joseph's testimony of the Book of Mormon also deals with the origins of the book and the events that he deemed most important in the book's coming forth. With that in mind, the bulk of his testimony deals with the ministering visits of the Angel Moroni. Perhaps the bulk of the first paragraph which describes the angel's appearance, could have been fabricated, if we wanted to approach it from that angle. But there are specific descriptions in the second that seem to be beyond fabrication. Essentially, Joseph saw an angel in the 1820's and was reflecting back to that occasion in 1838 when he made his record of the events. Joseph describes the angel's countenance as lightning. I don't quite know how to envision a countenance as lightning except that it had the effect of being striking. The angel's mode of teaching is notable. Four visits: three at night, one the next day. In the first visit, Moroni ...