7 And it came to pass
that they came many times against us, the Nephites, to battle. But our kings and our leaders were mighty men
in the faith of the Lord; and they taught the people the ways of the Lord;
wherefore, we withstood the Lamanites and swept them away out of our lands, and
began to fortify our cities, or whatsoever place of our inheritance.
8 And we multiplied exceedingly, and spread
upon the face of the land, and became exceedingly rich in gold, and in silver,
and in precious things, and in fine workmanship of wood, in buildings, and in machinery,
and also in iron and copper, and brass and steel, making all manner of tools of
every kind to till the ground, and weapons of war—yea, the sharp pointed arrow,
and the quiver, and the dart, and the javelin, and all preparations for war.
9 And thus being
prepared to meet the Lamanites, they did not prosper against us. But the word of the Lord was verified, which
he spake unto our fathers, saying that: Inasmuch as ye will keep my
commandments ye shall prosper in the land.
Jarom 1:7-15
The Lamanites came many times to battle against the
Nephites. The Nephites were led by their
kings and leaders. These leaders “were mighty men in the faith of the Lord.” These leaders taught the people “the ways of the Lord.” As they were, at that time, a righteous
people, they were able to defeat the Nephites.
Lamanite attacks were not an uncommon occurrence. Writing about King Benjamin, Mormon would
tell us he led his people in battle. “And in the strength of the Lord they did
contend against their enemies, until they had slain many thousands of the
Lamanites. And it came to pass that they
did contend against the Lamanites until they had driven them out of all the
lands of their inheritance” (Words of Mormon 1:14).
The Nephties began the process of fortifying their
cities. This effort would continue
throughout Nephite history.
But in the third generation the
Nephites "began to fortify our cities, or whatsoever place of our
inheritance," a project rendered necessary and possible by the great
increase of population (Jarom 1:7—8). From this time on the strategy of
fortified cities and "places of security" (Alma 50:4) becomes the
rule, though the fighting is still mostly done in the wilderness.[1]
The Nephites spread out as their population grew. They also found gold, silver, and precious
things. They used wood in building and
in machinery (we don’t have clarification as to what the machinery might have
been). They were continuing the
lifestyle established by Nephi. “And I did teach my people to build
buildings, and to work in all manner of wood, and of iron, and of copper, and
of brass, and of steel, and of gold, and of silver, and of precious ores, which
were in great abundance” (2 Nephi 5:15).
It is here that Jarom might have given us some information about
himself. “Jarom referred to Nephite
warfare and trade in the first person … Jarom sounds as if he was a soldier and
artisan.”[2]
They also worked in iron, copper, brass, and steel. We don’t know what is meant by steel. In the Bible, the Hebrew word translated as
steel actually means bronze or copper.
The latest mention of making
copper, iron, and "steel" is in Jarom 1:8, a couple of centuries
after Nephi's death; if he did know the process, it could well have died out in
succeeding years. There is no evidence from Mesoamerican archaeology or
traditions to indicate the use of any metal in the manufacture of swords, other
than as occasional decoration, although we may not have the final word on that
matter.[3]
They also made weapons of war. Jarom lists “the sharp pointed arrow, and the quiver, and the dart, and the
javelin.”
Interestingly, swords are not
mentioned here, and the weapons listed could have been made of wood as well as
of metal, or with a combination of both (wood shafts with metal tips, for
example). Though the passage could mean that the tools and weapons were of
iron, copper, and steel, it could also simply mean that the Nephites had the
metals mentioned, as well as tools and weapons constructed of unspecified
materials (see also John A. Tvedtnes, Was Lehi a Caravaneer?F.A.R.M.S.
Preliminary Report, 1984; and "Lodestone and the Liahona," F.A.R.M.S. Update, March
1984).[4]
When the Lamanites attacked the Nephites, they were
prepared. They were defeated. Jarom repeats the promise given to Lehi and
Nephi. “Inasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land.” Amaron would write, “For the Lord would not suffer, after he had led them out of the land
of Jerusalem and kept and preserved them from falling into the hands of their
enemies, yea, he would not suffer that the words should not be verified, which
he spake unto our fathers, saying that: Inasmuch as ye will not keep my
commandments ye shall not prosper in the land” (Omni 1:6).
This promise plays a role in what Mormon chose for his
abridgement.
Mormon said several times that his
abridgment could not treat more than a fraction of the historical material
found on the large plates of Nephi (Words of Mormon 1:5; Jacob 3:13–14; 4:1;
3 Nephi 5:8; 26:6). How, then, did he make his selection of materials
among the records he set out to abridge? His primary criterion comes through
repeatedly in his book. The aim was to ensure that his readers, especially the
future inhabitants of the American promised land and particularly Lehi's
descendants, grasp the significance for them of the promise and prophecy given
to father Lehi: "Inasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper
in the land" (Jarom 1:9).[5]
[1] Strategy
for Survival, Maxwell Institute, accessed June 1, 2014.*
[2] Jacob
and His Descendants as Authors, John S. Tanner, Maxwell Institute, accessed
June 1, 2014.
[3]Swords
and "Cimeters" in the Book of Mormon, Mattew Roper, Maxwell Institute,
accessed June 1, 2014.
[4] Swords
in the Book of Mormon, William J. Hamblin and A. Brent Merrill, Maxwell Institute,
accessed June 1, 2014.
[5] Mormon's
Sources, John L. Sorenson, Maxwell Institute, accessed June 1, 2014.
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