The Book of Mosiah
Chapter 1
King Benjamin teaches his sons the
language and prophecies of their fathers—Their religion and civilization have
been preserved because of the records kept on the various plates—Mosiah is
chosen as king and is given custody of the records and other things. About
130–124 B.C.
1 AND now there was no more
contention in all the land of Zarahemla, among all the people who belonged to
king Benjamin, so that king Benjamin had continual peace all the remainder of
his days.
2 And it came to pass that he had
three sons; and he called their names Mosiah, and Helorum, and Helaman. And he caused that they should be taught in
all the language of his fathers, that thereby they might become men of understanding;
and that they might know concerning the prophecies which had been spoken by the
mouths of their fathers, which were delivered them by the hand of the Lord.
3
And he also taught them concerning the records which were engraven on
the plates of brass, saying: My sons, I would that ye should remember that were
it not for these plates, which contain these records and these commandments, we
must have suffered in ignorance, even at this present time, not knowing the
mysteries of God.
4 For it were not possible that our
father, Lehi, could have remembered all these things, to have taught them to
his children, except it were for the help of these plates; for he having been
taught in the language of the Egyptians therefore he could read these
engravings, and teach them to his children, that thereby they could teach them
to their children, and so fulfilling the commandments of God, even down to this
present time.
Mosiah 1:1-4
As we begin
the record called the Book of Mosiah, we read that after the wars mentioned in
Words of Mormon, peace reigned in the land during the remainder of King
Benjamin’s reign.
Before we
begin studying the Book of Mosiah, we should look at its contents. The first thing to note is that we don’t
learn that much about Mosiah2 and his reign. It begins with an introduction to King
Benjamin and his sons. We learn that his
son, Mosiah2 will become king.
King Benjamin’s great sermon follows.
Then we read about the people of Zeniff and their trials. Mosiah2 doesn’t enter the record
again until Chapter 25.
Gary
Sturgess gives us an overview and background of the Book of Mosiah. “In its
present form, the book of Mosiah takes up the history of Mosiah1’s
dynasty: ‘And now there was no more contention in all the land of Zarahemla
among all the people which belonged to king Benjamin’ (Mosiah 1:1). The
beginnings of this history are now to be found in the Words of Mormon, which,
according to Joseph Smith, was located not in its present position but right at
the end of the plates. This suggests either that the 116 lost pages contained
an introduction to the Mosiac dynasty similar to that portion now found in the
Words of Mormon, or that an introduction to the book of Mosiah existed but was
omitted either by Mormon or Joseph Smith.
“What, then,
is the book of Mosiah? Does it deserve to be treated as a distinct work of
literature? Who was its original author or compiler? And, given the paucity of
material therein directly relating to Mosiah himself, does the book deserve its
present title?
“My thesis
is that the book of Mosiah had a separate identity long before Mormon engraved
an abridged version of it onto his gold plates. And, while Mormon may have
interfered somewhat with the book during the process of transcription, the
structure of the original book of Mosiah is largely intact and can still be
detected in the pages of the Book of Mormon.
“As for
compiling the book, the candidate most likely to be involved seems to be Alma
the Younger. Other possible authors or compilers include Alma the Elder, Mosiah2,
or perhaps one of the sons of Mosiah2, or several working in
collaboration. The book of Mosiah concludes with King Mosiah's death and the
appointment of Alma the Younger as the first chief judge of the united Nephite
nation. If, as suggested herein, the book was written according to a deliberate
pattern, then this would suggest a date of compilation after Mosiah's death in
91 BC It is possible, of course, that it was substantially written in
the final years of Mosiah's life and only completed after his death, but other
reasons exist for associating this book with Alma the Younger.”[1]
Benjamin had
three sons, Mosiah2, Helorum, and Helaman1. As they grew, Benjamin saw to it that they
were “taught in the language of his fathers, that thereby they might become men
of understanding” (Mosiah 1:2).
What is meant
when we read that someone was taught in the language of their fathers? John
Welch shares his insight.
“Benjamin's
concerns about language extended beyond public education and official record
keeping. The record gives Benjamin particular credit—more than any other
Nephite leader—for having taught his three sons ‘all the language of his
fathers, that thereby they might become men of understanding’ (Mosiah 1:2). He
taught them Hebrew, the language of his fathers, as well as Egyptian, which he
himself knew (see Mosiah 1:4). One can assume that he knew and taught them not
only vocabulary words, but also grammar, syntax, style, form, composition, and
literary appreciation, for he taught them ‘all the language of
his fathers (emphasis in original).’’[2]
John
Sorenson continues. “The lack of clarity stemming from the script that the
Nephites used for their key sacred and historical documents is implied also by
the difficulty of learning the system. King Benjamin wanted his three sons to
become ‘men of understanding,’ so he ‘caused that they should be taught in all
the language of his fathers . . . that they might know concerning the
prophecies which had been spoken by the mouths of their fathers’ (Mosiah 1:2).
The expression ‘in all the language’ conveys that degrees of
learning were possible. He wanted them to have mastery of the system, not a
superficial knowledge only” (emphasis in original).[3]
One of the
main reasons that Benjamin taught his sons the language of their fathers was
this was the language in which the brass plates were written. As we saw with the Mulekites, the brass
plates and the language of the brass plates was essential to pass on the Mosaic
Law as well as the culture of the Nephites.
This helped keep them together as a society culture, unlike the
Mulekites having lost their language, culture and traditions.
Benjamin,
speaking to his sons about the importance of the brass plates and the records,
told them that Lehi could not have remembered all the things in the brass
plates. He was able to read the
engravings on the brass plates.
“In the
opening verses of that portion of the abridged large plates of Nephi of which
we have a translation, Mormon informs us that Lehi was taught ‘in the language
of the Egyptians’ (Mosiah 1:4). We also learn in this passage that at least a
part, if not all, of the brass plates that Laban possessed and Lehi later
obtained were written in Egyptian, for Lehi had to use his knowledge of the
Egyptian language to read them.”[4]
Lehi taught his sons the language of the Egyptians so they would be able to
read the record.
Hugh Nibley
points out that some critic mock the emphasis on Egyptian in the Book of
Mormon. “The world has always cast a superior and mocking eye on the inordinate
concern of the Book of Mormon for things Egyptian. With surprise and
incredulity it is now learning that Egyptian culture counted for far more in
Palestine in 600 B.C. than anyone had ever supposed. It is significant that the
Book of Mormon concern with Egypt is strictly cultural—it never mentions
Pharaoh or speaks of Egyptian government, but only of Egyptian culture and
especially language. It makes it perfectly clear, however, that Egyptian was
for Lehi a second language, ‘for he having been taught in
the language of the Egyptians therefore he could read these engravings, and
teach them to his children’ (Mosiah 1:4)” (emphasis in original).[5]
[1]
The
Book of Mosiah: Thoughts about Its Structure, Purposes, Themes, and Authorship,
Gary L. Sturgess, Maxwell Institute website.
[3]
The
Book of Mormon as a Mesoamerican Record, John L. Sorenson, Maxwell
Institute, accessed June 22, 2014.
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