The covenant context of Mosiah 25

I have learned that covenants permeate all scriptures, more than we tend to think, because a lot of the covenant language is not obvious to us. Some is hidden in symbolism, some is lost in translation both in terms of language and culture. This post introduces key terms associated with the Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants. Another term that is often related to the Abrahamic covenant is "blessed". For an Israelite, being Abraham's seed meant everything because of the promises he received.

And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee; and in thee (that is, in thy Priesthood) and in thy seed (that is, thy Priesthood), for I give unto thee a promise that this right shall continue in thee, and in thy seed after thee (that is to say, the literal seed, or the seed of the body) shall all the families of the earth be blessed, even with the blessings of the Gospel, which are the blessings of salvation, even of life eternal. (Abraham 2:11)

"They were blessed"

We think of the term, blessed, as something nice happening to us. That can be a general meaning in the scriptures too, but it is often written as an allusion to the Abrahamic covenant. One such example is in Mosiah 25. The people of Limhi had escaped Lamanite bondage and joined the people in Zarahemla. While in the Land of Nephi, they wanted to be baptized but there was no one worthy and with authority among them, so they had to postpone it. In Zarahemla, Alma the high priest had the Priesthood, and they were finally able to be baptized. Then he went on to ordain priests and teachers proclaiming "repentance and faith" (Mosiah 25:22). Mormon's final comment in this chapter reads

24 And they were called the people of God. And the Lord did pour out his Spirit upon them, and they were blessed, and prospered in the land.

In this context, "they were blessed" is an obvious reference to the Abrahamic covenant. What about the red colored text? These are allusions to the Mosaic covenant. I think that the Nephites placed particular emphasis on these two covenants for the following reasons:

1. They were "wanderers, cast out from Jerusalem" (Jacob 7:26). It was really important to them to emphasize that through their lineage to Joseph, they were Abraham's descendants, even though they were not with the main body of the Israelites any longer. The blessings promised to Abraham applied to them.
2. Their exodus from Jerusalem to a promised land was a similar journey to that of their forefathers. The same conditions and promises given to their forefathers were given to them. This is summed up in "the Book of Mormon proverb" that is repeated consistently in  the Book of Mormon.

"They were called the people of God"

This statement is related to the Mosaic covenant. For example:

5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:

6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. (Exodus 19)

For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth. (Deuteronomy 7:6)

Again, I think the Nephites want to emphasize that they were not merely outcasts. They remembered what had happened to their forefathers and insisted that the covenant terms still applied to them. As long as they were faithful, they could rightly call themselves God's chosen people.

"[They] prospered in the land"

Having already linked to "the Book of Mormon proverb", this one should be obvious. "If you keep my commandments you shall prosper in the land" is the abbreviated code for the Mosaic covenant. The earlier part of the chapter, explains how they kept the commandments: They were baptized, organized the church and preached repentance and faith. The promise that they would prosper in the land was therefore fulfilled. 

We even read that Alma established seven churches. Among ancient Israelites, numbers had more meaning than just their numerical value. In Judaism, seven is one of the most important numbers, representing creation, perfection, good fortune, and blessing. Talking about how they were blessed, the mention of seven churches was perhaps intentional to underscore this point.