Scriptural repetition -- Book of Mormon examples 3

I return to the topic introduced in this post, with a note on the recurring theme of a wicked people casting out, stoning and killing prophets. Already in the first chapter of the Book of Mormon, we read

And when the Jews heard these things they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had cast out, and stoned, and slain; and they also sought his life, that they might take it away. (1 Nephi 1:20)

I tried to look for accounts in the Old Testament, where this had happened, but could not find many. There is one in 2 Chronicles 24:20-21

20 And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the Lord, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the Lord, he hath also forsaken you.

21 And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the Lord.

We also read about prophets being rejected in times of wickedness in Israel. Elijah, for instance flees for his life from the queen, Jezabel, in 1 Kings. But the Book of Mormon indicates that there are other examples not recorded in our current Old Testament

15 For it is not written that Zenos alone spake of these things, but Zenock also spake of these things—

16 For behold, he said: Thou art angry, O Lord, with this people, because they will not understand thy mercies which thou hast bestowed upon them because of thy Son.

17 And now, my brethren, ye see that a second prophet of old has testified of the Son of God, and because the people would not understand his words they stoned him to death. (Alma 33)

At least in the Book of Mormon, casting out, stoning and slaying the prophets is a repeated theme. Nephi prophesies

And after the Messiah shall come there shall be signs given unto my people of his birth, and also of his death and resurrection; and great and terrible shall that day be unto the wicked, for they shall perish; and they perish because they cast out the prophets, and the saints, and stone them, and slay them; wherefore the cry of the blood of the saints shall ascend up to God from the ground against them. (2 Nephi 26:3)

This prophecy is repeated by Samuel the Lamanite, a prophet who himself was cast out (Helaman 13:2) and almost stoned (Helaman 16:2).

24 Yea, wo unto this people, because of this time which has arrived, that ye do cast out the prophets, and do mock them, and cast stones at them, and do slay them, and do all manner of iniquity unto them, even as they did of old time.

25 And now when ye talk, ye say: If our days had been in the days of our fathers of old, we would not have slain the prophets; we would not have stoned them, and cast them out. (Helaman 13)

I don't know if this is significant or what the meaning would be, but I do notice that there is a certain order repeated in all the quotes so far up until Helaman 13:24.

1. Cast out
2. Stone
3. Slay

But in Helaman 13:25, the order is reversed as in a chiasmus. A few verses later, Samuel states

32 And in the days of your poverty ye shall cry unto the Lord; and in vain shall ye cry, for your desolation is already come upon you, and your destruction is made sure; and then shall ye weep and howl in that day, saith the Lord of Hosts. And then shall ye lament, and say:

33 O that I had repented, and had not killed the prophets, and stoned them, and cast them out. (Helaman 13)

The reversal is kept, also when the fulfillment of this prophecy is described almost verbatim in 3 Nephi 8:25

And in another place they were heard to cry and mourn, saying: O that we had repented before this great and terrible day, and had not killed and stoned the prophets, and cast them out; then would our mothers and our fair daughters, and our children have been spared, and not have been buried up in that great city Moronihah. And thus were the howlings of the people great and terrible.

This triplet shows up again in Ether 8:25, still reversed compared to the examples up until Helaman 13:24.

For it cometh to pass that whoso buildeth it up seeketh to overthrow the freedom of all lands, nations, and countries; and it bringeth to pass the destruction of all people, for it is built up by the devil, who is the father of all lies; even that same liar who beguiled our first parents, yea, even that same liar who hath caused man to commit murder from the beginning; who hath hardened the hearts of men that they have murdered the prophets, and stoned them, and cast them out from the beginning.

As far as I can tell, I have quoted all the verses that include this triplet. But the topic comes up frequently in the scriptures, sometimes mentioning only one or two of these actions signifying rejection of the prophets. There is much focus on this topic in conjunction with the coming of Christ. As we have seen, Nephi prophesied it in 2 Nephi 26. Samuel the Lamanite prophecied it in the verses quoted from Helaman 13, in addition to Samuel himself being cast out and thrown stones at.

In this context, it is interesting to note the Savior's own words in Matthew 23.

37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. (Matthew 23)

Only a few days after having spoken those words, Jesus was crucified. Jerusalem killed the greatest prophet of them all, the Son of God himself. 

As Jesus died on the cross in the Old World, there begun terrible natural disasters in the New World as fulfillment of Samuel the Lamanite's prophecy.  After the tempest and earthquakes, Jesus' voice was heard throughout the land, saying

And behold, the city of Laman, and the city of Josh, and the city of Gad, and the city of Kishkumen, have I caused to be burned with fire, and the inhabitants thereof, because of their wickedness in casting out the prophets, and stoning those whom I did send to declare unto them concerning their wickedness and their abominations. (3 Nephi 9:10)

5 And again, how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, who have fallen; yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, ye that dwell at Jerusalem, as ye that have fallen; yea, how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens, and ye would not.

6 O ye house of Israel whom I have spared, how oft will I gather you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if ye will repent and return unto me with full purpose of heart.

7 But if not, O house of Israel, the places of your dwellings shall become desolate until the time of the fulfilling of the covenant to your fathers. (3 Nephi 10)

These words were only spoken a few days apart, first by the mortal Jesus in the Old World, then out of heaven by his spirit in the New World. In addition to repeating the stoning of the prophets, he repeats a couple of other themes from Matthew 23:37-38. The voice heard by the people in the Americas even refers to Jerusalem (see the italic part), even though the people dwelling in Jerusalem 600 years after Lehi's exodus might seem less relevant to the people at that point. But his mention of Jerusalem further underscores the reference to the first quote in Matthew. 

Bottom line is, the descendants of Lehi who left Jerusalem have become just like the people at Jerusalem. They were supposed to separate as a righteous branch in a new promised land, but have become corrupted like the people they separated from. Killing the prophets is the indicator of this corruption. Because of that, Jesus is not able to gather them as he would like and their houses become desolate, in the New World as in the Old.