What does it mean to "call upon" the name of God?

Calling upon the name of God is mentioned several times in the Book of Mormon.  One reference particularly stands out to me:

27 Thus we may see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name. (Helaman 3)

"Thus we may see" is typically Mormon's way of pointing out important lessons we should learn from the verses immediately preceding this kind of statement. So let's look at the verses leading up to this statement, along with a few verses which come after and offer additional insights about what lessons we can learn:

24 And it came to pass that in this same year there was exceedingly great prosperity in the church, insomuch that there were thousands who did join themselves unto the church and were baptized unto repentance.
25 And so great was the prosperity of the church, and so many the blessings which were poured out upon the people, that even the high priests and the teachers were themselves astonished beyond measure.
26 And it came to pass that the work of the Lord did prosper unto the baptizing and uniting to the church of God, many souls, yea, even tens of thousands.
27 Thus we may see that the Lord is merciful unto all who will, in the sincerity of their hearts, call upon his holy name.
28 Yea, thus we see that the gate of heaven is open unto all, even to those who will believe on the name of Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God.
29 Yea, we see that whosoever will may lay hold upon the word of God, which is quick and powerful, which shall divide asunder all the cunning and the snares and the wiles of the devil, and lead the man of Christ in a strait and narrow course across that everlasting gulf of misery which is prepared to engulf the wicked—
30 And land their souls, yea, their immortal souls, at the right hand of God in the kingdom of heaven, to sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and with Jacob, and with all our holy fathers, to go no more out. (Helaman 3)

It seems this passage, in addition to revealing the underlying meaning of "call[ing] upon [the name of God]," also connects other phrases with making and keeping sacred covenants. I've highlighted these in various colors above.  Each of these can be connected to covenant symbols found in other parts of the Book of Mormon (especially on the small plates).

 "gate of heaven" -- 2 Nephi 9:41; 2 Nephi 31:9, 17-18; 2 Nephi 33:9

"lay hold upon the word of God" -- 1 Nephi 8:24, 30; 1 Nephi 11:24-25; 1 Nephi 15:24-25

"strait and narrow course" -- 1 Nephi 8:20

"right hand of God" -- Mosiah 5:9 ("for he shall know the name by which he is called; for he shall be called by the name of Christ"); Mosiah 26:23-24 ("in my name they are called"); Alma 5:58 ("the word of God must be fulfilled"); Ether 12:4; Moroni 9:26

"kingdom of heaven" -- Alma 11:37; Helaman 5:32; 3 Nephi 14:21

"sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob...to go no more out" -- Alma 7:25; 3 Nephi 4:30; Mormon 9:11-13; 1 Nephi 17:40

Variants:

"enter in at the strait gate, and continue in the way which is narrow" Jacob 6:11
"lay hold upon every good thing" -- Moroni 7:19-21, 25 (see this post for more detail about how "every good thing" relates to covenants)
"lay hold upon the gospel of Jesus Christ" -- Mormon 7:8

Conclusion

This is an excellent example of what I believe to be a pattern throughout the Book of Mormon -- covenants are spoken of through symbolic language rather than at the surface level.  It isn't until you attempt to connect one passage with others that you see numerous clear and consistent references to the importance of covenants.

Amulek and his kin

Amulek's story is intriguing. He wasn't actively fighting against the church and didn't have the dramatic conversion story like Alma, but he too needed a change of heart and was visited by an angel. Initially he was not living the way he should even though he had a certain knowledge of the gospel, just like most people in Ammonihah at the time it seems. As he said himself

I was called many times and I would not hear; therefore I knew concerning these things, yet I would not know (Alma 10:6)

That is an interesting description and may apply to many of us on different levels, perhaps.

One thing we learn about Amulek's background is that he had "many kindreds and friends".

And behold, I am also a man of no small reputation among all those who know me; yea, and behold, I have many kindreds and friends (Alma 10:4)

His life changed forever on the fourth day in the seventh month in the tenth year. On this particular day he was "journeying to see a very near kindred" (Alma 10:7). But he was told by an angel to go back and receive a prophet of the Lord. Amulek obeyed, took care of Alma, who in turn blessed his kindred

For behold, he hath blessed mine house, he hath blessed me, and my women, and my children, and my father and my kinsfolk; yea, even all my kindred hath he blessed, and the blessing of the Lord hath rested upon us according to the words which he spake. (Alma 10:11)

Amulek became a great missionary and entrusted companion of Alma. Whatever blessing Alma pronounced on the rest of his kindred did not bring about the same response on their part. Ultimately, Amulek was rejected by his kindred and friends.

And it came to pass that Alma and Amulek, Amulek having forsaken all his gold, and silver, and his precious things, which were in the land of Ammonihah, for the word of God, he being rejected by those who were once his friends and also by his father and his kindred (Alma 15:16)

Instead, Alma points Amulek to Christ, his true kinsman. This post describes the ancient Israelite concept of a kinsman-redeemer. Especially the term, "redeem his people", conveys that idea. When Amulek had been taught by Alma, he went along with him to preach to the people of Ammonihah and he testified of Christ:

And he shall come into the world to redeem his people (Alma 11:40)

This post shows how Alma-2 likely got this expression from his father, Alma-1, who in turn got it from Abinadi.

I don't know if Amulek himself or Mormon, who wrote the abridgment of this story, had it in mind, but I like the fact that Amulek, having "many kindreds" got his life turned around when he was on his way to one of them. When he accepted the gospel, they turned their backs on him, but he found and turned to his true kinsman-redeemer instead. It's as if the angel and Alma wanted to show him who his true kinsman was: Christ who would never reject him.

Similarly, he also described having many friends, but they also rejected him. Instead, Alma showed him true friendship.

Now as I said, Alma having seen all these things, therefore he took Amulek and came over to the land of Zarahemla, and took him to his own house, and did administer unto him in his tribulations, and strengthened him in the Lord. (Alma 15:18)

June 8–14. Alma 8–12: Jesus Christ Will Come to Redeem His People -- Resources from the Book of Mormon Notes blog

This week's Come Follow Me lesson covers Alma 8-12.

Alma 8 -- Internal consistency of Alma and Amulek in Ammonihah, Nourishment, Fasting in the Book of Mormon, "things that cannot be written," and more...

Alma 9 -- Prolonging/Lengthening as a covenant symbol, The Office of the Ministry of Angels, Consistent prophecies about Ammonihah, "Highly favored" and "delivered," Layers of poetic forms in Alma's sermon in Ammonihah: Chiasmus and "forget/remember" pairings, and more...


Alma 10 -- Book of Mormon / Old Testament Connections: The Judges, Cunning.


Alma 11 -- Zeezrom as a metanym, "Redeem his people" as an example of doctrinal mentors, "worth," and more...


Alma 12 -- "Sleeping in the dust," Fear and darkness, "Let us enter into his rest," and more...

"Redeem his people" as another example of internal consistency and "doctrinal mentors" in the Book of Mormon

Stisa's recent post about the concepts of "redeemer" and "kinsman" mentions that Abinadi is responsible for 5 of the 12 uses of the phrase "redeem his people" in the Book of Mormon.

When I read that, I remembered a post I made way back about the concept of Abinadi playing the role of doctrinal mentor to Alma-1, and Alma-1 playing the role of doctrinal mentor to Alma-2.  That was after I noticed that these three men were the only ones in the entire Book of Mormon to specifically teach about the "first resurrection."

So when I read Stisa's post, I decided to look up where the other 7 uses of "redeem his people" occur in the Book of Mormon.  The results surprised me, even though they confirm my hypothesis. Below you'll find an index of every occurrence of "redeem/redeemed his people, followed by the name of the person who is speaking:

Twelve Examples by Speaker

1. Mosiah 13:33, Abinadi 
2. Mosiah 15:1, Abinadi
3. Mosiah 15:11, Abinadi
4. Mosiah 15:18, Abinadi
5. Mosiah 16:4, Abinadi
6. Mosiah 18:20, Alma-1
7. Alma 5:21, Alma-2
8. Alma 5:27, Alma-2
9. Alma 6:8, Mormon (about Alma-2...see below)
10. Alma 11:40, Amulek
11. Alma 33:22, Alma-2
12. Helaman 5:10, Helaman-2 (quoting Amulek's words to Zeezrom...see below)

More about the Example from Alma 6

Mormon wrote these words, clearly documenting what Alma-2 was teaching:

8 And Alma went and began to declare the word of God unto the church which was established in the valley of Gideon, according to the revelation of the truth of the word which had been spoken by his fathers, and according to the spirit of prophecy which was in him, according to the testimony of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who should come to redeem his people from their sins, and the holy order by which he was called. And thus it is written. Amen. (Alma 6)

More about the Example from Helaman 5

It is true that Helaman wrote these words, but he is very specifically referencing Amulek in Alma 11:

10 And remember also the words which Amulek spake unto Zeezrom, in the city of Ammonihah; for he said unto him that the Lord surely should come to redeem his people, but that he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins. (Helaman 5)

Conclusions

Once again, we see a high degree of internal consistency.  If you had asked me prior to reading Stisa's post referenced above how many times the words "redeem/redeemed his people" showed up in the Book of Mormon, I would have guessed a few dozen or maybe more.  I would have guessed that many authors used this phrase.  Not so.  It seems that there is a chain of possession, so to speak, of the use of this phrase.

What to make about the "outlier" in Alma 11, when Amulek uses the phrase?  I don't consider it an outlier at all. Rather, it seems natural from the narrative of the Book of Alma that Amulek would have considered Alma-2 his doctrinal mentor.

In a similar vein, it seems that Helaman-2 was a careful student of the words of many figures on the large and small plates of Nephi, including Amulek. This makes sense, since he was a keeper of those records. See Helaman 5 for additional examples.

Sometimes I find a pattern in the Book of Mormon and the underlying deeper meaning is immediately apparent to me. (See this series of posts, for example.) Other times, including this example, I notice a pattern but I don't really understand what the deeper meaning is.  I clearly have much more to learn.  One thing I can definitely say is that the text of the Book of Mormon has been carefully prepared by someone with a lot of time and a lot of notes, and it deserves our careful attention.

Book of Mormon - Old Testament connection series: The judges

The period of judges in the Old Testament is covered by the books of Joshua and Judges. In the Book of Mormon it is the books of Alma and Helaman. This is element C in the combined Book of Mormon - Old Testament chiasmus. As I have explained before, these connections can provide additional insight when studied together. This is one aspect of rabbinical study methods. Although they don't use the Book of Mormon of course, they connect passages from the Torah and the Nevi'im (prophets) in a similar way.

Unfortunately, I am not sufficiently well-versed in the Old Testament to identify all these learning points yet, but for now I'm leaning on Bradley Kramer, who has provided some examples. When it comes to judges, the Book of Mormon can play a role in "translating an ancient situation into modern terms". Throughout the Book of Judges, the children of Israel are locked in a cycle of sin. They are frequently described as doing "evil in the sight of the Lord". As a consequence there is lots of wars, but also heroes who emerge to deliver them, like Othniel, Ehud, Deborah, Gideon, Jephthah and Samson. The effect is never long-lasting because the Israelites fall back into their evil-doing and the cycle continues.

We recognize this from the Book of Mormon too and typically refer to it as the "pride cycle". Herein also lies the key to additional insight. In the period of judges in the Old Testament, sin is usually connected to idolatry. As Kramer points out

Modern readers often have trouble understanding why something as ludicrous (in their eyes) as worshipping a stone statue would be attractive to the ancient Israelites and therefore have trouble relating to this section of the sin cycle. This is not a problem in the books of Alma and Helaman. There the "licence" that must be avoided is pride, a problem that is both understandable to modern readers and, unfortunately, a frequent outgrowth of prosperity. [...] Thus, pride is a valid and helpful update for idolatry. It is a kind of modern idolatry, the worship of self in place of the worship of God.

This is not the only aspect of the sin cycle that the Book of Mormon translates into more modern and relevant ideas. The Israelites in this period struggle with the Moabites, Amalekites, Philistines, etc. who seem to serve as God's enforcers. The Lamanites in the Book of Mormon have a similar function and we read about a lot of wars in both Alma and Helaman. There is, however, an important learning point from these books. Almost exclusively, wars and trouble in Alma and Helaman originate from dissenters or Nephite civil wars. Whether it be the Zoramites, the Gadianton robbers, or the wars originating from people like Amlici and Amalickiah, born Nephites who went over to the Lamanites to stir them up to anger, the punishment for pride comes from within.

Just as in the period of judges in the Old Testament, there are heroes showing up in the Book of Mormon in this period as well. I am not going into all the details that are discussed in Kramer's book. But an important point is that the "weapon" used to deliver the people is often the word rather than the sword. In Alma 31:5, we read

5 And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God.

We see this time and again. As Kramer states

During Alma's mission to the Ammonihahites, he, like a hero from the book of Judges, engages in several one-on-one battles but with words, not swords. Along with his companion, Amulek, Alma first engages Zeezrom, a wealthy lawyer and "one of the most expert" among those who opposed him (Alma 10:31). Zeezrom begins his attack on Alma by feinting with a bribe, tempting Amulek to "deny the existence of a Supreme Being" for six onties of silver (11:22). Amulek, however, does not fall for this ploy and keeps his balance Zeezrom then counters with an extended questioning session where the answers and response come so quickly that it resembles the lightening-like thrust-and-parry rhythm of a fencing match (11:26-37).

The weapon of the word is often used against pride. In the midst of war in Alma 48:20, "the people did humble themselves because of their words". When among the Zoramites, Alma is grieved because their hears are "lifted up unto great boasting, in their pride" (Alma 31:24-25) and he starts preaching.

In this way, Alma and Helaman teach effectively that the problems of pride that originate from within cannot effectively be combated with external forces. As Alma explains, it is sometimes necessary to be compelled to be humble, but he who humbles himself is more blessed. This reminds me of one of my favorite quotes.

The Lord works from the inside out. The world works from the outside in. The world would take people out of the slums. Christ would take the slums out of people, and then they would take themselves out of the slums. The world would mold men by changing their environment. Christ changes men, who then change their environment. The world would shape human behavior, but Christ can change human nature. (Ezra Taft Benson)

Worth

In 1 Nephi 5:21, Nephi says

And we had obtained the records which the Lord had commanded us, and searched them and found that they were desirable; yea, even of great worth unto us, insomuch that we could preserve the commandments of the Lord unto our children.

It seems that this realization is what inspires Nephi to write about his own record just a few verses later

Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men.(1 Nephi 6:6)

These are the first two uses of the word, "worth" in the Book of Mormon. The next is in 1 Nephi 13:23, where Nephi in vision sees the coming forth of the Bible and says it will be of "great worth unto the Gentiles". Interestingly, the first three uses of that word in the Book of Mormon refer to the worth of the brass plates, the plates of Nephi and the Bible, respectively.

In fact, most of the 17 uses of that word in the Book of Mormon are related to the scriptures and especially the coming forth of the Book of Mormon as part of the marvelous work in the latter days. Some examples:

And after our seed is scattered the Lord God will proceed to do a marvelous work among the Gentiles, which shall be of great worth unto our seed (1 Nephi 22:8)

confine the words unto mine own people; for I know that they shall be of great worth unto them in the last days (2 Nephi 25:8)

And the things which shall be written out of the book [of Mormon] shall be of great worth unto the children of men (2 Nephi 28:2)

When Moroni decides to write more, contrary to his initial plan, it is only because he thinks his words might be of worth

I had supposed not to have written any more; but I write a few more things, that perhaps they may be of worth unto my brethren (Moroni 1:4)

The Book of Mormon authors are very clear: The scriptures, including their own engravings are of great worth. Nephi acknowledges, however, that the definition of "great worth" is highly subjective

But behold, there are many that harden their hearts against the Holy Spirit, that it hath no place in them; wherefore, they cast many things away which are written and esteem them as things of naught. But I, Nephi, have written what I have written, and I esteem it as of great worth (2 Nephi 33:2-3)

For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet. (1 Nephi 19:7)

Zeezrom, for instance, initially was one of those setting "at naught" the word of God as Nephi described, and claimed that his silver was of "great worth" (Alma 11:25). Contrast that with Moroni's message:

And I am the same who hideth up this record unto the Lord; the plates thereof are of no worth, because of the commandment of the Lord. For he truly saith that no one shall have them to get gain; but the record thereof is of great worth (Mormon 8:14)

Similarities between Alma 11 and Alma 40 -- Describing the resurrection

I've spent the past few days searching for connections between Alma's missionary labors described in Alma 5-13 and his words to his sons found in Alma 36-42.  There are many examples.

Consider Alma's description of Amulek's teaching concerning the resurrection while among the people of Ammonihah:

42 Now, there is a death which is called a temporal death; and the death of Christ shall loose the bands of this temporal death, that all shall be raised from this temporal death.
43 The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame, even as we now are at this time; and we shall be brought to stand before God, knowing even as we know now, and have a bright recollection of all our guilt.
44 Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame, as it is now, or in the body, and shall be brought and be arraigned before the bar of Christ the Son, and God the Father, and the Holy Spirit, which is one Eternal God, to be judged according to their works, whether they be good or whether they be evil. (Alma 11)

Compare this to Alma's words to Corianton:

21 But whether it be at his resurrection or after, I do not say; but this much I say, that there is a space between death and the resurrection of the body, and a state of the soul in happiness or in misery until the time which is appointed of God that the dead shall come forth, and be reunited, both soul and body, and be brought to stand before God, and be judged according to their works.
22 Yea, this bringeth about the restoration of those things of which has been spoken by the mouths of the prophets.
23 The soul shall be restored to the body, and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be lost; but all things shall be restored to their proper and perfect frame. (Alma 40)

The examples keep piling up to support the idea that all of this is intentional.

A note about trying to tell the difference between coincidence and intentional.

One factor to consider when looking for these parallels is how unique the common expressions are.  Each of the examples above (and in other posts on the topic) are less likely to be coincidence simply because they are pretty rare in the scriptures in general. 

"Proper" + "Frame" 

For example, when I search for sentences in the Book of Mormon that contain the word "proper" and "frame," I only find three examples: Alma 11:43, Alma 40:23, and Alma 41:4. 

"Reunite" + "Body"

If we search for sentences that contain a form of the word "reunite" and "body" we see four total examples: Alma 11:43, Alma 40:18, Alma 40:21, and Moroni 10:34 (the last verse in the Book of Mormon). That's pretty unique.

So when we consider that Alma 11:43 contains the two unique word pairings above and that both of those pairings are only found in a short cluster of verses in Alma 40 and then one other place in the entire Book of Mormon, that clarifies for me whether this is coincidental or intentional.  

The hairs of the head shall not be lost

Add to this the line about not even a hair of the head being lost, which is only found in Alma 11:44 and Alma 40:23 in the Book of Mormon (with a similar saying found in Luke 21:18), and the case gets even stronger.

Zeezrom as a metanym

There is evidence that Mormon intentionally inserted wordplay into names in the Book of Mormon.  So much evidence, in fact, that some scholars openly wonder if his use of this particular literary technique is significantly underrated.

Take the name "Zeezrom" as an example.  If we compare the structure of this name to "Zenephi" mentioned in Moroni 9:16, we end up wondering what an "ezrom" is.  It turns out Mormon goes out of his way to tell us what an ezrom is in the verses right after we meet Zeezrom:

12 And an ezrom of silver was as great as four senums. (Alma 11)

An ezrom is a measure of silver.  It is worth noting that Zeezrom is introduced into the narrative (see Alma 10:31) just three verses before this explanation of the Nephite monetary system begins. We learn that Zeezrom was a chief accuser of Alma and Amulek and an expert in the law.

Mormon comments in the very next verse about the object of the lawyers:

32 Now the object of these lawyers was to get gain; and they got gain according to their employ. (Alma 10)

We then get a 20 verse aside that explains that judges were paid according to the time they spent adjudicating disputes, as did the lawyers, and then a detailed explanation of the monetary system.  An "ezrom" is one of about a dozen names introduced in the aside.

The narrative starts up again with a repetition of the detail we got right before the aside (in other words, this is a great example of repetitive resumption):

20 Now, it was for the sole purpose to get gain... (Alma 11)

Perhaps all of this could just be a coincidence, but what comes next convinces me the name Zeezrom is intended to teach us a deeper meaning.  This expert lawyer and chief accuser of Alma and Amulek gets into a verbal exchange with the missionaries and proceeds to offer them money:

22 And Zeezrom said unto him: Behold, here are six onties of silver, and all these will I give thee if thou wilt deny the existence of a Supreme Being.

The man whose name relates to silver offers the missionaries silver to deny the existence of God.

The fact that after mentioning the name Zeezrom, Mormon immediately interrupts the narrative to offer us an explanation as to what the name means, only then to connect the man and the meaning of his name by his action indicates to me that all of this was intentional on the part of Mormon.

I can't help but also ponder how Joseph Smith (if you want to suppose he is the actual author of this book) accomplished this kind of complex multi-tiered wordplay into his story without any notes, in a single draft. Clever!

Hat tip: Brant Gardner.

The welfare of our souls

In a secular society, well-being or welfare is largely defined by the fulfillment of physical or temporal needs. Also for Christians, to feed the hungy, clothe the naked, etc. has always been an important part of discipleship and is brought up in several Book of Mormon passages like Alma 34:28, Mosiah 4:14-26 and Jacob 2:19. Yet it seems that the Book of Mormon in general is even more concerned about our spiritual well-being.

The word, "welfare" is found 20 times in the Book of Mormon. 7 of these is part of the expression, "welfare of your/their souls". There is also "your own eternal welfare", "welfare of Zion" and "welfare of the covenant people". The Book of Mormon is a frequent reminder to us of what is really "the most desirable above all things" and "the most joyous to the soul" (1 Nephi 11:22-23).

Another expression found 10 times in the Book of Mormon and nowhere in the Bible is "great worth". It is interesting to note the only time out of those 10 where this refers to something secular. It's in Alma 11:25 when Zeezrom is trying to trick Amulek into denying God by offering him "six onties, which are of great worth". Amulek doesn't fall for that because he knows of other things of greater worth that would be compromised if he denied God. The other 9 "great worth" expressions in the Book of Mormon refer the scriptures/prophecies/commandments/word of God or the marvelous work in the latter days

Some of my favorite examples of Book of Mormon prophets emphasizing what really is of greatest importance and their concern for the welfare of the souls of others:

2 Nephi 2:30

And I have none other object save it be the everlasting welfare of your souls.

1 Nephi 8:37

And he did exhort them then with all the feeling of a tender parent, that they would hearken to his words

 1 Nephi 15:25

Wherefore, I, Nephi, did exhort them to give heed unto the word of the Lord; yea, I did exhort them with all the energies of my soul, and with all the faculty which I possessed

Enos 1:9

I began to feel a desire for the welfare of my brethren, the Nephites; wherefore, I did pour out my whole soul unto God for them

2 Nephi 1:16

And I desire that ye should remember to observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord; behold, this hath been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning.

2 Nephi 33:3

But I, Nephi, have written what I have written, and I esteem it as of great worth, and especially unto my people. For I pray continually for them by day, and mine eyes water my pillow by night, because of them

Mosiah 28:3

Now they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not bear that any human soul should perish; yea, even the very thoughts that any soul should endure endless torment did cause them to quake and tremble.

...and so on. We need to worry about the right things and the Book of Mormon reminds us what those are.

Intentional parallels between Alma 5-13 and Alma 36-42

Grant Hardy has a very interesting theory about the layout of Alma.  You can watch his entire presentation here.

In short, he finds numerous parallels between the chapters describing Alma's missionary efforts among three Nephite cities (found in Alma 5-13) and his instructions to his sons (found in Alma 36-42).  He offers several lines of evidence to support his reasoning:

1. In each case, there is a header which was part of the revealed text documenting the account (see headers to chapters 5, 7, 9, 36, 38, 39).
2. We know Alma preached in more cities than just the three, but only three get specifically detailed.
3. The relative length of each son/city pairing is similar.
4. Unique language is found each pairing of accounts, including phrases that are not found very often or at all in other scriptures. See below and future posts for more details about this.

Below is an overview of the big picture, which will be followed later this week with three more detailed posts demonstrating each son/city pairing, which I will link here for future reference.

• Zarahemla (5-6) / Helaman (36-37): "Remember captivity" "Put trust in God" "Born of God"
• Gideon (7-8) / Shiblon (38): "Trust that I shall have joy over/in you"
• Ammonihah (9-13) / Corianton (39-42): "Except ye repent/do this, ye can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God"

Hardy also suggests that the underlying purpose of these pairings might be an attempt by Mormon at creating a chiastic message in the first 44 chapters of the book of Alma.  I'm not sure I completely follow/agree with this idea, but it is definitely intriguing.  I'll post more about this later this week as well. 

A deep dive into Helaman 5, part 2 of 2

In part 1, I made note of numerous examples of internal consistency found in just the first 13 verses of Helaman 5.  The remainder of the chapter also includes references to other chapters as well as an incident which is later referred to twice.

Verses 14-52 -- The missionary experiences of Nephi-2 and Lehi-2

In these verses we learn about the missionary experiences of Nephi and Lehi.

In verse 14-16, they begin preaching in the city of Bountiful and then head south through Mulek and Gid until they come to Zarahemla.  This reflects the internally consistent geography of the the Nephite lands -- Bountiful is north of Zarahemla, which is first mentioned in detail in Alma 22:29-33.

Note that the land of Zarahemla is now held by the Lamanites, a detail we learn about in Helaman 4:5.

In verse 17, Nephi and Lehi confound Nephite dissenters who "had gone over from the Nephites", which we learned about back in Alma 63.

In verses 20-21, the brothers head to the Land of Nephi and end up being cast into the same prison that "Ammon and his brethren" were held by the "servants of Limhi".  This refers back to an incident we read about in Mosiah 7:6-8.

Then something remarkable happens.  A group of men come to the prison to slay their captives, and a miraculous event takes place that very clearly foreshadows the visit of the Resurrected Christ to the Nephites.  Here are some parallels:

Helaman 5	3 Nephi 8-17
27 words, the earth shook exceedingly, and the walls of the prison did shake as if they were about to tumble to the earth;	8:6 ...and there was terrible thunder, insomuch that it did shake the whole earth as if it was about to divide asunder.
28 And it came to pass that they were overshadowed with a cloud of darkness, and an awful solemn fear came upon them.	8:20 And it came to pass that there was thick darkness upon all the face of the land, insomuch that the inhabitants thereof who had not fallen could feel the vapor of darkness;
29 And it came to pass that there came a voice as if it were above the cloud of darkness,	9:1 And it came to pass that there was a voice heard among all the inhabitants of the earth, upon all the face of this land,
43 And it came to pass that when they cast their eyes about, and saw that the cloud of darkness was dispersed from overshadowing them, behold, they saw that they were encircled about, yea every soul, by a pillar of fire… 48 And now, when they heard this they cast up their eyes as if to behold from whence the voice came; and behold, they saw the heavens open; and angels came down out of heaven and ministered unto them.	17:24 And as they looked to behold they cast their eyes towards heaven, and they saw the heavens open, and they saw angels descending out of heaven as it were in the midst of fire; and they came down and encircled those little ones about, and they were encircled about with fire; and the angels did minister unto them.
45 And behold, the Holy Spirit of God did come down from heaven, and did enter into their hearts, and they were filled as if with fire, and they could speak forth marvelous words.	9:20 ...And whoso cometh unto me with a broken heart and a contrite spirit, him will I baptize with fire and with the Holy Ghost, even as the Lamanites, because of their faith in me at the time of their conversion, were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost, and they knew it not.
49 And there were about three hundred souls who saw and heard these things; and they were bidden to go forth and marvel not, neither should they doubt.	17:25 And the multitude did see and hear and bear record; and they know that their record is true for they all of them did see and hear, every man for himself; and they were in number about two thousand and five hundred souls; and they did consist of men, women, and children.

It seems very clear to me that the prison experience is foreshadowing the destruction, vapor of darkness, and visitation detailed in 3 Nephi.

It is also worth noting that in a completely unrelated part of the Book of Mormon, reference is made to the missionary work of Nephi and Lehi. Moroni delivers a masterful sermon on faith, found in Ether 12, in which he references back to the experiences of Nephi-2 and Lehi-2 among the Lamanites:

14 Behold, it was the faith of Nephi and Lehi that wrought the change upon the Lamanites, that they were baptized with fire and with the Holy Ghost.

 Compare this with Helaman 5:

44 And Nephi and Lehi were in the midst of them; yea, they were encircled about; yea, they were as if in the midst of a flaming fire, yet it did harm them not, neither did it take hold upon the walls of the prison; and they were filled with that joy which is unspeakable and full of glory.
45 And behold, the Holy Spirit of God did come down from heaven, and did enter into their hearts, and they were filled as if with fire, and they could speak forth marvelous words.

In addition to this, there is a subtle little detail worth mentioning, tucked away in this story. Aminadab (which is a biblical name meaning "my kinsmen are noble"), is a Nephite dissenter living among the Lamanites. In the midst of the mist of darkness, he offers an explanation to the men in the prison as to what Nephi and Lehi are doing, then tells the men what they ought to do:

41 And Aminadab said unto them: You must repent, and cry unto the voice, even until ye shall have faith in Christ, who was taught unto you by Alma, and Amulek, and Zeezrom; and when ye shall do this, the cloud of darkness shall be removed from overshadowing you.

In typical Nephite fashion, Aminadab offers the three names of men who have taught the people about Christ.  One of them is Zeezrom, the lawyer who contends with Amulek in Ammonihah back in Alma 11. (Did you happen to recall that Amulek is descended from a man named Aminadi? See Alma 10:2.) Do you recall what became of Zeezrom after this experience?  I've read the Book of Mormon many times, and I could recall off the top of my head that he left Ammonihah and came down with a fever (see Alma 15:3). Then Alma baptizes him. In all the times I read the Book of Mormon, I missed this subtle detail, though (until I went looking for it) -- Zeezrom became a missionary. From Alma 15:

12 And Alma baptized Zeezrom unto the Lord; and he began from that time forth to preach unto the people.

Here is another mention of Zeezrom as a missionary, from Alma 31:

5 And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God.
6 Therefore he took Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner; and Himni he did leave in the church in Zarahemla; but the former three he took with him, and also Amulek and Zeezrom, who were at Melek; and he also took two of his sons.

Isn't that wonderful?  The same two men contending with each other in Alma 11 are now missionary companions among the Zoramites!

One final note, in Alma 37, Alma-2 reminds his son Helaman that the records helped Ammon bring thousands of the Lamanites to a knowledge of their redeemer.  Then he adds this:

10 And who knoweth but what they will be the means of bringing many thousands of them, yea, and also many thousands of our stiffnecked brethren, the Nephites, who are now hardening their hearts in sin and iniquities, to the knowledge of their Redeemer?

This, of course is exactly what happens in Helaman 5 (see verses 17-19).

Summary and Conclusion

What can be made of all of these connections between verses in Helaman 5 and so many other chapters in the Book of Mormon?  I think it is significant evidence that Joseph Smith could not have held all of this information in his head at one time, without notes of some kind.

Let's summarize what we found in this chapter alone:

Hel. 5:	Connects with	Relevant details	# of chapters apart
1	Helaman 6	Cezoram, the chief judge,  is murdered.	1
2	Mosiah 29:25-27	“Voice of the people”	68
4	Helaman 3	Nephi and Lehi are brothers	2
4	Alma 4	Giving up the judgment seat to preach the word	64
6	1 Nephi 2	Nephi and Lehi	78
6-8	2 Nephi 33:4	“Remember/Good/ eternal life”	131
9	Mosiah 3:17	Quotes King Benjamin	94
10	Alma 11:36-40	Quotes Amulek	57
12	2 Nephi 28:28	“Rock of our redeemer”	126
12	2 Nephi 1	“Gulf of misery and endless wo”	98
13	Alma 37:27	“Things which are not written”	31
14-16	Alma 22:29-33	Geography of Bountiful	46
16	Helaman 4:5	Lamanites occupy Zarahemla	1
17	Alma 63	Nephite dissenters among Lamanites	5
20-21	Mosiah 7:6-8	Ammon’s prison	90
27-49	3 Nephi 8-17	Foreshadowing Christ’s visit	18
44	Ether 12:14	Lamanites baptized with fire	63
41	Alma 15:12; 31:6	Zeezrom preaches	53, 37
17-19	Alma 37:10	Alma-2 predicts future missionary success	31