Examples Of Humor In The Book Of Mormon

[Peppermint Patty]

Some good examples of humor in The Book of Mormon taken from articles at:

http://mormanity.blo...-of-mormon.html

and

http://notoriousbigg...-of-mormon.html

It's in Mosiah 5:14, "Doth a man take an a** which belongeth to his neighbor? I say unto you, Nay." Ha ha ha. Get it, "Neigh"?

Mosiah 12:1 reads, in pertinent part, "Abinadi came among them in disguise, that they knew him not, and began to prophesy among them, saying: Thus has the Lord commanded me, saying--Abinadi, go and prophesy unto this my people." Abinadi, you totally just blew your own cover!

My favorite funny verse in the whole book has to be 3 Nephi 3:13: "Yea, he sent a proclamation among all the people, that they should gather together their women, and their children, their flocks and their herds, and their substance, save it were their land, unto one place." I obviously have no idea what was going through Mormon's mind when he was abridging this history, but I really hope he was just getting kind of tired of summing up years of history so he threw in some sarcasm: "But just to be clear, they didn't gather their land together in one place."

I always laugh at 1 Nephi 2:16, where he says "nevertheless being large in stature, wherefore I did cry unto the Lord..." It's like him saying, so I was really young, but totally ripped, and so because I was totally ripped I felt like praying, and because I was totally ripped God answered my prayer.

1 Nephi 10:19 "the course of the Lord is one eternal round" I always think of a really long game of golf.

Alma, chapter 27, where Alma and the sons of Mosiah meet up again after many years of missionary service. Ammon was so happy that he fainted with joy. Verse 19 goes on to say: "Now, the joy of Alma in meeting his brethren was truly great, and also the joy of Aaron, of Omner, and Himni; but behold, their joy was not that to exceed their strength." It's like Mormon had to point out that the others were happy, but not THAT happy.

I also love when Ammon is preaching to the Lamanites and they all keep fainting all over the place because they're so happy they can't stand it. It's a funny scene, but it's also really touching.

Can you think of any others?

[cinepro]

I think Alma 11 is hilarious. Here we have Zeezrom, who is "expert in the devices of the devil" when it comes to debate and trickery, debating Amulek on the biggest question in the history of the universe: The Existence of God. This is the big debate to end all debates between the devil's chosen advocate and Amulek, representing God.

So Zeezrom says, as the opening shot in the debate: "Will ye answer the questions which I shall put unto you?"

To which Amulek replies, "Yea".

So Zeezrom, who I remind you is expert in the devices of the devil, uses what spectacular tool in his arsenal of debate?

"I will pay you if you deny the existence of God".

[krose]

"to me he doth not stink"

[Peppermint Patty]

I think Alma 11 is hilarious. Here we have Zeezrom, who is "expert in the devices of the devil" when it comes to debate and trickery, debating Amulek on the biggest question in the history of the universe: The Existence of God. This is the big debate to end all debates between the devil's chosen advocate and Amulek, representing God.

So Zeezrom says, as the opening shot in the debate: "Will ye answer the questions which I shall put unto you?"

To which Amulek replies, "Yea".

So Zeezrom, who I remind you is expert in the devices of the devil, uses what spectacular tool in his arsenal of debate?

"I will pay you if you deny the existence of God".

cinepro,

Yeah, kind of a let down. Is this the best the devil can do? Although, this tactic is still used today, mainly among the legal profession. It's called a confidential settlement.

"to me he doth not stink"

krose,

Nice example. It's really hard to find much in the way of romantic love in the Book of Mormon. This may be The Book of Mormon's most romantic moment, when the queen protects her husband from being buried alive with the "stink" comment.

I guess I'm just a romantic at heart, but it would have been really romantic to see the queen frantically drape herself over her husband to protect him instead of telling people he doesn't stink. It must be a cultural thing?

Edited December 24, 2011 by Peppermint Patty

[zerinus]

Some good examples of humor in The Book of Mormon taken from articles at:

http://mormanity.blo...-of-mormon.html

and

http://notoriousbigg...-of-mormon.html

Can you think of any others?

We may view those passages in a humerus light; but I don't think that that was the intent of the original authors.

[Peppermint Patty]

We may view those passages in a humerus light; but I don't think that that was the intent of the original authors.

zerinus,

I wouldn’t be too sure about jumping to your conclusion. Prophets can be some of the wittiest and fun loving people. Just look at President Monson. He is very humorous and LOVES a good laugh. After all, “men are that they might have joy”.

In any event, I think these instances of humor, intentional or not, can help us appreciate the human influence of The Book of Mormon. As one commenter said:

”I love the little instances of humanness showing through the book, especially the times the authors appear to have had to correct mistakes on the plates (without erasers) such as Alma 50: 32:

"Now behold, the people who were in the land Bountiful, or rather Moroni..."

Edited December 24, 2011 by Peppermint Patty

[Bret Ripley]

4 Nephi 1:6

And thus did the thirty and eighth year pass away, and also the thirty and ninth, and forty and first, and the forty and second, yea, even until forty and nine years had passed away, and also the fifty and first, and the fifty and second; yea, and even until fifty and nine years had passed away.

[Peppermint Patty]

4 Nephi 1:6

And thus did the thirty and eighth year pass away, and also the thirty and ninth, and forty and first, and the forty and second, yea, even until forty and nine years had passed away, and also the fifty and first, and the fifty and second; yea, and even until fifty and nine years had passed away.

Bret,

That's great! This would have given my High School English teacher, Miss Brown, a heart attack. She hated wordiness.

Many people feel the "wordiness" of The Book of Mormon is an evidence of its authenticity and this is just what one would expect from a Semitic language.

There are literally thousands of examples of Biblical wordiness. Like Genesis 1:6,7, we have:

6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

Edited December 24, 2011 by Peppermint Patty

[zerinus]

I wouldn’t be too sure about jumping to your conclusion. Prophets can be some of the wittiest and fun loving people. Just look at President Monson. He is very humorous and LOVES a good laugh. After all, “men are that they might have joy”.

I am sure he does; but unfortunately he didn’t write the Book of Mormon.

In any event, I think these instances of humor, intentional or not, can help us appreciate the human influence of The Book of Mormon.

Provided that they are understood correctly, and I am not sure that they are.

As one commenter said:

“I love the little instances of humanness showing through the book, especially the times the authors appear to have had to correct mistakes on the plates (without erasers) such as Alma 50: 32:

"Now behold, the people who were in the land Bountiful, or rather Moroni..."

That interpretive comment by all accounts appears to be incorrect. The expression “or rather” occurs once in the Bible, and 12 times in the Book of Mormon; and it always denotes an alternative way of saying the same thing:

Galatians 4:

9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage

Mosiah 7:

8 And it came to pass when they had been in prison two days they were again brought before the king, and their bands were loosed; and they stood before the king, and were permitted, or rather commanded, that they should answer the questions which he should ask them.

Mosiah 8:

17 But a seer can know of things which are past, and also of things which are to come, and by them shall all things be revealed, or, rather, shall secret things be made manifest, and hidden things shall come to light, and things which are not known shall be made known by them, and also things shall be made known by them which otherwise could not be known.

Alma 1:

15 And it came to pass that they took him; and his name was Nehor; and they carried him upon the top of the hill Manti, and there he was caused, or rather did acknowledge, between the heavens and the earth, that what he had taught to the people was contrary to the word of God; and there he suffered an ignominious death.

Alma 2:

34 And thus he cleared the ground, or rather the bank, which was on the west of the river Sidon, throwing the bodies of the Lamanites who had been slain into the waters of Sidon, that thereby his people might have room to cross and contend with the Lamanites and the Amlicites on the west side of the river Sidon.

Alma 17:

18 Now Ammon being the chief among them, or rather he did administer unto them, and he departed from them, after having blessed them according to their several stations, having imparted the word of God unto them, or administered unto them before his departure; and thus they took their several journeys throughout the land.

Alma 30:

9 Now if a man desired to serve God, it was his privilege; or rather, if he believed in God it was his privilege to serve him; but if he did not believe in him there was no law to punish him.

Alma 32:

16 Therefore, blessed are they who humble themselves without being compelled to be humble; or rather, in other words, blessed is he that believeth in the word of God, and is baptized without stubbornness of heart, yea, without being brought to know the word, or even compelled to know, before they will believe.

Alma 36:

14 Yea, and I had murdered many of his children, or rather led them away unto destruction; yea, and in fine so great had been my iniquities, that the very thought of coming into the presence of my God did rack my soul with inexpressible horror.

Alma 39:

16 And now, my son, this was the ministry unto which ye were called, to declare these glad tidings unto this people, to prepare their minds; or rather that salvation might come unto them, that they may prepare the minds of their children to hear the word at the time of his coming.

Alma 50:

32 Now behold, the people who were in the land Bountiful, or rather Moroni, feared that they would hearken to the words of Morianton and unite with his people, and thus he would obtain possession of those parts of the land, which would lay a foundation for serious consequences among the people of Nephi, yea, which consequences would lead to the overthrow of their liberty.

Alma 53:

10 And now behold, I have somewhat to say concerning the people of Ammon, who, in the beginning, were Lamanites; but by Ammon and his brethren, or rather by the power and word of God, they had been converted unto the Lord; and they had been brought down into the land of Zarahemla, and had ever since been protected by the Nephites.

Alma 54:

5 Behold, Ammoron, I have written unto you somewhat concerning this war which ye have waged against my people, or rather which thy brother hath waged against them, and which ye are still determined to carry on after his death.

It is never used to correct some imaginary “mistake”. In the case of Alma 50:32, the most reasonable interpretation is that “the land of bountiful” and “the land of Moroni” are in some sense or another associated together, either by one being enclosed within the other, or by one being an extension of the other, so that either name could be used to identify the location. All the other verses you (and others) have identified likewise have no “humoros” intent behind them, but they all indicate an idiomatic peculiarity of the language used. There is no “humor” involved; either intended, implied, or perceived.

Edited December 24, 2011 by zerinus

[Nathair/|\]

We may view those passages in a humerus light; but I don't think that that was the intent of the original authors.

I agree that the authors didn't intend for us to think of arm bones when they wrote those passages. On the other hand, I imagine that engraving with hand tools on tumbaga gets tiring to the arms after a while.

[zerinus]

I agree that the authors didn't intend for us to think of arm bones when they wrote those passages. On the other hand, I imagine that engraving with hand tools on tumbaga gets tiring to the arms after a while.

That by all accounts sounds like a pretty dumb comment.

[Stargazer]

That by all accounts sounds like a pretty dumb comment.

Well, you might like to think so, but arm bones is the first thing that popped into my mind when you wrote "humerus" instead of "humorous".

[Peppermint Patty]

Nathair and Stargazer,

You guys are killing me! I haven't laughed that hard in a long, long time.

+1 for each of you.

[zerinus]

Well, you might like to think so, but arm bones is the first thing that popped into my mind when you wrote "humerus" instead of "humorous".

Still a dumb comment. People tend to type these messages fast, and I use the automatic spell checker that comes with the word-processor or the Chrome browser, and it is easy to pick the wrong suggestion if you are typing quickly. Do you guys have a serious comment to make on the content of my post?

[zerinus]

Nathair and Stargazer,

You guys are killing me! I haven't laughed that hard in a long, long time.

Well, so far that is the only thing that you appear to be good at doing in this thread. LOL!

Edited December 25, 2011 by zerinus

[Stargazer]

Well, so far that is the only thing that you appear to be good at doing in this thread. LOL!

Well, of course! I have actually come to this thread with my brain dis-armed.

[rimshot]

[Stargazer]

In all seriousness, I don't think that there is a single passage in the Book of Mormon that was intended to be humorous. Every single example in this thread so far is a reflection on whatever unfortunate humorism that happens to erupt accidentally via the English language, especially in our modern idioms. You will nothing even accidental in, for example, the German translation. If such actually occurred in the initial process of the current translation, I am sure Immo Luschin von Ebengreuth (the translator) would have taken pains to eliminate it.

Edited December 25, 2011 by Stargazer

[Peppermint Patty]

zerinus,

Thank you for your comments. You have some great points.

I think what it all boils down to, is that humor is subjective. Whether or not any humor was intended by the authors, many people (see comments on the articles) feel certain verses are humorous. Who can argue with that?

Humor is good for the soul.

[volgadon]

At least in the examples provided I don't see intentional humour.

[altersteve]

Still a dumb comment. People tend to type these messages fast, and I use the automatic spell checker that comes with the word-processor or the Chrome browser, and it is easy to pick the wrong suggestion if you are typing quickly. Do you guys have a serious comment to make on the content of my post?

In a thread about humor? Nope.

[cinepro]

Q: What did the Lord say to Abinadi when he got to heaven?

.

.

.

.

A: "Well done, thou good and faithful servant"

Thank ya' folks, I'll be here all night....

Edited December 25, 2011 by cinepro

[Peppermint Patty]

cinepro,

LOL!

Here's a couple for you:

A young Mormon was on his mission, carrying the Book of Mormon in his coat pocket when he was shot by an armed robber. Fortunately, the bullet lodged in the Book and saved him. "See," the missionary said to his companion, "that bullet couldn't get through Second Nephi either.

and

Sacrament meeting was about to begin and a mother couldn't find her son. She searched everywhere and finally located him sitting outside on the curb with his head in his hands. She said, "Son, we have to go in now. Sacrament is about to start."

He responds, "I can't go in there, Mom. Nobody likes me. Everyone avoids me. No one will talk to me." She says "But son, you have to go back in....

You're the Bishop."

Edited December 25, 2011 by Peppermint Patty

[zerinus]

I think what it all boils down to, is that humor is subjective. Whether or not any humor was intended by the authors, many people (see comments on the articles) feel certain verses are humorous. Who can argue with that?

Except that when the claim is based on an obvious misunderstanding of the text, then it becomes redundant.

Humor is good for the soul.

Maybe; except that the Lord's idea of "humor" may not be the same as man's:

D&C 59:

15 And inasmuch as ye do these things with thanksgiving, with cheerful hearts and countenances, not with much laughter, for this is sin, but with a glad heart and a cheerful countenance—

16 Verily I say, that inasmuch as ye do this, the fulness of the earth is yours, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air, and that which climbeth upon the trees and walketh upon the earth;

Zerinus has left the building because of persistently rude or cranky comments.

Edited December 26, 2011 by Minos

[Rivers]

Alma 26:21 "My brothers and my brethren."

[Smith]

There is no “humor” involved; either intended, implied, or perceived.

Agreed.

However sometimes its a combination or sequence of things that makes something funny. For example, years ago I was reading along in the Book of Mormon while my thoughts were dwelling on Bro. Hugh Nibley, (I'm a big fan) and so I came across this (1 Neph 15:3) For he truly spake many great things unto them, which were hard to be understood.... The one and the other came together just right to create a nice little humorous moment for me.