Book Of Mormon Primer

[cursor]

I'm currently in the process of resurrecting a project that I developed in the late 1970s (while still in my 20s), relating to the Book of Mormon. During my missionary years, I couldn't help but notice the inability of folks (both members and investigators) to understand the historical framework of the Book of Mormon. To me, spiritual verbal deliveries by the Prophets are most significantly framed by the immediate cultural needs/conditions of the times in which they lived. By understanding the skeletal historical structure of the times — that would be the 2,500 year span from the original arrival of the Jaredites through the final destruction of the Nephites — we can enjoy an historical framework within which we can place significant Book of Mormon events.

 

If one can establish that framework with just a few hours of reading, then "fleshing out" the balance of the history (the preaching, the teaching, the eternal suggestion) carries more significance and meaning. If one has a timeline for the Civil War, with responsible geographical references ... how does that not help in understanding and positioning human verbal inputs and event relations?

 

With the intent of developing a "primer" (an historical skeletal structure for the Book of Mormon), I have included significant references to every name and place that occurs in the B of M. I once read it out loud, clocking the time that it took to read through the entire Primer. It was about 6 hours. Not bad, for a basic understanding of the BofM story-line. I plan on 1) modifying the text of my Primer, and 2) re-reading through an oral recitation (with stop-watch in  hand))

 

More later.

 

[Calm]

I could use that for the D&C, much harder to place the revelations into an ongoing history IMO.

I read a couple of child's version of the BoM growing up that fixed the overall history for me.

Edited November 5, 2014 by calmoriah

[cursor]

This is the introduction that I wrote for the Primer, some 35+ years ago:

 

While most of us feel that we have become familiar with the teachings and doctrine presented in the Book of Mormon, many remain unable to fit them into the context of the overall picture. We are taught, both in church meetings and in the home, selected stories and lessons from the Book of Mormon, but we don't know where they happened, who was involved, nor in what order the stories took place.

 

The Prophet Joseph Smith has told us that "the Book of Mormon was the most correct of any book on the earth, and the keystone of our religion, and a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book." Our goal, then, should be to understand as much as we possibly can about the lessons the authors of the Book of Mormon have given us. Much of what the Book of Mormon has to offer, however, is in the history it contains — the events and doings of the people that make necessary the prophesies and teachings that were delivered. By understanding the peoples involved and the sequence of events/conditions that brought about the prophesies, we can understand more completely and discuss more intelligently those precepts that are so important for us to learn.

 

The purpose of this work is to help the Book of Mormon student by providing a framework of events into which the personalities and doctrinal teachings can be logically placed, so that we can understand those important precepts to the fullest. This has been done by removing versus, or whole chapters, of the scriptural text in an attempt to develop a flowing storyline that guides the reader through the lives of the Book of Mormon peoples. Scriptural material not included is left out of The Book of Mormon Primer only because it did not significantly lend to the purpose of this work; not because it is of lesser value.

 

The Book of Mormon Primer was written using the same wording as the parent text in order to familiarize the beginning reader with the language and style of the Book of Mormon. The text has been fully footnoted (see 'Explanation of Footnotes') so that the reader can reference the material with the Scripture. Also, charts and maps have been included to aid the reader in identifying with the varied groups and their movements in the Promised Land.

 

It should be noted here that this work is intended to serve only as an aid in understanding the precepts and teachings of the Book of Mormon, and should in now way be considered as a simplified replacement for it. It is hoped that after reading The Book of Mormon Primer, an individual will have developed a greater appreciation for the Book of Mormon peoples and have greater desires to re-read the entire Scripture for even greater understanding of the eternal principles that it contains.

[cursor]

The Book of Mormon Primer

Explanation of Footnotes

 

Numbered footnotes and asterisks (*) are used in the text when Book of Mormon verses have been omitted. The asterisk (*) is used when only part of a verse has been omitted, while a numbered footnote is used when at least one full verse (or more) has been left out.

 

Footnotes using symbols (i.e. @, +, ¥, etc.) are placed to help the reader cross-reference Book of Mormon events/peoples mentioned at different parts of the text.

 

Example

From the Book of Mormon text (1 Nephi 1:1-6):

 

1. I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

2. Yea, I make a record in the language of my father, which consists of the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians.

3. And I know that the record which I make is true; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my knowledge.

4. For it came to pass in the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, (my father, Lehi, having dwelt at Jerusalem in all his days); and in that year there came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed.

5. Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people.

6. And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly.

 

Now the same verses from The Book of Mormon Primer read like this:

 

¹I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; * and therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

²In the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, *there came many prophets prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed. Wherefore *my father, Lehi, *prayed unto the Lord, yea, even wtih all his heart in behalf of his people. And *as he prayed, *there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; *and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly.

 

footnotes

¹ 1 Nephi 1:1

² 1 Nephi 1:4-6

Edited November 5, 2014 by cursor

[cinepro]

Honestly, how would it be any better than this together with this?

 

Also, this might apply. Which makes this even more interesting.

 

That being said, when I was growing up in the 1980s there was a popular format of "marking" the Book of Mormon where significant incidents and verses were highlighted, and at the bottom of the page it would refer you to the next page with a marked verse.  You could therefore read through the book catching all the highlights.  There may be more than one "marking guide", but here's an example.

Edited November 5, 2014 by cinepro

[cursor]

"Honestly" ... you haven't seen what I've done.

 

And, "that being said," ...

 

You clearly didn't read what I wrote regarding my intent or method of delivery.

Edited November 5, 2014 by cursor

[cursor]

Please allow me to provide a modest sample ... it'll take a few minutes. Please kindly excuse the wait.

[Tacenda]

Can't wait.

[readstoomuch]

Press on.

[cursor]

Almost done with Section 1, which takes one through 1 Nephi 18 ...
I should be done before noon PST today.

 

BTW ... the work doesn't at all exist in a digital format (weird, eh?). I'm currently working from a hand-typed manuscript (there's White-Out all over the place) that I did on a Royal typewriter back in 1976 ... or so. Let's see, I got off my mission in 74, so that seems about right. In any event, I should have the first of twelve sections posted soon. (Section 12 is all about the Jaredites.)

[cursor]

Section 1 of 12

 

¹I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; *and therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

 

²In the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, King of Judah, *there came many prophets prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed. Wherefore *my father, Lehi *prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people. And *as he prayed, *there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; *and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake an tremble exceedingly. ³And it came to pass that he saw one descending out of the midst of heaven.  *And he also saw twelve others following him. *The first came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book, and bade him that he should read. ⁴And he read, saying: "Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations!" Yea, and many things did my father read concerning Jerusalem — that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be carried away captive into Babylon.

 

And it came to pass that ⁵after the Lord had shown so many marvelous things unto my father *concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, behold he went forth among the people, and began to prophesy and to declare unto them concerning the things which he had both seen and heard. ⁶When the Jews heard these things they were angry with him; yea, *and they also sought his life, that they might take it away.

 

⁷And it came to pass that the lord commanded my father, even in a dream, that he should take his family and depart into the wilderness. And *he was obedient unto the voice of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded im. ⁸And he came down by the borders near the Red Sea; *and he did travel in the wilderness with his family, which consisted of my mother, Sariah, and my elder brothers, who were Laman, Lemuel, and Sam.

 

⁹And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceeding young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father. *And I spake unto Sam, making known unto him the things which the Lord had manifested unto me by his Holy Spirit, and it came to pass that he believed in my words. But, behold, Laman and Lemuel would not hearken unto my words; and being grieved because of the harness of their hearts I cried unto the Lord for them. And *the Lord spake unto me, saying: "Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart. ¹⁰And inasmuch as though shalt keep my commandments, thou shalt be made a ruler and a teacher over thy brethren."

 

¹¹I *returned from speaking with the Lord, to the tent of my father. And *he spake unto me, saying: "Behold I have dreamed a dream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brethren shall return to Jerusalem. For behold, Laban hath the record of the Jews and also a genealogy of they forefathers, and they are engraven upon plates of brass. Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban and seek the records, and bring them down hither into the wilderness." ¹²And it came to pass that ¹³I, Nephi, and my brethren took our journey in the wilderness, with our tents, to go up to the land of Jerusalem.

 

And *when we had come up in the wilderness, to the land of Jerusalem, I and my brethren did consult one with another. And we cast lots — who of us should tgo in unto the house of Laban. And it came to pass that the lot fell upon Laman; and Laman went in unto the house of Laban, and he talked with him as he sat in his house. And he desired of Laban the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, which contained the genealogy of my father. And behold, *Laban was angry, and thrust him out from his presence; and he would not that he should have the records. Wherefore, he said unto him: "Behold thou art a robber, and I will slay thee." But Laman fled out of his presence, and told the things which Laban had done, unto us.

 

¹⁴And it came to pass that we went down to the land of our inheritance, and we did gather together our gold, and our silver, and our precious things. And after we had gathered these things together, we went up again unto the house of Laban, *and desired of him that he would give unto us the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, for which we would give unto him *all our precious things. *When Laban saw our property and that it was exceeding great, he did lust after it, insomuch that he thrust us out, and sent his servants to slay us, that he might obtain our property. And it came to pass that we did flee before the servants of Laban, and we were obliged to leave behind our property. *And *we fled into the wilderness, and *hid ourselves in the cavity of a rock.

 

And it came to pass that Laman was angry with me, and also with my father; and also was Lemuel, for he hearkened unto the words of Laman. Wherefore ¹⁵I spake unto my brethren, saying: "Let us go up again unto Jerusalem, and let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; for behold he is mightier than all the earth, then why not mightier than Laban and his fifty, yea or even than his tens of thousands."

 

¹⁶Now when I had spoken these words, they were yet wroth, and did still continue to murmur; nevertheless they did follow me up until we came without the walls of Jerusalem. And it was by night; and I caused that they should hide themselves without the walls. And after they had hid themselves, I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban. *And as I came near unto the house *I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine. And when I came to him I found that it was Laban. ¹⁷And *I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: "Never at any time have I shed the blood of man." And shrunk and would that I might not slay him. ¹⁸And it came to palss that the Spirit said unto me again: "Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands." ¹⁹Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own sword.

 

And after I had smitten off his head, *I took the garments of Laban and put them upon mine own body, *and *went forth unto the treasury of Laban. And *behold, I saw the servant *who had the keys of the treasury. And I commanded him in the voice of Laban, that he should go with me into the treasury. ²⁰And I also spake unto him that I should carry the engravings, which were upon the plates of brass, to my elder brethren, who were without the walls. And I also bade him that he should follow me. And he, supposing that I spake of the brethren of the church, and that I was truly that Laban whom I had slain, wherefore he did follow me.

 

²¹And it came to pass that when Laman saw me he was exceedingly frightened and also Lemuel and Sam. And the fled from before my presence; for they supposed it was Laban, and that he had slain me and had sought to take away their lives also. And it came to pass that I called after them, and they did hear me; wherefore they did cease to flee from before my presence.

 

And *when the servant of Laban beheld my brethren he began to tremble, and was about to flee from before me and return to the city of Jerusalem, *therefore I did seize upon the servant and held him, that he should not flee. ²²And I spake unto him, even with an oath, that he need not fear; that he should be a free man like unto us if he would go down in the wilderness with us. ²³Now Zoram was the name of the servant; and he promised that he would go down into the wilderness unto my father. And he also made an oath unto us that he would tarry with us from that day forth. ²⁴And it came to pass that we took the plates of brass and the servant of Laban, and departed into the wilderness, and journeyed unto the tent of our father.

 

²⁵And when we had returned to the tent of my father, behold their joy was full, and my mother was comforted. ²⁶And after they had given thanks to the God of Israel, my father, Lehi, took the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, and he did search them from the beginning. And he beheld that they did contain the five books of Moses, *and also a record of the Jews from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah. ²⁷And *my father *also found upon the plates of brass a genealogy of his fathers. ²⁸And now when my father saw all these things, he was filled with the Spirit, and began to prophesy concerning his seed.

 

²⁹And *after my father, Lehi, had made an end of prophesying, *the Lord spake unto him again, saying that it was not meet for him *that he should take his family into the wilderness alone; but that his sons should take daughters to wife, that they might raise up seed unto the Lord in the land of promise. And it came to pass that the Lord commanded him that I *and my brethren, should again return unto the land of Jerusalem, and bring down Ishmael and his family into the wilderness. And it came to pass that I *did again, with my brethren, go forth into the wilderness to go up to Jerusalem.

 

And *we went up unto the house of Ishmael, *and  * the Lord did soften the heart of Ishmael, and also of his household, insomuch that they took their journey with us down into the wilderness to the tent of our father.

 

And now it came to pass that as we journeyed in the wilderness, behold Laman and Lemuel, and two of the daughters of Ishmael, and the two sons of Ishmael and their families, did rebel against us; yea, against me, Nephi, and Sam, and their father Ismael, and his wife, and his three other daughters. And *they were desirous to return to the land of Jerusalem. And now I, Nephi, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, therefore I spake unto them, saying: *"Behold ye are mine elder brethren, and how is it that ye are so hard in your hearts, and so blind in your minds, that ye have need that I, your younger brother, should speak unto you, yea, and set an example for you? *How is it that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him. And if it so be that we are faithful to him, we shall obtain the land of promise; and ye shall know at some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled concerning the destruction of Jerusalem; for all things which the Lord hath spoken concerning the destruction of Jerusalem must be fulfilled. ^29aNow behold, I say unto you that if ye will return unto Jerusalem, ye shall also perish.

 

*And it came to pass that when I, Nephi, had spoken these words unto my brethren, they were angry with me. And they did try to lay their hands upon me, for behold, they were exceeding wroth, and they did bind me with cords, for they sought to take away my life, that they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts. But *I prayed unto the Lord, saying: "O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea, even that I may burst these bands with which I am bound."

 

And *when I had said these words, behold, the bands were loosed from off my hands and feet, and I stood before my brethren, and I spake unto them again. And it came to pass that they were angry with me again, and sought to lay hands upon me; but behold, one of the daughters of Ishmael, yea, and also her mother and one of the sons of Ishmael, did plead with my brethren, insomuch that they did soften their hearts; and they did cease striving to take away my life. And *they were sorrowful, because of their wickedness, insomuch that they did bow down before me, and did plead with me that I would forgive them of the thing that they had done against me. And it came to pass that I did frankly forgive them, *and did exhort them that they would pray unto the Lord their God for forgiveness. And it came to pass that they did so. And after they had done praying unto the Lord, we did again travel on our journey towards the tent of our father. *And after I and my brethren and all the house of Ishmael had come down unto the tent of my father, they did give thanks unto the Lord their God; and they did offer sacrifices and burnt offerings unto him.

 

³⁰And now it came to pass that I *took one of the daughters of Ishmael to wife; and also my brethren; and also Zoram took the eldest daughter of Ishmael to wife.

 

³¹And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord spake unto my father by night, and commanded him that on the morrow he should take his journey into the wilderness. *As my father arose int he morning, and went forth to the tent door, to his great astonishment, he beheld upon the ground a round ball of curious workmanship; and it was of fine brass. And within the ball were two spindles; and the one pointed the way whither we should go into the wilderness. And it came to pass that we did gather *all the remainder of our provisions *and we did take seed of every kind that we might carry into the wilderness.

 

³²And after we had traveled for the space of many days, we did pitch our tents for the space of a time, that we might again rest ourselves and obtain food for our families. And *as I, Nephi, went forth to slay food, behold, I did break my bow, which was made of fine steel; and *my brethren were angry with me *for we did obtain no food. 33Now *their bows having lost their springs, it began to exceedingly difficult, yea, insomuch that we could obtain no food. And it came to pass that I *did speak much unto my brethren, because they had hardened their hearts again, even unto complaining against the Lord their God.

 

And it came to pass that I *did make out of wood a bow, and out of a straight stick, an arrow; wherefore, I did arm myself with a bow and an arrow, with a sling and stones, ³⁴and *I *did go forth up into the top of the mountain, *and did slay  wild beasts, insomuch that I did obtain food for our families. And *I did return to our tents, bearing the beasts which I had slain; and now when they beheld that I had obtained food, how great was their joy! And *they did humble themselves before the Lord, and did give thanks unto him.

 

³⁵And it came to pass that we did again take our journey in the wilderness;  ³⁶and we did sojourn for the space of many years, yea, even eight years in the wilderness. And we did come to the land which we called Bountiful, because of its much fruit and also wild honey. *And we beheld the sea, which we called Irreantum, which, being interpreted, is many waters.

 

³⁷And it came to pass that after I *had been in the land of Bountiful for the space of many days, the voice of the Lord came unto me, saying: "Arise, and get thee into the mountain." and *I arose and went up into the mountain and cried unto the Lord. And *the Lord spake unto me, saying: "Thou shalt construct a ship, after the manner which I shall show thee, that I may carry thy people across these waters." ³⁸And it came to pass that the Lord told me whither I should go to find ore, that I might make the tools.

 

³⁹And when my brethren saw that I was about to build a ship they began to murmur against me, saying: "Our brother is a fool, for he thinketh that he can build a ship; yea, and he also thinketh that he can cross these great waters." ⁴⁰Now when they saw that I began to be somewhat sorrowful they were glad in their hearts, insomuch that they did rejoice over me, saying: "We knew that ye could not construct a ship, for we knew that ye were lacking in judgment; wherefore, thou canst not accomplish so great a work." ⁴¹And it came to pass that I, Nephi, spake unto them, saying: ⁴²"Ye are swift to do iniquity but slow to remember the Lord your God. Ye have seen an angel, and he spake unto your; yea, ye have heard his voice from time to time; and he hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were past feeling, that ye could not feel his words; wherefore, he has spoken unto you like unto the foice of thunder, which did cause the earth to shake as if it were to divide asunder. *O. then why is it that ye can be so hard in your hearts?"

 

⁴³And now *when I had spoken these words, they were angry with me, and were desirous to throw me into the depths of the sea; and as they came forth to lay their hands on me I spake unto them, saying: "In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that you touch me not, for I am filled with the power of God, even unto the consuming of my flesh; and whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall wither even as a dried reed; and he shall be as naught before the power of God, for God shall smite him." And *I *said unto them that they should murmur no more against their father; neither should they withhold their labor from me, for God had commanded me that I should build a ship. ⁴⁴I *said many things unto my brethren, insomuch that they were confounded and could not contend against me; neither durst they lay their hands upon me nor touch me with their finger, even for the space of many days. Now they durst not do this lest they should wither before me, so powerful was the Spirit of God; and thus it had wrought upon them.

 

And it came to pass that the Lord said unto me: "Stretch forth thine hand again unto thy brethren, and they shall not wither before thee, but I will shock them , *and this will I do, that they may know that I am the Lord their God." And it came to pass that I stretched forth my hand unto my brethren, and they did not wither be fore me; but the Lord did shake them even according to the word which he had spoken. ⁴⁵And *they did worship the Lord, and did go forth with me; and we did work timbers of curious workmanship. And the Lord did show me from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of the ship. ⁴⁶After I had finished the ship, "my brethren beheld that it was good, and that the workmanship thereof was exceeding fine; wherefore, they did humble themselves again before the Lord.

 

⁴⁷And it came to pass that on the morrow *we did go down into the ship, with all our loading and our seeds, and whatsoever thing we had brought with us *(and now, my father had begat two sons in the wilderness; the elder was called Jacob and the younter Joseph), and we did put forth into the sea and were driven forth before the wind towards the promised land. 

 

After *many days, behold, my brethren and the sons of Ishmael and also their wives began to make themselves merry, *yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness. *Wherefore, I *began to speak to them with much soberness; but behold they were angry with me, saying: "We will not that our younger brother shall be a ruler over us." And *Laman and Lemuel did take me and bind me with cords, and they did treat me with much harshness. *And it came to pass that after they had bound me, *the compass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did cease to work. Wherefore they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly lest they should be drowned in the Sea; nevertheless they did not loose me.
 

⁴⁸And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the space of four days, my brethren began to see that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they must repent of their iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me, and loosed the bands which were upon my wrist. ⁴⁹And *after they had loosed me, *I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord, and *the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm. An *I, Nephi, did guide the ship, that we sailed again towards the promised land. And *after we had sailed for the space of many days we did arrive at the promised land; and we went forth upon the land, and did pitch our tents; and we did call it the promised land.

 

_____

 

¹1 Nephi 1:1

²1 Nephi 1:4-6

³1 Nephi 1:9-11

⁴1 Nephi 1:13-14

⁵1 Nephi 1:18

⁶1 Nephi 1:20

⁷1 Nephi 2:2-3

⁸1 Nephi 2:5

⁹1 Nephi 2:16-19

¹⁰1 Nephi 2:22

¹¹1 Nephi 3:1-4

¹²1 Nephi 3:7

¹³1 Nephi 3:9-14

¹⁴1 Nephi 3:22-28

¹⁵1 Nephi 4:1

¹⁶1 Nephi 4:4-8

¹⁷1 Nephi 4:10

¹⁸1 Nephi 4:12

¹⁹1 Nephi 4:18

²⁰1 Nephi 4:24-26

²¹1 Nephi 4:28-31

²²1 Nephi 4:33

²³1 Nephi 4:35

²⁴1 Nephi 4:38

²⁵1 Nephi 5:7

²⁶1 Nephi 5:10-12

²⁷1 Nephi 5:14

²⁸1 Nephi 5:17

²⁹1 Nephi 7:1-13

^29a1Nephi 7:15-22

³⁰1 Nephi 16:7

³¹1 Nephi 16:9-11

³²1 Nephi 16:17-18

³³1 Nephi 16:21-23

³⁴1 Nephi 16:30-32

³⁵1 Nephi 17:1

³⁶1 Nephi 17:4-5

³⁷1 Nephi 17:7-8

³⁸1 Nephi 17:10

³⁹1 Nephi 17:17

⁴⁰1 Nephi 17:19

⁴¹1 Nephi 17:23

⁴²1 Nephi 17:45-46

⁴³1 Nephi 17:48-49

⁴⁴1 Nephi 17:52

⁴⁵1 Nephi 18:1

⁴⁶1 Nephi 18:4

⁴⁷1 Nephi 18:6-13

⁴⁸1 Nephi 18:15

⁴⁹1 Nephi 18:21-23

Edited November 7, 2014 by cursor

[cursor]

1 Nephi chapters 1-18 incorporate 21,112 words.

My reduced treatment uses just 3,907. That less than 19% of the whole. the idea is to understand a responsible historical framework, within the rest of the "left out portions" have place, meaning, historical significance.Paint the large picture first, then go back and flesh it out later.

Edited November 7, 2014 by cursor

[Ahab]

Good work, but a basic outline format would work better for me and I would guess most other people. Best in electronic format too, with clicks for getting more details and going deeper into the text.

And even after doing all of that someone else will come along later to make it even better.

Edited November 7, 2014 by Ahab

[cursor]

I plan on hyperlinked footnote numbering that will show full context. The outline idea sounds interesting. Thanks for the comments.

Edited November 7, 2014 by cursor

[cursor]

Section 2 of 12

 

¹And it came to pass that the Lord commanded me, wherefore I did make plates of  ore that I might engraven upon them *the record of my father, and also our journeyings in the wilderness, and the prophecies of my father; and many of mine own prophecies have I engraven upon them. ²And I *have written thest things unto my people, that perhaps I might persuade them that they would remember the Lord their Redeemer. ³Now *I, Nephi, did teach my brethren these things; and *I did read many things to them, which were engraven upon the plates of brass, that they might know concerning the doings of the Lord in other lands, among people of old.

 

⁴Now *after I *had made an end of teaching my brethren, our father, Lehi, also spake many things unto them — how great things the Lord had done for them in bringing them out of the land of Jerusalem. ⁵"For, behold," he said, "I have seen a vision, in which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed; and had we remained in Jerusalem we should also have perished." ⁶And *after my father*had spoken unto all his household, according to the feelings of his heart and the Spirit of the Lord which was in him, he waxed old. And it came to pass that he died, and was buried.

 

*Not many days after his death, Laman and Lemuel and the sons of Ishmael were angry with me because of the admonitions of the Lord; *for I had spoken many things unto them, and also my father, before his death. ⁷Behold, it came to pass that I *did cry much unto the Lord my God, because of the anger of my brethren. But behold, their anger did increase against me, insomuch that they did seek to take away my life.

 

⁸And it came to pass that the Lord did warn me, that I, Nephi, should depart from them and flee into the wilderness, and all those who would go with me. ⁹And we did take our tents and whatsoever things were possible for us, and did journey in the wilderness for the space of many days. And after *many days we did pitch our tents. And my people would that we should call the name of the place Nephi; wherefore, we did call it Nephi. And all those who were with me did take upon them to call themselves the people of Nephi.

 

¹⁰And it came to pass that *my brethren ¹¹had hardened their hearts that they had become like unto a flint; wherefore, as they were white, and exceedingly fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them. ¹²And the Lord said unto me: "They shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in remembrance of me; and inasmuch as they will not remember me, and hearken unto my words, they shall scourge them even unto destruction."

 

 

¹³Now ¹⁴fifty and five years had passed away from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem; wherefore, Nephi gave me, Jacob a commandment concerning the small plates, upon which these things are engraven. And he gave me *a commandment that I should write upon these plates a few of the things which I considered to be most precious.

 

¹⁵Now Nephi began to be old, and he saw that he must soon die; wherefore, he anointed a man to be a king and a ruler over his people. ¹⁶And it came to pass that Nephi died. ¹⁷And *the people of Nephi, under the reign of the second king, began to grow hard in their hearts, and indulge themselves somewhat in wicked practices, such as like unto David of old desiring many wives and concubines.

 

¹⁸Now *after some years had passed away, there came a man among the people of Nephi, whose name was Sherem. And *he began to preach among the people, and to declare unto them that there should be no Christ. *And he knowing that I, Jacob, had faith in Christ who should come, he sought much opportunity that he might come unto me. And he was learned, that he had a perfect knowledge of the language of the people; wherefore, he could use much flattery, and much power of speech, according to the power of the devil.

 

¹⁹And it came to pass that he came unto me, and on this vise did he speak unto me saying: *"Ye have led away much of this people that they pervert the right way of God, and keep not the law of Moses which is the right way; and convert the law of Moses into the worship of a being which ye say shall come many hundreds of years hence. And now behold, I, Sherem, declare unto you that this is blasphemy; for no man knoweth of such things; for he cannot tell of things to come. ²⁰If there should be a Christ, I would not deny him; but I now that there is no Christ, neither has been nor ever will be."

 

And I said unto him: "Believest thou the scriptures?" and he said, "Yea." And I said unto him: "Then ye do not understand them; for they truly testify of Christ. *And this is not all — *it also has been made manifest unto me by the power of the Holy Ghost." *And it came to pass that he said unto me: "Show me a sign by this power of the Holy Ghost, in the which ye know so much." And I said unto him: *"Not my will be done; but if God shall smite thee, let that be a sign unto thee that *Christ shall come." *And it came to pass that when I *had spoken these words, the power of the Lord came upon him, insomuch that he fell to the earth. And *he was nourished for the space of many days.

 

 

And it came to pass that he said unto the people: "Gather together on the morrow, for I shall die; wherefore, I desire to speak unto the people before I shall die." And *on the morrow the multitude were gathered together; and he spake plainly unto them and denied the things which he taught them, and confessed the Christ, and the power of the Holy Ghost, and the ministering of angels. ²¹And *when he had said these words he could say no more, and he gave up the ghost. ²²And it came to pass that peace and the love of God was restored again among the people; and they searched the scriptures, and hearkened no more to the words of this wicked man.

 

²³And I, Jacob, saw that I must soon go down to my grave; wherefore, I said unto my son Enos: "Take these plates." *And I make an end of my writing upon these plates, which writing has been small. Brethren, adieu.

 

24Behold, *I, Enos, "will tell you of the wrestle which I had before God before I received a remission of my sins.

 

Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life *sunk deep into my heart. And my soul hungered; and I kneeled down before my Maker, and I cried unto him in mighty prayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens. And there came a voice unto me, saying: "Enos, thy sins are forgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.
 

Edited November 8, 2014 by cursor

[mnn727]

1 Nephi chapters 1-18 incorporate 21,112 words.

My reduced treatment uses just 3,907. That less than 19% of the whole. the idea is to understand a responsible historical framework, within the rest of the "left out portions" have place, meaning, historical significance.Paint the large picture first, then go back and flesh it out later.

I love what you have done -- breaking it down to the basics and leaving out all the extras that for me distract from the overall message. I look forward to reading more.

[cursor]

Section 2 was incomplete. I got caught up in trying to identify variations in the Primer versions that I have on file. From here on out I'll structure the entire "section" prior to posting any subsets. I really dislike being shut out from any opportunity to edit/modify a post.

 

Thanks for your comments mnn727,

 

When developing this project some 35 years ago, I couldn't help but notice the myriad of folks that would start reading the book, only to become lost at Lehi's dream, or in 2Nephi when Isaiah kicks in. It seemed to me that there needed to be some contiguous story line, that didn't remove any BofM characters or significant events. I also felt that to avoid the idea of a cheesy, story-like, flavor, the work should be done in the same language as the Book of Mormon.

 

In recent conversation with my dad regarding the topic, he told me that he thought that the history/story-line was secondary to the "reminiscences" of Mormon. Fine. I might actually agree. But an historical structure is key, I think ... and that's easily lost in a straight-through reading of the Book of Mormon.

 

In the near future, I'll reconcile all my older versions of The Book of Mormon Primer, and only then post here. 

 

I now have solid more solid ideas for a dynamic delivery of the work ... including outline structures, geographical maps, genealogical info, etc.

[cursor]

I'm also considering a series of conceptual maps (with no real-world ties) to be included in the BofM Primer that would be sensitive to chronological developments and the developing geographical awareness of the Book of Mormon peoples. These maps could be linked to statements in the text (as hyperlinks or pop-up images). Certainly upon arriving (Lehites, Mulekites & Jaredites) little could possibly be known about the promised land — its overall configuration, it's size, its elevational variety, its climate, ... even about any potentially already existing inhabitants. 

• Centuries later, Mormon gives us a pretty clear picture of all of the above concerns:
• He was born in the land northward
• He then migrated to the land southward
• He abridged the plates and added significant geographical and cultural commentary
• He was an educated elite and the premier military of the Nephites, owning a perfect knowledge of places, peoples, and events.

Should be a fun project.

[Scott Lloyd]

I'm currently in the process of resurrecting a project that I developed in the late 1970s (while still in my 20s), relating to the Book of Mormon. During my missionary years, I couldn't help but notice the inability of folks (both members and investigators) to understand the historical framework of the Book of Mormon. To me, spiritual verbal deliveries by the Prophets are most significantly framed by the immediate cultural needs/conditions of the times in which they lived. By understanding the skeletal historical structure of the times — that would be the 2,500 year span from the original arrival of the Jaredites through the final destruction of the Nephites — we can enjoy an historical framework within which we can place significant Book of Mormon events.

 

If one can establish that framework with just a few hours of reading, then "fleshing out" the balance of the history (the preaching, the teaching, the eternal suggestion) carries more significance and meaning. If one has a timeline for the Civil War, with responsible geographical references ... how does that not help in understanding and positioning human verbal inputs and event relations?

 

With the intent of developing a "primer" (an historical skeletal structure for the Book of Mormon), I have included significant references to every name and place that occurs in the B of M. I once read it out loud, clocking the time that it took to read through the entire Primer. It was about 6 hours. Not bad, for a basic understanding of the BofM story-line. I plan on 1) modifying the text of my Primer, and 2) re-reading through an oral recitation (with stop-watch in  hand))

 

More later.

Sounds like a worthwhile venture.

 

On a totally unrelated note, I often wonder why certain academics see the need to say or write "an historic" as opposed to "a historic."

 

According to one website:

 

A well known grammar rule says that we should use an before vowel sounds; for example, an accident, an item, an hour. We use a otherwise: a book, a hotel, a university.

Notice that we say an hour, not a hour. The choice of a or an is based upon the sound of the word, not the spelling. Hour sounds as if it starts with a vowel sound (ow); hence, we use an.

Following this rule, we would say a historic, not an historic because (for most speakers) historic doesn't start with a vowel sound.

 

The overwhelming preponderance of English grammar sources these days will coincide with the above explanation. That is, they will say that the determiner of whether to use a or an is whether or not the following word starts with a vowel or a consonant sound not letter. Hence a historic or a house or a university, not "an historic" or "an house" or "an university."This is always the case unless the h in the following word is silent, as with hour.

 

The website I linked to did say that both usages are common enough to be considered correct. However, it does present an interesting graph showing that using the "a historic" construction has overwhelmingly grown more common with the passage of time -- especially in the last 30 years -- in both American and British English.

 

These days, "an historic" has become so uncommon that it sounds affected and pedantic when it does occur.

[cursor]

On a totally unrelated note, I often wonder why certain academics see the need to say or write "an historic" as opposed to "a historic."

 

Well, I certainly don't have the credentials of an "academic" (whatever that may be worth, vs. who I am). Based on the rule that you quoted, like in the instance of "an hour," we should apply an "a" or an "an" based on sound, not on spelling. The author of the rule assumes that "historic" is pronounced with a hard "h" in all cases. I would suggest that is not always the case. When I read "a historic," it sounds stinted and unnecessarily intentional. When I read "an historic," the need for an intentional "h" sound is naturally lost ... "an [h]istoric." For me that is the most natural.

 

From your referenced website: "Summary: ... both usages are sufficiently common to be considered correct."

 

At least for "let's go to the show," I don't say (nor write) "skodthasho."

At least for "realtor," I don't say (nor write) "relator."

At least for "veteran," (significant today), I don't senselessly say (nor write) "vetrin."

And for the second month of the year, I never say "Febuary," when it's really "February."

 

But, hells bells, I ain't no freakin' academic ... after all.

Edited November 12, 2014 by cursor

[Scott Lloyd]

Well, I certainly don't have the credentials of an "academic" (whatever that may be worth, vs. who I am). Based on the rule that you quoted, like in the instance of "an hour," we should apply an "a" or an "an" based on sound, not on spelling. The author of the rule assumes that "historic" is pronounced with a hard "h" in all cases. I would suggest that is not always the case. When I read "a historic," it sounds stinted and unnecessarily intentional. When I read "an historic," the need for an intentional "h" sound is naturally lost ... "an [h]istoric." For me that is the most natural.

 

From your referenced website: "Summary: ... both usages are sufficiently common to be considered correct."

 

At least for "let's go to the show," I don't say (nor write) "skodthasho."

At least for "realtor," I don't say (nor write) "relator."

At least for "veteran," (significant today), I don't senselessly say (nor write) "vetrin."

And for the second month of the year, I never say "Febuary," when it's really "February."

 

But, hells bells, I ain't no freakin' academic ... after all.

Unless you were born and reared in London's East End, I can't conceive of why you would reasonably see the need to drop the h sound from historic. Especially in this day and age, when fewer and fewer people are doing it and it is more apt to make you sound or look like you are trying (too hard) to sound educated.

Edited November 12, 2014 by Scott Lloyd

[cursor]

Unless you were born and reared in London's East End, I can't conceive of why you would reasonably see the need to drop the h sound from historic. Especially in this day and age, when fewer and fewer people are doing it and it is more apt to make you sound or look like you are trying (too hard) to sound educated.

 

Give it a rest, would you please? I am hardly "trying (too hard) to sound educated."

You have unnecessarily derailed this topic with absolute nonsense.

 

I'll attribute my adoption and usage of "an historic" vs. "a historic" (despite the fact that I'm admittedly not "an academic") to the fact that I am one of eight sons (all of which would use the same verbiage) of an academic, and a mother who was precise in how language should be delivered. It's how I learned to speak and to write.

 

What's YOUR problem? Your attack seems unnecessarily personal. Do you profess to know me at all, Scott? If so, then when and where ... and why the clear aggressive antagonism?

 

Sure hope that highfalutin phrazin (gee, is that a 'ph' or an 'f') of mine don't seem to be too freakin' edjucated.

Edited November 12, 2014 by cursor

[cursor]

To site moderators: Please don't close this thread due to any forum violations. Simply deal with very obvious verbal derailments. I have substantially more to contribute here (in whatever version of the English language). Thank you so much for your understanding.

[rpn]

May I suggest you create the entire document, and then link to it for those of us who might want to download for use off line? 

[Scott Lloyd]

To site moderators: Please don't close this thread due to any forum violations. Simply deal with very obvious verbal derailments. I have substantially more to contribute here (in whatever version of the English language). Thank you so much for your understanding.

Never mind, moderators. I made my (non-antagonistic, non-personal) point two posts ago, and I'm done here.

Edited November 12, 2014 by Scott Lloyd