The Book of Mormon in 2024 - "My Words.. Never Cease"

[InCognitus]

This board needs a new topic badly, so here it goes .

I love reading and studying the Bible.  I love the history and the sheer volume of articles available written about it, both secular and spiritual, written about the people and its history, and the study of the manuscripts, as well as the various commentaries and interpretations of the Bible.  So as I ended my reading (and re-reading) of the book of Revelation this last week, I have to admit that I was a little bit sad to see us finish up this year's course of study and change our focus away from that book of scripture for another two years.

But this afternoon I was rereading the last Come Follow Me lesson for individuals and families on the last chapters of Revelation, and I decided to check out some of the recommended sources.  I thought it was interesting that the lesson material dives into the following question, since it is a common claim made against the teachings of the church:

Quote

Revelation 22:18–19

Do these verses mean that there cannot be any additional scripture besides the Bible?

Some people have cited Revelation 22:18–19 as a reason to reject the Book of Mormon and other latter-day scripture. You can find an answer to this objection in Elder Jeffrey R. Holland’s message “My Words … Never Cease” (Ensign or Liahona, May 2008, 91–94).

I have heard the Revelation 22:18-19 argument used to support the idea that the Bible is "all of Gods word" probably thousands of times, and I know why the argument is flawed.  So the first couple of times I read over the lesson material I just glanced over that section and moved on. 

But today I decided to listen to Elder Holland's talk that is linked to the lesson, "My Words... Never Cease".  (I know I've heard it and read it before, but it's been a long time since the talk was given).  I'm glad I did, because it reminded me of how important the Book of Mormon is to us.  I think the question posed in the lesson (quoted above) and the powerful testimony that Elder Holland bore about the Book of Mormon and ongoing revelation in his talk is a fitting segue to our study of the Book of Mormon this coming year.  Now I'm excited to read the Book of Mormon again.

I recall this same transition in prior years, and I remember remarking to myself, "Wow, the Book of Mormon is so plain and clear", and I think that is especially noticeable when putting it in contrast to the Bible.  

To make this into a topic of discussion, do any of you have any favorite study tips or resources for the Book of Mormon?  What have you found helpful in your Book of Mormon studies?

[awyatt]

Grant Hardy's new Annotated Book of Mormon (Oxford University Press) seems like a great resource for study. I've got it sitting on my shelf. Plus, Brant Gardner's six-volume annotated Book of Mormon is awesome, as is Kevin Barney's multi-volume.

 

[CV75]

10 hours ago, InCognitus said:

This board needs a new topic badly, so here it goes .

I love reading and studying the Bible.  I love the history and the sheer volume of articles available written about it, both secular and spiritual, written about the people and its history, and the study of the manuscripts, as well as the various commentaries and interpretations of the Bible.  So as I ended my reading (and re-reading) of the book of Revelation this last week, I have to admit that I was a little bit sad to see us finish up this year's course of study and change our focus away from that book of scripture for another two years.

But this afternoon I was rereading the last Come Follow Me lesson for individuals and families on the last chapters of Revelation, and I decided to check out some of the recommended sources.  I thought it was interesting that the lesson material dives into the following question, since it is a common claim made against the teachings of the church:

I have heard the Revelation 22:18-19 argument used to support the idea that the Bible is "all of Gods word" probably thousands of times, and I know why the argument is flawed.  So the first couple of times I read over the lesson material I just glanced over that section and moved on. 

But today I decided to listen to Elder Holland's talk that is linked to the lesson, "My Words... Never Cease".  (I know I've heard it and read it before, but it's been a long time since the talk was given).  I'm glad I did, because it reminded me of how important the Book of Mormon is to us.  I think the question posed in the lesson (quoted above) and the powerful testimony that Elder Holland bore about the Book of Mormon and ongoing revelation in his talk is a fitting segue to our study of the Book of Mormon this coming year.  Now I'm excited to read the Book of Mormon again.

I recall this same transition in prior years, and I remember remarking to myself, "Wow, the Book of Mormon is so plain and clear", and I think that is especially noticeable when putting it in contrast to the Bible.  

To make this into a topic of discussion, do any of you have any favorite study tips or resources for the Book of Mormon?  What have you found helpful in your Book of Mormon studies?

A number of things come to mind: consistency, prayer before reading it, note-taking (whether I keep them or not).

The Spirit has been very helpful in directing me to focus on different themes over different re-reads (ends up being about twice a year, cover to cover), typically marking the theme as I go along in a unique color. For example, I'm currently highlighting anything that is a testament to God's love for us in orange, and it is amazing how much is getting underlined! As a result, by now, I'm trying to figure out how to start a "fresh" online set and file away this one: I think I've just about used up the entire color palette and I think it's made the Library Tool slow down!

Having the basic Institute course helped at one time, but that was in 1976 or so and a few years after I had already received a spiritual witness of its being the word of God.

[Pyreaux]

I love blending different studies together. The wheels began to turn with George Potter discussing how Lehi's Dream does well to describe Lehi's environment to the Valley of Lemuel. Like how date palm fruit on the tree is white, how the granite canyon walls lead them threw the mountains. Recently I heard at a comment that Lehi's dream is about multiple Temple worship. The great and spacious building is the Reformed Temple of Jerusalem, the Deuteronomic Reformers mocking people who go to worship at the rural shrines like ones by great trees. Certainly, Lehi built an alter away from Jerusalem in a valley, midst a grove of date palm trees that are still there today. Like how Abraham built an alter under a tree, then there's the palm tree of Deborah. Deuteronomy forbids an alter by a tree (though the menorah is a tree) and the Reformers systematically shut down other temples and groves. The Nephites build other temples, so Nephites are not any part of these Temple Reformers.

I can't stop thinking about it lately, yet I haven't studied it much. I guess its a good time to study it. Though I won't be able to share it in Sunday School. I'm busy having to just use normal material, especially since my ward seems to not remember or read the chapter before they whip out their phones Sunday, unprepared for question "what was your favorite part of these chapters", and I'll be the only one to answer, and I'll say something I like, but it's an obscure verse, with a dash of arcane wisdom thrown in (from a Dead Sea Scroll, or Midrash) so everyone looks a little uncomfortable because they never heard it before. But I'd never say something like the word "Deuteronomist", you can't unpack that word in less than 5 sentences.

Edited January 1, 2024 by Pyreaux

[mfbukowski]

17 hours ago, InCognitus said:

This board needs a new topic badly, so here it goes .

I love reading and studying the Bible.  I love the history and the sheer volume of articles available written about it, both secular and spiritual, written about the people and its history, and the study of the manuscripts, as well as the various commentaries and interpretations of the Bible.  So as I ended my reading (and re-reading) of the book of Revelation this last week, I have to admit that I was a little bit sad to see us finish up this year's course of study and change our focus away from that book of scripture for another two years.

But this afternoon I was rereading the last Come Follow Me lesson for individuals and families on the last chapters of Revelation, and I decided to check out some of the recommended sources.  I thought it was interesting that the lesson material dives into the following question, since it is a common claim made against the teachings of the church:

I have heard the Revelation 22:18-19 argument used to support the idea that the Bible is "all of Gods word" probably thousands of times, and I know why the argument is flawed.  So the first couple of times I read over the lesson material I just glanced over that section and moved on. 

But today I decided to listen to Elder Holland's talk that is linked to the lesson, "My Words... Never Cease".  (I know I've heard it and read it before, but it's been a long time since the talk was given).  I'm glad I did, because it reminded me of how important the Book of Mormon is to us.  I think the question posed in the lesson (quoted above) and the powerful testimony that Elder Holland bore about the Book of Mormon and ongoing revelation in his talk is a fitting segue to our study of the Book of Mormon this coming year.  Now I'm excited to read the Book of Mormon again.

I recall this same transition in prior years, and I remember remarking to myself, "Wow, the Book of Mormon is so plain and clear", and I think that is especially noticeable when putting it in contrast to the Bible.  

To make this into a topic of discussion, do any of you have any favorite study tips or resources for the Book of Mormon?  What have you found helpful in your Book of Mormon studies?

I love underlining, in a certain color, the NEW doctrines the BOM teaches which resolve and makes clear confusions caused by the wording of biblical writers and how they are translated.

Yes, the JST does a similar job, but does not catch all of them- doing so was not Joseph's goal at that time

One example would be references to an embodied Father, for example 

Edited January 1, 2024 by mfbukowski

[InCognitus]

8 hours ago, Pyreaux said:

I love blending different studies together. The wheels began to turn with George Potter discussing how Lehi's Dream does well to describe Lehi's environment to the Valley of Lemuel.

I hadn't read George Potter on this, but when I searched for it, I came across the "Book of Mormon Online" resource here:  https://bookofmormon.online/home

I had bookmarked that site before, but I had forgotten about it!  (I think it was @caspianrex that made me aware of that link previously).  Thanks for bringing that up.  That site links multiple commentaries to the text:

Edited January 1, 2024 by InCognitus

[Buckeye]

10 hours ago, awyatt said:

Grant Hardy's new Annotated Book of Mormon (Oxford University Press) seems like a great resource for study. I've got it sitting on my shelf. Plus, Brant Gardner's six-volume annotated Book of Mormon is awesome, as is Kevin Barney's multi-volume.

 

I just started the annotated BoM. It’s a keeper. 

[Pyreaux]

3 hours ago, InCognitus said:

I hadn't read George Potter on this, but when I searched for it, I came across the "Book of Mormon Online" resource here:  https://bookofmormon.online/home

I had bookmarked that site before, but I had forgotten about it!  (I think it was @caspianrex that made me aware of that link previously).  Thanks for bringing that up.  That site links multiple commentaries to the text:

Well, I'm not sure if a book has it. George D. Potter made videos he sold after he read 'In Search of Lehi's Trail' (Hilton, 1976) and took a camera crew to Arabia to shoot footage of many Lihyanite sites, the Wadis, the Temple at Dedan, Yemen, etc. It's a bit boring with the production value of watching someone else's vacation video. Yet special, as some areas seemed more open before 9/11 happened, Journey of Faith was shot in the midst of 9/11 and seems to have a less Lihyan focus. George assumed the Lihyans were named after Lehi, though I don't know how well the timelines match up, I think it's more likely Lehi was a Lihyan.

There are 4 DVD sets. The 3rd one, The People of Lehi - The Tree of Life had the breakdown of Lehi's dream elements as related to things he would have seen walking from Jerusalem to the Red Sea.

His website seems to be down. But here's the wayback machine version.

http://web.archive.org/web/20220401135331/https://www.nephiproject.com/

Edited January 2, 2024 by Pyreaux

[Stargazer]

On 1/1/2024 at 2:33 PM, awyatt said:

Grant Hardy's new Annotated Book of Mormon (Oxford University Press) seems like a great resource for study. I've got it sitting on my shelf. Plus, Brant Gardner's six-volume annotated Book of Mormon is awesome, as is Kevin Barney's multi-volume.

 

I've just ordered that, and it will arrive tomorrow, or so Amazon.co.uk says. I'm looking forward to giving the Book of Mormon intense study this year.

[Stargazer]

Many years ago, when I was serving my mission in Germany, my morning study hour consisted of reading the scriptures (mainly in English). When I came to the New Testament, all was clear sailing until I hit Paul. I must have re-read Romans chapter one about five times, and I couldn't make heads or tails out of it. The first time I got about 10 verses in when I realized I hadn't understood anything of what I just read. Yes, it was English, not Greek, but it was some reason impenetrable. It couldn't penetrate my head, I guess. I had read the NT before, of course, so I know I had read Romans before, but perhaps this was the first time I was trying to seriously study it? And I wasn't understanding it, for some reason.

So, I decided to go back to the Book of Mormon. I started from 1st Nephi and day by day proceeded to read a few chapters per day until I finished the Isaiah chapters in 1 Ne 20-21. And then I realized that I had understood what was being said by Isaiah there (in contrast to Nephi's brothers who didn't get it, and asked him to explain it to them -- in 1 Ne 22). And in that understanding, I decided to go back to Romans. I did so, and was amazed to discover that I was finally "getting" what Paul had written. It was as clear as a bell. 

I realized then that I had been given a message -- that in order to get the most benefit out of the New Testament it should be read and understood in the light of the Book of Mormon. That for me, at least, the Book of Mormon, having been transmitted to us in its purity by the gift and power of God, was the key to the scriptures in general.

As they say, your mileage may vary, but that's my story.

[Pyreaux]

9 hours ago, Stargazer said:

Many years ago, when I was serving my mission in Germany, my morning study hour consisted of reading the scriptures (mainly in English). When I came to the New Testament, all was clear sailing until I hit Paul. I must have re-read Romans chapter one about five times, and I couldn't make heads or tails out of it. The first time I got about 10 verses in when I realized I hadn't understood anything of what I just read. Yes, it was English, not Greek, but it was some reason impenetrable. It couldn't penetrate my head, I guess. I had read the NT before, of course, so I know I had read Romans before, but perhaps this was the first time I was trying to seriously study it? And I wasn't understanding it, for some reason.

So, I decided to go back to the Book of Mormon. I started from 1st Nephi and day by day proceeded to read a few chapters per day until I finished the Isaiah chapters in 1 Ne 20-21. And then I realized that I had understood what was being said by Isaiah there (in contrast to Nephi's brothers who didn't get it, and asked him to explain it to them -- in 1 Ne 22). And in that understanding, I decided to go back to Romans. I did so, and was amazed to discover that I was finally "getting" what Paul had written. It was as clear as a bell. 

I realized then that I had been given a message -- that in order to get the most benefit out of the New Testament it should be read and understood in the light of the Book of Mormon. That for me, at least, the Book of Mormon, having been transmitted to us in its purity by the gift and power of God, was the key to the scriptures in general.

As they say, your mileage may vary, but that's my story.

Oh, yes, YMMV. I love the filters on my LDS lenses when I'm reading many other materials to find truth, lies and shadows of truth. It's like I'm cheating. It gets perplexing reading Paul 180° the "Law" before you understand he's talking about two different laws and other laws that are the same. The letter of the law, the carnal law is the Mosaic law, while the spirit of the law, the law of love, the law of Christ is referencing the Higher Law from the Sermon on the Mount. Or his secret thing he saw in the third heaven "not lawful to utter" is that he saw God, but the Law of Moses deemed unlawful.

Edited January 3, 2024 by Pyreaux

[InCognitus]

My wife teaches a Primary class (Valiant 9-10), and she was preparing her lesson last night and was looking for a good way to illustrate the purpose of a keystone, to teach the principle that the Book of Mormon is the "keystone of our religion".

I found this Youtube video for her, and she used it in her lesson and the kids loved it.  It demonstrates the importance of the keystone quite well:

It was a perfect video for the purpose and the kids loved it.