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Without the Mormon Lens: 10 - Be Strong and of a Good Courage

     I'm sure you're wondering when Columbus and other American influences are going to come into play, because so far we have only really referenced the Bible. I promise we will see that soon, at this point however, we are still only a few pages in, and Smith is still laying the Biblical foundations of the text. We will continue to see these Biblical parallels for a few pages, but I promise the build up is worth it. I'd rather continue taking this slow and while being as granular as possible. No rush, we'll get there.

     This post will be one of my shortest as I want to focus on this re-introduction of Nephi before his story takes off.

    As Nephi wraps up his focus on Lehi, the Biblical parallels begin to shift as well. As Nephi describes his experience, we will see the influence of the biblical prophet Joshua take precedence in the story. 

     Stories of Joshua himself are present in several books in the Old Testament. Which will all be referenced as we read the next few pages.

     1. Exodus – Joshua is first mentioned as a military leader under Moses (Exodus 17:9-13) and later as his aide (Exodus 24:13, 33:11).

     2. Numbers – Joshua is chosen as one of the twelve spies sent to explore Canaan (Numbers 13:8). His faithfulness, alongside Caleb, sets him apart, and God later appoints him as Moses' successor (Numbers 27:18-23).

     3. Deuteronomy – This book includes Moses' instructions to Joshua and the people of Israel about entering the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 31:7-8, 34:9).

     4. Joshua – This book is dedicated to Joshua’s leadership over Israel, recounting the conquest of Canaan and the division of the land among the tribes (Joshua 1–24).

      As the story of Nephi progresses, several of the events from Joshua's life will be retold in a condensed form to fit our new narrative. This is consistent with what we saw with the story of Lehi and the influences of Moses and Jeremiah. Again, this is consistent with the concept of re-contextualization.

The Book of Mormon, pg 9

~~~~~ The Book of Mormon~~~~~
     "And 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; wherefore I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers. (pg 9)

~~~~~The Old Testament~~~~~
    9  And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom; for Moses had laid his hands upon him: and the children of Israel hearkened unto him, and did as the Lord commanded Moses. (Deuteronomy 34:9)

~~~~~ The Book of Mormon~~~~~
     "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 hardness of their hearts, I cried unto the Lord for them. And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowiness of heart." (pg 9)

~~~~~The Old Testament~~~~~
    1 Now after the death of Moses the servant of the Lord it came to pass, that the Lord spake unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ minister, saying, 

    2 Moses my servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. (Joshua 1:1-2)

~~~~~ The Book of Mormon~~~~~
     "And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands." (pg 9)

~~~~~The Old Testament~~~~~
     7 Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper whithersoever thou goest. (Joshua 1:7)
~~~~~~~~~~

    We then are presented with some foreshadowing. Which details future Book of Mormon events.

~~~~~ The Book of Mormon~~~~~
   "And inasmuch as thy brethren shall rebel against thee, they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord." (pg 9)
~~~~~~~~~~

    This is followed by more foreshadowing of events that will relate to both Nephi AND Joshua that we will see as we continue our comparison. Both men will eventually be visited by angels to be placed in positions of authority. 

~~~~~ The Book of Mormon~~~~~
    "And inasmuch as thou shalt keep my commandments, thou shalt be made a ruler and a teacher over thy brethren. For behold, in that day that they shall rebel against me. I will curse them even with a sore curse, and they shall have no power over thy seed, except they shall rebel against me also. And if it so be that they rebel against me, they shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in the ways of remembrance." (pg 9)
~~~~~~~~~~

    At this point, both Nephi and Joshua have been told by the Lord that they are to guide their people to the promised land. They have both been charged to keep the commandments. We also see that Joshua has been told repeatedly to be strong and courageous, which are the defining characteristics Joseph Smith gives Nephi in the Book of Mormon. 

     Now that Smith has fully introduced us to the character Nephi, and his provided us with some insight to his purpose, he can begin to set Nephi's story into motion, as Lehi calls Nephi and his brothers to return to Jerusalem.





Check Your Understanding:

Test what you learned from this post.

1. The post argues that Nephi’s introduction most closely parallels which biblical figure?




2. Nephi describes himself as believing his father’s words because:




3. The repeated Book of Mormon promise “ye shall prosper in the land” mirrors language from:




4. According to the post, the shift from Lehi to Nephi signals:




5. Nephi’s future leadership over his brothers is presented as:




6. The post interprets Laman and Lemuel’s rebellion as narrative foreshadowing of:




- Next Post -

11 - The First Return to Jerusalem 

Nephi and his bothers return to Jerusalem. Laman is sent to ask Laban for the plates.

Parallel to the spies sent by Moses to survey the land of Canaan


New here? Consider starting at the first post.



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