Category: Bible
A Tough Question: What’s the Single Most Impressive Evidence for the Book of Mormon?
A critic recently asked me a tough question: what’s the single most impressive piece of evidence for the Book of Mormon? I think he wasn’t looking for evidence that might change open his mind, but perhaps was looking to simplify his goal of attacking the Book of Mormon. But for those who really want to understand more, what evidence is most important and impressive? Here I offer a few thoughts and several possibilities for the “one best” issue to consider.
The “Arise from the Dust” Theme and the Unity of Isaiah
In my exploration of the “arise from the dust” theme in the Book of Mormon, published in several articles for Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day saint Faith and Scholarship (see “Arise from the Dust,” Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and “Strong Like Unto Moses”) and the topic of my 2018 presentation at the FAIR Latter-day Saints Conference, I noted that passages from Isaiah 49 and Isaiah 52 play an important role in the Book of Mormon. Both involve the theme of dust….
What Day Was Christ Crucified? Dr. Jeffrey Chadwick Argues That the Book of Mormon Provides Valuable Information
An archaeologist and professor at BYU, Dr. Jeffrey R. Chadwick, published an article in that provides a great example of how the Book of Mormon can help us better understand…
About That Burial Marker in Yemen for a Man Named Ishmael: Impossible That He Was a Hebrew?
Neal Rappleye recently reported that a grave marker in Yemen bearing the name Ishmael could fit the time and place for the burial of Ishmael inn the Book of Mormon. David Bokovoy argues that this is impossible because the marker bears the image of a face, and real Jews forbade images of faces. I discuss why that is an oversimplification of ancient Jewish practices. If cherubim in the Tabernacle can have faces, I suppose a grave marker can, too, as long as no idolatry was intended.
The Words of Gad the Seer: Thoughts on a “Lost Book” Preserved by the Jews at Cochin, India
The cover of the Hebrew edition of Meir Bar-Ilan’s The Words of Gad the Seer An old Jewish manuscript said to contain writings of Gad the Seer, one of the…
News from Mount Ebal: An Ancient Hebraic Inscription on Metal, a Chiasmus, Possibly Dating to the 13th Century BC or Earlier
An ancient Hebraic text dating to the 13th to 14th century BC has been discovered by sifting through the detritus of an archaeological dig at Mount Ebal in Israel. The…
The Valediction of Moses: A 2,700-Year-Old Biblical Document Long Said to Be a Forgery Gains New Respect
A version of the book of Deuteronomy, long said to be forgery, has just been declared authentic after all, making it the most ancient biblical scroll known in the modern…
Turning Gems into Dirt: The Case for Adam Clarke as a Source for the “Inspired Translation” of the Bible
John Dehlin with his podcasts and videos criticizing the Church has recently stirred up a lot of interest in the “amazing” and “historic” case of “plagiarism” against Joseph Smith based…
A Christmas Surprise: An Ancient Jewish Temple at the Same Time as Solomon’s Temple
The Dec. 23 newsletter from the Biblical Archaeology Society surprised me with a report about another ancient Jewish temple outside of Jerusalem. See “A Rival to Solomon’s Temple” by Marek…
Sights from a Trip to Israel and Jordan
One of the advantages of working in China is having long national holidays like the Chinese New Year, making it easier to take interesting trips to other lands. There’s a…
