Jacob preaching in Jacob 2
Posted in Book of Mormon Doctrine history language marriage Polygamy The Church

What Does Jacob 2:30 Say About Polygamy? Is the Church’s Traditional Interpretation Wrong?

One of the many conundrums related to the controversial past practice of polygamy is the Book of Mormon’s stance on the issue. In Jacob 2, the prophet Jacob condemns the…

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Posted in Book of Mormon Books Doctrine Evidence history Origins Problems Repentance Scholarship Scripture Translation

A Simple Example from the Book of Mormon Showing Why Scholarship Is Needed

Many Latter-day Saints seem unaware of the great body of scholarship that can strengthen faith and understanding for members of the Church and those exploring it. Such scholarship can be…

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Crucifixion of Christ: Crown of Thorn
Posted in Bible Book of Mormon Evidence Jesus Christ

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…

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Posted in Asia Bible Book of Mormon Evidence Scripture

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…

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Posted in Arabia Arabian Peninsula Book of Mormon Evidence

A Google Earth View of a Candidate for Bountiful, Khor Kharfot on Wadi Sayq

Here is a beautiful view from Google Earth of a leading candidate for the Book of Mormon site Bountiful, Khor Kharfot, the fertile inlet at the end of a long…

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Posted in Book of Mormon Evidence history Origins Problems Scholarship Translation

New Scholarship on the Influence of the Small Plates on Mormon’s Writings

One of the things that fascinates me in my role as a co-editor for the Interpreter Foundation’s journal, Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship, is seeing how…

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Posted in Uncategorized

More on the Limits of “Endless” and “Eternal” in the Book of Mormon: Awaking from “Endless Sleep” and the “Eternal Band of Death”

In a recent previous post, “‘From Whence They Can No More Return’: What Lehi Teaches Us About the Book of Mormon’s Harsh Language on Hell,” I noted that a passage…

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Posted in Book of Mormon Evidence Hebrew language Scholarship Translation

Janus Parallelism in Alma 32 and 33?

Alma uses the verb “spring” in an interesting way in his sermon to the Zoramites in Alma 32 and 33: But if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the…

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Posted in Uncategorized

“From Whence They Can No More Return”: What Lehi Teaches Us About the Book of Mormon’s Harsh Language on Hell

The Book of Mormon’s teachings on hell sometimes sound much harsher than what we understand from modern revelation. From Joseph’s Smith’s revelations, such as his vision on the three degrees…

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Posted in Bible Book of Mormon chiasmus Evidence Hebrew language literature poetry Scholarship

Four Types of Chiasmus in Deuteronomy and Jeremiah, with Implications for the Book of Mormon

Students of biblical literature and of the Book of Mormon can now access an important new volume on chiasmus, Chiasmus: The State of the Art, just published as a special…

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