Category: language
Hebraic Language Influence in Ancient America?
I’ve been reading John Sorenson’s Mormon’s Codex, whose electronic version happily now includes the maps, added in an update a few days ago. It’s a monumental work with many treasures…
A Temple Gone Dark: An Important New Slant on the Themes of Nephi’s Vision and Lehi’s Dream
Lehi’s famous dream and Nephi’s expanded version of the vision just became more meaningful, thanks to the insights offered by D. John Butler in his ebook, Plain and Precious Things:…
What A Non-LDS Scholar Said about Chiasmus
I recommend reading http://publications.mi.byu.edu/fullscreen/?pub=1131&index=1 to the scholarly book, Chiasmus in Antiquity, edited by John Welch. The full text of that intriguing book is available free online at the Maxwell Institute….
Textual Criticism and the Book of Mormon (Emphasis on 2 Nephi 26-27)
Robert F. Smith’s chapter, “Textual Criticism of the Book of Mormon” is one of many interesting sections in the book Reexploring the Book of Mormon by John W. Welch. Detailed…
More on Word Pairs and Hebraisms
My previous post linked to a significant 1997 article by Kevin Barney that revealed the presence in the Book of Mormon of a recently recognized traditional element of ancient Hebrew…
Two Paths in a Complex Book
In my last post, I discussed the issue of war in the Book of Mormon and the diverse experiences it covers. One reader commented that the Book of Mormon doesn’t…
Truer Than Ever: The Book of Abraham
One of the biggest challenges to my personal testimony of the reality of the Restoration came when I was serving as Bishop years ago. I was exploring one of the…
Chiasmus in Helaman 16? An Observation from My 16-Year-Old Son
The other night my wife, our youngest son (age 16) and I were reading Helaman 16 in the Book of Mormon. I was in a bit of a hurry and…
Alma as an Authentic Ancient Jewish Male Name
In my previous post on Alma 7:11 (I wonder if that was the name of an ancient Nephite convenience store?), one commenter, MahNahvu pointed to possible “evidence of a Hebrew…
King Benjamin’s Speech: Forget Solomon Spaulding, Ethan Smith, and Shakespeare
Talk about great literature! Take a look at the powerful and classic ancient Semitic speech of King Benjamin in the early chapters of Mosiah in the Book of Mormon. In…
