The Book of Mormon is published in a standard paragraph format. However, under the surface of the commonly formatted Book of Mormon is a wonderful world of structure, Hebraic poetic parallelism, and phrases that prophets pen for us to use in our day. With the aid of computer editors, we can easily reformat the Book of Mormon text and discover and comprehend these hidden pearls of literature. The scriptures come alive, as we provide an environment for the Holy Ghost to work, teach, and testify.
We don’t have to look very far in the Book of Mormon. 1 Nephi 1:1-3 is frequently read by those seeking to heed the advice of Prophets and Church leaders to read the Book of Mormon. When reformatted and analyzed we see the first examples of Hebraic parallelism chiasmus.
[1] I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents,
therefore, I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father;
and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days,
nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days;
yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, //A
therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days. //B
[2] Yea, I make a record in the language of my father, //C
which consists of the learning of the Jews //D
and the language of the Egyptians. //C
[3] And I know that the record which I make is true; //B
and I make it with mine own hand;
and I make it according to my knowledge. //A
The Book of Mormon contains hundreds of these complex structures. We now have the technology to dive under the surface to map and discover these literary structures.
Another structure that is commonly used is illustrated with Nephi’s writing in 1 Nephi 1:9-15. This “and” form provides a simple list function and is used frequently.
And being thus overcome with the Spirit, (random repetition)
he was carried away in a vision, even that he saw the heavens open
and he thought he saw God sitting upon his throne,
surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God. 9
And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven,
and he beheld that his luster was above that of the sun at noon-day. 10
And he also saw twelve others following him,
and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament. 11
And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth;
and the first came and stood before my father,
and gave unto him a book,
and bade him that he should read. 12
And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord. 13
And he read, saying: Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations! (many ands)
Yea, and many things did my father read concerning Jerusalem—that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be carried away captive into Babylon.
Book of Mormon writing is highly structured, complex, and very precise. Many phrases are carefully crafted and is placed within parallel structures. As we dive under the surface we see great literature and can uncover the many literary pearls that are within the Book of Mormon. Is this what is meant by the meaning of the leaning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians?
Moroni, Mormon, Nephi and other Book of Mormon authors worked long and hard, aided by the Holy Ghost, to construct and write this scripture. The Book of Mormon is the word of God, The Book of Mormon was translated in about 80 days by the gift and power of God, revealed by the Holy Ghost, by the young Prophet Joseph Smith and his scribes. It is improbable that Joseph Smith could construct the complex language found in the Book of Mormon in the historic timeline. These structures were not discovered or recognized until the early 1960s.
Moving past this being another evidence of the Book of Mormon, the Book of Mormon being written for our day, we discover that by studying these complex literary structures help unlock and deepen our understanding of the Book of Mormon. This study provides a means and method for deep study of the scripture that enables the Holy Ghost to speak to us. It takes considerable effort, but results in discovery of hidden gems and deepening understanding of these prophets writing.
Following is a recommended approach for studying the scriptures using this technique. Anyone that has a computer editor can do it. As you practice you will develop your own method as you are led by the spirit. I have found that I can reformat the same scripture, and the process yields the same spiritual experience and you discover additional insights and pearls of great price.
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3. Second Pass – look for repeating patterns of words to discover the parallel structure. These are usually the same words, nut may be the same thought. Underline key words that emphasize the parallel structure Further indent to emphasize Chiasmus, or other parallel structures. Add comments (// Comment) to document what you find.
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Poetic Parallelisms of The Book of Mormon, The complete Text Reformatted, Donald W Parry.
http://ldsgospeldoctrine.net contains Gospel Doctrine Sunday School Lessons including the Book of Mormon.
The D. Lynn Johnson files can be downloaded and contain his reformatting of Book of Mormon text.
Raw Book of Mormon text (University of Michigan)
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/mormon/browse.html
While it’s interesting to see the resulting reformatted Book of Mormon text, the real benefit comes from working through the process of reformatting the text. A spiritual “high” comes as you figure out the structure, find the parallel elements, and discover the meaning of the phrases and the intent of the prophets writing. You discover a deeper meaning of the scripture and find “Pearls of Great Price”. Don’t take short cuts, otherwise you miss the feast.
Looking under the surface helps us understand the underlying structure and meaning of the text. The Book of Mormon authors often provide formulas and lists for our benefit. Paying attention to phrases and the building of logic helps us gain a deeper meaning and insight. Each word is carefully crafted to portray the meaning, emotion, and often the nuance the author is trying.
Prophets have continued to advise us to read the Book of Mormon because there is great power in its words. When we read and study the Book of Mormon we invite the Spirit into our lives. When you need a BIG SPIRITUAL UPLIFT or have a spiritual problem you want to overcome, use this technique. The Spirit can heal us. The Book of Mormon brings that spirit into our lives.