Circle Squared
A Textual Analysis of the Book of Mormon
Chapter 7: "Because Arbitrary"
Chapter Summary:
"Lehi’s sons return to Jerusalem and invite Ishmael and his household to join them in their journey—Laman and others rebel—Nephi exhorts his brethren to have faith in the Lord—They bind him with cords and plan his destruction—He is freed by the power of faith—His brethren ask forgiveness—Lehi and his company offer sacrifice and burnt offerings. About 600–592 B.C."
The preceding chapters indicate that the impending destruction of Jerusalem is imminent. This, along with saving Lehi's life, are offered as reasons for the family's bolt in the night. Lehi sends his four sons back to the increasingly wicked city to attain a record of the Law of Moses so that Lehi's progeny will not "dwindle in unbelief." Keep in mind that all of this coming and going is being orchestrated by god through Lehi. Why is it, then, that in this chapter god finally gets around to sending Lehi's sons to Jerusalem to find wives? One would think that god, of all people, would have had the foresight to take care of this loose end earlier. Why so unorganized?
At any rate, surely a Mormon apologist somewhere is willing to offer an ad hoc explanation of Lehi's sons or the future wives were not yet old enough (keep in mind that at this time it is common for teenagers to be betrothed, or even married), or some other equally silly and simplistic excuse which could not possibly stand in the way of an all-mighty god.
Apparently, the four brothers go to a man named Ishmael to convince him that he, like Lehi, should take his family to the wilderness and the two families' children can inter-marry and have lots of inter-marrying offspring (i.e. cousins). Of course, the boys do not start with this most-forward proposal. They have to ease Ishmael in to their favor by speaking the words of the Lord. And then something magical happens:
"And it came to pass that the Lord did soften the heart of Ishmael, and also his household, insomuch that they took their journey with us down into the wilderness to the tent of our father."
I wonder why "the Lord" was unable to "soften the hearts" of anyone else in Jerusalem when Lehi was first street-preaching? Why did it take "the Lord" so long (a couple of years or so) to even attempt to soften Ishmael's heart? This rather dicey situation, which will lead to the deaths of thousands of Jews and the enslavement of thousands more, does seem to be completely within the arbitrary whims of god.
En route to the "tent of their father", Laman and Lemuel and some of Ishmael's children rebel against Nephi and try to go back to Jerusalem. During the struggle, resulting in Nephi being bound and nearly killed, Nephi chastises the mutineers and warns them that if they go back they will also be killed during the Babylonian take-over. Nephi singles out Laman and Lemuel and reminds them that they have seen an angel, so why do they doubt their father's prophecies? Again, we see an attempt to belittle those who want god to prove himself in an obvious or evident way. And again, this is a cheap trick to avoid answering questions or to be held accountable for making extraordinary claims.
Nephi makes a seemingly bold claim that his brothers "shall know at some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled concerning the destruction of Jerusalem" if they stay faithful. Too bad he doesn't say how this will be made known to them, considering they will be on the other side of the world when it happens. In fact, to my recollection at no point in this story do Laman and Lemuel, or for that matter Nephi, ever definitively confirm Jerusalem's destruction. It seems to be completely brushed under the rug, leaving Nephi (or Joseph Smith) without accountability for this prophecy. Retro-fitting prophecy is hardly impressive or original.
While Nephi is bound and tied, he offers a prayer to god to deliver him, and SHAZZAM! his bands are loosed. This is yet another completely fatuous aspect of the story which would require some form of verification to be believed. But alas, no such verification is possible except through faith that the book is true. How convenient, eh?
As expected, the boys, along with Ishmael's family make it to Lehi's unidentified camp and all is well.