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“A
Seer . . . Becometh a Great
Benefit to His Fellow Beings”
Mosiah 7–11
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Lesson
17
Summary |
Scripture
Summary: |
Ammon finds the land of Lehi-Nephi where
Limhi is king—Limhi’s people are in bondage to the Lamanites—Limhi
recounts their history—A prophet (Abinadi) had testified that Christ is
the God and Father of all things—Those who sow filthiness reap the
whirlwind, and those who put their trust in the Lord shall be delivered.
[About 121 B.C.] |
Ammon teaches
the people of Limhi—He learns of the twenty-four Jaredite plates—Ancient
records can be translated by seers—The gift of seership exceeds all
others. [About 121 B.C.]
Zeniff leads a group from Zarahemla to possess the land of Lehi-Nephi—The
Lamanite king permits them to inherit the land—There is war between the
Lamanites and Zeniff’s people. [About 200—187 B.C.]
King Laman dies—His people are wild and ferocious and believe in false
traditions—Zeniff and his people prevail against them. [About 178—160
B.C.]
King Noah rules in wickedness—He revels in riotous living with his wives
and concubines—Abinadi prophesies that the people will be taken into
bondage—His life is sought by King Noah. [Between 160 and 150 B.C.] |
Supplemental
Holy Land
and Jewish
insights:
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Searching for Relatives: Ammon and fifteen
men who search for relatives is similar to Jews seeking out Jews wherever they
might be in the world. Imagine the surprise of an entire nation of black
Ethiopian Jews when white Jews discovered them just a few decades ago! ". .
. this (Ethiopian) group refer to themselves as Beta Israel . . . They practice
an early form of Judaism; the chief rabbis of Israel have recognized them as
Jews. |
Until brought to Israel,
they lived in the provinces around Lake Tana. According to their
tradition, their ancestors were Jerusalem notables who came with Menelik,
the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba . . ." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Being Found Brought Light and Knowledge: The absorption and
integration of Ethiopian Jews into Israel’s society have some parallels
with Ammon’s discovery of the people of Limhi. Limhi’s people had lost
their identity and their covenant relationship to God. They lost their
"seer." Now, they were given a chance to get a "proper
education" as they expressed their desire for pure light and
knowledge once again. The late Prophet, John Taylor, once spoke of Light
and Truth being names for the Urim and Thummim. Ammon speaks of the Urim
and Thummim.
"The . . . words ‘Urim’ and ‘Thummim’ . .
. in the Greek and Latin translations of the Bible . . . were rendered
as ‘revelation and truth’ or ‘teaching and truth’ and . . . gave
rise to the incorporation of the Hebrew words Urim ve-Thummim on
the official seal of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Magen David (Star of David) Always Shown as Two Triangles: One
possible explanation is that the two triangles represent a
characterization of the Urim and Thummim. According to statements
attributed to Joseph Smith, the Urim and Thummim were two triangular
stones connected by a silver bow. One pointed up and the other pointed
down. Superimposed they make a fascinating Magen David! According to a
paper given at Hebrew University by John Tvedtnes, now Senior Researcher
at FARMS (BYU), the words Urim and Thummim may come from Egyptian words
similar to "RMMM" and "TMMM," one meaning yes or act
upon it (positive), the other a more negative meaning (leave it alone).
Since the Urim and Thummin were revelatory tools, it is possible that they
represent a procedure or operate on a simple principle of revelation with
answers of yes or no. (Doctrine & Covenants 9:8)
Following Light Brings More Light:
". . . Abraham . . . was a man of God . . . a follower after
righteousness . . . desired to obtain more righteousness . . . found
that he had a right to the Priesthood . . . and when he obtained the
Priesthood what did he do? . . . he kept seeking after more
righteousness . . . sought the Lord diligently, and finally he had given
unto him a Urim and Thummim, in which he was enabled to obtain a
knowledge of many things that others were ignorant of . . ." (Journal
of Discourses, Vol.24, p.264 - p.265 - p.266, John Taylor, June 24th,
1883)
Contrast of Following Good or Evil: It is a blessing to have
righteous leaders, especially those called of God. The Book of Mormon
chapters being examined this lesson show a contrast of leaders, righteous
and unrighteous. In the Middle East, the followers of Islam, a religion
started by Mohammed, are called Moslems. The word "Moslem" means
a follower. Today, we can see how deeply ingrained their culture is in
following – righteous and unrighteous leaders.
Gathering Information and Spying: Reading Zeniff, we can reflect on
the importance of gathering information about those who choose to be our
enemies. The tiny nation of Israel has many parallels to
"spying" mentioned in the Book of Mormon. One Israeli military
leader, a skilled spy and archaeologist was Nelson Glueck.
"Nelson Glueck was an important archaeologist and conducted
excavations throughout Transjordan. In 1937 he uncovered the Nabatean
Temple at Jebel el-Tannur, and in 1938 he began excavating the Iron Age
site of Tell-el-Kheleifeh (Ezion-Geber), near Eilat. From 1952 onward he
surveyed ancient sites in the Negev. As president of Hebrew Union
College in Cincinnati, Glueck opened branches of the college in New
York, Los Angeles and Jerusalem. He wrote many articles in learned
journals, and several important books on archaeology." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Another military leader, trained intelligence gatherer, statesman and
archaeologist was Dr. Yigal Yadin.
"When 16 years of age, Yadin joined the Haganah, Israel's
pre-State defense force. As its operations and planning officer, he was
responsible for drawing up and directing the operations of the War of
Independence (1948). In 1949 he was appointed chief of staff, and in
three years established the standing army, compulsory military service,
and particularly the system of reserves. From 1952 Yadin devoted himself
to archaeology, in 1956 receiving the Israel Prize for Jewish Studies
for his research on one of the Dead Sea Scrolls. In his excavations at
Hazor, a large Canaanite and Israelite city in Upper Galilee, he
uncovered and explained, layer after layer, 21 levels of occupation,
starting with the 27th century B.C.E., and including fortified cities
mentioned in the Bible . . . he decoded scrolls found in the caves of
the Judean Desert, and at Masada . . ." Yadin headed the Hebrew
University's Institute of Archaeology from 1970 until 1977 when elected
to the Knesset as representative of his newly formed Democratic Movement
for Change. He served as a deputy prime minister for the Ninth Knesset
and left politics, returning to academic life, in 1981." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Misinformation Brings Tragedy: Many tragic things that happened to
the Jews came from misinformation about the Jews and their effort to keep
together as a society.
"In history, hostility towards the Jews has manifested itself in
many different ways: violence against Jewish persons or property;
expulsions from countries; legislation discriminating against Jews: and
even attempts --- often successful --- to annihilate Jewish
communities." "Although the treatment accorded to the Jews in
Islamic countries was generally a little better than in Christian
countries, the Muslims could never forgive the Jews for not accepting
Muhammad and their new faith. Jews were very definitely second-class
citizens and suffered from a variety of disabilities. Special heavy
taxes were levied on them and they were forbidden to engage in all kinds
of occupations." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
Anti-emitism Spawned by Misinformation: One of the tragic things
that have happened to Arabs living around Israel is the amount of false
information they have been given about the Jews. "In a sense, the
unbelievable excesses of Nazism shocked the world for a while. People
began to realize what anti-Semitism could lead to. But only for a while.
Anti-Semitism began to rear its ugly head again, particularly in Soviet
Russia under Stalin and, because of their conflict with the State of
Israel, many Arab countries adopted anti-Semitic propaganda."
"After the 1973 Yom Kippur War, some of the Arab states claimed
that they would recognize the State of Israel if it would return all the
territory it conquered in the 1967 Six Day War and if it would also
acknowledge the rights of the Palestinian refugees. These latter are the
people who fled Israel during the 1948 War of Independence. They settled
in Arab lands, mainly Jordan and Lebanon, where they were not allowed to
integrate into the population but were kept in refugee camps where they
were fed vicious anti-Israel propaganda." (Encyclopedia
Judaica Jr.)
History Repeats Itself: There are numerous parallels of the Book
of Mormon peoples, the Nephites and the Lamanites and the Middle East
peoples, the Jews and the Arabs. |
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