And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, saying: It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; nevertheless they are laid under a strict command that they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men, according to […]
Caroline, Dad, and I went to the Michigan Upper Peninsula on a photography trip! This was Caroline’s first overnight trip focusing on pictures and without Mom. We were away from home for 4 days. See my post on Paul S. Reid Photos about this trip if you just want to see my pictures.
The first 19 verses of Alma 11 explain the monetary system of the Nephites. Why do we need to know that, though? I’m not sure. Maybe it is so we can know, that when Zeezrom said unto [Amuek]: Behold, here are six onties of silver, and all these will I give thee if thou […]
At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall he that is worthy of death be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death. We see the words in Deuteronomy 17:6 come true in Alma 9-14. When Alma comes, the people say: Who art thou? […]
And again I say unto you, the Spirit saith: Behold, the ax is laid at the root of the tree; therefore every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the fire, yea, a fire which cannot be consumed, even an unquenchable fire. Behold, and remember, the Holy One […]
Nevertheless the Lord raised up judges, which delivered them out of the hand of those that spoiled them. In Judges 2:16, a system of judges was started. In Mosiah, the same thing happened among the Nephites. I think that the Nephites might have got the idea from the Israelites. https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm/alma/4?lang=eng&verse=#p
Therefore the people of the Nephites were aware of the intent of the Amlicites, and therefore they did prepare to meet them; yea, they did arm themselves with swords, and with cimeters, and with bows, and with arrows, and with stones, and with slings, and with all manner of weapons of war, of every kind. […]
And it came to pass that the people assembled themselves together throughout all the land, every man according to his mind, whether it were for or against Amlici, in separate bodies, having much dispute and wonderful contentions one with another. Contention is not of God: For verily, verily I say unto you, he that hath […]
Alma 1:7-9 reads: And it came to pass as he was going, to preach to those who believed on his word, he met a man who belonged to the church of God, yea, even one of their teachers; and he began to contend with him sharply, that he might lead away the people of the […]
In Mosiah 27, Alma the Younger is being very wicked. But then, only two chapters later, in Mosiah 29, And it came to pass that Alma was appointed to be the first chief judge, he being also the high priest, his father having conferred the office upon him, and having given him the charge concerning […]
Now I say unto you let us be wise and consider these things, for we have no right to destroy my son, neither should we have any right to destroy another if he should be appointed in his stead. What does Mosiah mean, “destroy his son”? How would being king destroy him? Well, read the […]
And because thou hast inquired of me concerning the transgressor, thou art blessed. reads Mosiah 26:19-39. But why does that matter? Why should we pray for the wicked? Well, we want to get back to heaven. And for that, we need to be like Jesus. If Jesus looses something, he will search until it is […]
And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came to them in their afflictions, saying: Lift up your heads and be of good comfort, for I know of the covenant which ye have made unto me; and I will covenant with my people and deliver them out of bondage. And I will […]
Remember in Mosiah 20, when Noah’s priests stole the daughters of the Lamanites? They battled against Limhi’s people, but then realized that it was the priests of Noah, not Limhi. So what happened to the Lamanites? Now the armies of the Lamanites, which had followed after the people of king Limhi, had been lost in […]
And now the priests of king Noah, being ashamed to return to the city of Nephi, yea, and also fearing that the people would slay them, therefore they durst not return to their wives and their children. And having tarried in the wilderness, and having discovered the daughters of the Lamanites, they laid and watched […]
In Mosiah 20, Limhi mentions an oath with the Lamanites. Behold, my people have not broken the oath that I made unto you; therefore, why should ye break the oath which ye made unto my people? When was that oath made? And it came to pass that the king of the Lamanites made an oath […]
And it came to pass that the army of the king returned, having searched in vain for the people of the Lord. And now behold, the forces of the king were small, having been reduced, and there began to be a division among the remainder of the people. And the lesser part began to breathe […]
Mosiah 17 talks about Alma and the believers fleeing from Noah. But what happens to them? Chapter 18 is talking about Noah! Where’s Alma? Well, right now we are reading the record of Noah’s people. We’re going to finish reading about Noah and Limhi, then we’ll go back and learn about Alma, in Mosiah 23-24. […]
Abinadi’s last prophesy came true: “Behold, even as ye have done unto me, so shall it come to pass that thy seed shall cause that many shall suffer the pains that I do suffer, even the pains of death by fire; and this because they believe in the salvation of the Lord their God.” But […]
Abinadi recites the commandments in Mosiah 13:12-24. Where else are they located in the scriptures? Ezekiel 20 was where they were reveled for the first time. The other times were all people being reminded, because they sinned! In Deuteronomy 5, Moses reminds the people; Abinadi was just reminding Noah, The people are reminded by Paul […]
At the beginning of Mosiah/end of Omni, King Benjamin’s people were driven out of their land by the Lamanites. Then some guys decide to go back. Why on earth would they do that? The Lamanites just tried to kill them! “I, Zeniff, having been taught in all the language of the Nephites, and having had […]
I now have a new photo gallery separate from this site. I will continue to post photos here and on the new site. You can reach it by clicking the “Paul Reid Photos” link on the top bar or by clicking here. Go check it out!
“And for a testimony that the things that they had said are true they have brought twenty-four plates which are filled with engravings, and they are of pure gold.” Where are the Jaredite plates mentioned, other than Mosiah 8:9 (that one)? “And it came to pass in the days of Mosiah, there was a large […]
Why is God punishing Limhi’s people in Mosiah 7? They seem pretty righteous to me! Well, now there are, but before they weren’t. A little while before, Limhi’s father, King Noah, killed the prophet, Abinadi. The people were punished for that. Then, Limhi became king and helped the people repent. But by that time, it […]
In Mosiah 5:4, the people preformed a Hosanna Shout during a Solemn Assembly: “And it is the faith which we have had on the things which our king has spoken unto us that has brought us to this great knowledge, whereby we do rejoice with such exceedingly great joy.” Why? “Solemn assemblies are used for […]
“And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.” Mosiah 2:17 says. What does that mean? He’s telling them this so they can be smart. When you help […]
“And now there was no more contention in all the land of Zarahemla, among all the people who belonged to king Benjamin, so that king Benjamin had continual peace all the remainder of his days.” the Book of Mosiah starts. But wait! What contention? Mosiah has barely even started! We do have a record of […]
If you look at the dates on the scripture chapters, you will see that they go from 130 B.C. in Omni, to A.D. 385 in Words of Mormon, and then back to 124 B.C. for Mosiah 1! Why did it go forward a few hundred years? Did the Nephites invent time travel?! No, Words of […]
“…and these plates are full…” writes Amaleki in Omni 1:30. But wait! How could that be? The Book of Mormon isn’t even halfway done! Remember 1 Nephi 9:2? “And now, as I have spoken concerning these plates, behold they are not the plates upon which I make a full account of the history of my people; […]
“And I said unto him: Deniest thou the Christ who shall come? And he said: If there should be a Christ, I would not deny him; but I know that there is no Christ, neither has been, nor ever will be. And I said unto him: Believest thou the scriptures? And he said, Yea. And […]
The parable of the Olive Trees in Jacob 5 is long and it can get boring sometimes. Not only that, but what does it even mean? “And it came to pass that the master of the vineyard went forth, and he saw that his olive tree began to decay; and…
Jacob 5 quotes Zenos’s parable of the olive trees, as Jacob explains in verse 1: Behold, my brethren, do ye not remember to have read the words of the prophet Zenos, which he spake unto the house of Israel”. But where in the scriptures does Zenos say that? The Bible…
Why do we have to learn? “The glory of God is intelligence, or, in other words, light and truth,” reads Doctrine and Covenants 93:36. God’s glory is his intelligence. So if we learn enough, we can have the same type of glory. Doctrine and Covenants 130:18-19 says, “Whatever principle of…
“I might rid my garments of your sins” Jacob tells the people. Why does Jacob want to rid the people’s sin from his garments? It’s not even on his “garments”! He also says, “but I this day am weighed down with much more desire and anxiety for the welfare of…
“And we did magnify our office unto the Lord” said Jacob concerning his brother and him. What does that mean? Gordon B. Hinkley compared that to a pair of binoculars. You look in one side, it makes what you see bigger. Look in the other side and things shrink. So,…
“Behold, this is the doctrine of Christ, and there will be no more doctrine given until after he shall manifest himself unto you in the flesh. And when he shall manifest himself unto you in the flesh, the things which he shall say unto you shall ye observe to do.”…
2 Nephi 31:1-2 says “And now I, Nephi, make an end of my prophesying unto you, my beloved brethren. And I cannot write but a few things, which I know must surely come to pass; neither can I write but a few of the words of my brother Jacob. Wherefore, the…
“… many of the Gentiles shall say: A Bible! A Bible! We have got a Bible, and there cannot be any more Bible.” reads 2 Nephi 29:3. Why do we need two sets of scriptures? “But thus saith the Lord God: O fools, they shall have a Bible; and it…
As Nephi say in 2 Nephi 28:7, “there shall be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us.” But what does that mean? It means that some people say that it’s okay to do sin if you won’t…
What does Isaiah mean in 2 Nephi 27:6-22? The book in “the Lord God shall bring forth unto you the words of a book, and they shall be the words of them which have slumbered.” means the Book of Mormon, and the “slumbered” could mean died. “And behold the book shall…
In 2 Nephi 26, Nephi makes is now prophesy, which has come to pass. He said that there shall be many signs of Christ’s birth and death, among other things. There were signs! When he was born, there was a new star in the sky and three days with no…
Why are there so many chapters in Second Nephi that seem like they are copied from Isaiah? Because, from 2 Nephi 12 to 24, Nephi is quoting the Brass Plates, which today is the Bible. He did so since “[his] soul delighteth in the words of Isaiah” and “[his] soul…
Agency is vital to our Heavenly Father’s Eternal Plan. Wait, what is agency? Agency is our ability to choose right from wrong. Without agency, we would have to do the right thing, and we would physically not be able to do the wrong if we tried. Now, why do we…
In 23:6-7, Nephi reads Isiah’s prophesy that “Howl ye, for the day of the Lord is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty. Therefore shall all hands be faint, every man’s heart shall melt”. What does that mean? “Howl ye” could be interpreted as “cry unto…
2 Nephi 22:2 reads, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid; for the Lord Jehovah is my strength and my song; he also has become my salvation.” What does it mean that the Lord is Isaiah’s “song”? I think it means that we delight in…
Isaiah prophies that, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder; and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” He doesn’t mean that he has that name;…
What does it mean when Isaiah says that the Lord is our stumbling-block? 2 Nephi says first that the Lord “shall be our stone of stumbling” then that “many shall stumble and fall”. That makes it sound like the Lord makes us fall. But I know that that’s not it….
Once there was a pig. He was an ordinary pig, except for the fact that he loved to camp. One day when he was camping, he stumbled along a cow. He found out this cow also loved to camp. Indeed, this cow was so large, he could cause a tsunami…
What does 1 Nephi 14:1 mean? It reads, “if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks,” which means that if the…