Noah and the Temple

In Mormon’s introductory description about King Noah and his wickedness, he said this, “And he also caused that his workmen should work all manner of fine work within the walls of the temple, of fine wood, and of copper, and of brass” (Mosiah 11:10).  This is the first mention chronologically of a temple among the people of Zeniff, but it was also important to Noah’s son Limhi who used the temple as a place of gathering “to hear the words which he should speak unto them” (Mosiah 7:17).  Noah built a tower which was near the temple, and that was mentioned a couple of times in his story, but other than that we don’t have any other references to the temple that this people had.  Mormon did say that it was a place where there were “seats which were set apart for the high priests, which were above all the other seats,” and from there they could “rest their bodies and their arms upon while they should speak lying and vain words to his people” (Mosiah 11:11).  So it likely was a central place among the people, but its sacredness had been lost once Noah and his priests defiled it. 

                   So where did the temple come from?  It doesn’t seem that Noah built it since here Mormon described simply how he enhanced the interior; so either Zeniff caused that the temple should be built or it was already there.  Zeniff did say that he did “build buildings” among the people, so it is possible that the temple could have been one of those (Mosiah 9:8).  But I believe it is more likely that the temple was already there, and that it was the temple that Nephi built.  We don’t know the names of the places where the Nephites lived before Mosiah departed with the righteous to Zarahemla—though they did have “cities”—other than the fact that it was the “land of Nephi” (Jarom 1:7, Omni 1:12).  When Zeniff returned to inherit the land where the Nephites had previously been, he said that he did “possess the land of Lehi-Nephi, and the land of Shilom” and that they did “repair the walls of the city, yea, even the walls of the city of Lehi-Nephi, and the city Shilom” (Mosiah 9:6-8).  If this city of Lehi-Nephi was indeed the center of the Nephites in the days of their kings before Mosiah I, then it is likely that the temple Nephi originally built was there at the center.  This seems likely by the fact that long after Zeniff had gone back, Mosiah “was desirous to know concerning the people who went up to dwell in the land of Lehi-Nephi, or in the city of Lehi-Nephi” (Mosiah 7:1).  Clearly this was the known city name of the place that Zeniff was headed for when he left, and it seems natural that he would have targeted the center of the previous Nephite civilization where the temple would have been.  Perhaps it was even some of the motivation for Zeniff or those going with him to return to and inherit the temple that had been built by their great forebearer Nephi.  If this was indeed the case then surely the temple was in disrepair after decades in Lamanite hands and they may have desired to see it repaired and beautified again.  Unfortunately the physical repairs and upgrade could not return its sanctity when the wickedness of Noah and his priests once again defiled it.  As Noah would eventually learn as his kingdom of iniquity fell—the temple is no protector for the wicked.