Establish the Truth of the First

In Nephi’s vision of the last days he recorded this: “And it came to pass that I beheld the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the book of the Lamb of God, which had proceeded forth from the mouth of the Jew, that it came forth from the Gentiles unto the remnant of the seed of my brethren.” That “book of the Lamb of God” is the Bible which came from the Jews and went forth to the Gentiles. Nephi continued, “And after it had come forth unto them I beheld other books, which came forth by the power of the Lamb, from the Gentiles unto them, unto the convincing of the Gentiles and the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the Jews who were scattered upon all the face of the earth, that the records of the prophets and of the twelve apostles of the Lamb are true.” Those “other books” as I understand it are the scriptures of the Restoration, i.e. the Book of Mormon, the Doctrine and Covenants, and the Pearl of Great Price. The angel then said this about these books: “These last records, which thou hast seen among the Gentiles, shall establish the truth of the first, which are of the twelve apostles of the Lamb” (1 Nephi 13:38-40). So one of the roles of modern scripture is to prove the truthfulness of the Bible. Rather than taking from or replacing the Bible, those scriptures given to us through the Prophet Joseph Smith help testify to the world that the Bible is true.

                One of the ways that the Book of Mormon helps establish the words of the Bible, and in particular the Old Testament, is that it witnesses that many of the events recorded therein are true. For example, Book of Mormon prophets taught of the reality of the Fall, such as in these words of Alma: “Adam did fall by the partaking of the forbidden fruit, according to the word of God; and thus we see, that by his fall, all mankind became a lost and fallen people” (Alma 12:22). Lehi similarly testified of the reality of this event: “He said unto Eve, yea, even that old serpent, who is the devil, who is the father of all lies, wherefore he said: Partake of the forbidden fruit, and ye shall not die, but ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil. And after Adam and Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit they were driven out of the garden of Eden, to till the earth” (2 Nephi 2:18-19). Adam and Eve really did eat of the fruit in the garden and were driven out. In another passage Mormon mentioned another event that came soon thereafter: “Yea, that same being who did plot with Cain, that if he would murder his brother Abel it should not be known unto the world. And he did plot with Cain and his followers from that time forth” (Helaman 6:27). Cain did in fact slay Abel as recorded in Genesis. Amulek, when teaching the people of Ammonihah, spoke of another event whose historicity is often in question: “Ye would even now be visited with utter destruction; yet it would not be by flood, as were the people in the days of Noah, but it would be by famine, and by pestilence, and the sword” (Alma 10:22). There was in fact a flood in the days of Noah. In the record of the Jaredites we have a witness of the reality of the tower of Babel which came soon after the flood: “Which Jared came forth with his brother and their families, with some others and their families, from the great tower, at the time the Lord confounded the language of the people, and swore in his wrath that they should be scattered upon all the face of the earth” (Ether 1:33). As the Old Testament records, there was a tower and the Lord did in reality confuse the languages of the people in that day.

                Several other Biblical events are spoken of in the Book of Mormon. Jacob wrote of how “Abraham… [was] obedient unto the commands of God in offering up his son Isaac, which is a similitude of God and his Only Begotten Son” (Jacob 4:5). Abraham was in fact commanded to offer up Isaac as we read in Genesis. We also have in Alma’s words that Melchizedek was “a high priest” and that “it was this same Melchizedek to whom Abraham paid tithes; yea, even our father Abraham paid tithes of one-tenth part of all he possessed,” just as Genesis 14:20 records. Several Book of Mormon passages also reference Joseph in Egypt, such as this one from Nephi: “Even that Joseph who was the son of Jacob, who was sold into Egypt, and who was preserved by the hand of the Lord, that he might preserve his father, Jacob, and all his household from perishing with famine” (1 Nephi 5:14). Lehi and Amulek similarly spoke of this event where Joseph was sold into Egypt (2 Nephi 3:4, Alma 10:3). The Book of Mormon testifies that this actually took place. And it likewise tells of the children of Israel’s escape from Egypt centuries later. Nephi, son of Helaman, declared, “Behold, my brethren, have ye not read that God gave power unto one man, even Moses, to smite upon the waters of the Red Sea, and they parted hither and thither, insomuch that the Israelites, who were our fathers, came through upon dry ground, and the waters closed upon the armies of the Egyptians and swallowed them up?” (Helaman 8:11) The first Nephi also spoke of this event: “Let us be strong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea and they divided hither and thither, and our fathers came through, out of captivity, on dry ground, and the armies of Pharaoh did follow and were drowned in the waters of the Red Sea” (1 Nephi 4:2). The miracle of the Red Sea parting happened as Exodus records. Abinadi affirmed that thereafter Moses really did go to Mount Sinai and receive the ten commandments: “I know if ye keep the commandments of God ye shall be saved; yea, if ye keep the commandments which the Lord delivered unto Moses in the mount of Sinai” (Mosiah 12:33). We have witness of another event associated with Moses in these words of Nephi: “The Lord God… gave unto Moses power that he should heal the nations after they had been bitten by the poisonous serpents, if they would cast their eyes unto the serpent which he did raise up before them, and also gave him power that he should smite the rock and the water should come forth” (2 Nephi 25:20). This affirms the accounts of Exodus 17:6 and Numbers 21:7-9. And of course the Book of Mormon witnesses that around 600 BC Jerusalem was indeed destroyed by the Babylonians after Lehi and his family escaped. Nephi wrote, “It hath been told them concerning the destruction which should come upon them, immediately after my father left Jerusalem; nevertheless, they hardened their hearts; and according to my prophecy they have been destroyed, save it be those which are carried away captive into Babylon” (2 Nephi 25:20). The Book of Mormon stands as a powerful witness that many of the events recorded in the Old Testament are not fictitious stories but indeed took place as described. And the fact that modern scriptures reference these ancient stories is a sign to us of the great value these events will have for us as we study the Old Testament this year.