Book of Mormon Evidence: Nephi's Complex Chiasm in 1 Nephi 3

The Book of Mormon prophet Nephi declared: “I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded” … and, if you are a Latter-day Saint, you probably know the rest. This may be the most well-known passage in the entire Book of Mormon. But what most readers likely don’t know is that it’s part of a complex, muti-layer chiasm.

A chiasm is a type of poem where ideas are presented in a certain order and then reversed. This poetic form has been found in many cultures and languages, including ancient Hebrew writings like the Bible. In addition to being eight layers deep, Nephi’s poem fits the criteria scholars use to tell if a chiasm was intentionally—versus randomly—created. In this video, we’ll discuss the parallel elements of Nephi’s poem, one section at a time.

In the A sections, we encounter a cluster of key words and phrases: “Laban,” “record,” “genealogy of my fathers,” and “engraven upon plates of brass.”

The B sections each mention traveling “unto” “the house of Laban.”

The C sections have the word “brothers” or “brethren” followed by an act of communication: they “murmured” and “did consult one with another” and even sought the will of the Lord as they “cast lots.”

In the D sections, Lehi first tells Nephi to “go my son” and then in the second half of the poem Nephi and his brothers depart on their journey and “go up to the land of Jerusalem.”

The E sections have similar phrases: “favored of the Lord” and “blessed of the Lord.” Not only do the words “favored” and “blessed” have a related meaning, but they also show up together in several Old Testament passages. So, they work well as parallel ideas.  

The F sections are pretty simple and straightforward. They introduce and conclude Nephi’s statements to his father.

The G sections each discuss Nephi’s commitment to “do” or “accomplish” the “things” the Lord had commanded.

And, finally, the H sections contain two key words (“Lord” and “commanded”) found in closely related phrases.

Overall, Nephi’s chiasm has a lot of strengths. Like most good proposals, the central elements are loaded with significance. This is where Nephi gives his famous words about following the commandments of the Lord. It’s the type of inspiring message that ends up quoted in talks and placed on mirrors or refrigerators, where it can be seen and remembered.

The center also provides a turning point for several elements. For instance, Lehi’s blessing on Nephi in E1 is given in the future tense: “thou shalt be favored of the Lord.” Yet this transforms into a past tense statement in E2: “I had been blessed of the Lord.” The shift in wording here shows a realization of Nephi’s spiritual development. In D1 Lehi tells Nephi to “go” as the Lord had commanded, and in D2 we get the fulfillment of that instruction. In C1 Lehi’s brothers begin by murmuring, but in C2 they end up seeking spiritual guidance. And as a final example, the commandment to go unto the house of Laban in B1 is eventually fulfilled in B2.

As you can see, the central elements of the chiasm really do create a shift or turning point in the flow of ideas. The outer boundaries are also quite compelling. Instead of just a single word or phrase, A1 and A2 share a series of connected ideas that are unlikely to occur together by chance. With the boundaries and center firmly established, the rest of the elements fall neatly into place. Several of these share distinctive phrases or complete ideas that can’t be found anywhere else in the poem.

Like many longer chiasms, there are a few instances of extra repetition. But these aren’t enough to cast serious doubt on the proposal. In fact, according to the statistical analysis performed by one scholar, this chiasm has less than a one percent chance of being randomly produced. In other words, it’s “highly likely” that Nephi purposefully crafted these ideas as an inverted, parallel, structure.

Chiasms like this add to the beauty and complexity of the Book of Mormon, while strengthening its claim of Hebrew origins.