Evidence #393 | February 21, 2023
Alma's Use of Abinadi's Words
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Scripture Central
Abstract
Alma’s instructions to his son Corianton repeatedly draw upon Abinadi’s prior teachings.Astute readers may have noticed that “Alma [the Younger] shows an affinity for the words of Abinadi.”1 Nowhere is this more evident than in Alma’s counsel to his son Corianton, where research by John Hilton III indicates that Alma made at least thirteen allusions to Abinadi’s teachings.2
For example, Alma warned Corianton that if he didn’t repent, his sins would “stand as a testimony against you at the last day” (Alma 39:8). Abinadi said the same thing about his innocent blood as the priests of Noah prepared to slay him (Mosiah 17:10).3 While responding to Corianton’s concerns about the resurrection, Alma explained, “there is no resurrection—or, I would say, in other words, that this mortal does not put on immortality, this corruption does not put on incorruption—until after the coming of Christ” (Alma 40:2). Abinadi taught Noah’s priests using similar terms: “Even this mortal shall put on immortality, and this corruption shall put on incorruption, and shall be brought to stand before the bar of God” (Mosiah 16:10).4
At one point in his counsel, Alma explicitly stated that he was quoting words from some identified source: “And behold, again it hath been spoken, that there is a first resurrection, a resurrection of all those who have been, or who are, or who shall be, down to the resurrection of Christ from the dead” (Alma 40:16). Who was this source? It was almost certainly Abinadi, who previously taught that “there cometh a resurrection, even a first resurrection; yea, even a resurrection of those that have been, and who are, and who shall be, even until the resurrection of Christ—for so shall he be called” (Mosiah 15:21).5 These and other examples are presented in the chart below.6
Phrase or Keywords | Alma | Abinadi |
Stand as a testimony against you at the last day | ||
Salvation unto his people | ||
Put on immortality … put on incorruption | ||
Gnashing of teeth | ||
They have no part | ||
First resurrection | ||
Resurrection of Christ | ||
Brought to stand before God … be judged … according to their works | ||
Bringeth about the restoration | ||
Carnal, sensual, devilish | ||
Were it not for the redemption | ||
Demands of justice | ||
Prepared from the foundation of the world |
Interestingly, most of the allusions and paraphrases revolve around three major doctrinal topics, which appear to have been major concerns for Corianton: (1) the resurrection (Alma 40:1); (2) the meaning of restoration (Alma 41:1), and (3) the justice of God (Alma 42:1).7 Abinadi had taught more about the resurrection than any other prophet we have on record, up to that point.8 It therefore makes sense that Alma would have drawn on the words of Abinadi, as he was a recent pivotal prophet who had addressed the very issues weighing on Corianton’s mind.9
It should also be remembered that Alma’s father and Corianton’s grandfather—Alma the Elder—was personally converted by Abinadi, and was likely the one who recorded and preserved Abinadi’s teachings. When seen in this light, it isn’t difficult to imagine why Abinadi’s stirring words would have come so readily to Alma’s mind, especially when teaching his own son.10
Conclusion
Hilton concluded that these types of intertextual correspondences help “demonstrate the textual integrity of the Book of Mormon.”11 This is because the “Book of Mormon claims to be an ancient record authored by multiple individuals. … By closely reading the text, we can picture a later prophet (Alma) poring over the words of his predecessor as he resolves his son’s concerns. The consistent patterns of allusions in Alma 39–42 argue for textual intentionality. This was not something Joseph Smith made up.”12
John L. Hilton III, “Textual Similarities in the Words of Abinadi and Alma’s Counsel to Corianton,” BYU Studies Quarterly 51, no. 2 (2012): 39–60.
John Hilton III, “Abinadi’s Legacy: Tracing His Influence through the Book of Mormon,” in Abinadi: He Came Among Them in Disguise, ed. Shon D. Hopkin (Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and BYU Religious Studies Center, 2018), 93–116.
Mosiah 15:10–11, 18Mosiah 15:19Mosiah 15:21–26Mosiah 16:2Mosiah 16:4Mosiah 16:10Mosiah 17:10Alma 39:8Alma 39:15–16, 18Alma 40:2Alma 40:13Alma 40:15–26Alma 41:2Alma 42:9–11Alma 42:15Alma 42:26- 1 Grant Hardy, Understanding the Book of Mormon (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2010), 134.
- 2 See John L. Hilton III, “Textual Similarities in the Words of Abinadi and Alma’s Counsel to Corianton,” BYU Studies Quarterly 51, no. 2 (2012): 46–56; esp. 47.
- 3 See Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 48.
- 4 See Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 49–50.
- 5 See Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 51–52. Incidentally, these two passages may have been even more similar in the original text, if the Nephite language still followed Hebrew norms at this time. In Hebrew, the same conjunction can be used for both and and or. See D. J. A. Clines, ed., The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew, 8 vols. (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1993–2011), 1:596–598. Thus, in Hebrew, Alma’s statement “those who have been, or who are, or who shall be” and Abinadi’s statement “those that have been, and who are, and who shall be” could be identical. See also John A. Tvedtnes, “The Hebrew Background of the Book of Mormon,” in Rediscovering the Book of Mormon: Insights you may have Missed Before, ed. John L. Sorenson and Melvin J. Thorne (Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and FARMS, 1991), 83–84; Donald W. Parry, Preserved in Translation: Hebrew and Other Ancient Literary Forms in the Book of Mormon (Provo, UT: BYU Religious Studies Center, 2020), 115–117.
- 6 See Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 47. Note that Hilton goes even further, identifying where else in the standard works that these words and phrases show up. In several cases, they are exclusive to Alma and Abinadi or minimally used in other texts.
- 7 Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 56–57.
- 8 Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 49–50, 53–55.
- 9 Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 57.
- 10 See Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 57.
- 11 Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 59.
- 12 Hilton, “Textual Similarities,” 59.
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