Book of Mormon Evidence: Words and Things

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Abstract

In both Hebrew and Egyptian, the terms “words” and “things” can be represented by a single word. This may explain why these words are repeatedly associated together in the Book of Mormon and in many cases are interchangeable.

“Words” and “Things” in Prose

On many occasions, “words” and “things” appear together as synonymous (or nearly synonymous) terms in the Book of Mormon. In Alma’s famous sermon on faith, for instance, he taught that it is better when people humble themselves without being compelled to “know the word” (Alma 32:16). Two verses later, Alma revisited this theme, except he substituted “thing” for “word”: “if a man knoweth a thing he hath no cause to believe, for he knoweth it” (v. 18). In the same sermon, Alma taught that “faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things” (v. 21), and then later stated “as I said concerning faith—that it was not a perfect knowledge—even so it is with my words” (v. 26).

Alma compares the word of God to a seed. Image via churchofjesuschrist.org.

This connection between “things” and “words” may have to do with the text’s underlying script, which, according to the Book of Mormon, was produced by authors familiar with both Hebrew and Egyptian (1 Nephi 1:2; Mormon 9:33–34). As explained by one scholar,

In Biblical Hebrew, the term word is expressed through the triliteral root dbr. As a noun, dbr carries a dual nuance, meaning both “word” and “thing.” Therefore, if translated into Hebrew, a text such as Alma 32:21, which uses the English word things, would feature a biblical-like word play between Alma comparing the “word (in Hebrew dābār) unto a seed” (v. 28), and statements such as “faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things/words [in Hebrew dĕbārîm].”¹

Interestingly, a similar linguistic correspondence is found in Egyptian. According to Matthew Bowen, “The lexeme md.t/mt.t denotes both ‘word’ and ‘thing’ in Egyptian. In other words, it has a very similar range of meaning to Hebrew dābār.”²

A striking example of this equivalency can be seen in passages which admonish followers of Christ to lay “hold” of either the “word of God” (including the “gospel”) or “every good thing”:

“lay hold upon the word of God” (Helaman 3:29)
“lay hold upon the gospel [good tidings] of Christ” (Mormon 7:8)
“lay hold upon every good thing” (Moroni 7:19)
“lay hold upon every good thing” (Moroni 7:20)
“lay hold on every good thing” (Moroni 7:21)
“lay hold upon every good thing” (Moroni 7:25)

This imagery appears to derive from Lehi’s vision of the tree of life, where people “caught hold of the end of the rod of iron” and had to press forward “continually holding fast to the rod” and were “clinging to the rod” until they reached the tree of life (1 Nephi 8:24, 30). When asked by his brothers what the iron rod in their father’s vision symbolized, Nephi explained, “it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish” (1 Nephi 15:24; cf. 1 Nephi 11:25).

The iron rod in Lehi's vision. Image via churchofjesuschrist.org.

This is rather remarkable because “rod,” “word,” and “thing” can all be represented by the same Egyptian word (md.t/mt.t).³ It is hard to imagine that these terms were associated in this manner—as something to approvingly “lay hold upon”—by accident. Dozens more examples of the word/thing relationship in non-poetic contexts are presented in Appendix 1. Here are just a few more samples:

“for they had humbled themselves because of my words; for I did say many things unto them in the energy of my soul” (1 Nephi 16:24)
“And now it came to pass, after king Mosiah had sent these things forth among the people they were convinced of the truth of his words” (Mosiah 29:37)
“he opened his mouth and began to speak unto him, and to establish the words of Amulek, and to explain things beyond, or to unfold the scriptures beyond that which Amulek had done” (Alma 12:1)
“Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word” (Helaman 10:4)
“And now I, Moroni, have written the words which were commanded me, according to my memory; and I have told you the things which I have sealed up” (Ether 5:1)

“Words” and “Things” in Parallelisms

In addition to passages where “words” and “things” are associated in prose, they also show up as paired elements in poetic parallelisms. Because of the way such pairings generally indicate a synonymous (or nearly synonymous) relationship, these correlations are often stronger than what is conveyed in non-poetic contexts. More than 20 such parallelisms are presented in Appendix 2. Here are a few samples:

2 Nephi 6:3–4:

A	a	I have
		b	taught you
			c	the words of my father;
	B	a	and I have
			b	spoken unto you
				c	concerning all things
					d	which are written,
						e	from the creation of the world.
	B	a	And now, behold, I would
			b	speak unto you
				c	concerning things
					d	which are,
						e	and which are to come;
A	a	wherefore, I will
		b	read you
			c	the words of Isaiah.

2 Nephi 31:1:

A	I cannot
	B	write
		C	but a few
			D	things which I know must surely come to pass
A	neither can I
	B	write
		C	but a few
			D	of the words of my brother Jacob

Mosiah 28:1:

A	that
	B	they
		C	might preach
			D	the things which they had heard, and
A	that
	B	they
		C	might impart
			D	the word of God to their brethren

Helaman 7:2:

A	For he … did
	B	preach
		C	the word of God
			D	unto them,
A	and did
	B	prophesy
		C	many things
			D	unto them;

3 Nephi 23:3:

A	And all things that he spake
	B	have been
	B	and shall be,
A	even according to the words which he spake.

Ether 4:8:

A	And he that will
	B	contend against
		C	the word of the Lord,
			D	let him be accursed;
A	and he that shall
	B	deny
		C	these things,
			D	let him be accursed;

Conclusion

In both prose and poetry, the terms “words” and “things” show up together throughout the Book of Mormon. In many cases, their meanings are closely associated or essentially synonymous, a relationship that is especially apparent when they are paired as parallel elements in poetic structures. Some prosaic passages—such as those which exhort followers of Christ to lay hold upon a “rod,” “word,” or “thing”—are likewise persuasive.

While somewhat puzzling in English, this persistent association works remarkably well in both Hebrew and Egyptian, in which “words” and “things” express different layers of meaning held by a single word. This textual feature supports the Book of Mormon’s claim of having been written by ancient Israelite authors trained in Egyptian (1 Nephi 1:2; Mormon 9:33–34). Joseph Smith never had any academic knowledge of Egyptian and didn’t receive Hebrew training until 1835 (five years after the Book of Mormon was published).⁴

Further Reading

David E. Bokovoy, “The Word and the Seed: The Theological Use of Biblical Creation in Alma 32,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 23 (2014): 12.

Matthew Bowen, “What Meaneth the Rod of Iron,” Insights 25, no. 2 (2005): 2–3.

Appendix 1

Association between “Words” and “Things” in Prose

1 Nephi 8:36:

And it came to pass after my father had spoken all the words of his dream or vision, which were many, he said unto us, because of these things which he saw in a vision …

1 Nephi 10:17:

I, Nephi, having heard all the words of my father, concerning the things which he saw in a vision, and also the things which he spake by the power of the Holy Ghost …

1 Nephi 15:25:

I did exhort them … that they would give heed to the word of God and remember to keep his commandments always in all things.

1 Nephi 16:24:

… for they had humbled themselves because of my words; for I did say many things unto them in the energy of my soul.

1 Nephi 22:20:

A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.

2 Nephi 3:24:

And there shall rise up one mighty among them, who shall do much good, both in word and in deed, … and do that thing which is great in the sight of God

2 Nephi 4:14

For I, Nephi, was constrained to speak unto them, according to his word; for I had spoken many things unto them, and also my father, before his death

2 Nephi 9:40:

O, my beloved brethren, give ear to my words. … Do not say that I have spoken hard things against you

2 Nephi 25:3:

Wherefore, I write unto my people, unto all those that shall receive hereafter these things which I write, that they may know the judgments of God, that they come upon all nations, according to the word which he hath spoken.

2 Nephi 25:5:

Yea, and my soul delighteth in the words of Isaiah, for I came out from Jerusalem, and mine eyes hath beheld the things of the Jews, and I know that the Jews do understand the things of the prophets

2 Nephi 25:22:

Wherefore, these things shall go from generation to generation as long as the earth shall stand; and they shall go according to the will and pleasure of God; and the nations who shall possess them shall be judged of them according to the words which are written.

2 Nephi 27:10–11:

But the words which are sealed he shall not deliver … for behold, they reveal all things from the foundation of the world unto the end thereof. And the day cometh that the words of the book which were sealed shall be read upon the house tops; and they shall be read by the power of Christ; and all things shall be revealed

2 Nephi 27:22:

then shalt thou seal up the book again, and hide it up unto me, that I may preserve the words which thou hast not read, until I shall see fit in mine own wisdom to reveal all things unto the children of men.

2 Nephi 31:2:

Wherefore, the things which I have written sufficeth me, save it be a few words which I must speak concerning the doctrine of Christ

2 Nephi 32:3:

Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ; for behold, the words of Christ will tell you all things what ye should do.

Jacob 4:1–3:

Now behold, it came to pass that I, Jacob, having ministered much unto my people in word, (and I cannot write but a little of my words, because of the difficulty of engraving our words upon plates) and we know that the things which we write upon plates must remain; But whatsoever things we write upon anything save it be upon plates must perish and vanish away; but we can write a few words upon plates

Jacob 7:5:

And he had hope to shake me from the faith, notwithstanding the many revelations and the many things which I had seen concerning these things; for I truly had seen angels, and they had ministered unto me. And also, I had heard the voice of the Lord speaking unto me in very word, from time to time; wherefore, I could not be shaken.

Words of Mormon 1:11:

for there are great things written upon them, out of which my people and their brethren shall be judged at the great and last day, according to the word of God which is written.

Mosiah 3:22:

And even at this time, when thou shalt have taught thy people the things which the Lord thy God hath commanded thee, even then are they found no more blameless in the sight of God, only according to the words which I have spoken unto thee.

Mosiah 11:7:

Yea, and they also became idolatrous, because they were deceived by the vain and flattering words of the king and priests; for they did speak flattering things unto them.

Mosiah 26:38:

And now all these things did Alma and his fellow laborers do who were over the church, walking in all diligence, teaching the word of God in all things

Mosiah 27:32:

And now it came to pass that Alma began from this time forward to teach the people … publishing to all the people the things which they had heard and seen, and preaching the word of God in much tribulation

Mosiah 29:37:

And now it came to pass, after king Mosiah had sent these things forth among the people they were convinced of the truth of his words.

Alma 1:5:

And it came to pass that he did teach these things so much that many did believe on his words

Alma 7:8:

the Lord God hath power to do all things which are according to his word.

Alma 9:14:

Now we see that the word of the Lord has been verified in this thing

Alma 10:12:

And now, when Amulek had spoken these words the people began to be astonished, seeing there was more than one witness who testified of the things whereof they were accused, and also of the things which were to come

Alma 12:1:

he opened his mouth and began to speak unto him, and to establish the words of Amulek, and to explain things beyond, or to unfold the scriptures beyond that which Amulek had done.

Alma 12:9:

And now Alma began to expound these things unto him, saying: It is given unto many to know the mysteries of God; … they shall not impart only according to the portion of his word which he doth grant unto the children of men,

Alma 18:22:

Wilt thou hearken unto my words, if I tell thee by what power I do these things?

Alma 21:23:

and it came to pass that he did teach them all things concerning things pertaining to righteousness. And he did exhort them daily, with all diligence; and they gave heed unto his word, and they were zealous for keeping the commandments of God.

Alma 22:11:

I desire that ye should tell me concerning all these things, and I will believe thy words.

Alma 32:16–18:

Therefore, blessed are they who humble themselves without … without being brought to know the word, or even compelled to know, before they will believe. Yea, there are many who do say: If thou wilt show unto us a sign from heaven, then we shall know of a surety; then we shall believe. Now I ask, is this faith? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for if a man knoweth a thing he hath no cause to believe, for he knoweth it.

Alma 34:7:

My brother has called upon the words of Zenos, that redemption cometh through the Son of God, and also upon the words of Zenock; and also he has appealed unto Moses, to prove that these things are true.

Alma 36:11:

And the angel spake more things unto me, which were heard by my brethren, but I did not hear them; for when I heard the words … I fell to the earth and I did hear no more.

Alma 37:9:⁵

Yea, I say unto you, were it not for these things that these records do contain, which are on these plates, Ammon and his brethren could not have convinced so many thousands of the Lamanites of the incorrect tradition of their fathers; yea, these records and their words brought them unto repentance

Alma 38:4:

I also know that thou wast stoned for the word’s sake; and thou didst bear all these things with patience because the Lord was with thee

Helaman 10:4:⁶

Blessed art thou, Nephi, for those things which thou hast done; for I have beheld how thou hast with unwearyingness declared the word, which I have given unto thee

3 Nephi 1:20:

And it had come to pass, yea, all things, every whit, according to the words of the prophets.

3 Nephi 15:18:

And now, because of stiffneckedness and unbelief they understood not my word; therefore I was commanded to say no more of the Father concerning this thing unto them.

3 Nephi 17:15:

And when he had said these words, he himself also knelt upon the earth; and behold he prayed unto the Father, and the things which he prayed cannot be written

3 Nephi 23:1:

And now, behold, I say unto you, that ye ought to search these things. Yea, a commandment I give unto you that ye search these things diligently; for great are the words of Isaiah.

3 Nephi 23:4:

Therefore give heed to my words; write the things which I have told you;

3 Nephi 23:5:

And whosoever will hearken unto my words and repenteth and is baptized, the same shall be saved. Search the prophets, for many there be that testify of these things.

3 Nephi 26:8:

And these things have I written, which are a lesser part of the things which he taught the people; and I have written them to the intent that they may be brought again unto this people, from the Gentiles, according to the words which Jesus hath spoken.

3 Nephi 28:33–34:

And if ye had all the scriptures which give an account of all the marvelous works of Christ, ye would, according to the words of Christ, know that these things must surely come. And wo be unto him that will not hearken unto the words of Jesus

Mormon 7:1:

And now, behold, I would speak somewhat unto the remnant of this people who are spared, if it so be that God may give unto them my words, that they may know of the things of their fathers

Mormon 8:16:

And blessed be he that shall bring this thing [the Book of Mormon] to light

Mormon 8:25:

And behold, their prayers were also in behalf of him that the Lord should suffer to bring these things [words of dead prophets] forth.

Mormon 8:33:

Behold, look ye unto the revelations of God; for behold, the time cometh at that day when all these things must be fulfilled.

Ether 5:1:

And now I, Moroni, have written the words which were commanded me, according to my memory; and I have told you the things which I have sealed up;

Ether 5:4:

And in the mouth of three witnesses shall these things [Book of Mormon] be established; and the testimony of three, and this work, in the which shall be shown forth the power of God and also his word, of which the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost bear record

Ether 12:23:

Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, because of our weakness in writing; for Lord thou hast made us mighty in word by faith

Ether 13:2:

For behold, they rejected all the words of Ether; for he truly told them of all things, from the beginning of man

Moroni 10:26–27:

and I speak it according to the words of Christ; and I lie not. And I exhort you to remember these things;

Moroni 10:28:

I declare these things unto the fulfilling of the prophecies. And behold, they shall proceed forth out of the mouth of the everlasting God; and his word shall hiss forth from generation to generation.

Appendix 2

Association between “Words” and “Things” in Parallelisms

Introduction: These parallel structures were, for the most part, identified by Evidence Central staff. Some parallelisms seem more likely than others to have been intentional. Yet even in those cases where intentionality may seem questionable, the parallel structuring can still help readers recognize that conceptual and syntactic relationships between “words” and “things.”

1 Nephi 7:13:

A	the word of the Lord
	B	shall be fulfilled
		C	concerning the destruction of Jerusalem;
A	for all things which the Lord hath spoken.
	B	concerning the destruction of Jerusalem
		C	must be fulfilled

1 Nephi 9:6:

A	But the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning;
	B	wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men;
	B	for behold, he hath all power
A	unto the fulfilling of all his words.

1 Nephi 17:31:

A	And it came to pass that according to his word
	B	he did destroy them;
A	and according to his word
	B	he did lead them;

A	And it came to pass that according to his word
	B	he did do all things for them;
	B	and there was not any thing done
A	save it were by his word.

2 Nephi 6:3–4:

A	a	I have
		b	taught you
			c	the words of my father;
	B	a	and I have
			b	spoken unto you
				c	concerning all things
					d	which are written,
						e	from the creation of the world.
	B	a	And now, behold, I would
			b	speak unto you
				c	concerning things
					d	which are,
						e	and which are to come;
A	a	wherefore, I will
		b	read you
			c	the words of Isaiah.

2 Nephi 25:1:

A	Now I, Nephi, do speak somewhat concerning the words which I have written,
	B	which have been spoken
		C	by the mouth of Isaiah.
		C	For behold, Isaiah
	B	spake
A	many things which were hard for many of my people to understand

2 Nephi 31:1:

A	And it came to pass that according to his word
	B	he did do all things for them;
	B	and there was not any thing done
A	save it were by his word.

A	I cannot
	B	write
		C	but a few
			D	things which I know must surely come to pass
A	neither can I
	B	write
		C	but a few
			D	of the words of my brother Jacob

2 Nephi 33:11:

A	And if they are not the words of Christ,
	B	judge ye—
	B	for Christ will show unto you, with power and great glory,
A	that they are his words, at the last day;

A	and you and I
	B	shall stand face to face
		C	before his bar⁷
A	and ye shall know that I
	B	have been commanded of him
		C	to write these things,

Mosiah 28:1:

A	that
	B	they
		C	might preach
			D	the things which they had heard, and
A	that
	B	they
		C	might impart
			D	the word of God to their brethren

Jacob 7:20–21:

A	when he had said these words he could say no more,
	B	and he gave up the ghost.
A	And when the multitude had witnessed that he spake these things
	B	as he was about to give up the ghost

Alma 12:7:

A	Now when Alma had spoken these words, Zeezrom began to tremble more exceedingly, for
	B	he was convinced more and more of the power of God; and
	B	he was also convinced that Alma and Amulek had a knowledge of him, for
	B	he was convinced that they knew the thoughts and intents of his heart;
A	for power was given unto them that they might know of these things

Alma 18:40:

A	after he had said all these things,
	B	and expounded them to the king,
	B	that the king
A	believed all his words.

Alma 21:10:

A	as he began to expound these things unto them
	B	they were angry with him,
	B	and began to mock him;
A	and they would not hear the words which he spake.

Alma 36:26:

A	for because of the word which he hath imparted unto me, behold, many hath been born of God
	B	and hath tasted as I have tasted
	B	and hath seen eye to eye as I have seen.
A	Therefore they do know of these things of which I have spoken; as I do know and the knowledge which I have is of God.

Helaman 5:13:

A	these were the words
	B	which Helaman taught to his sons;
	B	yea, he did teach them
A	many things which are not written

Helaman 7:2:

A	For he … did
	B	preach
		C	the word of God
			D	unto them,
A	and did
	B	prophesy
		C	many things
			D	unto them;

Helaman 9:1–2:

A	Behold, now it came to pass that when Nephi had spoken these words,
	B	certain men who were among them ran to the judgment-seat; yea, even there were five who went, and they said among themselves, as they went:
		C	Behold, now we will know of a surety whether this man be a prophet
			D	and God hath commanded him to prophesy such marvelous things unto us.
			D	Behold, we do not believe that he hath [prophesied such marvelous things];
		C	yea, we do not believe that he is a prophet;
	B	nevertheless, if this thing which he has said concerning the chief judge be true, that he be dead,
A	then will we believe that the other words which he has spoken are true.

Helaman 12:4:

A	yea, how quick to hearken
	B	unto the words
		C	of the evil one,
A	and to set their hearts
	B	upon the vain things
		C	of the world!

3 Nephi 1:6:

A	Behold the time is past,
	B	and the words of Samuel are not fulfilled; therefore,
		C	your joy and
		C	your faith
	B	concerning this thing
A	hath been vain.

3 Nephi 5:2:

A	And they knew that it must be expedient that Christ had come, because of the many signs which had been given, according to the words of the prophets;
	B	and because of the things which had come to pass already
	B	they knew that it must needs be that all things should come to pass
A	according to that which had been spoken.

3 Nephi 23:3:

A	And all things that he spake
	B	have been and
	B	shall be,
A	even according to the words which he spake.

Ether 4:8:

A	And he that will
	B	contend against
		C	the word of the Lord,
			D	let him be accursed;
A	and he that shall
	B	deny
		C	these things,
			D	let him be accursed;

Moroni 7:25:

A	by every word which proceeded forth out of the mouth of God,
	B	men began to exercise faith in Christ;
	B	and thus by faith,
A	they did lay hold upon every good thing;

Relevant Scriptures

Endnotes

^1. David E. Bokovoy, “The Word and the Seed: The Theological Use of Biblical Creation in Alma 32,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 23 (2014): 12. See also Paul Y. Hoskisson, “Straightening Things Out: The Use of Strait and Straight in the Book of Mormon,” Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 12, no. 2 (2003): 71.
^2. Personal correspondence with Evidence Central staff, used by permission of the author.
^3. See Evidence Central, “Book of Mormon Evidence: Iron Rod as the Word of God,” Evidence# 0073, September 19, 2020, online at evidencecentral.org.
^4. See Matthew J. Grey, “‘The Word of the Lord in the Original’: Joseph Smith’s Study of Hebrew in Kirtland,” in Approaching Antiquity: Joseph Smith and the Ancient World, ed. Lincoln H. Blumell, Matthew J. Grey, and Andrew H. Hedges (Salt Lake City and Provo, UT: Deseret Book and Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 2015), 250.
^5. Note that this passage is part of a proposed element (D) of a large chiasm in Donald W. Parry, Poetic Parallelisms in the Book of Mormon: The Complete Text Reformatted (Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2007), 322. The other half of the element doesn’t contain either “word” or “things,” but it does contain the phrase “holy writ” which is associated with words (Alma 37:5).
^6. This phrasing is part of a chiasm, but “things” and “word” aren’t key elements in the chiastic structure. See Parry, Poetic Parallelisms in the Book of Mormon, 416.
^7. The word “bar” may derive from the same word as “rod.” As discussed in the evidence summary, “rod,” “word,” and “thing” can all be represented by the same Egyptian word (md.t/mt.t).

Linguistics

Book of Mormon

Evidence #319 | March 15, 2022

Book of Mormon Evidence: Words and Things