The people of the Book of Mormon are by-and-large characterized as travelers.  Each of the three main civilizations mentioned in the Book of Mormon begin their accounts with a major transoceanic journey to their Promised Land.  However, no single group, or even splinter groups, seem content staying where they are for very long.Much of what we know about Book of Mormon geography comes from passages that chronicle the journeys of various people.  In addition to geographical details, the stories of travels are often coupled with a message of redemption or deliverance, underlined by a reliance on providence to be led to some land of promise, or some new safe haven. With that in mind, here are ten notable journeys told of in the Book of Mormon.

For several months, site development and blog posts have been suspended, as behind-the-scenes technical developments have taken place.  These developments are occurring outside the scope of the current deployment of the site, and involve complex database restructuring from ground up. When complete, the new version will be a comprehensive scripture and gospel study tool with unparalleled versatility, ease of use, depth of detail, and breadth of content.

While specific dates or time horizons for the next iteration of this project are not yet available, I am pleased to announce that blog updates, as well as some internal site development will resume until further notice.

We welcome all visitors, new and old, and invite you to leave comments and participate in the discussions, hoping that this blog will serve as an effective resource, forum, and sounding board for those studying the Book of Mormon.

Those interested in contributing content to this blog may contact me.

The future is looking very bright for BookofMormonOnline.Net.  Recent events and circumstances have opened many new doors in terms of scope and involvement of others, and this website will now be going through a transitional phase.  As the additional personnel and resources that will from here on out be involved in development situate themselves, and, as plans for the future are made and agreed upon, blog posts and continued site development on my part will be suspended. Please stay tuned for more updates about the major developments that this site will soon be undergoing.

The Sunday School material this week now covers the concluding segment of the small plates of Nephi. After Nephi’s plentiful quotes and prophesies, and Jacob’s sermons and writings, blank space in the small plates seems to have become scarce. So the writings of the subsequent authors (i.e. Jacob’s progeny) become increasingly brief. These authors were:

• Enos
• Jarom
• Omni
• Amaron
• Chemish
• Abinadom
• Amaleki

Chronologically, this section of the Book of Mormon covers a large span of time, where we learn very little about the societal developments of the Nephites or Lamanites. However, we do get enough insights that give us enough of a picture of what is going on. Here are some highlights:

There seems to be a general assumption among Book of Mormon readers that when the Lehites’ ship landed, the Promised land was a desolate vista void of any civilizations or indigenous people. A more careful reading of the Book of Mormon gives several clues and indications that this was not the case.

The first recorded instance of Lehites interacting with external people is found in Jacob chapter 7, where we meet Sherem. Sherem is numbered among the villains and anti-Christs of the Book of Mormon, but if we carefully analyze the details of his story, we learn much more about him and his circumstances than we might initially expect.

Jacob 5 is infamously known as the longest chapter in not only the Book of Mormon, but also in all of scripture. It contains Zenos’ Allegory of the Olive Trees, which was presumably included in the brass plates, and subsequently quoted by Jacob. The story can generally be outlined as follows.

• Treating the Decaying Olive Tree by Pruning and Digging
• Treating the Decaying Olive Tree by Grafting and Transplanting
• Revival of the Olive Tree
• Additional Decay
• Treating the Further Decay by Grafting and Burning
• A Final Effort
• Recovery and Success
• Additional Decay Foretold
• Jacob’s Comments

The symbolism is rich and complex, and as is the case with most figurative expositions, can be understood on several levels. Generally, it is understood as a historical recounting of certain aspects of the house of Israel, as well as a foretelling its future and destiny.