Record of Zeniff

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In the Book of Mormon, chapters 9 through 22 of the Book of Mosiah are identified as the Record of Zeniff. These chapters contain the story of a group of Nephites, led by Zeniff, who leave the land of Zarahemla and return to their former land, known as the land of Nephi, which was then occupied by the Lamanites, their traditional enemies. Although the attempt to establish themselves among the Lamanites is successful for a short time, the people of Zeniff are ultimately enslaved and forced to pay tribute to the Lamanite king. They are later rescued by an expedition from Zarahemla sent to discover their fate. The Record of Zeniff records the reigns of Zeniff, his son Noah and grandson Limhi. The timespan is approximately 75 years.

Contents

Background

According to the Book of Mormon, the prophet Lehi and his family left Jerusalem and travelled "in the wilderness" for a number of years before building a boat and sailing to "the promised land". The name of the land in which they first settled is not given (though perhaps it was called the land of Lehi). Following Lehi's death, his older sons, Laman and Lemuel, rebelled against their younger brother Nephi, who had been appointed by their father as their leader. Fearing for their safety, Nephi and his followers travelled "for many days" to a new land which they called Nephi (2 Ne. 5:7-8). Afterward, in the Book of Mormon, the descendants of Laman, Lemuel and their followers are known as Lamanites, while the descendants of Nephi and his followers are called Nephites.

Centuries later, after many wars and contentions between the Nephites and the Lamanites, a new prophet, Mosiah, gathered as many Nephites as would follow and fled "into the wilderness", where they discovered the land of Zarahemla, inhabited by a people known as Mulekites (Omni 1:12-13). The Mulekites joined with the Nephites (the two peoples together now being called Nephites) and Mosiah was appointed their king.

Zeniff

About 200 B.C., according to Book of Mormon chronology, Zeniff led a group of people from Zarahemla to the land of Nephi so that they might "possess the land of their inheritance" (Omni 1:27). Rather than attempting to take the land from the Lamanites by force, Zeniff sought to establish peaceful relations by treaty. The Lamanite king, Laman, agreed to give them land previously occupied by his people but Zeniff later realized that the king intended to enrich himself by taking the goods the Nephites have produced. After a few years of peace, the Lamanites began raiding the Nephite settlements, finally leading to two great battles which end in victory for the Nephites. The Lamanites did not attack the Nephites again during the reign of Zeniff, but his people were forced to guard their lands and goods. After a reign of about forty years, Zeniff grew old and conferred the kingdom on his son, Noah. The first person account of the reign of Zeniff is contained in chapters 9 and 10 of the Book of Mosiah.

Grant Hardy says:

Zeniff has a remarkable ability to see the good in others, for earlier record keepers [in the Book of Mormon] such as Enos and Jarom found nothing of value in Lamanite culture... Yet Zeniff, as a man of peace, argues that the Nephites should make a treaty with the Lamanites and regain the land of their inheritance through negotiation rather than conquest [1]

King Noah, Abinadi and Alma

The account of King Noah's reign emphasizes his failure to obey God's commandments. Noah "did not walk in the ways of his father" (Mosiah 11:2), but lived a sinful, idle life surrounded by cronies, including a group of corrupt priests, all supported by heavy taxes on his people. A prophet, Abinadi, was sent to warn Noah to repent and to call his people to repentance. Abinadi prophesied the destruction of Noah and his people if they did not repent. One of the priests, Alma, believed Abinadi but was forced to flee when he tried to defend him. Noah refused to listen to Abinadi and had him put to death by fire.

Alma began to preach Abinadi's message to the people of King Noah and attracted about 450 believers (Mosiah 18:35). When the movement was discovered by King Noah he sent his army to destroy Alma and his followers, but they escaped "into the wilderness". Noah continued his wicked practices, and, because he was more concerned with maintaining his lavish lifestyle than defending his people, he failed to maintain an adequate guard on his kingdom. When the Lamanites attacked Noah's people once again, his priests and many Nephite men fled, allowing the Lamanites to conquer those who remained. When the men who fled with Noah overcame their cowardice and resolve to return, Noah tried to prevent them. He was killed, though the wicked priests escaped.

The account of King Noah is contained in Mosiah 11-19, including an extended discourse by Abinadi in Mosiah 13-16.

Limhi

Limhi, Noah's son, became a tributary monarch, subject to the king of the Lamanites. After unsuccessful attempts to drive the Lamanites off by force, Limhi and his people became resigned to their captivity and were effectively enslaved by the Lamanites.

They were ultimately rescued by a group of Nephites from Zarahemla, led by Ammon (not to be confused with King Mosiah's son of the same name). Ammon and his companions were searching for the people of Zeniff, whose fate was unknown to them. Limhi and Ammon knew that escape by force was impossible and so resorted to a stratagem. After preparing the people for flight, they tricked the Lamanite guards into drinking a tribute of strong wine and escaped while the guards were drunken. Ammon then led them back to Zarahemla.

The account of King Limhi's reign and the rescue of his people is contained in Mosiah 20-22.

Conclusion

The return of Limhi's people to Zarahemla ends the Record of Zeniff. However, events set in motion by Zeniff and his people continue to play out for some time. The fate of the people led away by Alma at the time of Abinadi's prophesying is told in the next two chapters of the Book of Mosiah. (They are also captured by the Lamanites but miraculously escape and join the Nephites in Zarahemla, where Alma plays a significant role in the development of the church.) The wicked priests of King Noah join with the Lamanites and, because of their exceptional hatred for the Nephites, they rise to positions of authority and play a major part in future conflicts between the Lamanites and the Nephites.

Related Research Articles

The Book of Mosiah, probably written by Joseph Smith in the early 19th century, is one of the books which make up the Book of Mormon. The title refers to Mosiah II, a king of the Nephites at Zarahemla. The book covers the time period between ca 130 BC and 91 BC, except for when the book has a flashback into the Record of Zeniff, which starts at ca 200 BC, according to footnotes. Aside from stating that it was abridged by Mormon, the text says nothing about its authorship. Mosiah is twenty-nine chapters long.

The Book of Omni is one of the books that make up the Book of Mormon, a text that the Latter Day Saint movement regards as scripture. The book is written as the combined composition of several authors, the first of whom, Omni, provides the name of the book. According to the narrative, the book covers more than two centuries of Nephite history within one chapter of text. It refers to wars between the Nephites and Lamanites, the reign of Kings Mosiah and Benjamin, and their participation in the wars and journeys through the wilderness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lamanites</span> People mentioned in the Book of Mormon

In the Book of Mormon, the Lamanites are one of the four peoples described as having settled in the ancient Americas in the Book of Mormon. The Lamanites also play a role in the prophecies and revelations of the Doctrine and Covenants, another sacred text in the Latter Day Saint movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zarahemla</span> Nephite capital in the Book of Mormon

Zarahemla is a land in the Book of Mormon that for much of the narrative functions as the capital of the Nephites, their political and religious center. Zarahemla has been the namesake of multiple communities in the United States, has been alluded to in literature that references Mormonism, and has been portrayed in artwork depicting Book of Mormon content.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alma the Elder</span> Prophet in the Book of Mormon

Alma is a Nephite prophet in the Book of Mormon. Initially a priest who serves in the court of King Noah, when a prophet named Abinadi preaches to the court Alma concurs with Abinadi and affirms that what the prophet said is true. For this, Noah banishes Alma and tries to have him killed. After leaving the court, Alma goes on to found a church among Noah's subjects. He eventually leads these churchgoers out from Noah's lands, through a sojourn under Lamanite rule, and to the land of Zarahemla, where their ancestors had come from a few generations earlier, where Alma becomes high priest of the Nephites' church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King Noah</span> Figure in the Book of Mormon

King Noah is a Nephite king in the Book of Mormon who appears in the Book of Mosiah. Noah rules over a colony of Nephites who come from Zarahemla and settle in the land of Lehi-Nephi, succeeding his father, Zeniff. In the Book of Mosiah, King Noah distances from his father's teachings, committing what the text calls "all manner of wickedness." Noah and his priests sentence a prophet named Abinadi, who prophesies of his kingdom's downfall if they did not repent, to death by fire. During a Lamanite invasion, Noah and some of his people flee the land, and those who remain are subjected to Lamanite control. Noah attempts to forbid his men from returning to their families, and they burn him at the stake. Noah is succeeded by his son, Limhi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ammon (Book of Mormon missionary)</span> Character in the Book of Mormon

In the Book of Mormon, Ammon is a prominent Nephite missionary and a son of King Mosiah. He originally opposes the church, but along with his brothers and Alma the Younger, is miraculously converted. Following his conversion he serves a mission to the Lamanites and converts Lamoni and his people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zeniff</span> Nephite king in the Book of Mormon

Zeniff is a king in the Book of Mormon whose personal account is recorded in the Book of Mosiah. He is the father of King Noah and the grandfather of King Limhi. Zeniff is the first king of Nephite colonists who come from Zarahemla and settle in the land of Lehi-Nephi. These Native Americans believe this land to be rightfully theirs by inheritance, even attempting to reclaim the land by force. In an expedition in which he spies for the Nephites, Zeniff claims to see good in the Lamanite inhabitants. He argues against a militaristic approach and causes an internal battle among the Nephite army. Zeniff later leads a group of Nephites back to Lehi-Nephi and establishes a peace treaty with the Lamanite king whose people inhabit the land. Zeniff’s people prosper with him as king, but the Lamanite king betrays their treaty and attempts to exploit them. Zeniff and his people successfully fight off the Lamanites’ multiple aggressions, and Zeniff's reign lasts about forty years, after which he passes the kingship to one of his sons, Noah. Scholarly interpretations have highlighted Zeniff's shifting perceptions of Lamanites, such as how his opinion changes when his people contends with the Lamanites and the role that Zeniff's narration plays in racializing Lamanites in the Book of Mormon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Limhi</span> Book of Mormon king

In the Book of Mormon, Limhi is the third and final king of the second Nephite habitation of the land of Lehi-Nephi. He succeeds his father, Noah. Led by Ammon, Limhi and his people escape from the Lamanites with his people to the land of Zarahemla.

This article is a list of rulers in the Book of Mormon, including kings and chief judges among the Lamanites, Nephites, and Jaredites.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plates of Nephi</span>

According to the Book of Mormon, the plates of Nephi, consisting of the large plates of Nephi and the small plates of Nephi, are a portion of the collection of inscribed metal plates which make up the record of the Nephites. This record was later abridged by Mormon and inscribed onto gold plates from which Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon after an angel revealed to him the location where the plates were buried on a hill called Cumorah near the town of Palmyra, New York.

This chronology outlines the major events in the history of the Book of Mormon, according to the text. Dates given correspond to dates in the footnotes of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints edition of the Book of Mormon and to a Jaredite timeline proposed by Latter-Day Saint scholar John L. Sorenson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">King Mosiah II</span> Book of Mormon character

In the Book of Mormon, Mosiah, King Benjamin's son and Mosiah I's grandson, is king of the Nephite nation from about 124 BC to 91 BC. The Book of Mosiah is named after Mosiah. Mosiah is also a prophet and is described by Ammon as a "seer" who can translate records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amaleki (Book of Mormon explorer)</span>

According to the Book of Mormon, Amaleki was a Nephite explorer who lived in the Americas in the 2nd century BC. He is mentioned briefly as one of the brothers of Ammon, and one of sixteen men that were part of Ammon's band. Under the direction of king Mosiah, the band embarked upon a quest from the land of Zarahemla to find the group of Nephites that had left years before to settle in the land of Nephi. Their exploration party wandered in the wilderness for 40 days before finally stumbling upon the people of Zeniff, who mistook them for Lamanite spies and threw them in prison. Ammon's band was eventually released and helped the people of Zeniff escape the occupation of the Lamanites and return to Zarahemla.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ammon (Book of Mormon explorer)</span>

In the Book of Mormon, Ammon is a Mulekite descendant and leader of a Nephite expedition from Zarahemla, sent to discover the fate of Zeniff and his people. Zeniff and his followers left Zarahemla and travelled to Nephi, their ancestral home, which was then in the possession of the Lamanites. This may have contributed to his expedition, not knowing the actual route to Nephi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of the Book of Mormon</span> Overview of and topical guide to the Book of Mormon

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the Book of Mormon:

References

  1. Hardy, p 125