I don’t
fancy myself as a writer. I can write, have been doing it all my life, but that
doesn’t make me proficient. But I do usually take some thought into my posts.
This time not so much. For the reason that I haven’t posted in too long and I
just want to jot things down while I have time and before the thoughts fade.
I was reading the last chapter in Mosiah, King Mosiah was coming to the end of
his reign, He is wondering how the people will get along after he is gone. I
can sense that he has put a whole lot of thought into how the people are going
to be governed. It is clear to me that he has considered whether kings are the
way to go. He shows that he has seen or even experience good kings and not so
good, even wicked, kings. He says that if the people could be governed by a
righteous King, that would be great. But that a wicked king would be the cause
of the people being wicked and be the cause of strife, persecution and he goes
into a little detail about the problems that follow. Let me emphasis that it
seems he has put much thought into this topic. He goes so far as to say that
his son, Aaron, has turned down the offer to be king, but what happens if he
changes his mind at a later time and feels that he should be king. The potential
is there that “And
who knoweth but what my son, to whom the kingdom doth belong, should turn to be
angry and draw away a part of this people after him, which would cause wars and
contentions among you, which would be the cause of shedding much blood and
perverting the way of the Lord, yea, and destroy the souls of many people.”
Mosiah then talks about the advantages of having elected men lead and judge the
people. He calls them Judges.
He says “it
is not common that the voice of the people desireth anything contrary to that
which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the people to desire
that which is not right;” To me that sounds like he has a very good
grasp of the way society works. He sounds like he has learned from personal experience
and observation over the years.
He then says “And
if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is
the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he
will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this
land.”
This is a pretty good prediction, or may even be a prophecy,
of the decline of the Nephite people.
Mosiah continues to explain how to deal with these elected Judges who turn out
bad, or become bad, prideful, immoral and corrupt. Which shows to me that he
again shows his wisdom and insight which he has acquired over his reign.
All this was the words of Mosiah, “For behold I” and “therefore I will.” Then there is an abrupt
change in verse 33 “And
many more things did king Mosiah write”
At this point I realize that Mormon is done quoting from the
writings of Mosiah and started summarizing. I didn’t immediately catch on to
this. But the tone changed and so I had to figure out why. It didn’t take long,
and I didn’t have to be a genius to see it.
I have read this chapter many times. But it really struck me this time – Joseph
Smith was 22 years old, 7 years of grade school. Never had seen a king, nor
been ruled by a king. Had probably never thought of being ruled by a quorum of
judges, higher judges and lower judges. And in the midst of this delving into
the ways of the Nephite people, he suddenly shifts gears to have Mormon then
take over the authorship of this fictional book that he is inventing?
I know that the Book of Mormon came from the writings of God’s prophets in the
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