The Astonishing Internal Consistency of the Book of Mormon

Research by Kerry A. Shirts

As I've read through the Book of Mormon over some 50 times now, the one thing that has struck me is the internal consistency. It is indeed a very large document! That the internal consistency is so strong more than implies Joseph Smith did not write this thing. As I have read through many hundreds of LDS scholars' writings, I am particularly struck by some that I will summarize here demonstrating a more than passing interest in the BofM internal consistency. This paper will be added to as I find more information, as I have nowhere near exhausted the information yet.

John Welch in his text "Reexploring the Book of Mormon" Deseret/FARMS, 1992, (pp. 21ff) notes 4 times in the BofM that show a remarkable internal consistency. In Alma 36 Alma recounts his conversion. He notes that his experience was similar to Lehi's experience. "Yea, methought I saw, even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon his throne, surrounded by numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and praising their God." (Alma 36:22). These words are not merely a loose recollection of the record of Lehi's vision. There are twnety-one words here quoted verbatim from 1 Nephi 1. Obviously Alma is directly quoting the record. It makes sense that he would know these words as he was given charge of the Small Plates of Nephi (Alma 37:2), which contained this sentence. What makes this all the more remarkable is realizing that when Joseph Smith dictated the BofM to his scribes, he never went over any parts twice. He went through the text only a single time. This incident was over a hundred pages later, yet it was quoted verbatim and is internally consistent with Alma having access to those words! Joseph Smith then translated these two passages widely separated from each other independently. He never asked Oliver Cowdery to go back and look up the words so he could get them correct.

Another example is Helaman 14:12. Samuel the Lamanite spoke of the coming of Christ, so that they might know of the coming of "Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning." The twenty-one words in quotes appear to be standard Nephite religious terminology derived from the words given to Benjamin by an angel of God: "He shall be called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Father of Heaven and earth, the Creator of all things from the beginning." (Mosiah 3:8).

These sacred words evidently became important in Nephite worship after they were revealed through Benjamin. Samuel could have learned of them through the ministry of Nephi and Lehi among the Lamanites (Helaman 5:50). Helaman 5:9 shows the words were used and understood and important! Cf. Mosiah 3:18; 4:8.

Another example is found in the account of the destruction in 3 Nephi 8:6-23, fulfilling the words of Zenos way back in 1 Nephi 19:11-12. The same list that Zenos rattled off is identified in 3 Nephi, namely, thunderings, lightnings, tempests, fire, smoke, a vapour of darkness, the earth opening, mountains being carried up, rocks rending, and the earth groaning, yet these passages are literally hundreds of pages apart. Apparently Mormon wanted it understood that Zenos' prophecy was fulfilled to the T.

Finally, early in the BofM history, Benjamin set forth a five-part legal series prihibiting

1. murder

2. plunder

3. theft

4. adultery

5. any manner of wickedness

This list reappears seven other times in the BofM!

Mosiah 29:36

Alma 23:3

Alma 30:10

Helaman 3:14

Helaman 6:23

Haleman 7:21

Ether 8:16

Apparently the Nephites viewed Benjamin's set of laws as setting a formulaic precedent.

Arthur Wallace in his book "The Firm Foundation of Mormonism," LL Co., 1981, also notes internal consistency that is astonishing.

Interwoven into the first one hundred pages of the record of Mormon are found passing remarks dealing with the actual growth of Nephi. In i Ne. 2:16 at the time of his conversion Nephi was "exceeding young." Later he marries (1 Ne. 16:7) and shortly thereafter we begin to read about his children (1 Ne. 18:19). All of these autobiographical details are only incidental to the historical narrative of the First Book of Nephi. Indirectly confirming Nephi's conversion at 1 Ne. 2:16, Lehi later alludes to Nephi's conversion at Jerusalem, (2 Ne. 1:24). Again, Nephi speaks of the "plainness which hath been with me from the time that I came out from Jerusalem with my father..." (2 Ne. 25:4). Since the O.T. Prophet Jeremiah was a contemporary of Lehi, Lehi may have been converted by him (1 Ne. 1:4,5). It is interesting that many of Jeremiah's prophecies were on the Brass Plates implying that they didn't have all of his prophecies. Interestingly Jeremiah wrote almost 60% of his book after "the first year of the reign of Zedekiah" after Lehi had left Jerusalem. The portion of the Old Testament contained on the Brass Plates had exactly the right amount of material for the time period when Lehi left Jerusalem!

At 2 Ne. 1:20 Lehi prophecies that if they keep the commandments they shall prosper in the land, if not, they shall be cut off. This verse is quoted by the later prophets Jarom , Amaron, Alma (in a discourse to the Ammonihahites), and Helaman (Jarom 9, Omni 6, Alma 9:13, 14, 36:1, 30, 37:13). Other passages also allude to this prophecy, namely Mosiah 1:7, 2:22, 31, Alma 38:1, 3 Nephi 5:22. It is a remarkable small detail that demonstrates that the later BofM prophets had read and become familiar with Lehi's inspired words, and used them in their own prophetic discourses.

In Jacob's patriarchal blessing, Lehi prophesies that his "days shall be spent in the service of ... God." (2 Ne. 2:3). Consistently Jacob is later ordained to this, while succeeding his brother Nephi's prophetic office, and writes his own prophetic book! (2 Ne. 5:26, chapters 6-11, Jacob 1:1-4fff).

In Sam's patriarchal blessing Lehi casually mentions "thou shalt inherit the land like unto thy brother Nephi. And thy seed shall be numbered with his seed; and thou shalt be even like unto thy brother, and thy seed like unto his seed." (2 Ne. 4:11). If the Book of Mormon were only the imaginative product of Joseph Smith he must keep names, chronological sequence, doctrinal exposition, and the many major and minor themes in the book straight, without a single error. Yet this prophecy given to Sam only sees its fulfillment in a passing remark, indirectly commented in Jacob 1:13 where Joseph's brother, Jacob, mentions "Nephites, Jacobites, Josephites, Zoramites, Lamanites, Lemeulites, and Ishmaelites." But he never mentions "Samites." They are obviously integrated into the Nephites as the prophecy claimed they would be.

At 2 Ne. 5:20 Nephi records the fulfillment of a prophecy given to him many years earlier, and quotes the very prophecy recorded in 1 Ne. 2:21 over fifty pages previous!

The historical narrative is interrupted following Alma 35:13, several quotes are presented, then over 6 chapters later, the historical narrative resumes at Alma 43:4 from where it left off.

An editiorial comment by Mormon was placed into the narrative at Helaman 2:12 and 13 pointing out a future development nearly 350 years later in the history in the end of the books of Nephi, meaning the Larger plates of Nephi, which he was abridging. Indeed, the last few verses of the Larger Plates (4 Ne. 42-46) consistently agree with Mormon's passing commentary.

In Helaman 5:9-10 Nephi quotes Benjamin's words of 228 pages earlier (Mosah 3:17). He also quotes from the dialogue between Amulek and Zeezrom from Alma 11:33-37, which occurred 146 pages earlier! Since the rate of dictation moved at the rate of 61/2 pages per day (assuming they never took a day off other than to move from Harmony, Pennsylvania, to Fayette, New York) Joseph Smith dictated the passage referring to the earlier events 35 days and 22 days after they were first dictated, respectively. Such precise intricacy in minor details is remarkable.

Helaman 5:21 reports that Nephi and Lehi were imprisoned in the same prison as Ammon and his brothers had been jailed, which had barely been mentioned (an event of little note) 233 pages before. (Mosiah 7:7).

Revealingly Moroni 7:26, 33, 34 cite Jesus in 3 Ne. 18:20, 27:20.

To appreciate this it is necessary to understand that Joseph Smith dictated orally, 90% if the translation of the BofM to a scribe in about 75 days, without backtracking or re-reading what had already been dictated. Most interestingly the latter half of the Book of Mormon was dictated first!

John A. Tvedtnes in his article "Mormon's Editorial Promises," in John L. Sorenson & Melvin J. Thorne, eds., "Rediscovering the Book of Mormon: Insights You May Have Missed Before," Deseret/FARMS, 1991, pp. 29ff, notes 7 more instances of internal consistency that are amazing.

We need to understand that Mormon edited much of the Book of Mormon into the form that we now have it. For instance, in his editorial comment at Mosiah 28:11-19, Mormon said that he would later give the story of the Jaredites. He made the comment at the point that King Mosiah had translated the Jaredite record. His son Moroni, who was also a keeper of the records, fulfilled that promise by giving us the Book of Ether.

At Helaman 2:12-14 Mormon said he would tell more of Gadianton and his secret band "hereafter." The problems caused by the robbers were recounted later in Helaman 6; 3 Nephi 1:27-29; 2:11-18; 3:1-4:29, and up into 4 Nephi and Mormon. The editorial comments at Helaman 2:12-14 are very interesting for showing us Mormon's thought and work in carrying out his task of preparing the Nephite record before he finally buried it.

We read at Mosiah 21:35 that Mormon said of the people of Limhi, "an account of their baptism shall be given hereafter," which was, but only after 100 verses later at Mosiah 25:17-18!

Mormon promised at Alma 35:13 to describe the war that began in the 18th year between Nephites and Lamanites. He told it all right, but not until Alma 43 where at verse 3 he introduced the topic again with the words "And now I return to an account of the wars."

The missionary labors and preaching of the sons of Mosiah were related in Alma 17-25, which is 18 chapters after Mormon had said at Mosiah 28:9 and 19-20 that he would later tell about it.

Mormon said at 3 Nephi 18:36f, that Jesus had given the power of the Holy Ghost, and said he would later show how this account was true. In verse 13 of the next chapter he described how the power fell on them and later at 4 Ne. 1:1 he wrote they had received the Holy Ghost after baptism. Moroni 2:2f, tells more information still! The reporting of the matter involved two prophets and four distinct passages of scripture, but eventually nothing was left out of the story.

In the "Words of Mormon", another editorial comment, Mormon said he hoped his son Moroni would write of Christ. That hope was realized 350 pages later when Moroni indeed told of important things concerning Christ in Ether 3:17-20; 12:7, 16-22, 38-41. And at the very end of the volume, Mormon 9, Moroni 2,6,7,10, the son including his own testimony of Jesus Christ.

Remembering that in 1829 Joseph Smith dictated the record to Oliver Cowdery most of the scripture attributed to Mormon within the period of a few weeks, and without proofreading or revising, if Joseph Smith was making this up, the gaps would have been rather obvious. But there are no gaps, it is entirely credible to understand and believe that the editorial internal consistency is Mormon's work.