Enallage in the Book of Mormon

Writing styles in the Book of Mormon can be traced to the Old Testament Hebrew styles in many ways. One of these styles is called enallage and is commonly used in the Psalms and Isaiah since they are written in poetic form.

Enallage is a Greek word meaning interchange. In Hebrew enallage is used as the second and third persons are interchanged within the text. The second person is the person being addressed, so it would be words like you, your, thee, thou, or thine. The third person would include words like he, she, they, or a proper name like the Lord.

When Nephi pours out his heart in prayer the words become a song of praise, or a psalm. Within Second Nephi chapter 4 is such a text, sometimes referred to as Nephi's psalm. We can look to the Old Testament for examples of enallage.

Consider the 23rd Psalm.

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.

 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake."


So far the Lord is spoken of in the third person. But look at the shift in the next verses.


"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over."


In these verses the Lord is spoken of in the second person. Then the final verse returns to the third person.

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever."


Now kids, don't try this with your homework assignments. Your English teacher won't be amused. This is terrible English but it's great Hebrew.


Now let's examine the enallage in Nephi's psalm.

"My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.

He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh.

 He hath confounded mine enemies, unto the causing of them to quake before me.

Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night-time.

And by day have I waxed bold in mighty prayer before him; yea, my voice have I sent up on high; and angels came down and ministered unto me" (2 Nephi 4: 20-24).


Just a few verses later, the Lord is addressed in the second person.


"Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation.

O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul? Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine enemies? Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin?

May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite! O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road!

O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies! Wilt thou make my path straight before me! Wilt thou not place a stumbling block in my way—but that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but the ways of mine enemy.

O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm" (2 Nephi 4: 30-34).


I will do my next post on more of the spiritual content of Nephi's psalm and how it parallels Old Testament psalms.

For those readers skeptical about the Book of Mormon, I ask, could Joseph Smith have composed such a beautiful psalm on his own with his limited third-grade education? If you think he could have, I would invite you to go online and look at the Joseph Smith papers and read some of his journal entries. His wife Emma once said she knew the Book of Mormon was true. She said Joseph couldn't even write a coherent letter.

On the Wings of His Spirit

Nephi goes to great length to emphasize the idea that he has not taught his children after the "manner of the Jews," (see 2 Nephi 25: 6), but when he wants to pour out his soul in thanksgiving to God, he does it after the manner of the Jews in poetic Hebrew fashion. I am referring to his psalm in 2 Nephi chapter 4.

He writes, "And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high mountains" (2 Nephi 4: 25). Wings are a representation of God's power, grace, and His tender mercies.

Nephi has what seems like an out-of-body experience, as he is spiritually transported and transcends to a temple-like experience, high upon the mountain of God. His eyes behold "great things . . . even too great for man."  The sacred nature of this temple-like experience prohibits him from writing more.

In non-Biblical texts such as the pseudepigraphal account of the Apocalypse of Abraham, it states, "And the angel took me with his right hand and set me on the right wing of the pigeon and he himself sat on the left wing of the turtledove, both of which were as if neither slaughtered nor divided"  (Apocalypse of Abraham 15: 2-3). I know this is not scripture of the Standard Works, but the Doctrine and Covenants tells us that similar to the Apocrypha, "there are many things contained therein that are true, and it is mostly translated correctly" (D&C 91: 1). The birds here representing heavenly messengers could correlate with Abraham's account of a token of the covenant as he takes "an heifer of three years old, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.  And he took unto him all these, and divided them in the midst, and laid each piece one against another: but the birds divided he not" (Genesis 15: 9-10). 

As Abraham makes this heavenly ascent on the wings of a bird (or angel), he says, "I am weakened and my spirit is departing from me." He then hears a voice, "like a voice of many waters," similar to the Prophet Joseph Smith's account in the Kirtland Temple of the voice of Jehovah (see D&C 110: 3). Abraham is then taught a song of praise (or a psalm) to God (see Apocalypse of Abraham 16-17).

Nephi also experiences a kind of separation of body and spirit. He speaks of his flesh wasting away and his strength slackened. He proclaims, "He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh" (see 2 Nephi 4: 21, 26).

In the New Testament the woman with the issue of blood touched the Savior's garment on the tassel of the tallith or the wing of the garment and was healed as virtue or power healed her (see Luke 8: 44; Bible Dictionary, "Hem of Garment").

The idea of wings representing power, and in the above case, being a token of the covenant as Israelites were required to make fringes in the borders (or wings) of their garments as a reminder of their covenants with Jehovah, adds meaning to the plea of the Savior as He says, "How oft will I gather you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if ye will repent and return unto me with full purpose of heart" (Numbers 15: 38-39; 3 Nephi 10: 6).

Wings are a symbol of the Savior's love, tender mercies, and divine protection. They are also a symbol of His grace. In the Old Testament, the Lord is compared to a maternal eagle as it states, "As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings" (Deuteronomy 32: 11). Also, as part of God's covenant with Israel, He reminds them, "Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself" (Exodus 19: 4). 

We can be borne by Him when we are weak and struggling.

Wings are a source of enduring strength. Isaiah poetically writes, 

"But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint" (Isaiah 40: 31).

The wings of the Spirit can take us to holy places, like the temple, where we can see new vistas and feel of His divine nature and love. The wings of the Spirit will increase our spiritual strength and endurance. As Nephi prophesied, "He shall rise from the dead, with healing in his wings; and all those who shall believe on his name shall be saved in the kingdom of God" (2 Nephi 25: 13).  

Redeemed Through His Righteousness

The entire Book of Mormon can be viewed as a grace sandwich. The missionary discussions in that day consisted of three lessons--Creation, Fall, and Atonement, what Elder Bruce R. McConkie would term the three pillars of eternity.

The first prophet to write, setting aside the Jaredite record, was Lehi, and the last prophet to write was Moroni. Moroni writes,

"Behold, he created Adam, and by Adam came the fall of man. And because of the fall of man came Jesus Christ, even the Father and the Son; and because of Jesus Christ came the redemption of man" (Mormon 9: 12).

The three pillars, Creation, Fall, and Atonement, are well summarized in this passage. You may notice Hebrew parallelism in the style, emphasizing the eternal progression of these elements. The words and phrases are doubled up and repeated, so you have Adam, fall of man, and Jesus Christ repeated twice in succession. 

Lehi introduces this theme in beautiful, elaborate form. So the Book of Mormon begins and ends with this message of eternal salvation. Sandwiched in the middle are numerous teachings by Ammon, Aaron, and others emphasizing Creation, Fall, and Atonement (see Alma 18 and 22 for example).

And central to this doctrine is the Atonement of Jesus Christ with the absolute reality of our fallen state and need for a Savior to redeem us. Aaron said, "And since man had fallen he could not merit anything of himself; but the sufferings and death of Christ atone for their sins, through faith and repentance, and so forth; and that he breaketh the bands of death, that the grave shall have no victory, and that the sting of death should be swallowed up in the hopes of glory; and Aaron did expound all these things unto the king" (Alma 22: 14).  

Notice how Lehi teaches these three pillars in order in 2 Nephi chapter 2 with the following phrases:

Creation

"Wherefore, it must needs have been created for a thing of naught; wherefore there would have been no purpose in the end of its creation" (v. 12).

"And if there is no God we are not, neither the earth; for there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon" (v. 13).

"For there is a God, and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them are, both things to act and things to be acted upon" (v. 14).

Fall

"And I, Lehi, according to the things which I have read, must needs suppose that an angel of God, according to that which is written, had fallen from heaven; wherefore, he became a devil, having sought that which was evil before God" (v. 17).

"And because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind" (v. 18).

Atonement

"And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given" (v. 26).

His Merits

According to these passages, the Fall began with Lucifer, not with Adam and Eve. And even our agency is a gift of the Atonement.

The gravity of our fallen state is made crystal clear in these verses, as Lehi teaches his son, Jacob, "Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise (2 Nephi 2: 8).

There is no flesh that can dwell in God's presence based on our own merits. I happen to know as a recovering alcoholic and addict just where my own merits landed me. I'm certain I would not be alive today without His grace.

Even a righteous prophet like Jacob is not exempt. Lehi begins these teachings with a statement about Jacob's redemption by saying, "Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer" (2 Nephi 2: 3).

For many years I was one of those beings who was "acted upon." Captivity, death, and misery were not mere choices; they became my way of life. But today, by His grace, I am privileged to choose.

Graven Upon the Palms of His Hands

The more I study the Book of Mormon the more I'm impressed with Nephi's selection of the Isaiah chapters. Indeed some of Isaiah's finest writings are taught in the Book of Mormon, always followed with some fine prophetic commentary. Nephi's intent is to "more fully persuade them (his brethren) to believe in the Lord their Redeemer" (1 Nephi 19: 23). The two chapters that follow are indeed extraordinary.

Isaiah unfolds the relationship between Jehovah and the house of Israel, a people who sometimes feel "forsaken" and "forgotten" (1 Nephi 21: 14), but who in reality are tightly bound to the Lord by covenants. The Lord will show that the forgetting and forsaking are one-sided.

Isaiah then compares the Godlike love of a mother to divine Christlike love:

"For can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee, O house of Israel" (1 Nephi 21: 15).

The New Testament Greek word for compassion means "to be moved as to one's bowels," or as my friend Eric Huntsman would say, "torn in the gut."

The Lord begins to speak in the first person, addressing you and me, as the covenant family of the house of Israel. He said,

"Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me" (1 Nephi 21: 16).

This is definitely covenant language. The entire phrase "palms of my hands" is capsulized by the Hebrew word kaph. It can mean the palm of the hand, the sole of the foot, or the hollow of the thigh. Click here for a link to read more about this Hebrew word. It is translated as the word spoon 24 times in the Old Testament. You will notice this on the link. The spoons referenced here would be more like ladles. It also means bent objects, curved objects, and the curved shape of palm branches which were strewn in the path of Jesus at His triumphal entry, symbolizing victory over sin and death (see John 12: 13). They would be hollow-shaped objects that could hold something. 

Let's look at some examples.

Consider the experience of Jacob when he wrestles (Hugh Nibley would say "embraces") a messenger. The messenger touches him in the hollow of the thigh (but this could be palm of the hand, sole of the foot, or joint of the thigh), Jacob receives a new name (Israel, meaning to prevail with God), and Jacob says he has seen God face to face (see Genesis 32: 24-32). This sounds like a real good covenant day to me. The Hebrew word for "hollow of the thigh" is kaph.

Or consider the account of Noah in his ark--I mean floating temple. Noah sent forth a dove. Then it reads, "But the dove found no rest for the sole of her foot, and she returned unto him into the ark, for the waters were on the face of the whole earth: then he put forth his hand, and took her, and pulled her in unto him into the ark" (Genesis 8: 9).  The sole of the foot is the kaph. And he "put forth his hand" and "pulled her in unto him."

As priests were consecrated (meaning "filled the hand") they took the elements of the sacrifice from the "ram of consecration" and "put all upon Aaron’s hands, and upon his sons’ hands" (Leviticus 8: 22, 27). The hands were the kaph.

But Jesus speaks of His hands in the Creation process by asking,

"Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance?" (Isaiah 40: 12).

Parenthetically, there would have been a compass used to mete out heaven, and the span would make a circle creating an eternal round (see 1 Nephi 10: 19). 

But always remember your Savior and His hands, that however full they become, your eternal redemption is front and center, in the palm of His hands, eternally graven, and always present before His eyes (see D&C 38: 2). 

He Yieldeth Himself as a Man

What a wonderful blessing it is to have the Book of Mormon to help us learn of the Savior and draw closer to Him. Much of the doctrine concerning His Atonement is expounded in the Book of Mormon in such a way to give greater insight and clarity the mission of the Savior.

One of the questions asked by an angel in Nephi's temple-like experience was, "Knowest thou the condescension of God?" (1 Nephi 11: 16). A few chapters later several prophets, some of which are not mentioned in the Bible, elaborate on this theme.

In the Gospel of Mark Jesus is portrayed as a powerful figure right from the start. In the opening chapter the Lord performs several miracles, including commanding an unclean spirit to come out of a man, an act demonstrating a direct confrontation with Satan. While John uses a Greek word for miracle, meaning a sign or token, Mark uses the Greek word dynamis, the root of the English word dynamite. Mark does everything possible to emphasize the power of Jesus, until the final trip to Jerusalem. Then Jesus enters Gethsemane "sore amazed," which in the Greek means "struck with terror." He cries out to His Father using the familial word Abba, a word we would equate with "daddy or poppa" (see Mark 14: 33,36).

The Book of Mormon explains how Jesus descended below all things during the Passion and highlights the dual nature of Christ with a certain verse:

"And the God of our fathers, who were led out of Egypt, out of bondage, and also were preserved in the wilderness by him, yea, the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, yieldeth himself, according to the words of the angel, as a man, into the hands of wicked men . . ." (1 Nephi 19: 10).

Did you notice that? He yielded Himself "as a man," and not "as a God." As a perfectly obedient Man, and yet very mortal in His ability to feel pain, sorrow for sin, and the full range of human experience, Jesus makes intercession for all mankind. The superhuman aspect of the Atonement was not to shield Himself from pain and suffering, but rather to be able to remain alive to suffer greater depths. Again, the Book of Mormon is very clear: 

"And lo, he shall suffer temptations, and pain of body, hunger, thirst, and fatigue, even more than man can suffer, except it be unto death; for behold, blood cometh from every pore, so great shall be his anguish for the wickedness and the abominations of his people" (Mosiah 3: 7).

In other words, such an experience would kill any other mortal long before the suffering was complete.

The Savior willingly suffered "as a man" in the hands of wicked men. He then allows Himself to become vulnerable and helpless in order to succor us when we experience temptation, sorrow, hunger, thirst, or fatigue.

Then the dramatic contradictions begin to play out. The King of kings wears a crown of thorns and is smitten to the point that someone else has to carry the cross (Matthew 27: 29-32). The source of "living water" is compelled to cry out, "I thirst" (John 4: 10; 19: 28). He who gave the law as Jehovah became the "curse of the law," after the law He gave read, "Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree" (Galatians 3: 13). He who committed no sin would be wounded and receive the stripes necessary to heal us (see Isaiah 53: 5). As Elder Renlund noted in our last General Conference, "Life would be the most unfair for Jesus Christ" (Ensign, May 2016). 

My heart goes out in gratitude to Him, that He would be willing to descend below all things to rescue a wretched man like me.

"Driven Before the Wind"

The voyage to the Promised Land is interesting and enlightening for both the Nephite and Jaredite parties in the Book of Mormon. Navigation was certainly not advanced in ancient days so a Liahona, or compass would surely come in handy on such a journey. We know the entire process can be viewed as an allegory, and references to the Liahona shed light on the symbolic parallels of the journey to the Promised Land.

Alma explains to his son Helaman, "And now I say, is there not a type in this thing? For just as surely as this director (the Liahona) did bring our fathers, by following its course, to the promised land, shall the words of Christ, if we follow their course, carry us beyond this vale of sorrow into a far better land of promise" (Alma 37: 45).

"A far better land of promise" is a gross understatement. We're talking about exaltation here--our journey to celestial glory, or heaven. The Liahona was the guide, or compass, to show direction in this wilderness experience, representing mortal life. A compass is great, but you need something to propel the ship through turbulent, chaotic waters.

For both journeys (Nephites and Jaredites) the source of power was the wind. After everyone has boarded, Nephi proclaims, "We did put forth into the sea and were driven forth before the wind towards the promised land" (1 Nephi 18: 8). The Jaredites "commend[ed] themselves unto the Lord their God," and then were driven by a "furious wind" toward the Promised Land (Ether 6: 4-5). This requires a heap of faith. We know the wind has a mind of its own. Jesus attested to this fact when He said, "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit" (John 3: 8). Click here for a link to the Greek word translated as "listeth." You can see the wind really just blows where it wants.

But there is another interesting Greek word in this verse. The word "wind" at the beginning of the verse and the word "Spirit" at the end of the verse are the same word in the original Greek. The Greek word is pneuma, a root of the English word "pneumonia," meaning "lack of wind or breath." Pneuma means wind, breath, or spirit. You can click here for more information on this Greek word.

A quick analysis of the symbols for wind and Promised Land will lead to the following conclusion:  The Spirit will guide us back to our heavenly home. The wind (or Spirit) will propel our ship toward the Promised Land of celestial glory.

Nephi's choice of wording further enlightens with the phrase, "driven forth before the wind towards the promised land." In Hebrew the word before denotes face or presence. The presence of the Holy Ghost will be our source of power if we gain eternal life. The Lord warns against deception and the snares of the world with a sure promise in latter-day scripture as forewarned in the Doctrine and Covenants:

"For they that are wise and have received the truth, and have taken the Holy Spirit for their guide, and have not been deceived—verily I say unto you, they shall not be hewn down and cast into the fire, but shall abide the day" (D&C 45: 57).

The Leitwort "Down" in the Book of Mormon

Martin Buber, a Jewish philosopher and Bible scholar, is credited with the discovery of a literary style in the Bible called Leitwort, meaning "leading word" in German.  The repetition of a particular Leitwort, or word, leads the reader into a particular theme to emphasize meaning.

All of these prominent words in the Bible are also found in the Book of Mormon with the same contextual meanings. The Book of Mormon even introduces a couple of new Leitworts, such as remember in Helaman, chapter 5 and tight in Ether, chapters 2 and 6.

Buber and other Bible scholars have observed how the word down emphasizes the concept of moving away from the presence of God. The story of Jonah is perhaps the prime example for this Leitwort. Notice the repetition and context of the following verses:

"But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.

"Then the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god, and cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it of them. But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep" (Jonah 1: 3,5).

The word down and the phrase "from the presence of the Lord," are paired together in a chiastic structure. The meaning is clear from the context.

In the next chapter Jonah proclaims, "I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O Lord my God." And earlier he said, "I am cast out of thy sight; yet I will look again toward thy holy temple" (Jonah 2: 4,6).

As Jonah looks to run away from the Lord he is cast down, and after he has a more repentant attitude and is willing to "look again toward (the) temple," his life is brought up. The main scriptural purpose of the temple is to come back into the presence of God.

As Lehi and his family board the ship for the promised land, they are leaving the Jerusalem temple area, and in a symbolic sense, they are leaving the presence of God. In a similar fashion, the same Leitwort down is repeated in these verses:

"And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came unto my father, that we should arise and go down into the ship.

"And it came to pass that on the morrow, after we had prepared all things, much fruits and meat from the wilderness, and honey in abundance, and provisions according to that which the Lord had commanded us, we did go down into the ship, with all our loading and our seeds, and whatsoever thing we had brought with us, every one according to his age; wherefore, we did all go down into the ship, with our wives and our children.

"And it came to pass after we had all gone down into the ship, and had taken with us our provisions and things which had been commanded us, we did put forth into the sea and were driven forth before the wind towards the promised land" (1 Nephi 18: 5-6, 8).

The brother of Jared has a temple-like experience and actually overcomes the fall in that he is brought back into the presence of God (Ether 3: 13). The Book of Mormon uses Hebrew syntax of the words up and down to describe this experience of the brother of Jared.

"And the Lord commanded the brother of Jared to go down out of the mount from the presence of the Lord . . . " (Ether 4: 1).

These texts from the Book of Mormon demonstrate a purely Hebrew style and the purity of translation from these ancient texts. The literary style emphasizes the importance of temple ordinances in our quest to return to the presence of God. It also relates to the three pillars of eternity--Creation, Fall, and Atonement, and speaks of the role of the Savior as our great Mediator.