The Book of Ether Chapter 15 Critique
Setting: Millions of the
Jaredites are slain in battle—Shiz and Coriantumr assemble all the
people to mortal combat—The Spirit of the Lord ceases to strive with
them—The Jaredite nation is utterly destroyed—Only Coriantumr remains.
Verses 1-2: And it came to pass
when Coriantumr had recovered of his wounds, he began to remember the
words which Ether had spoken unto him. He saw that there had been slain
by the sword already nearly two millions of his people, and he began to
sorrow in his heart; yea, there had been slain two millions of mighty
men, and also their wives and their children.
Note: The Olmec population was never in the millions of people.
Around 900 BCE the site of San Lorenzo displays evidence of systematic
destruction whilst La Venta, conversely, began to flourish, and
becoming the new capital, it eventually supported a population of some
18,000. Ancient History Encyclopedia.
Verses 3-5: He began to repent
of the evil which he had done; he began to remember the words which had
been spoken by the mouth of all the prophets, and he saw them that they
were fulfilled thus far, every whit; and his soul mourned and refused
to be comforted. And it came to pass that he wrote an epistle unto
Shiz, desiring him that he would spare the people, and he would give up
the kingdom for the sake of the lives of the people. And it came to
pass that when Shiz had received his epistle he wrote an epistle unto
Coriantumr, that if he would give himself up, that he might slay him
with his own sword, that he would spare the lives of the people.
Note: Pre-Columbian writing systems did not use letters.
The most distinguishable feature of all Mesoamerican scripts is the
highly intricate and pictorial form of signs. They are often called
"hieroglyphic" in analogy to Egyptian hieroglyphs since their symbols
are highly pictorial. For this reason, a sign from a Mesoamerican
scripts is often called a "glyph", as a short form of "hieroglyph".
Ancientscripts.com
Verses 6-29: And it came to
pass that the people repented not of their iniquity; and the people of
Coriantumr were stirred up to anger against the people of Shiz; and the
people of Shiz were stirred up to anger against the people of
Coriantumr; wherefore, the people of Shiz did give battle unto the
people of Coriantumr. And when Coriantumr saw that he was about to fall
he fled again before the people of Shiz. And it came to pass that he
came to the waters of Ripliancum, which, by interpretation, is large,
or to exceed all; wherefore, when they came to these waters they
pitched their tents; and Shiz also pitched his tents near unto them;
and therefore on the morrow they did come to battle. And it came to
pass that they fought an exceedingly sore battle, in which Coriantumr
was wounded again, and he fainted with the loss of blood. And it came
to pass that the armies of Coriantumr did press upon the armies of Shiz
that they beat them, that they caused them to flee before them; and
they did flee southward, and did pitch their tents in a place which was
called Ogath. And it came to pass that the army of Coriantumr did pitch
their tents by the hill Ramah; and it was that same hill where my
father Mormon did hide up the records unto the Lord, which were sacred.
And it came to pass that they did gather together all the people upon
all the face of the land, who had not been slain, save it was Ether.
And it came to pass that Ether did behold all the doings of the people;
and he beheld that the people who were for Coriantumr were gathered
together to the army of Coriantumr; and the people who were for Shiz
were gathered together to the army of Shiz. Wherefore, they were for
the space of four years gathering together the people, that they might
get all who were upon the face of the land, and that they might receive
all the strength which it was possible that they could receive. And it
came to pass that when they were all gathered together, every one to
the army which he would, with their wives and their children—both men,
women and children being armed with weapons of war, having shields, and
breastplates, and head-plates, and being clothed after the manner of
war—they did march forth one against another to battle; and they fought
all that day, and conquered not. And it came to pass that when it was
night they were weary, and retired to their camps; and after they had
retired to their camps they took up a howling and a lamentation for the
loss of the slain of their people; and so great were their cries, their
howlings and lamentations, that they did rend the air exceedingly. And
it came to pass that on the morrow they did go again to battle, and
great and terrible was that day; nevertheless, they conquered not, and
when the night came again they did rend the air with their cries, and
their howlings, and their mournings, for the loss of the slain of their
people. And it came to pass that Coriantumr wrote again an epistle unto
Shiz, desiring that he would not come again to battle, but that he
would take the kingdom, and spare the lives of the people. But behold,
the Spirit of the Lord had ceased striving with them, and Satan had
full power over the hearts of the people; for they were given up unto
the hardness of their hearts, and the blindness of their minds that
they might be destroyed; wherefore they went again to battle. And it
came to pass that they fought all that day, and when the night came
they slept upon their swords. And on the morrow they fought even until
the night came. And when the night came they were drunken with anger,
even as a man who is drunken with wine; and they slept again upon their
swords. And on the morrow they fought again; and when the night came
they had all fallen by the sword save it were fifty and two of the
people of Coriantumr, and sixty and nine of the people of Shiz. And it
came to pass that they slept upon their swords that night, and on the
morrow they fought again, and they contended in their might with their
swords and with their shields, all that day. And when the night came
there were thirty and two of the people of Shiz, and twenty and seven
of the people of Coriantumr. And it came to pass that they ate and
slept, and prepared for death on the morrow. And they were large and
mighty men as to the strength of men. And it came to pass that they
fought for the space of three hours, and they fainted with the loss of
blood. And it came to pass that when the men of Coriantumr had received
sufficient strength that they could walk, they were about to flee for
their lives; but behold, Shiz arose, and also his men, and he swore in
his wrath that he would slay Coriantumr or he would perish by the
sword. Wherefore, he did pursue them, and on the morrow he did overtake
them; and they fought again with the sword. And it came to pass that
when they had all fallen by the sword, save it were Coriantumr and
Shiz, behold Shiz had fainted with the loss of blood.
Note: Mesoamerican peoples were never completely destroyed.
The Olmec influence extended across Mexico, into Central America, and
along the Gulf of Mexico. They transformed many peoples' thinking
toward a new way of government, pyramid-temples, writing, astronomy,
art, mathematics, economics, and religion. Their achievements paved the
way for the greatness of the Maya civilization in the east and the
civilizations to the west in central Mexico. Wikipedia Encyclopedia.
Verses 30-32: And it came to
pass that when Coriantumr had leaned upon his sword, that he rested a
little, he smote off the head of Shiz. And it came to pass that after
he had smitten off the head of Shiz, that Shiz raised up on his hands
and fell; and after that he had struggled for breath, he died. And it
came to pass that Coriantumr fell to the earth, and became as if he had
no life.
Note: Decapitation results in immediate death.
Decapitation is the complete separation of the head from the body. In
humans and most other animals, death will always result from such an
injury, since severing the head deprives all other organs of the
involuntary functions that are essential for the body to function while
the brain itself is deprived of oxygenated blood. Wikipedia
Encyclopedia.
Verses 33-34: And the Lord
spake unto Ether, and said unto him: Go forth. And he went forth, and
beheld that the words of the Lord had all been fulfilled; and he
finished his record; (and the hundredth part I have not written) and he
hid them in a manner that the people of Limhi did find them. Now the
last words which are written by Ether are these: Whether the Lord will
that I be translated, or that I suffer the will of the Lord in the
flesh, it mattereth not, if it so be that I am saved in the kingdom of
God. Amen.
Note: Pre-Columbian natives were polytheistic pagans.
As Olmec mythology has left no documents comparable to the Popul Vuh
from Maya mythology, any exposition of Olmec mythology must be based on
interpretations of surviving monumental and portable art (such as the
Las Limas figure at right), and comparisons with other Mesoamerican
mythologies. Olmec art shows that such deities as the Feathered Serpent
and a rain supernatural were already in the Mesoamerican pantheon in
Olmec times. Wikipedia Encyclopedia.
Note: It is understandable why
Solomon Spalding could not get his manuscript published. But it is
surprising that Sidney Rigdon who stole the manuscript thought it could
be something great. More surprising was Joseph Smith who actually found
someone to pay for the publishing of this manuscript. Finally, it is
astonishing that anyone after the 19th century would believe the
nonsense found in the Book of Mormon.
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