Mountains as Sacred Places in 1st and 2nd Nephi

Preface: Mountains, high places, or hills are OFTEN connected with temples or the sacred in scripture. Physical ascent of a mountain symbolically captures the effort, journey, and place where a prophet can get physically close to God. Elder Russell M. Nelson (Dec., 1989, Ensign) made this analogy: "Mountains are not easy to climb. Then, as now, the Lord called His disciples to climb mountains to emphasize the efficacy of effort and obedience. He will ask the same of you, figuratively and possibly literally, also." Here, in this essay we will explore the tri-connection between temples, mountains, and closeness to God. After reviewing some Bible references, an emphasis will be placed on the 1st and 2nd Books of Nephi in the Book of Mormon, which contains an unusual richness of such symbolism. But first we need the general context from the Bible.

*****Context from the Bible*****

A simple word search of “mountain” on an electronic Bible quickly reveals significant theological connections.

Among the earliest stories involving a sacred mountain was the binding of Isaac by Abraham. Genesis 22:2 reads: “get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.”

In the Book of Exodus the prophet Moses climbed a mountain in order to communicate with the LORD. The mountain was high enough that it was covered by a cloud, which represented the glory of God (Exodus 24: 15-16). In chapters 25 through 31 Moses while on that mountain for forty days and nights (see Exodus 24:18) received the ordinances, statutes, and covenants associated with the Aaronic Priesthood. Since that time, mountains or hills always have been associated with sacred places for communicating with God.

Solomon's temple in Jerusalem was built on Mount Moriah (2 Chronicles 3: 1). The location is often called the "Temple Mount." The location was NOT the highest elevation in Jerusalem. Thus, the connection between "mount" and "temple" is as much symbolic as it is literal. Depending upon context, “Mount Zion” as a generic term often means Jerusalem or the Temple Mount, but it can also be distinguished as a separate hill from the Temple Mount.

Oft cited verses on the topic of mountains or high places from the Old Testament are the following:

Isaiah 56: 7
Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.

Ezekiel 20: 40
For in mine holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them in the land, serve me: there will I accept them, and there will I require your offerings, and the firstfruits of your oblations, with all your holy things.

Psalm 24: 3-5
3 Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall stand in his holy place?
4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.
5 He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

The meaning of mountains is very clear in the following verse:

Isaiah 2: 2-3
2 And it shall come to pass in the last days,
that the mountain of the LORD's house 
shall be established in the top of the mountains,
and shall be exalted above the hills;
and all the nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people shall go, and say,
Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob;
and he will teach us his ways,
and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

In the cited verses above notice the characteristics associated with temples. Temples are a "holy mountain," joyful houses of prayer, places of ordinance and sacrifice, places for the spiritually clean, and places of higher learning. It is in the "temple mount" wherein we may be taught the ways of the Lord in order to walk God's paths.



It is in temples that people can make covenants or promises to God:

Ezekiel 37:26 [emphasis mine]
26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.

The prophet Joel says Jerusalem is a special mountain protected from enemies:

Joel 3:17
17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy, and there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

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The appointment of the twelve Apostles was established in the synoptic gospels on a mountain. For example, see:

Mark 3:13-14
13And he [Jesus] goeth up into a mountain, and calleth unto him whom he would: and they came unto him.
14And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach… .

On a mountain Jesus was transfigured before Peter, James, and John, and they beheld Moses and Elijah (Matthew 17:1-3).

When Jesus was upset at the Sadducees and Pharisees, he said to them:

Matthew 21:13
13 ... It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

Jesus clearly thought of the temple as "My house" or as his "Father's house." In any case, this verse also tells us that Jesus taught that the temple when used properly was a "house of prayer." When Jesus said "It is written," he was referring to the words of Isaiah 56:7, cited above.

As Latter-day Saints we often think of temples as places for baptisms on behalf of the dead, eternal marriage ceremonies, and other ordinances. We also need to emphasize that our temples are great houses of prayer as though they were mountains of the LORD.

*****Mountains in First Nephi*****

Nowhere in all of scripture is the mountain metaphor for temples and theophanic experience made more explicit than in 1st and 2nd Nephi of the Book of Mormon. Please note that whenever mountains are mentioned in these verses, something happens having unusual spiritual significance. This section will NOT be comprehensive, but will cover the most relevant verses.

For each cited verse I will try to establish the context. Please remember that Orson Pratt in 1879 created the chapter and versification used by the modern 1981 edition of the Book of Mormon. The original 1830 edition had much longer chapters and no verses. Consequently, to establish context sometimes it is necessary to discuss verses from preceding and following chapters.

Note: Emphasized words in the following verses are mine.

1 Nephi 11:1

The vision described by Nephi in 1st Nephi chapter 11 is without doubt one of the most grand in all books of scripture. It occurred sometime between 600 and 592 B.C. The context of chapter 11 is temple oriented. 1 Nephi 10: 18 reads: "the way is prepared for all men from the foundation of the world, if it so be that they repent and come unto him [the Son of God]." Verse 19 suggests: "the mysteries of God shall be unfolded." The verse in question reads:

1 Nephi 11:1
1 FOR it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain, which I never had before seen, and upon which I never had before set my foot.

In the vision Nephi communicates with the "Spirit of the Lord," and sees the tree of life, the cities of Jerusalem and Nazareth (a city not actually known until New Testament times), the virgin mother carrying the baby Jesus, the iron rod, the crucifixion, the twelve apostles, and many other important symbols and events.

1 Nephi 12:4 & 1 Nephi 13:37

The following verses are a continuation of Nephi’s vision discussed above. The usages of “mountains” in these verses are NOT necessarily connected to temples, but remember this vision is taking place ON A MOUNTAIN. Thus, whenever one encounters the term or related terminology, one must ask oneself whether a sacred place might be the referent.

The following verse is in apparent reference to the visit of the resurrected Christ to the Americas shortly after the crucifixion.

1 Nephi 12:4
4 And it came to pass that I saw a mist of darkness on the face of the land of promise; and I saw lightnings, and I heard thunderings, and earthquakes, and all manner of tumultuous noises; and I saw the earth and the rocks, that they rent; and I saw mountains tumbling into pieces; and I saw the plains of the earth, that they were broken up; and I saw many cities that they were sunk; and I saw many that they were burned with fire; and I saw many that did tumble to the earth, because of the quaking thereof.

See also: 2 Nephi 26: 3-6. Sacred places (with or without temples) are NOT necessarily immune to destructive physical events. We need think only of the sacred Jerusalem and Nauvoo temples as two examples. Both were destroyed to the ground.

The next indented verse appears to be in reference to our time (the dispensation of “latter-days”). Nephi is told in his vision that during this time there are “many plain and precious things taken from the book, which is the book of the Lamb of God,” which would be the Bible (see 1 Nephi 13: 28). Modern scholarship has shown as fact, for example, that the Septuagint and Masoretic Bible texts significantly differ in MANY verses. The passage of focus below implies a “restoration:”

1 Nephi 13:37
37 And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; and if they endure unto the end they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; and whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.

The last phrases of this verse recall the words of Isaiah 52:7: “How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace; that bringeth good tidings of good, that publisheth salvation; that saith unto Zion, Thy God reigneth!”

1 Nephi 16:30

The next verse makes reference to the “Liahona” (a name identified only in Alma 37:38), which was “a round ball of curious [meaning: skilled] workmanship” (1 Nephi 16:10). Evidently, it was some kind of compass (an ancient GPS device) and/or a “scrying” tool. The Lord instructed Nephi, “Look upon the ball, and behold the things which are written” (1 Nephi 16:26).

1 Nephi 16:30
30 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did go forth up into the top of the mountain, according to the directions which were given upon the ball.

Nephi and his family were traveling in the deserts (or wilderness) of the Middle East (probably Arabia). From the obtained knowledge on the mountain, Nephi was able to find and slay beasts for food to sustain his family. (Incidently, the highest mountains in Saudi Arabia tend to be in the southwest near the Red Sea).

1 Nephi 17:7

Nephi and his family wandered the wilderness for eight years (1 Nephi 17:4). At some point the LORD told Nephi to get to a mountain. When such a message is given, something important is about to happen. The passage of concern reads:

1 Nephi 17:7
7 And it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had been in the land of Bountiful for the space of many days, the voice of the Lord came unto me, saying: Arise, and get thee into the mountain. And it came to pass that I arose and went up into the mountain, and cried unto the Lord.

While on the mountain Nephi was told to “construct a ship” that would carry his people across the ocean (1 Nephi 17:8).

1 Nephi 18:3

While building the ship Nephi reported that the ship was designed “after the manner … the Lord had shown” (1 Nephi 18:2). In order to obtain such inspiration, Nephi declared:

1 Nephi 18:3
3 And I, Nephi, did go into the mount oft, and I did pray oft unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord showed unto me great things.

Upon finishing the ship, Nephi reported that the workmanship was “exceedingly fine” (1 Nephi 18: 4). Eventually, the ship took its set journey.

1 Nephi 19:11

Nephi reported that “after … many days we did arrive at the promised land” (somewhere in the Americas about 589 B.C.; see 1 Nephi 18: 23). Soon Nephi began writing on metal plates that which he thought was “sacred,” even if having some errors (1 Nephi 19: 6). He then began to write about the signs associated with the crucifixion of the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (1 Nephi 19:10). Quoting the prophet Zenos, Nephi wrote:

1 Nephi 19:11
11 For thus spake the prophet: The Lord God surely shall visit all the house of Israel at that day, some with his voice, because of their righteousness, unto their great joy and salvation, and others with the thunderings and the lightnings of his power, by tempest, by fire, and by smoke, and vapor of darkness, and by the opening of the earth, and by mountains which shall be carried up.

Indeed in fulfillment of that prophecy, 3rd Nephi 8: 10 reported about 600 years later upon the death of Christ that: “the earth was carried up upon the city of Moronihah, that in the place of the city there became a great mountain.” Considerable natural destruction took place. (See also: 3 Nephi 8:6-23).

Chaper 21 verses 11 and 13 make important references to mountains, but are quoting Isaiah 49 and will not be developed further here.

*****Mountains in Second Nephi*****

Again, this set of verses will NOT be a comprehensive exegesis of “mountain” verses in Second Nephi, but major verses will be covered. Emphasized words in the following verses are mine.

2 Nephi 4:25

The following verse comes from the famous set of verses known as “Nephi’s psalm” (2 Nephi 4: 16-35). These poetic words may not have been sung, but they read like they could have been. The psalm is about how Nephi overcame discouragement and depression.

Verse 15 states “my soul delighteth in the scriptures,” and verse 16 follows with “my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord.” In the Book of Mormon the phrase “my soul delighteth” is used ONLY by Nephi and ONLY in the Second Book of Nephi. The phrase is used ten times. In the King James Bible the phrase is used once: Isaiah 42:1.

At the beginning of the psalm Nephi is grieving because of his iniquities, temptations, and sins. Then, the verses quickly shift to a positive tone, wherein Nephi remembered that “God hath been my support” (v. 20). By verse 24 Nephi described himself as waxing “bold in mighty prayer,” and angels ministering to him. Then, Nephi was swept away by the following spiritual experience:

2 Nephi 4:25
25 And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high mountains. And mine eyes have beheld great things, yea, even too great for man; therefore I was bidden that I should not write them.

Please note that Nephi on the high mountains perceive things about which he was forbidden to write. Clearly, the experience was personal and sacred.

2 Nephi 12:2-3, 14

These famous verses are near direct quotations from Isaiah 2: 2-3, 14. From these verses it becomes clear that the connections between temples and mountains in the Book of Mormon were derived (at least in part) from the teachings of Isaiah.

2 Nephi 12:2-3
2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, when the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.
3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths; for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.

2 Nephi 12:14
14 And upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills, and upon all the nations which are lifted up, and upon every people;

2 Nephi 14:5

The following verse comes from Isaiah 4:5. The verse indicates that a day is coming in which Jerusalem (mount Zion) will be a place of shelter protected by the LORD.

2 Nephi 14:5
5 And the Lord will create upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for upon all the glory of Zion shall be a defence.

In Latter-day Saint parlance the phrase “Becoming Saviors on Mount Zion” is often heard. The phrase ALWAYS has reference to performing temple work.

Incidently, the word “defense” is consistently spelled “defence” throughout the Book of Mormon. One must wonder whether other British spellings have crept in.

Additional references to Mount Zion as Jerusalem or a location in Jerusalem can be found in 2 Nephi 18:18; 20:12, 32; and 27:3.

2 Nephi 21:9; 23: 2-4; 24: 13, 25

The verses cited in the header above are quotations from Isaiah chapters 11, 13, and 14. No further comment will be made.

2 Nephi 30:15

Referring to a time of future peace (such as the Millennium) where “the wolf dwell with the lamb,” and where there will be a restoration of all people and nations, Nephi indicates:

2 Nephi 30:15
15 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.

In such a time, Nephi concludes (v. 17): “There is nothing which is secret save it shall be revealed… .”

*****Conclusions*****

Although “mountain” symbols in the Book of Mormon are found predominantly in 1st and 2nd Nephi, such symbolic references are sprinkled throughout the Book of Mormon. For example, the golden plates were buried in the hill Cumorah (Mormon 6:6).

Readers of the Book of Mormon need to be attuned to the significance of “mountains” or “hills.” They are symbols of warning that something spiritually important has just happened or is about to happen. Quite often mountains in scripture are described in the context of temple themes.

Mountains are indeed a symbol. Again, as Elder Russell M. Nelson (Dec., 1989, Ensign) has taught: "Mountains are not easy to climb. Then, as now, the Lord called His disciples to climb mountains to emphasize the efficacy of effort and obedience. He will ask the same of you, figuratively and possibly literally, also."

The primary lesson of this long essay is simple. When reading about mountains, high places, or hills in scripture, PAY ATTENTION.

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Copyright 2009 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.




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