Jarom to the Words of Mormon - The end of the record

I hope some day to read what was in the lost 116 pages about this time. The record fast forwards through time covering five generations of writers and several hundred years. And yes, I realize there are six writers during this period, two of them are brothers, so for me they count as one generation. During this period the Nephites fall into apostasy. One writer confesses he is a wicked man. Another says he knows of no new prophecy among the people. It’s interesting to me that they also quit mentioning how much time has passed. The last that’s mentioned is by Amaron, Jarom’s grandson, when 320 years had passed.

The narrative resumes, a couple generations later, when Amaleki closes it out with the story of the Nephites fleeing from the Land of Nephi. Amaleki’s story is a poignant one. On the one hand, he has no children. At the same time, he mentions a brother who leaves with Zeniff to go back to the Land of Nephi. He had no one to give the plates to so he makes the choice to give them to King Benjamin. Benjamin is a prophet-warrior-king over the amalgamated nation of Nephites and Mulekites.

Perhaps it’s just because of the brevity of the record, but it’s here we read for the first time of dissensions away from the Nephites to the Lamanites. Reading between the lines, you realize joining the two people was difficult. It required a lot of effort by the king or government leaders to keep it going. This thread of discord runs throughout the rest of their history until Christ appears.

Just a reminder: this is the last part of the record Joseph Smith translated. When they sent the book to be printed, he put this account in front of the rest. The day dreamer in me thinks that had the 116 pages not been lost, it would’ve been at the end of the record, after Moroni. Like an appendix in a modern book. We start next in the Book of Mosiah. You’ll note, it doesn’t begin like any succeeding book with an introduction by Mormon: that was part of the 116 pages.

We don’t even know if it was originally named Mosiah by Mormon. Given the seminal event of Mosiah I fleeing into the wilderness it could be named after him. It may have been named Benjamin for the work he did in uniting the two people. It may even have been part of the Book of Lehi. Whatever the case, I’m certain Mormon did not name it after Benjamin’s son Mosiah II.