Zenos, Zenock and Isaiah walk into a bar...

Book of Mormon (1 Nephi- Alma 49): Doctrines & Evidences
October 25, 2010

To start off the lesson, Brother Wood lifted a long chain off his desk and showed it to us.  He told us that nowhere in the Old Testament are chains referenced in any spiritual manner, but he was sure we all knew of the many Book of Mormon references to the chains Satan binds us with.  Brother Wood than had us name four ways information traveled in Old Testament times.

His answers:

1) Word of Mouth (Prophet)
2) Word of Mouth (Angels)
3) Word of Mouth (Holy Ghost)
4) Written (Declarations, Letters, Proclamations, Books)

Moses 5:58 "And thus the Gospel began to be preached, from the beginning, being declared by holy angels sent forth from the presence of God, and by his own voice, and by the gift of the Holy Ghost."

"How did Moses know that?"  Brother Wood asks us.  "He's got Adam's book.... Let me tell you this:  prophets quote past prophets without attribution."   (That means they don't cite each other... I had to look that one up.)  He continues, "The Book of Mormon begins and ends with the concept of 'tender mercies'" and then rants for a few minutes about how our two worst enemies are physical death and spiritual death because you can do nothing about them and for those who disagree with Mormonism, he tells them, "We'll see you then", meaning he'll see them in the afterlife.  Death is cold, unfeeling, he tells us.  BUT, "Thank goodness the Lamb (Jesus) saved us... You wanna be a smart alec?  Talk to me on the day you die.  Then you'll know that your best friend is the Savior.  I talked to a guy-- aren't the Large & Spacious Building people loud and obnoxious??-- and he said he didn't think the Book of Mormon was true, and I asked him if he'd read it, and he told me yes, and I said 'You're a liar."  No one who's read it, disagrees with it because the minute you [read it], you find Jesus."

So, by this time I am thoroughly confused; we jumped from chains, to oral tradition, to prophet's citations, to the phrase "tender mercies", to a fear tactic that left me reeling, and to a claim that left me rolling my eyes.  [Yes, Brother Wood, I have read the Book of Mormon 8 times through, and have prayed about it with a sincere heart, and I do not believe it to be what it is claimed to be.]  I'm not following his train of thought in the least... Honestly, I didn't understand the train of thought until he wrapped it up at the end of the lesson.  I will now try to unravel Brother Wood's brain, so it's easier for you to understand.

Brother Wood: Those anti-Mormons like to say that Joseph Smith copied stuff out of the Bible and put it into the Book of Mormon, but we know that there are so many similarities because they were citing the same source.... Today, I am going to prove to you that Joseph Smith would not have had the time to copy these things.

(At this point in the lesson, I assume he means they were both citing God, and I am excited for him to substantiate his claim.)

On the board are several corresponding scripture similarities:

Malachi 4:2 

1 Nephi 22: 24

John 10:14-16 & Psalm 23

Alma 5: 38-39

1 Cor. 15:49

Alma 5:14

Luke 3:9

Alma 5: 52

1 Cor 12:8

Moroni 10:9-11 

 John 5: 28-29

Mosiah 16:11

1 Cor 13:4-8

Moroni 7:45-47

1 John 3:2

Moroni 7:48 

1 Cor 15:54-56

Mosiah 16:7 

We commence playing the game "Who's Quoting Whom?"  Brother Wood begins by making the claim that because all of these particular scriptures are after Lehi has left Jerusalem (and therefore would not possess the records) are proof that the Book of Mormon is true.  I'm glad he didn't go into that for his sake, because the claim is a train wreck ready to happen, as it requires the assumption of the Book of Mormon's truth to be made.

"I would suggest," Brother Wood whispers, "they're both quoting somebody else."

Zenos and Zenock are two prophets quoted and mentioned heavily in the Book of Mormon.  They are not to be found anywhere in recorded history or in the Bible.  Brother Wood says that Satan took out specific Biblical chapters that talked about Zenos and Zenock (and Enoch and maybe even Shem) because they were such amazing prophets.

Zenos and Zenock were said to live around 1700 BC, after Abraham (Helaman 8:19-20), their teachings were on the Brass Plates-- the copy of the Bible up until 600 BC-- (1 Nephi 19:10, 21), they were the ancestors of Book of Mormon people (3 Nephi 10:15-16), they prophesied of destruction at the time of Christ's death, particularly to the "remnant of their seed"/Israel.  Zenock died a martyr's death (Alma 33:17).  Zenos died a martyr's death (Helaman 8:18).

Brother Wood then had us flip to Alma 33.  The author is quoting Zenos, and Zenos uses some form of the word "mercy" 7 times in the next several scriptures.  This, Brother Wood tells us, makes him believe Nephi and Isaiah and all the other Book of Mormon and Biblical prophets are quoting Zenos and Zenock.  And this is how we know that the Book of Mormon is true.

So....  the problem with this thought process is that in order to believe Biblical prophets were quoting Zenos and Zenock, you have to assume the Book of Mormon is true and therefore assume Zenos and Zenock lived, because there is no empirically testable proof for Zenos and Zenock's existence.  But why would you need to believe that Zenos and Zenock were being quoted?  To use as evidence for the Book of Mormon's truth.

And that is the end of Brother Wood's lesson about who is quoting whom in the Bible and Book of Mormon...  I feel it leaves much to be desired.

Of course, this is not the end of the lesson.

But I am going crazy... I'll come back later tonight and talk about the Dead Sea Scrolls and Enoch.





References:
Wikipedia: Zenock
Hugh Nibley-- Dead Sea Scrolls: Q & A
Wikipedia: Zenos
Book of Enoch
Barauk Ale, Enoch, Moses
Book of Mormon