The Book of Mormon

1 Nephi 12:17

Back to chapter
~600–592 BC

1830 Edition

and the mists of darkness, are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they may perish, and are lost;

Influences

Matthew 4:1 (KJV)
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

Changes

aAnd the mists of darkness, are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they may perish, and are lost;.

Simple English

The mists of darkness are the devil’s temptations. They blind people’s eyes and harden their hearts. They lead them away on wide roads where they die and are lost.

Paraphrase

'The dark mists are the devil’s temptations. They blind people and harden their hearts, leading them down wide roads to destruction.'

Notes

12:1-23

Both Joseph Smith’s father and Nephi’s father are described as having multiple dreams. In her book, Lucy Mack Smith recounts several of her husband’s visions, which were likely shared often within the family. One of these dreams is dated sixteen years before Joseph Smith obtained the plates:

"In 1811, we moved... to the town of Lebanon, New Hampshire. Soon after arriving here, my husband received another very singular vision, which I will relate..."

Readers have noted similarities between this account and the dream of Lehi in the Book of Mormon.

The following outlines parallels between Joseph Smith Sr.’s dream, as recorded in Lucy Smith's Biographical Sketches of Joseph Smith the Prophet and His Progenitors for Many Generations, and Lehi’s dream in 1 Nephi 8, along with Nephi’s expanded description of the same vision in 1 Nephi 11-14.

  1. Both Joseph Smith's father and Lehi state they were traveling (1 Nephi 8:8; Smith, p. 58).
  2. Both mention a field (1 Nephi 8:4,9; Smith, p. 58).
  3. Both dreams compare the field to a world (1 Nephi 8:20; Smith, p. 58).
  4. Both Joseph Smith Sr. and Lehi have a guide (1 Nephi 8:5-6; Smith, p. 58).
  5. Both mention a broad road or roads (1 Nephi 12:17; Smith, p. 58).
  6. Both mention a narrow path (1 Nephi 8:20; Smith, p. 58).
  7. Both mention a stream of water (1 Nephi 8:13; Smith, p. 58).
  8. Both mention something extending along the bank of the stream (1 Nephi 8:19; Smith, p. 58).
  9. Both mention a tree (1 Nephi 8:10; Smith, p. 58).
  10. Both mention the beauty of the tree (1 Nephi 11:8; Smith, p. 58).
  11. Both trees bore fruit (1 Nephi 8:10; Smith, p. 58).
  12. Both compared the whiteness of the fruit to snow (1 Nephi 11:8; Smith, p. 58).
  13. Both Joseph Smith Sr. and Lehi ate of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:11; Smith, p. 58).
  14. Both found the fruit to be delicious (1 Nephi 8:11; Smith, p. 58).
  15. Both wanted their families to partake of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:12; Smith, p. 58).
  16. Both families came and partook of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:16; Smith, p. 58).
  17. After eating the fruit both experienced great joy (1 Nephi 8:12; Smith, pp. 58-59).
  18. Both mention a spacious building (1 Nephi 8:26; Smith, p. 59).
  19. Both indicate the building reached high into the air (1 Nephi 8:26; Smith, p. 59).
  20. Both buildings were filled with people (1 Nephi 8:27; Smith, p. 59).
  21. In both buildings the people were finely dressed (1 Nephi 8:27; Smith, p. 59).
  22. In both cases the people in the building pointed the finger of scorn at those partaking of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:33; Smith, p. 59).
  23. Both state they ignored the people in the building (1 Nephi 8:33; Smith, p. 59).
  24. Both state the meaning of the fruit is the pure love of God (1 Nephi 11:21-22; Smith, p. 59).
  25. Both state two members of the family are not present (1 Nephi 8:17; Smith, p. 59).
  26. Both mention the fall of the building (1 Nephi 11:36; Smith, p. 59)
  27. Both imply that pride was connected with the building or its inhabitants (1 Nephi 11:36; Smith, p. 59).

For a full treatment of this subject, including a side-by-side comparison of the above references, see Jerald Tanner and Sandra Tanner, Joseph Smith's Plagiarism of the Bible in the Book of Mormon, pp. 161–163.