The Book of Mormon

1 Nephi 18:13

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~591–589 BC

1830 Edition

wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch, that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest; and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly, lest they should be drowned in the Sea; nevertheless, they did loose me not.

Influences

Mark 4:37 (KJV)
And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.

Changes

wWherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch, that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest;, and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly, lest they should be drowned in the Ssea; nevertheless, they did not loose me not.

Simple English

They didn’t know which way to steer the ship. A great storm came up. It was a terrible storm. We were blown back on the waters for three days. They became very frightened that they would drown in the sea. But they still didn’t untie me.

Paraphrase

Without it, they didn’t know how to steer. A massive, terrifying storm hit us, and we were blown backward for three days. They were scared they’d drown, but they still wouldn’t untie me.

Notes

18:6-21

"In the Book of Mormon many of the stories appear to be biblical stories retold in a new setting. In 1 Nephi we read about a great storm that the Israelites encountered on the way to America. Interestingly, the story bears a remarkable resemblance to an incident mentioned in the New Testament concerning Jesus (see Mark 4:37-39). Both stories use identical language when speaking of the storm. In 1 Nephi 18:13 we read: 'there arose a great storm...' Mark 4:37 also says: 'there arose a great storm...'

In both cases people in the boat become concerned that they are about to 'perish' and seek help from their spiritual leader. In both cases, after the leader comes forth, the storm ceases.

Almost identical wording appears in both accounts concerning the calming of the sea. 1 Nephi 18:21 states: 'the winds did cease... and there was a great calm.' In Mark 4:39 we read: 'the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.'

It seems obvious that the author of the Book of Mormon borrowed from the gospel of Mark. The close parallels certainly show a dependence on the King James account. Lehi's family, of course, would not have had access to the books of the New Testament, which were written hundreds of years after they left Jerusalem." -Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Joseph Smith's Plagiarism of the Bible in the Book of Mormon, p. 13.