The Book of Mormon

2 Nephi 7:4

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~559–545 BC

1830 Edition

The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season unto thee, O House of Israel. When ye are weary, he waketh morning by morning. He waketh mine ear to hear as the learned.

Influences

Isaiah 50:4 (KJV)
The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned.

Changes

The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season unto thee, O Hhouse of Israel. When ye are weary, he waketh morning by morning. He waketh mine ear to hear as the learned.

Simple English

The Lord God has given me the words of teachers. He has taught me how to speak to you, people of Israel, when you are tired. He wakes me each morning. He wakes my ears to hear like a teacher.

Paraphrase

The Lord God has given me the words of someone trained, so I know how to speak to you when you’re exhausted, House of Israel. Every morning he wakes me. He opens my ears to hear like someone who’s been taught.

Notes

7:1-11

Chapters 7 and 8 of 2 Nephi reproduce material from Book of Isaiah (Isaiah 50–52:2), while an additional thirteen chapters (2 Nephi 12–24) quotes Isaiah 2–14—amounting to more than twenty-one total chapters of Isaiah within the Book of Mormon. Given that these records were reportedly engraved on small metal plates, a medium that would require significant effort and space (Jacob 4:1), this extensive duplication raises questions about purpose and necessity—especially since the Nephites already possessed Isaiah’s writings on the brass plates and the biblical text was independently preserved (as later evidenced by discoveries such as the Dead Sea Scrolls). Critics argue that this repetition, along with numerous phrases reflecting the King James Bible, suggests literary dependence rather than ancient origin. In contrast, Latter-day Saint scholars, including those from FAIR, contend that Isaiah was doctrinally central to Nephite theology. They emphasize that prophets like Nephi and Jacob not only quoted but interpreted Isaiah, indicating that these passages were intentionally preserved to teach covenant and messianic themes.