Keywords

Jacob, Book of Mormon, Sherem, Christ in the Book of Mormon

Abstract

Jacob’s powerful essay in Jacob chapters 4–6 ends with this statement: “I bid you farewell, until I shall meet you before the pleasing bar of God, which bar striketh the wicked with awful dread and fear. Amen” (Jacob 6:13). The essay represents Jacob’s teachings as a Nephite priest concerning the centrality of Christ in the religious and doctrinal framework of his Nephite congregation. It fits within the greater structure of the book of Jacob, which appears to be governed by Nephi1’s instructions concerning what should be included on the small plates. Recorded by Jacob in Jacob 1, the instruction suggests that only “preaching which was sacred, or revelation which was great, or prophesying” should be written on the plates, and that Jacob should then “touch upon [these teachings] as much as it were possible” (v. 4). The inclusion of the last instruction implies that the purpose of the record is to be pedagogical—to assist Jacob in teaching correct doctrine.

Original Publication Citation

Jacob: Faith and Great Anxiety