This post is a summary of the article “The Bands of Death, the Chains of Hell, and the Seed Motif” by Noel Hudson in Volume 64 of Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship. All of the Interpreting Interpreter articles may be seen at https://interpreterfoundation.org/category/summaries/. An introduction to the Interpreting Interpreter series is available at https://interpreterfoundation.org/interpreting-interpreter-on-abstracting-thought/.
A video introduction to this Interpreter article is now available on all of our social media channels, including on YouTube at https://youtube.com/shorts/E2nTCK8o4F8.
The Takeaway
Hudson continues to explore the seed motif (i.e., the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman), showing how that theme is detailed in the Book of Mormon, particularly by Alma, using the image of the "chains of hell" or the "bands of death." That image also appears to be intentionally contrasted in various ways, including by the image of the encircling arms of the love of God.
The Summary
In this article, Noel Hudson follows up a previous article outlining the scriptural seed motif seed, generally referring to Christ and his followers (the seed of the woman) and those who follow Satan (the seed of the serpent). This motif is identified through the use of leitworter, lead-words associated with specific themes that signal the use of or allusions to that theme. In the case of the Book of Mormon, Hudson suggests that the phrases "chains of hell" and "bands of death" serve as lead-words within the seed motif, and that these images are contrasted using a rhetorical device called a diptych–similar but contrasting stories that show opposite outcomes.
One example is the stories of Alma the Younger’s contrasting visits to Zarahemla and Ammonihah, where these two wicked peoples meet opposite ends based on the former’s willingness to repent. In these stories, Alma not only includes elements of the seed motif, but also incorporates a theme of bondage via the bands/chains metaphor. He also incorporates other themes that Hudson links to the seed motif, including the priesthood, wherein the washed garments of priesthood holders are contrasted with garments stained with blood (recalling the blood of Abel which testified against Cain. For Hudson, the fact that both stories include these themes means that they were meant to be compared and contrasted, similar to other parallel narratives in the text (e.g., Limhi vs. Benjamin; Lamoni vs. Lamoni’s Father), suggesting that they were meant as an intentional diptych.
Hudson then examines the potential origins of the bands/chains metaphor, including material that may have been on the brass plates, such as Enoch’s reference to Satan’s “great chain” in Moses 7, Lehi’s injunction to Laman and Lemuel to “shake off the awful chains” in 2 Nephi 1, Jacob’s reference to the monster of death and hell in 2 Nephi 9 (along with a reference to shaking his garments to be rid of their blood), Nephi’s description of the devil grasping with everlasting chains in 2 Nephi 28, and Abinadi’s reference to God breaking the bands of death in Mosiah 15. Hudson suggests that the similarities between Alma’s references and these passages are difficult to ignore. As he concludes:
“Taken together, the narratives examined suggest a complex picture of the seed motif that may be better explained by the adoption and adaptation of elements of the literary motif by authors across time, rather than as the effect of a single unifying editor or author who imposed the motif on previously existing accounts… It seems likely that several memorable metaphors used by Alma2 are based on earlier imagery from his prophetic predecessors.”
The Reflection
I like the seed motif. I think it’s a visceral set of images that have both great literary value and personal relevance for those who need to choose between good and evil (i.e., everyone). Hudson makes a good case for Zarahemla and Ammonihah as a diptych, and I look forward to any further motif-related explorations that he has coming down the pike.
