Interpreting Interpreter: Following the Jewish Lectionary

This post is a summary of the article ““That They May Know That They Are Not Cast Off Forever”: Jewish Lectionary Elements in the Book of Mormon” by Bradley J. Kramer in Volume 62 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/.

The Takeaway

Kramer identifies sermons from early Book of Mormon prophets that appear to align with modern Jewish practices for using and explaining the scriptures during Sabbath and festival worship, giving primacy to the words of the Torah, emphasizing them with thematically connected passages from the Prophets, and then working to expound those ideas.

The Summary

In this article, Bradley J. Kramer outlines contemporary Jewish practices for Sabbath and festival worship (i.e., the Jewish lectionary), noting that rabbinic sermons in that tradition follow a particular order, reading first from the Torah (parashot), then citing material from the Prophets (haftarot), and then working to explain or “give the sense” of those scriptures (derashot). Kramer argues that several sermons from early Book of Mormon prophets follow this same pattern, including:

- Nephi’s preaching to his brothers in 1 Nephi 19–22, where he begins by citing the "books of Moses", then reads to them from Isaiah 49, and then, over the next few chapters, works to explain the meaning of these passages.

- Jacob’s sermon in 2 Nephi 6–9, where he reminds them of previous teachings of “all things which are written, from the creation of the world” (presumably from the Torah), then quotes from Isaiah 49 prior to explaining these passages.

- Abinadi’s response to King Noah and his priests in Mosiah 12, first quoting from the Ten Commandments, then making use of Isaiah 53 before attempting to answer their question.

- Ammon’s teaching of King Lamoni in Alma 18, where he begins by teaching the creation, before reading that which “had been spoken by the prophets”, and subsequently expounding on the plan of redemption (see also Aaron’s interaction with King Lamoni’s father in Alma 22, which follows a similar pattern).

In addition to this sequence, Kramer notes how lectionary examples often have meaningful connections between the sets of cited scriptures passages. In the Jewish tradition, for instance, the Torah-based story of the faithless scouts in Numbers 13 is often paired with the story of the successful scouts in Joshua 2, highlighting the thematic parallels between those stories. Assuming that the paired readings in the Book of Mormon show similar connections, it suggests that Nephi and Jacob’s readings from the Torah could have included Deuteronomy 7:12–11:25, the passage traditionally connected with Isaiah 49. If so, this could help explain why Nephi’s brothers asked if the described gathering was to be understood as spiritual or physical, as Isaiah’s description of the gathering is presented in a more metaphorical way when compared with the straightforward blessings listed in Deuteronomy—a contrast which may have confused Nephi’s brothers.

Kramer also notes how the lectionary is often tied to specific events or festivals, citing passages (i.e., the Haftarot of Admonition and Consolation) read in connection with the Jewish holiday of Tisha b’Av, commemorating the destruction of the Jewish temple. Kramer suggests that Jacob’s sermon in 2 Nephi 6-9 reacts to Israel’s destruction in a way similar to those traditional Tisha b’Av sermons, reading a series of passages meant to console Israel in the aftermath of that calamity.

These lectionary similarities are part of an array of parallels with Jewish thought and practice within the Book of Mormon–connections that are of great comfort to many Jewish members who see the importance of their traditions affirmed within the modern Church of Jesus Christ. They affirm the status of the Jews as the recipients of God’s ancient covenant, working against potential strains of antisemitism and Christian supersessionism. As Kramer concludes:

“How exactly the Nephites worshipped on the Sabbath is not entirely clear. However, the fact that their use of the Hebrew Scriptures, as presented in the Book of Mormon, connects so strikingly with the way Jews use those scriptures in their Sabbath worship services is extremely meaningful, especially to Latter-day Saint Jews… [It] provides them—as well as others—a very personal, almost sensory reassurance that God, like Nephi, does in fact have “charity” for Jews as Jews, that he treasures their traditions, particularly their scriptural traditions, and that he condemns all efforts to denigrate Jews and devalue their heritage.”

The Reflection

The lectionary practices outlined by Kramer help add another layer of authenticity to the prophetic sermons of the Book of Mormon. It may also be worth noting that we seem to be more likely to see this pattern with early prophetic figures (who would’ve been less removed from Israelite worship practices) than with later ones. But Kramer’s analysis also raises a bunch of interesting questions that I would love to have answered. Are the parallels to later Jewish practices, ones that don’t appear in the historical record until well after Lehi, merely a coincidence? Did they arise independently to serve a similar spiritual function? Are they included on the basis of revelation for the benefit of modern Jewish audiences (as Kramer implies)? Or are those practices (like the very idea of synagogues themselves) older than scholars have traditionally thought? I may not end up having the patience (or the lifespan) for those questions to be fully answered, but I can be grateful to Kramer for helping prompt them in the first place.

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