New Witnesses for God (Volume 3 of 3)Roberts, B. H. (Brigham Henry)
Religion
New Witnesses for God (Volume 3 of 3)
Roberts, B. H. (Brigham Henry)
Book of Mormon; Smith, Joseph, Jr., 1805-1844
And behold, this will I give unto you for a sign at the time of
his (Messiah's) coming; for behold, there shall be great lights in
heaven insomuch that in the night before he cometh there shall be
no darkness, insomuch that it shall appear unto man as if it were
day, therefore there shall be one day and a night, and a day as if
it were one day, and there were no night; and this shall be unto
you for a sign; for ye shall know of the rising of the sun, and
also if its setting; therefore they shall know of a surety that
there shall be two days and a night; nevertheless the night shall
not be darkened; and it shall be the night before he is born. And
behold there shall a new star arise, such an one as ye never have
beheld; and this also shall be a sign unto you. [1]
And it came to pass that the words which came unto Nephi were
fulfilled, according as they had been spoken; for behold at the
going down of the sun, there was no darkness; and the people began
to be astonished, because there was no darkness when the night
came. * * * * * * And it came to pass also, that a new star did
appear, according to the word. [2]
And now the native legends on this subject. From the native Central
American documents compiled and followed by Fuentes y Guzman, quoted by
Juarrors, whom Bancroft follows, it is learned that a certain Quiche
prince, Acxopil, the son of Nimaquiche, observing that his people had
greatly increased in number and influence, divided his empire into
three kingdoms. And now Bancroft, who is quoting Juarrors:
Retaining for himself the first, he gave the second to his oldest
son, Jiutemal, and the third to his second son, Acxiquat; and this
division was made on a day when three suns were seen, which has
caused some to think that it took place on the day of the birth of
our Redeemer, a day on which it is commonly believed that such a
meteor was observed. [3]
The "day when three suns were seen"--"the day of the birth of our
Redeemer"--easily accords with the two days and a night of the
continuous light of the Book of Mormon, especially when considered in
connection with the appearance of a "new star" (the "meteor" of the
quotation) as a sign to the Nephites of the birth of Messiah.
Referring to the traditions of the primitive Nahua period, after
dealing with the events of the first age, which treats of the creation,
flood, dispersion of mankind, the migration of a colony of seven
families to a new land, etc., Bancroft, following the native writer
Ixtilxochiti, deals with the second Nahua age, as follows:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account