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Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon

Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon


The discovery of chiasmus in the Book of Mormon is one of the most significant scholarly contributions to understanding and appreciating the Nephite record. John W. Welch discovered the presence of chiasmus on August 16, 1967 while on his mission in Germany, and since that time, chiasmus has served as a profound witness for the beauty and complexity of the Book of Mormon. To celebrate Chiasmus Day (August 16), this page features various resources for studying chiasmus in the Book of Mormon. We hope these resources will enrich your study and serve to strengthen your testimony of this masterful work.

KnoWhys

Examples of Chiasms in the Book of Mormon

Videos on Chiasmus

Chiasmus: An Open Conference on the State of the Art

View Video Presentations

Chiasmus Jubilee 2017

Selected Articles

Welch, John W.. "Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon." In Book of Mormon Authorship: New Light on Ancient Origins, edited by Noel B. Reynolds, 33-52. Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, 1982.

Welch, John W.. "Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon." BYU Studies Quarterly 10, no. 3 (1969): 69-83.

Welch, John W.. "Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon." New Era (1972).

Edwards, Boyd F., and Farrell W. Edwards. "When Are Chiasms Admissible as Evidence?" BYU Studies Quarterly 49, no. 4 (2010): 131-154.

Edwards, Boyd F., and Farrell W. Edwards. "Does Chiasmus Appear in the Book of Mormon by Chance?" BYU Studies Quarterly 43, no. 2 (2004): 103-130.

Christenson, Allen J.. "Chiasmus in Mesoamerican Texts." In Reexploring the Book of Mormon, edited by John W. Welch, 233-235. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1992.

Welch, John W.. Forty-Five Years of Chiasmus Conversations: Correspondence, Criteria, and Creativity In 2012 FAIR Conference. Sandy, UT: FairMormon, 2012.

Welch, John W.. Chiasmus in Alma 36. Provo, UT: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 1989.

Welch, John W.. "Chiasmus in Helaman 6:7–13." In Reexploring the Book of Mormon, edited by John W. Welch, 230-232. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1992.

Reynolds, Noel B. "Nephi's Outline." In Book of Mormon Authorship: New Light on Ancient Origins. Edited by Noel B. Reynolds. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1996, 53-74

Parry, Donald W. "Hebrew Literary Patterns in the Book of Mormon." Ensign October 1989.

Parry, Donald W. "Power Through Repetition: The Dynamics of Book of Mormon Parallelism." In Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited: The Evidence for Ancient Origins. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1997, 295-309.

Parry, Donald W. Poetic Parallelisms in the Book of Mormon: The Complete Text Reformatted. Provo, UT: Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, 2007.

Welch, John W., editor. Chiasmus in Antiquity: Strucutres, Analyses, Exegesis. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998.

Radday, Yehuda T. "Chiasmus in Hebrew Biblical Narrative." In Chiasmus in Antiquity: Structures, Analyses, Exegesis. Edited by John W. Welch. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998.

Porten, Bezalel. "Structure and Chiasm in Aramaic Contracts and Letters." In Chiasmus in Antiquity: Structures, Analyses, Exegesis. Edited by John W. Welch. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998.

Fraenkel, Jonah. "Chiasmus in Talmudic-Aggadic Narrative." In Chiasmus in Antiquity: Structures, Analyses, Exegesis. Edited by John W. Welch. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998.

Welch, John W. "Chiasm in Ugaritic," In Chiasmus in Antiquity: Structures, Analyses, Exegesis. Edited by John W. Welch. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998.

Welch, John W. "Chiasmus in the New Testament." In Chiasmus in Antiquity: Structures, Analyses, Exegesis. Edited by John W. Welch. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998.

Welch, John W. "Criteria for Identifying and Evaluating the Presence of Chiasmus." In Chiasmus Bibliography. Edited by John W. Welch and Daniel B. McKinlay. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1999.

Welch, John W. "Parallelism and Chiasmus in King Benjamin's Speech." In King Benjamin's Speech: That Ye May Learn Wisdom. Edited by John W. Welch and Stephen D. Ricks. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1998.

Welch, John W. "What Does Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon Prove?" In Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited: The Evidence for Ancient Origins. Provo, UT: FARMS, 1997.

Smith, Robert F. "Assessing the Broad Impact of Jack Welch's Discovery of Chiasmus in the Book of Mormon." Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 16, no. 2 (2007): 63-73, 98-99.

Smith, Gregory L.. "“From the Sea East Even to the Sea West”: Thoughts on a Proposed Book of Mormon Chiasm Describing Geography in Alma 22:27." Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 19 (2016): 355-382.

"Book of Mormon/Evidence/Hebraisms/Chiasmus" FAIR Entry

Images

Chiasmus in Alma 36
Chiasmus in Mosiah 5
Chiasmus in Alma 36
Chiasmus in Alma 41
Chiasmus in Mosiah 5

Charts

Overview of Benjamin's Speech

Chiasmus in Leviticus 24:13-23

Chiasmus in Matthew 13:13–18

Chiasmus in Mosiah 3:18–19

Chiasmus in Helaman 6:7–13