Oratory: 2 Nephi chapter 9 & 10- Jacob's Sermon to the Nephites
Section Analyzed: "And it shall come to pass that when all men shall have passed from this first death unto life, insomuch as they have become immortal, they must appear before the judgment-seat of the Holy One of Israel; and then cometh the judgment, and then must they be judged according to the holy judgment of God. And assuredly, as the Lord liveth, for the Lord God hath spoken it, and it is his eternal word, which cannot pass away, that they who are righteous shall be righteous still, and they who are filthy shall be filthy still; wherefore, they who are filthy are the devil and his angels; and they shall go away into everlasting fire, prepared for them; and their torment is as a lake of fire and brimstone, whose flame ascendeth up forever and ever and has no end" (2 Nephi 9:15-16)
Analysis: This passage established the tone of the sermon as well as several of its key themes. With imagery of "torment... as a lake of fire and brimstone" and "flame that ascend[s] up forever" Jacob makes it clear that salvation is a very serious matter. There are grave risks involved with being unrepentant, and the prophet is unrestrained in his depiction of the consequences of sin.
Also introduced is the theme of eternal judgement, which Jacob refers back to throughout the sermon. This may indicate that the audience of the remaining company willing to remain with Nephi in the promised land is not only slipping into unrighteousness, but also perhaps that they have began to justify their actions. Jacob's hope in that case would be to instruct the people on the eternal significance of their use of agency and cause them to recognize the source of this mentality as "the devil and his angels."
Showing posts with label fire and brimstone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fire and brimstone. Show all posts
Saturday, October 4, 2014
Friday, September 26, 2014
Fiery Rhetoric- Jacob's Call to Repentance
1. Form Analyzed
I decided to look at language, specifically the repetition and imagery Jacob uses to make his words more vivid in the sermon
2. Passage Analyzed
Within my section (2 Nephi 9-18), I focused on the words of Jacob, spoken to the people of Nephi, found in verses 39-45 in chapter 9
3. Annotated Text
4. Breakdown
Jacob repeats "Remember" five times, uses the word truth three times in verse 40 alone, and repeats imagery related to shaking four times in the passage
5. Interpretation:
Jacob is determined to make his people understand the seriousness of eternal judgement. His use of strong exhortations and vivid imagery of shaking off guilt and the chains of the adversary urge the listener to deeply consider their own salvation.
6. Connections / Questions:
I would be interested to compare these exhortations with the repeated invitations Nephi extended to his brothers to chose the right. It seems to me that Jacob is both more direct and outwardly focused on the sins of his audience in his oratory whereas Nephi at least appears to put more emphasis on his own example and positive actions to more indirectly encourage his brothers ("I will go and do", "If the Lord commanded all things I could do them"). Certainly he doesn't depict the final judgement and the "binding chains" of the adversary in such a colorful way. Perhaps Jacob's more direct approach in this vivid call to repentance was brought on by the falling away of Laman and Lemuel and the separation that had taken place only a few chapters before. It could be he feared the same fate for the people as a whole at this time.
Interestingly enough, Nephi does come close in some ways to this style of expression in 2 Nephi 4. As Eliza noted in her post, Nephi also heavily relies on repetition and even uses self-applied imagery of groaning, weeping, and drooping in relation to sin- quite similar in ways to Jacob's imagery of "shaking."
I decided to look at language, specifically the repetition and imagery Jacob uses to make his words more vivid in the sermon
2. Passage Analyzed
Within my section (2 Nephi 9-18), I focused on the words of Jacob, spoken to the people of Nephi, found in verses 39-45 in chapter 9
3. Annotated Text
4. Breakdown
Jacob repeats "Remember" five times, uses the word truth three times in verse 40 alone, and repeats imagery related to shaking four times in the passage
5. Interpretation:
Jacob is determined to make his people understand the seriousness of eternal judgement. His use of strong exhortations and vivid imagery of shaking off guilt and the chains of the adversary urge the listener to deeply consider their own salvation.
6. Connections / Questions:
I would be interested to compare these exhortations with the repeated invitations Nephi extended to his brothers to chose the right. It seems to me that Jacob is both more direct and outwardly focused on the sins of his audience in his oratory whereas Nephi at least appears to put more emphasis on his own example and positive actions to more indirectly encourage his brothers ("I will go and do", "If the Lord commanded all things I could do them"). Certainly he doesn't depict the final judgement and the "binding chains" of the adversary in such a colorful way. Perhaps Jacob's more direct approach in this vivid call to repentance was brought on by the falling away of Laman and Lemuel and the separation that had taken place only a few chapters before. It could be he feared the same fate for the people as a whole at this time.
Interestingly enough, Nephi does come close in some ways to this style of expression in 2 Nephi 4. As Eliza noted in her post, Nephi also heavily relies on repetition and even uses self-applied imagery of groaning, weeping, and drooping in relation to sin- quite similar in ways to Jacob's imagery of "shaking."
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