Helaman
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The Book of Mormon mentions three men named Helaman (/ˈhiːləmən/ HEE-lə-mən). The first was the son of King Benjamin, king of the united Nephite-Zarahemla kingdom who lived in the 2nd century BC. Besides his genealogy, information about the first Helaman is limited. His brother, Mosiah, became heir to the throne.[1]
The second was a
The third Helaman was the son of the above mentioned Helaman. He was a chief judge over the Nephites and was also responsible for maintaining a record of this people. The account that Helaman kept was recorded on the same records as his father. This record, however, was first given by Helaman (the father) to his brother Shiblon, who then handed the record down to his nephew, Helaman. The writings of this second Helaman are contained within the Book of Helaman.
Etymology
Brigham Young University proposes several etymologies for the name Helaman, including "Hammer of God".[2]
Known genealogy
Mosiah, king of united Zarahemla-Nephite peoples | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Benjamin, son of Mosiah | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mosiah, son of Benajamin | Helorum, son of Benajamin | Helaman, son of Benjamin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alma the Elder | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alma the Younger | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Helaman | Shiblon | Corianton | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Helaman Son of Helaman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lehi Son of Helaman | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nephi the Disciple | Timothy Son of Nephi | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nephi Son of Nephi the Disciple | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Amos Son of Nephi | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Amos Son of Amos | Ammaron Son of Amos | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Early life
Helaman was the eldest son of Alma the Younger, another Nephite prophet. The exact time and place of his birth are unknown. The house of his father, Alma, was in Zarahemla, the Nephite capital land, and Helaman may also have lived in Zarahemla.
The Book of Mormon first mentions Helaman in Alma 31:7,[3] and little is known of his life prior to this brief allusion. In this verse Helaman's father, Alma, and two younger brothers, Shiblon and Corianton, embark on a missionary journey to the Zoramites, but Helaman does not accompany them. This journey occurred towards the end of the 17th year of the "reign of the judges", which probably corresponds to about 75 BC.[4]
Later life
After their missionary labors among the Zoramites, Alma, his sons, and the rest of their company returned to
Following Alma's words to his sons, he and his sons (including, presumably, Helaman) went among the people for a time, preaching the word of God.[12] Shortly afterward, in the 19th year of the reign of the judges (c. 73 BC), Alma approached Helaman for an important conversation. In what some consider a good model for child-parent interviews,[13] Alma questioned Helaman, praised him for his beliefs, and blessed him. Alma also dictated to him a prophecy of the destruction of the Nephites, which Alma commanded him to record but not to make known until it was fulfilled.[14] Not long after his charge to Helaman, Alma departed and was never heard of again.[15]
After this, Helaman and his brethren went among the people declaring the word of God and appointing "priests and teachers throughout all the land, over all the churches."[16] Dissension arose, allegedly due to the people's pride and riches, and the people thus would not heed the words of Helaman and his brethren.[17]
For the next several years, Helaman worked as a
Ministering to the Anti-Nephi-Lehies
Helaman next appears in Alma 53, in the 26th year of the reign of the judges (c. 66 BC), trying to persuade the
However, the Anti-Nephi-Lehies had many sons who, unlike their fathers, had never entered into a
Commander of the Stripling Warriors
Helaman's army of two thousand young men is often referred to as the two thousand stripling warriors, or the sons of Helaman. Theirs is one of the most well-known stories from the Book of Mormon.
In brief, Helaman and his band marched in the 26th year of the reign of the judges (c. 66 BC) to the western part of the land of the
Helaman wrote an epistle to the captain of the Nephite armies, Moroni, informing him of their success and expressing confusion that the government did not send more troops and support to the western front.[29] Moroni received the epistle in the 30th year of the reign of the judges (c. 62 BC).[30] The next year the Nephites successfully drove the Lamanites back into the land southward and thus the war ended at last.[31]
Last years
After the war ended in the 31st year of the reign of the judges (c. 61 BC), Helaman first briefly "returned to the place of his inheritance".[32] He then went forth with his brethren, preaching the word of God and establishing the Church.[33] About four years later, in the 35th year of the reign of the judges (c. 57 BC), Helaman died.[11] At the time of his death, Helaman had not yet formally conferred stewardship of the sacred records and artifacts to his son, Helaman, as would have been traditional. Instead Shiblon "took possession of those sacred things" following Helaman's death.[34]
See also
Notes and references
- ^ Book of Mormon, Mosiah 1:1-10
- ^ HELAMAN
- ^ The Book of Mormon. Alma 31:7.
- ^ It can be concluded from the following verses that the journey took place in the 17th year of the reign of the judges: Alma 30:6 states that Korihor came into the land of Zarahemla in the latter end of the 17th year of the reign of the judges. Alma 31:1, 6 show unambiguously that it was after Korihor's demise that the mission to the Zoramites took place. In Alma 35, the mission concludes with the missionaries withdrawing from the Zoramites, the converts being cast out, and the Zoramites preparing for war. Alma 35:11-12 states that the 17th year ended in this manner.
- ^ The Book of Mormon. Alma 35:14.
- ^ Book of Mormon., Alma 35:16.
- ^ Book of Mormon., Alma 36-37. Alma's charge to Helaman is contained in these two chapters.
- ^ Book of MormonAlma 37:21
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 50:37-38. Alma had previously tried to give the records and artifacts to Nephihah, but Nephihah refused to take them.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 45.
- ^ a b Book of Mormon, Alma 62:52.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 43:1-2.
- LDS leaderCarlos Asay uses the example of the relationship of Alma and Helaman to instruct concerning parent-child interviews.
- ^ The Book of Mormon. Alma 45:2-17.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 45:18.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 45:20-22.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 45:23-24.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 46:6.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 46:38 and Alma 49:30.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 53.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 24:17-8.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 53:15.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 56:47.
- ^ Maynes, Richard J. (November 2004), "Keeping Our Covenants", Ensign
- ^ The Book of Mormon. Alma 56:9.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 58:30-31.
- Antiparah (described in Alma 56:30-56). The second was in defense of the city of Cumeni (described in Alma 57:17-25) in the 29th year of the reign of the judges (c. 63 BC), Alma 57:6).
- ^ The Book of Mormon. Alma 58:39.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 56-58.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 56:1.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 62:38-39, Alma 56:55-56 and Alma 57:24-25.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 62:42.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 62:44-46.
- ^ Book of Mormon, Alma 63:1.
Further reading
- Berkey, Kimberly Matheson (2020). Helaman: A Brief Theological Introduction. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. ISBN 978-0-8425-0019-7.
- Bassett, K. Douglas (1992). "Nephi's Freedom Thesis 18 and the Sons of Helaman". In ISBN 0-8849-4841-2.
- Hardy, Grant (2010). Understanding the Book of Mormon: A Reader's Guide. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199745449.
- Patterson, Robert (Winter 2002). "Helaman's Stripling Warriors and the Principles of Hypovolemic Shock". Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought. 35 (4): 135–141. doi:10.2307/45226903.
- Reiss, Jana K. (June 1999). "Stripling Warriors Choose the Right: The Cultural Engagements of Contemporary Mormon Kitsch". Sunstone. pp. 36–47.
- Wrathall, Mark A. (2020). Alma 30–63: A Brief Theological Introduction. Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship. ISBN 978-0-8425-0020-3.
External links
- The Book of Alma on Wikisource
- Book of Mormon Index entry on Helaman