The Book of Mormon is given a subtitle that explains it is another testament of Christ. A careful reader of the Book of Mormon will be impressed by how many verses talk about the Savior. It’s been said that on average, He is mentioned once every 1.7 verses.
The Savior is discussed long before He is born by Book of Mormon prophets and future prophets. Lehi, the first Book of Mormon prophet, saw Him in visions. His son, Nephi, who became the prophet after his father’s death, told his people:
2 And now I, Nephi, write more of the words of Isaiah, for my soul delighteth in his words. For I will liken his words unto my people, and I will send them forth unto all my children, for he verily saw my Redeemer, even as I have seen him.
3 And my brother, Jacob, also has seen him as I have seen him; wherefore, I will send their words forth unto my children to prove unto them that my words are true. Wherefore, by the words of three, God hath said, I will establish my word. Nevertheless, God sendeth more witnesses, and he proveth all his words. 2 Nephi 11
Both Nephi and Jacob had seen the Savior. They knew without question He was real, and they wanted their people to know it also. Their testimonies, joined with that of Isaiah’s, whom both Jacob and Nephi loved to quote, made a testimony of three, fulfilling prophecy that God would establish his word by three witnesses—at least. (See 2 Corinthians 13:1)
Nephi focused on the Messianic scriptures when he quoted Isaiah, because, as he said, he delighted in proving the Savior to his people. Following this example, future Book of Mormon prophets would also testify of the Savior. Nephi would later tell his people:
26 And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins. (2 Nephi 25:26)
Although many people find Isaiah difficult to understand, Nephi loved Isaiah. He felt the prophet, who lived just one hundred years before Nephi, was a powerful resource for learning to believe in Jesus Christ. He instructed his people with great passion in Isaiah’s prophecies of the Savior, mingling them with his own and the teachings of his brother Jacob, who would also become a prophet after Nephi’s death. From the mouths of three great prophets, the Nephites, as Nephi’s people were called, were led to their own personal and powerful testimonies of the Savior.
Today, as we study these words ourselves in the Book of Mormon, we too can know, as Nephi, Sam, and Isaiah knew, that Jesus Christ is our Savior. Just as they knew He would come to earth to redeem us, today, we can know He has been here and will come again. Nephi was not alive when the Savior paid a prophesied visit to Nephi’s descendants, but he waited with joy anyway for the promised day, just as we wait with joy for the Second Coming.
The late Terrie Lynn Bittner—beloved wife, mother, grandmother, and friend—was the author of two homeschooling books and numerous articles, including several that appeared in Latter-day Saint magazines. She became a member of the Church at the age of 17 and began sharing her faith online in 1992.
