Lehi, Joseph, and the Kingdom of Israel

by Richley Crapo

Overview

Abstract: I present evidence of two priesthoods in the Jewish Bible: an Aaronite priesthood, held by Aaron and passed down through his descendants; and a higher Mushite priesthood, held not only by Moses and his descendants but also by other worthy individuals, such as Joshua, an Ephraimite. The Mushite priests were centered in Shiloh, where Joshua settled the Ark of the Covenant, while the Aaronites became dominant in the Jerusalem temple. Like Joshua, the prophet Lehi, a descendant of the northern tribe of Manasseh, held the higher priesthood. His ministry, as recounted in the Book of Mormon, demonstrates four characteristics that show a clear connection to his ancestors' origins in the northern Kingdom of Israel: (1) revelation through prophetic dreams, (2) the ministry of angels, (3) imagery of the Tree of Life, and (4) a positive attitude toward the Nehushtan tradition. These traits are precisely those which scholarship, based on the Documentary Hypothesis, attributes to texts in the Hebrew Bible that originated in the northern Kingdom of Israel rather than in Judah.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940163153862
Publisher:	Interpreter Foundation
Publication date:	09/25/2019
Series:	Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship , #33
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
File size:	332 KB

About the Author

Richley Crapo received his doctoral degree in Anthropology from the University of Utah in 1970. Thereafter, he was employed in the Department of Sociology, Social Work, and Anthropology at Utah State University. He held a dual appointment in USU’s Department of Psychology (1981–1994) and was a faculty member of USU’s Religious Studies Program (2007–2009). He retired in 2009 and now resides in Syracuse, Utah. His area of specialization was Symbolic Anthropology with an emphasis on linguistics, gender, and religion.