River of Laman and Valley of Lemuel
In 1 Nephi 2:2-11, Lehi's party makes its way from Jerusalem towards the promised land. Verse 5 says that Lehi "came down by the borders near the shore of the Red Sea; and he traveled in the wilderness in the borders which are nearer the Red Sea." The group traveled for three more days after they had reached the waters of the Red Sea before making camp. At this point, they make camp "in a valley by the side of a river of water." Verses 8-10 read:
"And it came to pass that he called the name of the river, Laman, and it emptied into the Red Sea; and the valley was in the borders near the mouth thereof. And when my father saw that the waters of the river emptied into the fountain of the Red Sea, he spake unto Laman, saying: O that thou mightest be like unto this river, continually running into the fountain of all righteousness! And he also spake unto Lemuel: O that thou mightest be like unto this valley, firm and steadfast, and immovable in keeping the commandments of the Lord!"Given the rarity of continuously flowing rivers in any part of Saudi Arabia, the existence of a river such as that described in the Book of Mormon has long been questioned by its critics. However, a candidate for the location accepted by several LDS scholars was discovered in May 1995.
Read more about this topic: Laman And Lemuel
Famous quotes containing the words river and/or valley:
“This spirit it was which so early carried the French to the Great Lakes and the Mississippi on the north, and the Spaniard to the same river on the south. It was long before our frontiers reached their settlements in the West, and a voyageur or coureur de bois is still our conductor there.”
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