Evidence: Lehi’s First Camp

Ed J. Pinegar, Richard J. Allen

In the narrative regarding Lehi’s first camp in the wilderness, the most surprising statement is that there was a “continually running” stream of water in the area (verse 9). Most geographers would point out that Arabia is a desert where water flows only with the occasional heavy rain. However, Hugh Nibley reports that there is a point near the Gulf of Aqaba where a stream of water flows into the Red Sea. Students of Arabian culture and geography Lynne and Hope Hilton theorize that Lehi’s first camp was at the oasis Al-Bad in Wadi al-Ifal—about seventy-five miles from Aqaba—where running water is seasonal but springs exist. (See Echoes, 60–61.)

Commentaries and Insights on the Book of Mormon, Vol. 1

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