The Lord always works through the testimony of witnesses, that “in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established” (Matthew 18:16; compare 2 Nephi 11:3; 2 Corinthians 13:1; D&C 128:3).
EVIDENCE: Three Witnesses—Form of Important Documents (1 Nephi 1:17; 19:1; 2 Nephi 27:12–14; 3 Nephi 5:18; Mormon 6:6; Words of Mormon 1:3, 6; Moroni 10:27)
According to recent archaeological discoveries, many ancient Israelites—including those in Lehi’s day—used doubled, sealed, and witnessed documents. In the two-part documents, one section was left open for easy access, and the second was sealed for later reference by the persons involved or by a judge in a court of law. Interestingly, when written on papyrus or parchment, a legal document would be written twice on the same sheet—at the top and at the bottom. The document was then folded and sealed, making one part open for inspection but keeping the other part sealed. With records engraved on metal, two or more plates were used, with the second “copy” often made more hurriedly. In addition, witnesses were necessary to verify a document; for instance, the Babylonian Talmud stated that the law required three witnesses to a sale of property. At least three witnesses to the Book of Mormon were necessary, but the Lord provided many more than this; in fact, he established His word by “as many witnesses as seemeth him good” (2 Nephi 27:14). In light of the way the plates of Mormon were put together and the law of witnesses satisfied, this ancient method of document preservation makes sense. However, the ancient practice was not known until long after the publication of the Book of Mormon (see Echoes, 374–379).
In the case of the Book of Mormon, the three witness were Oliver Cowdery, David Whitmer, and Martin Harris (see their testimony at the beginning of the published edition). The eight witnesses included four Whitmers (Christian, Jacob, Peter Jr., and John), three Smiths (Joseph Sr., Hyrum, and Samuel H.), plus Hiram Page (see also their testimony at the beginning of the published edition).