“And Awake and Arise from the Dust”

Brant Gardner

Moroni references Isaiah 52:1-2, although again we cannot be certain that the immediate reference is Isaiah, for these verses also appear as 2 Nephi 8:24-25. Moroni may be reading Nephi as inspiration for his final message, and would find in Nephi all of the allusions that we see to Isaiah.

Variant: In the Printer’s manuscript the first phrase reads:

“And awake, and arise from the dust, O Daughter of Zion….”

The correction was made in the Printer’s manuscript, and the current reading reflects the 1830 edition. (Book of Mormon Critical Text. FARMS, 1987). This verse references language from Isaiah 52:

Isaiah 52:1-2

1 Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean.

2 Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem: loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion.

The phrase “daughter of Zion” is part of the model verse, but it comes later. The reference to Jerusalem needs to come first in order to set up the meaning of “daughter of Zion.” However, either in the dictation or in the hearing of the phrase, the latter phrase was transposed into the earlier position.

Another variant occurs in this verse as well, and is similarly a difference between the Printer’s Manuscript and the corrections made to the Printer’s manuscript prior to going to the typesetter. (Book of Mormon Critical Text. FARMS 1987)  In the uncorrected copy, the text reads:

… that the covenants of the Eternal God which he hath made…

Multidimensional Commentary on the Book of Mormon

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