The Book of Mosiah is not written in chronological order, so it can be hard to keep track of where you are as you read. Here is a chart which will hopefully make it easier:
A few observations:
- King Benjamin’s sermon, which appears at the beginning of the book, happens after most of the events in the book. In particular, Abinadi’s sermon to King Noah, the other major sermon in the book, actually occurred many years earlier.
- Immediately after King Benjamin’s sermon, we read about the end of King Limhi’s story, as a search party led by Ammon discovers them in chapters 7 & 8. We then rewind to understand the history which led to the captivity of Limhi and his people.
- After reading about Limhi’s captivity for the second time (chapters 19-22), we rewind briefly again, to learn about the parallel captivity of Alma and his people (in chapters 23-24).
- Finally, everyone comes together again in chapter 25, which actually occurs only a few years after King Benjamin’s sermon.
I’ve been studying Mosiah for a while trying to put the timeline together and this is the best timeline out there. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the comment! Mosiah can be a confusing book because of the non-sequential order of the chapters. I’m glad you found my diagram useful. Thanks for letting me know!
How does this not sound like a 1st draft of a guy making it all up. Idk
Interesting question. I think the complex timeline would make it harder, not easier, to get the details right without careful planning, but you can certainly make your own assessment.
I completely agree with Jeff! I remember seeing something in seminary some 20-odd years ago that kind of described this as far as the locations and the people, but I had forgotten how confusing the timeline was because of the order of the chapters, which no other diagram I’ve found seems to explain. The diagrams are also not very clear as to the locations of each event. I was about to embark on the potentially time-consuming task of making my own chart when I found yours. This is amazing! I might make my own eventually, just for the personalized experience, but I don’t feel like I have to do it right now in order to continue my studies.
Thanks for the comment! I’m glad you found the chart useful.
You are awesome!! Thanks Paul
This was so helpful! Thank you for creating it. It was exactly what I was hoping to find.
I’m glad you found the diagram useful. Thanks for letting me know.
👍 Def a great help!
I’m glad you found the post useful. Thanks for letting me know.