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The Jaredites are a people written of in the Book of Mormon, principally in the Book of Ether. In the Book of Ether, the Jaredites are described as the descendants of Jared and his brother, at the time of the Tower of Babel. According to the Book of Mormon, the people established a very large ancient civilization that exceeded two million people just prior to its destruction.
Summary of Book of Mormon narrative
Book of Ether
According to the Book of Mormon, the Jaredites are the descendants of Jared, his brother and their immediate family and friends. (Joseph Smith Jr. later identified the brother of Jared as Mahonri Moriancumer.) At the time of the Tower of Babel, when the tongues of all nations were confounded, the Lord acceded to the desires of Jared and his brother so that their language, as well as that of their families and friends, was not confounded, and they were granted a land of promise.According to the narrative, the people were guided by God through the wilderness, and were eventually directed to cross the sea in "barges."
Ether is the last in the royal line that began with one of the sons of Jared. From the time of the first king to the destruction of the Jaredites, there were only occasional times of peace and prosperity. These times of peace were interrupted by intrigue to the throne, civil war, and the accession of wicked kings. Thus the history of the Jaredites proved the fear of Jared and his brother that a monarchy would lead to captivity.
The Jaredites finally destroyed themselves about the time Lehi and the other refugees from Jerusalem arrived in America (see also , Lamanites, and ). A prophecy given by Ether is fulfilled, and the last Jaredite king, Coriantumr, lives both to see the total destruction of his people and the arrival of another people to inherit the land.
Other references
Besides the Book of Ether history of the Jaredites, elsewhere in the Book of Mormon relates that Coriantumr was found by the Mulekites. The Nephites later discovered the Mulekites and taught them the Nephite language. The Mulekites related that Coriantumr had died nine months after he had come to live with them. The Nephite prophet was able to translate some records (a stone tablet and twenty-four metal plates) that the Mulekites had found. The record on the metal plates are what Moroni later included in the Book of Mormon as the Book of Ether.
Proposed Jaredite origins
Some lay-members of the LDS church have suggested possible origins of the Jaredite people. These are merely interesting speculations on connections with the biblical record, and these ideas have not been commented on by leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.
Descendants of Shem
Some have suggested that the Jaredites may have been descendants of Shem. The reasoning is as follows. Moroni begins his abridgement of the book of Ether by saying that he is omitting those parts of Ether's record that are had in the Bible; He says he will begin where the biblical record leaves off. He then begins with a genealogy, going from Ether back to Jared. This may imply that his point of departure from the biblical record is also a genealogy.In the Bible, lists the descendants of Shem (Shem - Arphaxad - Salah - Eber). Shem's great-grandson Eber (or, Heber) is said to have two sons, Peleg and Joktan (or, Yoktan), noting that in their day, the earth was divided. The record briefly lists Joktan's children but then his line dead-ends. The record returns to Peleg and follows his line after telling the tower of Babel story.
Some interpret "the earth was divided" to mean that the covenant line was divided into two groups, one of which went to America. They point out that one of Joktan's sons is named "Jerah," which is similar to Jared. They propose that Moroni's genealogy of Ether begins where Genesis 10 leaves off. Some have further hypothesized that the word Yucatan is derived from Joktan. (See Smith and Sjodahl's commentary, or a summary.)
Descendants of Ham
Other individual Mormons have suggested that the Jaredites may have been descendants of Ham, Noah's other son, who according to the Pearl of Great Price married Egyptus, a Canaanite woman. A number of studies by those within the Latter Day Saint movement have suggested the following evidence:
- They came from the valley of Nimrod, who was a Hamite.
- There are no priesthood ordinations mentioned in the book, which hints that they may have been prevented from having the priesthood due to their heritage. Until 1978, those of black descent were generally prevented from holding the priesthood in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. See Curse and mark of Cain and Curse of Ham.
- The Jaredites had oaths "handed down even from Cain." () Some believe that this hints that they were part of the family of Cain.
- Parley P. Pratt, one of the original Mormon Apostles, wrote that the genealogy of the Jaredites goes "back to Ham the son of Noah" (Pratt to Van Cott, LDS Church Archives)
- Many Jaredite names are supposedly Hamitic.
- Many Mormons believe that the Jaredites could be the Olmec of Mesoamerica, claiming some similarities between the archaeological record of that civilization and the reported history of the Jaredites in the Book of Mormon account.
- According to Carlos de Siguenza y Gonorra (1645-1700) there were ancient Maya records that claimed that the original settlers of Mexico sailed there from the Tower of Babel (The Jaredites Were Black by David Grant Stewart, 1978, p.22)
References
See also
"Jaredite"