map of lehi's journey to the promised land

Sign up for our newsletter

    signed up, but still not getting our newsletter click here..

• Top Stories

Making Sense of the Gospel through a Family Lens

• John A. Widtsoe Foundation
• Personal Voice
• Nephi's Bountiful
• As I See It
• Book of Mormon
• Doctrine & Covenants
• New Testament
• Old Testament
• Line upon Line
• Expand Blog
• Church Update

Scripture Study

• Church History
• Science & Religion

Book of Mormon Reminder: Resist Voices That Stir Hate and Violence

• Subscriptions
• Family Leader
• Meridian Cares

LDS Fiction: A Trio of Regencies

• Latter-day Saint Books
• Serializations
• Children & Young Adult

Cartoon: Ward Staffing

Delicious Recipes for Your All-American Picnic

• Of Good Cheer
• Latter-day Laughs
• Relationships
• Family History
• Preparedness

Come Follow Me Podcast #14: “Be Reconciled unto God through the Atonement of Christ”, Jacob 1-4

Stunning Photo Essay: Christ the Lord is Risen Today!

Archaeological Evidence for 7 Locations on Lehi’s Journey to the Promised Land

To view this article on Book of Mormon Central, CLICK HERE .

Cover image by Matt Cutler, Book of Mormon Central.

When Lehi embarked on his journey around 600 B.C., little did he know that millions of people would read and wonder about his story thousands of years later. While there is still much to learn about the people and stories in the Book of Mormon, some of the best archaeological evidence to support the Book of Mormon comes from Lehi’s journey to the promised land.

Seven notable locations are specifically mentioned in 1 Nephi as points along Lehi’s journey: Jerusalem ( 1 Nephi 1:4 ), the “borders of the Red Sea” ( 1 Nephi 2:6 ), the Valley of Lemuel ( 1 Nephi 2:8 ), Shazer ( 1 Nephi 16:13 ), the camp of the broken bow ( 1 Nephi 16:17–18 ), Nahom ( 1 Nephi 16:34 ), and Bountiful ( 1 Nephi 17:5 ).

Watch: Compelling Book of Mormon Evidence for Lehi’s Journey through Arabia

1. Jerusalem

Lehi’s story begins in Jerusalem, he having dwelt there “all his days” ( 1 Nephi 1:4 ). Jerusalem is perhaps the most archaeologically scrutinized city in the entire world, as it is important to three major world religions and is the epicenter of many events in the Bible. As such, we have a good amount of archaeological information about how people lived in Jerusalem in 600 B.C. To learn all about what Lehi’s Jerusalem was like, you can read  Glimpses of Lehi’s Jerusalem , available on the Book of Mormon Central Archive.

There are a few things about the way Nephi describes Jerusalem that match well with what we know about the city in 600 B.C. Nephi describes his writing as “the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians” ( 1 Nephi 1:2 ). Interestingly, archaeologists have  discovered pottery in Israel that contains Egyptian hieratic  in combination with some conventions of the Hebrew language.

When Nephi and his brothers go back and forth to Jerusalem to get the brass plates and the family of Ishmael, they always refer to Jerusalem’s elevation in consistent ways. Whenever they go towards Jerusalem, they “go up,” and whenever they leave Jerusalem into the wilderness, they “go down.” This is consistent with how  ancient Israelites perceived Jerusalem geographically, and even theologically . Jerusalem was located in the Judean hill country, elevated above the surrounding regions. Because Jerusalem was also the home of Solomon’s temple, journeys toward the city were seen as a heavenly ascent to a sacred place.

While these are only two pieces of evidence, explore the articles and books below to get a sample of all the archaeological evidence for Jerusalem that coincides with how Lehi and Nephi describe their home city.

2. The Borders of the Red Sea

When Lehi and his family travel south, they describe traveling both “by” the borders of the Red Sea, and “in” the borders of the Red Sea ( 1 Nephi 2:5 ). Researchers George Potter and Richard Wellington believe that “borders” may refer to mountains or cliffs adjacent to the Red Sea coast. The Gaza branch of the Frankincense trail reaches the northern tip of the Red Sea, and then proceeds south along the Red Sea coast, which is flanked in by a formidable mountain range. After reaching the proposed location for the Valley of Lemuel, the Frankincense trail then proceeds inland to join with the main vein of the Frankincense trail as it goes south to Yemen. As Lehi and family reached the Red Sea coast, they would have well surpassed the 3-day travelling requirement for Israelites to offer their own sacrifices outside the Jerusalem temple, as Lehi demonstrates in  1 Nephi 2:7 .

3. The Location of the Valley of Lemuel

In 1 Nephi 2, Lehi and his family settle their camp in a valley with a river, whose mouth opens into the Red Sea. Lehi “called the name of the river, Laman” ( 1 Nephi 2:8 ) and called the valley after his son Lemuel. Researchers have remarkably identified a location that matches Lehi’s description of a valley that is “firm and steadfast, and immoveable” ( 1 Nephi 2:10 ), and a river that is “continually running” ( 1 Nephi 2:9 ).

Wadi Tayyib al-Ism is an impressive valley located today in northwest Saudi Arabia along the Red Sea. It is approximately a 3-days journey away from the northern-most tip of the Red Sea ( 1 Nephi 2:6 ), and it has sheer granite walls rising about 2000 ft to form a formidable valley. Most significantly, Wadi Tayyib al-Ism has a small stream (that during flood seasons and in ages past was much more like a river) of water that flows all-year long, even during the dry season—a rare find in the deserts of Arabia.

Our best clues for the location of Shazer come from its name. The etymology of Shazer has had several proposals. Some have proposed it means “to twist, to intertwine,” possibly a reference to the gnarled and twisted acacia trees that may have populated the area. High Nibley and others have suggested it derives from a common Palestinian place-name “shajer” meaning “trees, forest, woody, wooded.” Matt Bowen has most recently proposed that Shazer may come from a Semitic word meaning “gazelle,” referring to the abundant resources for hunting that Lehi’s family may have encountered.

Regardless of which etymology you follow, it appears that the name for Shazer is related to fertility for either fauna or flora. Nephi describes that the location is approximately a four-day journey south-southeast from the valley of Lemuel. As it turns out, Wadi Agharr (also known as Wadi Sharma), located in the northern Hijaz mountains, is a fertile valley with an oasis over fifteen miles long, and is the appropriate distance away from the proposed Valley of Lemuel.

5. The Camp of the Broken Bow

The location of the place where Nephi broke his bow ( 1 Nephi 16:18 ) is known with the least certainty. The best clue we have comes from 1 Nephi 16 where Nephi states that they “did go forth again in the wilderness, following the same direction, keeping in the  most  fertile parts of the wilderness, which were in the borders near the Red Sea” ( 1 Nephi 16:14 , emphasis added). After they hunted for food, they continued their journey southward in “the  more  fertile parts of the wilderness” ( 1 Nephi 16:16 , emphasis added).

It appears that as the family traveled southward, the fertility of the land and the family’s opportunities for food grew scarcer. That is indeed what we find along the Frankincense trail, with cultivated land being as far as 50 miles apart from each other in this part of modern-day Arabia. Interestingly, it is in this region near the halt of Bishah that a particular type of olive tree grows that is suitable for crafting a bow. When Nephi broke his steel bow, he likely would have used the wood from the Attim or wild olive tree to craft his wooden bow ( 1 Nephi 16:23 ).

Unlike all the other places Lehi stopped, it appears he did not give this place a name. Instead, Nahom was likely already given as a name for this location by the residing population ( 1 Nephi 16:34 ). If the place was called Nahom back in Lehi’s time, you might expect to be able to find it in the archaeological record, and that’s exactly what we  find in southern Arabia , along Lehi’s trail. Researchers found the name “Nehem” on a 1763 map of Arabia, and then in 1997, German archaeologists  discovered an altar that dated back to Lehi’s time , with an inscription containing the name “NHM.”

The location of the Nehem tribal area in southwestern Arabia also corresponds well with Lehi’s position along his journey. Nephi recounts that after leaving Nahom they “did travel nearly eastward from that time forth” ( 1 Nephi 17:1 ) until they reached Bountiful, which is likely located along the coast of Oman.

7. Bountiful

After traveling due eastward, Lehi’s family eventually reaches the coast of the Arabian Peninsula in modern-day Oman. Researcher Warren Aston has identified Khor Kharfot, an inlet in the Dhofar region, as a potential location for Bountiful. He also identified  twelve requirements that must be present  in the vegetation and landscape to qualify, as described in 1 Nephi 17–18. Khor Kharfot matches well Nephi’s description of having fresh water, fruit, honey, access to the coast, mountains and cliffs, ore for tools, and timber for shipbuilding. George Potter and Richard Wellington have alternatively identified Khor Rori as an ideal fit for the location of Bountiful.

Evidence that supports the narratives in the Book of Mormon is ever increasing. While we still have much to learn about the ancient world and how it correlates with the Book of Mormon, the stories in 1 Nephi fit right at home in 7th century Israel. The locations of Lehi’s journey are beginning to be identified, and details about his experiences in the wilderness correlate well with what we know about the ancient Near East. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has encouraged members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to embrace and seek after evidences of the gospel of Jesus Christ:

In making our case for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, I believe God intends us to find and use the evidence He has given—reasons, if you will—which affirm the truthfulness of His work…Thus armed with so much evidence of the kind we have celebrated here tonight, we ought to be more assertive than we sometimes are in defending our testimony of truth.

As members of the Church take to heart the commission to be more assertive in defending our testimonies by studying and researching evidences, the Book of Mormon will surely get better with age.

Jeffrey R. Holland, “ The Greatness of the Evidence ,”  Chiasmus Jubilee  August 17, 2017.

Watch the video below for a summary of all the evidences for Lehi’s journey to the Promised Land.

For further references and notes on each of these sites, CLICK HERE .

Elder Bednar tells young adults in Instagram live Q&A to ‘trust in God’ as they strive to follow promptings

Tragic Accident Claims Two Missionaries in North Dakota

Children are part of the body of Christ: What baptized Primary children can do in the Lord’s Church

The Lesson of a Road Closure

Ground Broken For Two US Temples

• Yesterday's Articles
• Cartoon: Ward Staffing by Kevin Beckstrom
• Come Follow Me Podcast #24: “Have Ye Experienced This Mighty Change in Your Hearts?”, Alma 5-7 by Scot and Maurine Proctor
• Come Follow Me Podcast #23: “They were Steadfast and Immovable”, Mosiah 29-Alma 4 by Scot and Maurine Proctor
• Making Sense of the Gospel through a Family Lens by Richard Eyre
• Grace Notes: First 13 Songs Released for New Hymnbook by Maurine Proctor
• The Lesson of a Road Closure by Daris Howard
• Lesson 22: “Have Ye Received His Image in Your Countenances?” Alma 5-7 by Maurine Proctor
• How Near Is the Second Coming?: What Prophets Have Said Recently by Marilynne Todd Linford
• Your Hardest Family Question: My husband has an addiction. What do I tell my kids? by Geoff Steurer, MS, LMFT
• Have Ye Received His Image in Your Countenance? by H. Wallace Goddard

Mental Health Minute: Which Part of You is Doing the Talking?

Come, follow me at home: “have ye experienced this mighty change in your hearts”, alma 5-7, inspiration for living a latter-day saint life.

Daily news, articles, videos and podcasts sent straight to your inbox.

• Name First Name Last Name
• * I agree and consent to Meridian Magazine's privacy policy.

The Journey of Lehi’s Family

Featured Artwork from the Museum's Collection

Lehi’s Journey: “Blessed Art Thou” (1 Nephi 2:1)

The Plates of Brass: “I Will Go and Do” (1 Nephi 3:7)

Nephi’s Vision: “I Had Desired to Know” (1 Nephi 11:1)

The Liahona: “A Round Ball of Curious Workmanship” (1 Nephi 16:10)

Nephi’s Bow: “I Did Arm Myself with a Bow” (1 Nephi 16:23)

Nephi’s Ship: “Put Forth into the Sea” (1 Nephi 18:8)

The Promised Land: “And the Lord Was with Us” (2 Nephi 5:11)

What route did Lehi and his family take?

Aug 26, 2008 | AAAA AskGramps Website , Book of Mormon , LDS Scriptures | 1 comment

Dear Brother Gorton,

What is known about the route of travel taken by Lehi and his family as they made their way from Bountiful in the wilderness to the Promised Land in South America, and are we told where they came ashore at their new home? Thanks for your kind help.

Joy, from Utah

Little is mentioned in the Book of Mormon concerning the route of travel of Lehi and his family from Jerusalem to the shore of the ocean where Nephi built the ship to cross the ocean. We know from 1 Nephi 16:13-17 that they started out in a nearly south-southeast direction, and they traveled at first in the more fertile parts of the wilderness. We learn in 1 Nephi 17 that they were eight years in crossing the desert, and that as they traveled they were not permitted to make much fire and thus had to survive on raw meat. One would suppose that they traveled in secret to avoid being captured by hostile caravans also crossing the desert.

Beyond this all is conjecture. A number of interesting books have been written suggesting possible routes of travel from Jerusalem to the ocean, and research is presently being carried out in Oman to see if their departure site can be discovered. A very likely site has been discovered on the Gulf of Aden near the border between Yemen and Oman.

Concerning their arrival point in the New World even less is known. Their arrival is treated in only one verse in the Book of Mormon

And it came to pass that after we had sailed for the space of many days we did arrive at the promised land; and we went forth upon the land, and did pitch our tents; and we did call it the promised land (1 Nephi 18:23).

Consensus has it that they landed somewhere along the west coast of South America. President Joseph Fielding Smith has written the following:

“When the Lord began to lead the family of Lehi to this land, he said to them: ‘And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands.’ It is generally understood that they landed in South America, and that their nations, the Nephites and Lamanites, dwelt in South and Central America during the greater part of their sojourn here” ( Doctrines of Salvation, Vol.3, p.73 – p.74).

Related Posts

Recent Answers

• How do I bring up watching football on Sunday to Bishop?
• What are the differences between the Geneva Bible and the King James Version?
• How do I reconcile my feelings towards Sister Johnson’s Instagram post?
• Should we swear on a bible?
• What can I do to prevent temple work for family members being done?

Who is Gramps?

Learn about Clay Gorton The man behind Gramps

Top categories.

• Could you please explain Mormon Chapter 8 verses 8 and 20?
• How Did Moroni Die?
• Who was the father of the 1st King Mosiah?
• How can Jesus Christ be both the Father and the Son?

Pin It on Pinterest

• Navigate to any page of this site.

• In the menu, scroll to Add to Home Screen and tap it.

• In the menu, scroll past any icons and tap Add to Home Screen .

The Book of Mormon: First Nephi, the Doctrinal Foundation

Monte s. nyman and charles d. tate jr. , editors, lehi’s journeys, paul r. cheesman.

Paul R. Cheesman, “Lehi’s Journeys,”   in  First Nephi, The Doctrinal Foundation , ed. Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1988), 241–50.

Paul R. Cheesman was professor emeritus of ancient scripture at Brigham Young University when this was published.

The story of the Book of Mormon and Lehi’s exodus from the Old World begins in Jerusalem, the capital of the Kingdom of Judah and the most prominent city in all Israel. Latter-day Saint visitors to Jerusalem, who are inspired by these surroundings as they relate to the life of Christ, should also remind themselves that this is where the prophet Lehi lived. In Lehi’s time, priests and Levites who officiated in the ordinances of the law of Moses, worshippers from the other tribes of Jacob, merchants from Egypt and neighboring countries, and artisans in various trades—all considered Jerusalem a center of civilization in the Near East.

The country was divided into two parties—pro-Egyptian and pro-Babylonian. Most of the people favored the Egyptian influence. Hugh Nibley has suggested that Lehi had been closely associated with Egypt as a merchant and thus had traveled between the two countries. [1] This experience would have been a great advantage to Lehi for the journey that he was eventually commanded to undertake. Lehi probably spoke and wrote Egyptian, which he taught his sons. [2]

The story of Lehi’s leading the company of Israelites from Jerusalem to America is told in 1 Nephi 2–18. Many of these chapters, however, deal with Nephi’s visions (1 Nephi 11–15) and his comments on the records he is keeping (1 Nephi 6, 9). That leaves about twenty-five pages wherein the group’s travels are recorded, and most of these pages record opposition of the elder sons Laman and Lemuel to their father and younger brother Nephi. The result is that we have only a sketchy account of Lehi’s travels given us in the Book of Mormon. We are therefore left to surmise several related things based upon consideration of other evidences.

That Lehi lived in Jerusalem did not necessarily mean that he dwelt in the city of Jerusalem. The land of Jerusalem encompasses much more of the immediate area surrounding the city. We are of the opinion that Lehi’s property lay somewhere in the land of Jerusalem and not within the walls of the city.

Lehi was of the tribe of Manasseh (Alma 10:3) and was obviously a man of considerable wealth. He and his wife, Sariah, had four sons and some daughters. He received many dreams and visions in which the Lord instructed him to warn the people of Jerusalem to repent. Rather than listen and repent, the people were angry with Lehi and sought his life. As a result, he was commanded to leave Jerusalem. He went into the wilderness and left behind great treasures of gold, silver, and other precious items, carrying with him only the necessities for traveling and existing in the wilderness (1 Nephi 2:4).

Lehi’s wealth seemed to reflect the possibility of his being a trader, acquiring all manner of “precious things” (1 Nephi 2:4, 11). We can assume that he was an experienced traveler because his preparation for the trip into the wilderness was so complete that he did not have to send back for any provisions. Nibley reminds us that Manasseh was the tribe living in the most remote part of the desert. [3]

From Jerusalem to the Valley of Lemuel

There are three possible routes from Jerusalem to the Red Sea: (1) from Jerusalem northeast to Jericho, east across the Jordan River, and then south on the east side of the Dead Sea; (2) from Jerusalem to Jericho and down the west side of the Dead Sea; and (3) from Jerusalem southwest through Hebron, then east or southeast to a point below the Dead Sea. All three routes converge south of the Dead Sea and lead to Aqaba.

Lynn M. and Hope Hilton have suggested that Nephi could have seen metal smelting and shipbuilding at Aqaba that would have benefited him later. [4] From Aqaba Lehi’s group journeyed “three days in the wilderness” and camped in the “valley of Lemuel” (1 Nephi 2:10, 14). After traveling in this area, the Hiltons conclude that the valley of Lemuel is most probably the place now known as Al Beda in the Wadi El Afal, in Saudi Arabia. Al Beda contains the ruins of what has been considered the traditional home of Moses’s father-in-law Jethro. The ruins are still called by his name. Lehi’s colony could have stayed at Al Beda several seasons. [5]

In this valley Lehi built an altar and offered a sacrifice to the Lord, giving thanks for their journey. His description of the valley’s being firm and steadfast and immovable is in contrast to the modern vernacular of Joseph Smith, who probably would have referred to the mountains and hills as the everlasting and stronghold areas. To the Arabs, the valleys , not the mountains, are the source of their strength and permanence. [6]

It seems to be a tradition among Semitic people to name even already-known places after their current personal experiences, perhaps to give greater meaning to the areas. [7]

It was in the valley of Lemuel that Lehi had a dream commanding him to send his sons back to Jerusalem to obtain the brass plates. After a successful mission, the sons returned with the brass plates and also with Zoram, the servant of Laban, who was the keeper of the plates. [8]

Nephi had made Zoram take an oath that he would not return to Jerusalem. One might consider this a strange custom, but to the people of that day there was “nothing more sacred than the oath among the nomads.” [9] Such action supports the Book of Mormon as an ancient Israel document.

The Lord also counseled Lehi to have his sons return to Jerusalem a second time to bring the family of Ishmael, who was of the tribe of Ephraim, to join them on their journey. Again the mission was successful and the family of Ishmael, including his sons and their wives and children, plus Ishmael’s single daughters, left Jerusalem and joined the family of Lehi in the wilderness. This allowed the sons of Lehi the opportunity for marriage and family.

According to Erastus Snow, Joseph Smith said that Ishmael’s “sons [had] married into Lehi’s family.” [10] This combination of families would increase the number who continued the journey to approximately twenty to thirty people, depending on the number of children among them. This number increased during this eight-year wilderness journey as two sons, Jacob and Joseph, were born to Sariah and Lehi (1 Nephi 18:7), and other families also bore children (1 Nephi 17:1, 20).

From the Valley of Lemuel to Bountiful

The Book of Mormon indicates that after the group left the valley of Lemuel, they traveled for the space of four days in a “south-southeast direction” (1 Nephi 16:13). Most researchers believe that the trail Lehi took was near or on the passage most commonly taken by travelers, and known as the Frankincense Trail. It is reported that Joseph Smith was of the opinion that Lehi’s party “traveled nearly a south-southeast direction until they came to the nineteenth degree of north latitude; and then nearly east to the sea of Arabia.” [11] The exact route is not known. It was revealed to Lehi where he was to go, and so it is not possible or necessary to establish the exact route.

Reynolds suggests that the ancient Aztec map known as the Boturini Codex bears certain figures in hieroglyphic drawing which might depict Lehi’s travels. [12]

The Lord gave directions through “a ball of curious workmanship” (1 Nephi 16:10), which Nephi refers to as a compass (1 Nephi 18:12). Alma records the name of the instrument as the Liahona (Alma 37:38). But the Liahona should not be compared to a mariner’s compass. Lehi’s “compass” indicated the directions in which Lehi should go; the mariner’s compass only tells the traveler which way is magnetic north. The Liahona worked on the principle of faith and according to the diligent attention given to it (Alma 37:40). Mosiah refers to it as a director (Mosiah 1:16). It not only gave directions to the travelers, but writing also appeared on the ball (1 Nephi 16:26).

It is believed by some that the word Liahona means “To God Is Light”; that is to say, God gives light as does the sun. [13] The unique quality of the Liahona was in providing spiritual guidance as well as travel direction.

It was approximately eight years from the time the Lehi colony left the Valley of Lemuel until they reached a place they called Bountiful. Since they carried seeds of every kind, we can suppose they took time to plant along the way and also wait for the harvest before proceeding. This would mean that their travels may have been seasonal. Perhaps they traveled in the cooler months of the year. It is estimated that their trip to the Arabian Sea was somewhere near twenty-five hundred miles in length.

The company would probably travel for a few days, rest, hunt, and then take up their journey as the Liahona directed. Perhaps when they found good soil and water they would plant seeds and harvest the crops.

The food eaten on this trip probably consisted of their own crops and probably grapes, olives, and figs, which grow in the area, and also meat (1 Nephi 16:31; 17:1–2). Other fruits which are grown in the Middle East and could have been used include dates, coconuts, and pomegranates.

An average encampment was calculated to be about twelve days long, but some crop-growing ones were perhaps as long as six months. [14] How fast did the Lehi company travel? Major R. E. Cheesman, an experienced traveler in that area in the 1920s, has estimated that the average caravan could travel thirty miles a day. [15]

During this journey, the group also may have fished along the coasts of the Red Sea, as this body of water contains mackerel, tuna, sardines, and horgie. [16]

On the probable trail which Lehi traveled there are today 118 waterholes, spaced (on the average) eighteen miles apart. [17] It was the custom of experienced travelers in Arabia that they never built a fire, as it could attract the attention of a prowling, raiding party. [18] As a result, they ate much of their food raw, as recorded in the Book of Mormon (1 Nephi 17:2). Attacking and plundering camps still seems to be the chief object of some Arab tribes.

Lehi’s journey, besides being difficult because of the terrain, also became troublesome because of the constant rebellion of Laman and Lemuel and some of Ishmael’s children.

It seems that the keynote of life in Arabia is and was hardship. Albright notes concerning the general area where we know Lehi had traveled that it is a land of “disoriented groups and of individual fugitives, where organized semi-nomadic Arab tribes alternate with . . . sedentary society, with runaway slaves, bandits, and their descendants.” [19]

How did they travel through this difficult terrain and environment? From all observations, camels seem to be the mode of travel. No matter which route Lehi took to the Red Sea, he would have encountered camel markets which would have allowed him to use this animal even if he started only with donkeys. Camels can take two 150- to 180-pound packs on their backs, and Lehi brought his tents, provisions, and seed with him to plant and harvest en route and to use in his promised land. Although the Book of Mormon does not mention camels, it may be that they were not mentioned because they were taken for granted.

After traveling four days from the Valley of Lemuel, the company camped in a place they called Shazer (1 Nephi 16:13). Calculating their average traveling distance, this place could be the modern oasis of Azlan in the Wadi Azlan. Even another harvest season could have elapsed in this area. Because of the spelling and pronunciation of similar place names in Palestine, Nibley proposes that this could have been a name given to a place where trees grew. [20]

After leaving Shazer, the narrative indicates that Nephi broke his bow and the colony was desperate for food (1 Nephi 16:18ff). Nephi found wood to build a new bow (1 Nephi 16:23). Archaeologist Salim Saad calls our attention to the fact that wood from the pomegranate tree which grows around a place called Jiddah would make a good bow. These particular trees, with especially hard wood, were an absolute necessity for bow-making purposes. Evidently the areas where Nephi could have found wood suitable for a bow were not plentiful, hence the need for divine guidance at this point in the journey. It was also providential at this point that this area contained many animals suited for food. [21]

Nibley cites another witness to the building of a new bow. According to Arab writers, the only bow wood available grew near the mountains of Jasum and Azd. [22] As nearly as we can surmise, this is where the Lehi group was encamped when Nephi broke his bow and sought to make another (1 Nephi 16:23). Jiddah is also a shipbuilding city and perhaps Nephi could have observed craftsmen in this area which would have benefited him later.

Moving on in the same easterly direction, they came to a place that was called Nahom. It was not named by Lehi but was apparently a desert burial ground. It was here that Ishmael died and was buried (1 Nephi 16:34). Nibley explains the possibility that the name Nahom is related to an Arabic root word meaning “to moan.” When Ishmael died, the “daughters of Ishmael did mourn exceedingly” (1 Nephi 16:35). It seems that among the desert Arabs, mourning rites are monopolized by the women. [23] A possible site of Nahom where Ishmael was buried is thought by the Hiltons to be al Kunfidah in Arabia. Rows of graves found in Al Kunfidah sustain the possibility that it was an ancient burial ground. [24]

Bountiful By the Sea

After traveling in an easterly direction, as the Book of Mormon indicates (1 Nephi 17:1), the party went through an area where they “did wade through much affliction.” This arid wasteland was perhaps the worst desert of all. It did merge, however, into a paradise by the sea which they named Bountiful. There is just such an area in the Qara Mountains on the southeasterly coast of Arabia. There is one place in the entire fourteen-hundred-mile southern Arabian peninsula that meets the description of Bountiful in the direction from Nahom suggested in the Book of Mormon and by the Prophet Joseph Smith as noted earlier (note 12). This is modern Salalah. They called the new land “Bountiful, because of its much fruit and also wild honey” (1 Nephi 17:5). Hilton reports that today in Salalah a person finds many fruits growing—citrons, limes, oranges, dates, bananas, grapes, apricots, coconuts, figs, and melons. [25]

It was at Bountiful where Nephi was commanded to build a ship (1 Nephi 17:7–8). The Lord himself instructed Nephi on the details of building the ship that carried the Lehi colony to the promised land. It must have been a unique structure, since we are told that it was not built after the manner of men (1 Nephi 18:1–2). Consequently, we cannot compare it to the traditional ships built in that time period. Even Nephi’s brethren remarked on the workmanship as being unusually good (1 Nephi 18:4). Even though building a ship was a new experience for Nephi, he surely would have observed native shipbuilders in the many villages he passed as he traveled along the coast of the Red Sea.

The sycamore-fig shade tree that grows in the desert produces a very hard wood, is strong, resistant to water, and almost free from knots. These trees still grow in the area of Salalah, where Nephi might have been when he was instructed to build his ship. Surely the wisdom of the Lord was involved in the selection of areas where the Nephites lived in the wilderness as he directed their journey via the Liahona.

Because of the length of time involved in this exodus—eight years to make the journey from the valley of Lemuel in addition to the years required for building the ship—the number in Lehi’s extended family could have enlarged to as many as forty or fifty people. If the numbers were that high, the ship would have had to be at least sixty feet long to accommodate such a large group, especially if there was enough space for dancing, which the record states that they did (1 Nephi 18:9). The ship was built and the people sailed for the promised land.

The weather and geography of Arabia have changed little, if any, since Lehi’s day. [26] Most LDS scholars are of the opinion that current studies of Arabic geography and history are in complete harmony with Lehi’s story. [27] It is also the opinion of those who have traveled and studied the area involved in Lehi’s exodus that everything recorded in 1 Nephi concerning the travels of Lehi actually could have happened. [28]

With the passing of time and with continued study, the case for the Book of Mormon record will increase in strength. I can foresee the day when the world of scholarship and archaeology in academic circles outside the Church will continue to uncover and unearth such thrilling evidences that the world will be left without excuse. It is my hope that all of our endeavors will be in studies that will sustain and support the truth in this marvelous record of Lehi’s extended family. It is my desire to eliminate obstacles so that the student and scholar will become so impressed and fascinated with this sacred record that they will eventually open the Book of Mormon, read it , and gain a testimony of its eternal truths.

[1] Hugh W. Nibley, Lehi in the Desert and the World of the Jaredites (Salt Lake City: Bookcraft, 1952), 8, 12–13, 36–38.

[2] Although Lehi wrote Egyptian as well as Hebrew, the language of the Book of Mormon was Reformed Egyptian, a combination of Hebrew and Egyptian that was known only to the Nephites; see 1 Nephi 1:2; Mosiah 1:4; Mormon 9:32–33.

[3] Nibley, Lehi in the Desert , 41.

[4] Lynn M. Hilton and Hope Hilton, In Search of Lehi’s Trail (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1976), 39.

[5] Hilton and Hilton, In Search of Lehi's Trail, 74.

[6] Nibley, Lehi in the Desert , 105.

[7] Hilton and Hilton, In Search of Lehi's Trail, 27.

[8] This record contained the first five books of the Bible and other biblical books to the time of Jeremiah (1 Nephi 5:1–14). It documented God’s dealings with his covenant people. When these young men were asked to return to Jerusalem to obtain the brass plates, the idea of records being kept on metal plates certainly was not new or strange to any of them. For a treatise of evidence that ancient records were kept on metal plates, see Paul R. Cheesman, Ancient Writing on Metal Plates (Bountiful, Utah: Horizon Publishers, 1985), 85.

[9] A. Janssen, “Judgements,” Revue Biblique XII (1903), 259 CF Surv. Wstn. Palest., 327, as quoted in Nibley, Lehi in the Desert , 118.

[10] Erastus Snow, Journal of Discourses , 23:184.

[11] B. H. Roberts, New Witnesses for God , (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1951), 3:501–3. “In a compendium of doctrinal subjects published by the late Elders Franklin D. Richards and James A. Little, the following item appears: ‘Lehi’s travels.—Revelation to Joseph the seer: The course that Lehi and his company traveled from Jerusalem to the place of their destination: They traveled nearly a south, southeast direction until they came to the nineteenth degree of north latitude; then, nearly east of the Sea of Arabia, then sailed in a southeast direction, and landed on the continent of South America, in Chili, thirty degrees south latitude.’

"The only reason so far discovered for regarding the above as a revelation is that it is found written on a loose sheet of paper in the handwriting of Frederick G. Williams, for some years second counselor in the First Presidency of the Church in the Kirtland period of its history, and it follows the body of the revelation contained in Doctrine and Covenants, section vii., relating to John the beloved disciple, remaining on earth, until the glorious coming of Jesus to reign with his Saints. The handwriting is certified to be that of Frederick G. Williams, by his son Ezra G. Williams, of Ogden; and endorsed on the back of the sheet of paper containing the above passage and the revelation pertaining to John. The indorsement [ sic ] is dated April, the 11th, 1864. The revelation pertaining to John has this introductory line: 'A Revelation Concerning John, the Beloved Disciple.' But there is no heading to the passage relating to the passage about Lehi’s travels. The words 'Lehi’s Travels,' and the words 'Revelation to Joseph the Seer,' are added by the publishers, justified as they supposed, doubtless, by the fact that the paragraph is in the handwriting of Frederick G. Williams, Counselor to the prophet, and on the same page with the body of an undoubted revelation, which was published repeatedly as such in the life time of the Prophet, first in 1833, at Independence, Missouri, in the 'Book of Commandments,' and subsequently in every edition of the Doctrine and Covenants until now. But the one relating to Lehi’s travels was never published in the life-time of the Prophet, and was published nowhere else until published in the Richards-Little’s Compendium."

[12] George Reynolds and Janne M. Sjodahl, The Story of the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Deseret News Press, 1955), 10–11.

[13] Daniel H. Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1976), 113.

[14] W. E. Jennings-Bradley, The Bedouin of the Sinaitic Peninsula , PEFQ, 1907, 284.

[15] Cheesman, In Unknown Arabia , 27, 52.

[16] Hilton and Hilton, 90.

[17] Hilton and Hilton, In Search of Lehi's Trail, 33.

[18] Cheesman, In Unknown Arabia , 228, 234, 240, 280.

[19] W. F. Albright, Archaeology and the Religion of Israel (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1942), 101.

[20] Nibley, Lehi in the Desert , 90.

[21] Hilton and Hilton, In Search of Lehi's Trail, 81–83.

[22] Nibley, Lehi in the Desert , 68.

[23] Nibley, Lehi in the Desert, 90–91

[24] Hilton and Hilton, In Search of Lehi's Trail, 95.

[25] Hilton and Hilton, In Search of Lehi's Trail, 105.

[26] Hilton and Hilton, In Search of Lehi's Trail, 116.

[27] In addition to Hugh Nibley and the Hiltons, see Eugene England, “Through the Arabian Desert to a Bountiful Land: Could Joseph Smith Have Known the Way?” in Book of Mormon Authorship: New Light on Ancient Origins, ed. Noel B Reynolds (Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Religious Studies Center, 1982), 143–56.

[28] Nibley, Lehi in the Desert , 129.

Contact the RSC

185 Heber J. Grant Building Brigham Young University Provo, UT 84602 801-422-6975

Helpful Links

Religious Education

BYU Studies

Maxwell Institute

Articulos en español

Artigos em português

Connect with Us

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

He may have gone another way

By josiah douglas , director of church curriculum planning and development.

The Book of Mormon is not a book of geography, and, so far as known, no one knows the exact route Lehi and his family traveled from Jerusalem to the great sea they crossed to the promised land, but it is interesting to look at some possible routes.

Most writers on this subject believe Lehi traveled from Jerusalem to the Gulf of Aqaba (also Akabah and Acquaba), following the Frankincense Trails, south down the Arabian Peninsula to approximately the 19th parallel. They feel Lehi turned east at Najran in Arabia to travel across the lower portion of the Arabian Peninsula to Salalah Oman.Using the verses from the Book of Mormon that record Lehi's travels, another route might be proposed. This one would take Lehi from Jerusalem to the Gulf of Suez, southeast along the African side of the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden, then east across the horn of Africa to the "great sea," or Arabian Sea, which is part of the Indian Ocean. The land Bountiful perhaps would be present-day Somalia.

Lehi was commanded to take his family, leave his home and go into the wilderness. (1 Ne. 2:4) After arriving in the "borders" --which may be the territorial borders between Egypt and the Babylonian Empire-- near the shore of the Red Sea, Lehi and his family traveled for three more days and then pitched their tents in a valley by the side of a river of water. The family spent some time camped in this valley, which Lehi named Lemuel. (1 Ne. 2:5-16.)

The river seems to have been important to Lehi's family, for it is mentioned several times in the passage that records their stay, and Nephi mentioned specifically that the family crossed this river when they resumed their journey into the wilderness. (1 Ne. 16:12.)

Many writers have implied that this river was merely a wadi or a dry wash that flowed after a thunderstorm. But Nephi said the river flowed continually: "And when my father saw that the waters of the river emptied into the fountain of the Red Sea, he spake unto Laman, saying: O that thou mightest be like unto this river, continually running into the fountain of all righteousness!" (1 Ne. 2:9)

There are no natural rivers running into the Red Sea, but there is another possibility that should be considered. Anciently there was a portion of the Nile River that ran into the Red Sea through a canal dug by the Egyptians. In the early 20th century B.C., possibly during the reign of the Pharoah Sesostris I, the Egyptians dug a canal from the Nile Delta to the Red Sea near the present port of Suez. Pharaoh Necho II began to restore it About 600 B.C., and the restoration was completed about 500 B.C. by the Persian conqueror Darius I.

This freshwater canal may have been the river Laman. It flowed down a natural valley called the Wadi Tumilat (sometimes called the At-tymaylat Valley) and linked the Pelusiac branch of the Nile with the Red Sea. It had a large flow of water that allowed transport of grain from the Nile Valley for shipment to Mecca. This waterway was used, modified, destroyed, and rebuilt over a period of several hundred years. It was finally put out of commission by Caliph Abu Jaafar Adbullah al-Mansur in the 8th century A.D.

Lehi's party could have camped on the east side of this waterway in a natural valley. The river or canal would have been flowing continually into the mouth of the Red Sea. Crossing the river was probably not a simple task, hence Nephi's mention of the event.

Lehi's use of the word "fountain" in his admonition to his son has more significance when the River Laman is considered to be this ancient canal that brought fresh water from the Nile into the Red Sea.

After Lehi's party crossed the River Laman, they traveled four days in a south-southeast direction and pitched their tents again in a place they called Shazer. (1 Ne. 16:13) Along this route, there are several places with springs and trees that could have provided a rest stop for Lehi's family. The word shazar, pronounced "shazer" by the Arabs, means "trees." (See A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon, p. 114, by Daniel H. Ludlow.)

The seashore along the west side of the Gulf of Suez runs in a south-southeasterly direction, which fits the description given in the scriptures. There is a narrow plain between the Red Sea and the mountains to the west, along which Lehi's party could have traveled as they went down the west side of the Gulf of Suez and then continued south-southeast along the Red Sea. The continuation of the journey is described in 1 Ne. 16:14.

The west side of the Red Sea is a very arid region. The route I am suggesting would have taken Lehi and his family through present-day Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and Somalia. They would have traveled across barren, uninhabited stretches of desert.

This route seems to explain several things about the scriptural account of the journey. First, the account does not mention that the family made contact with any other people. The Frankincense Trails, which many people feel Lehi and his family followed, were some of the most heavily traveled roads of the ancient world. It would seem very unlikely that the family could have traveled these trails without encountering many other people. If they had traveled along the west side of the Red Sea, we can account for the silence of the scriptures about fellow travelers.

Second, if Lehi was following well-known trails, why did the Lord give him the Liahona, and why did Laman and Lemuel accuse Nephi of leading them into a "strange wilderness"? (1 Ne. 16:380 Routes like the Frankincense Trails were in common use at least 900 years before Lehi's day. However, if his party had traveled through what is today Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia, they indeed would have needed a Liahona, for they would have been in a "strange wilderness" with few people around to guide them.

Third, why did they live on raw meat, and why did the Lord command them not to build fires? (1 Ne. &:2, 12) If they had been on well-traveled trails, surely other people would have been building fires. If, however, they were in an unfamiliar area with little knowledge of who or what surrounded them, it may have been unwise and unsafe to build fires.

Fourth, in their journey down the west side of the Red Sea, Lehi's group would have passed through Egyptian territory. This could help to explain the many references Lehi and Nephi make to Egypt. Nephi frequently used examples drawn from the deliverance of the children of Israel out of Egypt. (1 Ne. 4:2-3; 5:14-15; 17:23, 27, 40; 19:10) These examples would have had especially powerful effects upon his family if they had been traveling in the very area where these events took place. It is also interesting to note that Lehi named his two sons born in the wilderness Jacob and Joseph, after his ancestors who lived in Egypt.

Fifth, Lehi's party would have likely chosen to travel through territories where the people were friendly to the Jews. Egyptian territory was friendly. In fact, there were numerous cities in Egypt where Jews had settled. Also, the territory along the Gulf of Suez and then south along the Red Sea was largely uninhabited. The populations of the Sudan and Ethiopia were located along the Nile or in the highlands. Somalia likewise had a sparse population. The people along the route through Edom, Midian, and Arabia were not friendly to Jews. In fact, they had a long tradition of great hatred toward the Hebrews. When the Chaldeans besieged Jerusalem, the Edomites joined them and excited them to utterly raze the city and temple. This was only 11 years after Lehi left Jerusalem. There were few, if any Jews, living in the towns and territories of the Edomites.

The end of the wilderness journey was the land Bountiful. In this area, Nephi and his brothers constructed a ship and prepared to sail to the promised land. (1 Ne. 17:1-6)

In present-day Somalia, there is a place that could well have been the land Bountiful, for it matches the location and bounty of the area described in the scriptures. The Nogal Valley, which runs from northwest to southwest, is a low depression, that, despite sparse rainfall, is relatively well watered. Its name means "the fertile land," since it was once very fertile. In recent years, however, erosion has caused rapid loss of its rich soil and thick vegetation.

Lehi's wilderness journey from Jerusalem to the place where the ship was constructed was an arduous journey. Whether the family traveled down the Arabian Peninsula or down the west side of the Red Sea to the horn of Africa is not known, but at least the Book of Mormon reader has two possible routes to consider.

You are here

Lehi's landing place, lehi's landing place, by joseph a. allen.

Copyright © 2011 by Joseph L. Allen and Blake J. Allen, Authors,  Exploring the Lands of the Book of Mormon.   All rights reserved.

Subscribe to newsletter

Subscribe to the weekly or daily mailing list 

(Now merged with Book of Mormon Central)

Search form

Archaeological Evidence for 7 Locations on Lehi’s Journey to the Promised Land

To view this article on Book of Mormon Central,  CLICK HERE .

When Lehi embarked on his journey around 600 B.C., little did he know that millions of people would read and wonder about his story thousands of years later. While there is still much to learn about the people and stories in the Book of Mormon, some of the best archaeological evidence to support the Book of Mormon comes from Lehi’s journey to the promised land.

Seven notable locations are specifically mentioned in 1 Nephi as points along Lehi’s journey: Jerusalem ( 1 Nephi 1:4 ), the “borders of the Red Sea” ( 1 Nephi 2:6 ), the Valley of Lemuel ( 1 Nephi 2:8 ), Shazer ( 1 Nephi 16:13 ), the camp of the broken bow ( 1 Nephi 16:17–18 ), Nahom ( 1 Nephi 16:34 ), and Bountiful ( 1 Nephi 17:5 ).

Watch: Compelling Book of Mormon Evidence for Lehi’s Journey through Arabia

1. Jerusalem

Lehi’s story begins in Jerusalem, he having dwelt there “all his days” ( 1 Nephi 1:4 ). Jerusalem is perhaps the most archaeologically scrutinized city in the entire world, as it is important to three major world religions and is the epicenter of many events in the Bible.

As such, we have a good amount of archaeological information about how people lived in Jerusalem in 600 B.C. To learn all about what Lehi’s Jerusalem was like, you can read  Glimpses of Lehi’s Jerusalem , available on the Book of Mormon Central Archive.

There are a few things about the way Nephi describes Jerusalem that match well with what we know about the city in 600 B.C. Nephi describes his writing as “the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians” ( 1 Nephi 1:2 ). Interestingly, archaeologists have  discovered pottery in Israel that contains Egyptian hieratic  in combination with some conventions of the Hebrew language.

When Nephi and his brothers go back and forth to Jerusalem to get the brass plates and the family of Ishmael, they always refer to Jerusalem’s elevation in consistent ways. Whenever they go towards Jerusalem, they “go up,” and whenever they leave Jerusalem into the wilderness, they “go down.”

This is consistent with how  ancient Israelites perceived Jerusalem geographically, and even theologically . Jerusalem was located in the Judean hill country, elevated above the surrounding regions. Because Jerusalem was also the home of Solomon’s temple, journeys toward the city were seen as a heavenly ascent to a sacred place.

While these are only two pieces of evidence, explore the articles and books below to get a sample of all the archaeological evidence for Jerusalem that coincides with how Lehi and Nephi describe their home city.

2. The Borders of the Red Sea

When Lehi and his family travel south, they describe traveling both “by” the borders of the Red Sea, and “in” the borders of the Red Sea ( 1 Nephi 2:5 ). Researchers George Potter and Richard Wellington believe that “borders” may refer to mountains or cliffs adjacent to the Red Sea coast.

The Gaza branch of the Frankincense trail reaches the northern tip of the Red Sea, and then proceeds south along the Red Sea coast, which is flanked in by a formidable mountain range. After reaching the proposed location for the Valley of Lemuel, the Frankincense trail then proceeds inland to join with the main vein of the Frankincense trail as it goes south to Yemen.

As Lehi and family reached the Red Sea coast, they would have well surpassed the 3-day traveling requirement for Israelites to offer their own sacrifices outside the Jerusalem temple, as Lehi demonstrates in 1 Nephi 2:7 .

3. The Location of the Valley of Lemuel

In 1 Nephi 2, Lehi and his family settle their camp in a valley with a river, whose mouth opens into the Red Sea. Lehi “called the name of the river, Laman” ( 1 Nephi 2:8 ) and called the valley after his son Lemuel.

Researchers have remarkably identified a location that matches Lehi’s description of a valley that is “firm and steadfast, and immoveable” ( 1 Nephi 2:10 ), and a river that is “continually running” ( 1 Nephi 2:9 ).

Wadi Tayyib al-Ism is an impressive valley located today in northwest Saudi Arabia along the Red Sea. It is approximately a 3-days journey away from the northern-most tip of the Red Sea ( 1 Nephi 2:6 ), and it has sheer granite walls rising about 2000 ft to form a formidable valley.

Most significantly, Wadi Tayyib al-Ism has a small stream (that during flood seasons and in ages past was much more like a river) of water that flows all year

Our best clues for the location of Shazer come from its name. The etymology of Shazer has had several proposals. Some have proposed it means “to twist, to intertwine,” possibly a reference to the gnarled and twisted acacia trees that may have populated the area.

Hugh Nibley and others have suggested it derives from a common Palestinian place-name “shajer” meaning “trees, forest, woody, wooded.” Matt Bowen has most recently proposed that Shazer may come from a Semitic word meaning “gazelle,” referring to the abundant resources for hunting that Lehi’s family may have encountered.

Click To Tweet

Regardless of which etymology you follow, it appears that the name for Shazer is related to fertility for either fauna or flora. Nephi describes that the location is approximately a four-day journey south-southeast from the valley of Lemuel.

As it turns out, Wadi Agharr (also known as Wadi Sharma), located in the northern Hijaz mountains, is a fertile valley with an oasis over fifteen miles long, and is the appropriate distance away from the proposed Valley of Lemuel.

5. The Camp of the Broken Bow

The location of the place where Nephi broke his bow ( 1 Nephi 16:18 ) is known with the least certainty. The best clue we have comes from 1 Nephi 16 where Nephi states that they “did go forth again in the wilderness, following the same direction, keeping in the  most  fertile parts of the wilderness, which were in the borders near the Red Sea” ( 1 Nephi 16:14 , emphasis added). After they hunted for food, they continued their journey southward in “the  more  fertile parts of the wilderness” ( 1 Nephi 16:16 , emphasis added).

It appears that as the family traveled southward, the fertility of the land and the family’s opportunities for food grew scarcer. That is indeed what we find along the Frankincense trail, with cultivated land being as far as 50 miles apart from each other in this part of modern-day Arabia.

Interestingly, it is in this region near the halt of Bishah that a particular type of olive tree grows that is suitable for crafting a bow. When Nephi broke his steel bow, he likely would have used the wood from the Attim or wild olive tree to craft his wooden bow ( 1 Nephi 16:23 ).

Unlike all the other places Lehi stopped, it appears he did not give this place a name. Instead, Nahom was likely already given as a name for this location by the residing population ( 1 Nephi 16:34 ). If the place was called Nahom back in Lehi’s time, you might expect to be able to find it in the archaeological record, and that’s exactly what we  find in southern Arabia , along Lehi’s trail.

Researchers found the name “Nehem” on a 1763 map of Arabia, and then in 1997, German archaeologists  discovered an altar that dated back to Lehi’s time , with an inscription containing the name “NHM.”

The location of the Nehem tribal area in southwestern Arabia also corresponds well with Lehi’s position along his journey. Nephi recounts that after leaving Nahom they “did travel nearly eastward from that time forth” ( 1 Nephi 17:1 ) until they reached Bountiful, which is likely located along the coast of Oman.

7. Bountiful

After traveling due eastward, Lehi’s family eventually reaches the coast of the Arabian Peninsula in modern-day Oman. Researcher Warren Aston has identified Khor Kharfot, an inlet in the Dhofar region, as a potential location for Bountiful. He also identified  twelve requirements that must be present  in the vegetation and landscape to qualify, as described in 1 Nephi 17–18.

Khor Kharfot matches well Nephi’s description of having fresh water, fruit, honey, access to the coast, mountains and cliffs, ore for tools, and timber for shipbuilding. George Potter and Richard Wellington have alternatively identified Khor Rori as an ideal fit for the location of Bountiful.

Evidence that supports the narratives in the Book of Mormon is ever increasing. While we still have much to learn about the ancient world and how it correlates with the Book of Mormon, the stories in 1 Nephi fit right at home in 7th century Israel.

The locations of Lehi’s journey are beginning to be identified, and details about his experiences in the wilderness correlate well with what we know about the ancient Near East. Elder Jeffrey R. Holland has encouraged members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to embrace and seek after evidences of the gospel of Jesus Christ:

In making our case for the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, I believe God intends us to find and use the evidence He has given—reasons, if you will—which affirm the truthfulness of His work…Thus armed with so much evidence of the kind we have celebrated here tonight, we ought to be more assertive than we sometimes are in defending our testimony of truth.

As members of the Church take to heart the commission to be more assertive in defending our testimonies by studying and researching evidences, the Book of Mormon will surely get better with age.

Jeffrey R. Holland, “ The Greatness of the Evidence ,”  Chiasmus Jubilee  August 17, 2017.

Watch the video below for a summary of all the evidence for Lehi’s journey to the Promised Land.

Thursday 25th of February 2021

You site has way too many ads attached. It’s annoying!!! Can’t hardly read the article.

Tuesday 9th of February 2021

Here's #8! https://youtu.be/s_CxzQKb1ZA

Lehi and Family Journey to the Promised Land

"And it came to pass after we had all gone down into the ship, and had taken with us our provisions and things which had been commanded us, we did put forth into the sea, and were driven forth before the wind, towards the promised land; and after we had been driven forth before the wind for the space of many days, behold, my brethren, and the sons of Ishmael, and also their wives, began to make themselves merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much rudeness, yea, even that they did forget by what power they had been brought thither; yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness.

"And I, Nephi, began to fear exceedingly, lest the Lord should be angry with us, and smite us, because of our iniquity, that we should be swallowed up in the depths of the sea; wherefore, I, Nephi, began to speak to them with much soberness; but behold, they were angry with me, saying, We will not that our younger brother shall be a ruler over us.

"And it came to pass that Laman and Lemuel did take me and bind me with cords, and they did treat me with much harshness; nevertheless, the Lord did suffer it, that he might shew forth his power, unto the fulfilling of his word which he had spoken concerning the wicked.

"And it came to pass that after they had bound me, insomuch that I could not move, the compass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did cease to work; wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch, that there arose a great storm, yea, a great and terrible tempest; and we were driven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly, lest they should be drowned in the sea; nevertheless, they did not loose me.

"And on the fourth day which we had been driven back, the tempest began to be exceeding sore. And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the space of four days, my brethren began to see that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they must perish, save that they should repent of their iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me and loosed the bands which were upon my wrists, and behold, they had swollen exceedingly; and also mine ankles were much swollen, and great was the soreness thereof. Nevertheless, I did look unto my God, and I did praise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions.

"Now, my father Lehi, had said many things unto them, and also unto the sons of Ishmael; but behold, they did breathe out much threatenings against any one that should speak for me; and my parents being stricken in years, and having suffered much grief because of their children, they were brought down, yea, even upon their sick beds. Because of their grief, and much sorrow, and the iniquity of my brethren, they were brought near even to be carried out of this time, to meet their God; yea, their grey hairs were about to be brought down to lie low in the dust; yea, even they were near to be cast, with sorrow, into a watery grave.

"And Jacob and Joseph also, being young, having need of much nourishment, were grieved because of the afflictions of their mother; and also my wife, with her tears and prayers, and also my children, did not soften the hearts of my brethren, that they would loose me; and there was nothing, save it were the power of God, which threatened them with destruction, could soften their hearts; wherefore, when they saw that they were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea, they repented of the thing which they had done, insomuch that they loosed me.

"And it came to pass after they had loosed me, behold, I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed, the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm. And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did guide the ship, that we sailed again towards the promised land.

"And it came to pass that after we had sailed for the space of many days, we did arrive to the promised land; and we went forth upon the land, and did pitch our tents; and we did call it the promised land" (1 Nephi 3:180–213).

• choosing a selection results in a full page refresh

What does the map of the Promised Land look like?

Bible question:.

Please define the promised land. Does the Bible call it the land of Palestine? Did the Roman emperor Hadrian rename the area surrounding Jerusalem as Palestine?

Bible Answer:

The “Promised Land” is so named because it was territory that God had promised to Abram, who was later renamed as Abraham. The territory was included in what is called the Abrahamic Covenant and it is described in Genesis 12:1-4.  In the covenant God promised Abram that 1) he would become a great nation, 2) have a land of his own, and bless those who blessed him and curse those who cursed him . Scripture tells us that Abram believed God and left the Ur of the Chaldeans, the place of his birth (Genesis 11:31; 15:7).

In Genesis 50:24, Joseph calls the land that God promised to Abraham “the land which He promised on an oath to Abraham.” Yet, nowhere in the Bible is that land called the “promised land.” That is a term that has been given by Christians to the land promised to Abram. The New Testament comes very close to using the expression “promised land” when the book of Hebrews says, “land of promise.”

By faith he lived as an alien in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise . . . Hebrews 11:9 (NASB)

General Description of the Promised Land

A general and incomplete description of the Promised Land is given in Genesis 12:5-7 and Genesis 24:7 .

Abram took Sarai his wife and Lot his nephew, and all their possessions which they had accumulated, and the persons which they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan; thus they came to the land of Canaan. Abram passed through the land as far as the site of Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. Now the Canaanite was then in the land. The LORD appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” So he built an altar there to the LORD who had appeared to him. Genesis 12:5-7 (NASB) The LORD, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and from the land of my birth, and who spoke to me (Abraham) and who swore to me, saying, “To your descendants I will give this land,” He will send His angel before you, and you will take a wife for my son from there. Genesis 24:7 (NASB)

In verse 5 we are told that Abram and his wife Sarai traveled through the land of Canaan only as far as Shechem to the oak of Moreh. The description is a partial or incomplete one. Then God told Abram this is the land that I will give to your descendants.  Genesis 13:12 says that Abram settled in the land of Canaan.

Second General Description of the Promised Land

In Genesis 15 God meets Abram again promising him the land of Canaan and defining its boundaries. Now a fuller description of the land was given to Abram. Now the land stretched from the Nile River of Egypt to the Euphrates River in Mesopotamia (Genesis 15:18-21).

On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates: the Kenite and the Kenizzite and the Kadmonite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Rephaim and the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Girgashite and the Jebusite.” Genesis 15:18–21 (NASB)

Exodus also describes the promised land as stretching from the boundary of the Red Sea to the Euphrates River (Exodus 23:28-31).

Detailed Description of the Promised Land

Later in Numbers 34:1-13 God gives Moses a more detailed description of the Promised Land the Israelites would occupy.

Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you enter the land of Canaan, this is the land that shall fall to you as an inheritance, even the land of Canaan according to its borders. Your southern sector shall extend from the wilderness of Zin along the side of Edom, and your southern border shall extend from the end of the [Dead Sea] eastward. Then your border shall turn direction from the south to the ascent of Akrabbim and continue to Zin, and its termination shall be to the south of Kadesh-barnea; and it shall reach Hazaraddar and continue to Azmon. The border shall turn direction from Azmon to the brook of Egypt, and its termination shall be at the sea. As for the western border, you shall have the [Mediterranean Sea], that is, its coastline; this shall be your west border. And this shall be your north border: you shall draw your border line from the Great Sea to Mount Hor. You shall draw a line from Mount Hor to the Lebo-hamath, and the termination of the border shall be at Zedad; and the border shall proceed to Ziphron, and its termination shall be at Hazar-enan. This shall be your north border. For your eastern border you shall also draw a line from Hazar-enan to Shepham, and the border shall go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain; and the border shall go down and reach to the slope on the east side of the Sea of Chinnereth. And the border shall go down to the Jordan and its termination shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land according to its borders all around.'” So Moses commanded the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the land that you are to apportion by lot among you as a possession, which the LORD has commanded to give to the nine and a half tribes.” Numbers 34:1-13 (NASB)

In Numbers 34:2, God explicitly states the Israelites were inheriting the land of Canaan. The western border of the Promised Land started with the coastline along the Sea of Galilee. The northern border is defined by a horizontal line that crossed through Mount Hor, Lebo-hamath, Zeded, Ziphon, and Hazarenan. The eastern border crossed through Hazarenan, Shepham, Riblah, Ain, the Sea of Chinnereth and down to the Dead Sea. The southern border started with the wilderness of Zin on the east side of Edom and extended to the west side of the Dead Sea.[1]

The territory was about 60,000 square miles, 144 miles in length from the north to the south, 40 miles across the southern border, and 20 miles along the northern border.

Full Occupation of the Promised Land

Full occupation of the Promised Land became a reality under King David and King Solomon when the Israelites possessed all of the land that God had promised Abraham in Genesis 12, 15, 18, and 22. However, it was temporary and did not last. At Israel’s height, their land stretched from the border of Egypt to the River Euphrates:

So King Solomon became greater than all the kings of the earth in riches and wisdom. And all the kings of the earth were seeking the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom which God had put in his heart. They brought every man his gift, articles of silver and gold, garments, weapons, spices, horses and mules, so much year by year. Now Solomon had 4,000 stalls for horses and chariots and 12,000 horsemen, and he stationed them in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. He was the ruler over all the kings from the Euphrates River even to the land of the Philistines, and as far as the border of Egypt. 2 Chronicles 9:22–26 (NASB)

The promised land included Judea, Samaria and Galilee in Jesus’ day. Consequently, it included the land of Canaan (Flavius Josephus, Antiquities I, 7), the Sea of Galilee or the Sea of Gennesaret (Luke 5:1) and the Dead Sea.

Palestine Was Promised to Israel

Palestine was a name already in existence and used by ancient writers before Jesus was born. Today, some claim that the Israelites stole the land on which the nation of Israel resides. But the preceding discussion reveals that God gave the land to Abraham and subsequently to Israel. The land was called Palestine during the time of Herodotus, Aristotle, Flavius Josephus, and today. The land was once called Canaan and was later called Palestine. Here are some important quotes.

Here is a quote from Herodotus (440 B.C.),

Between Persia and Phoenicia lies a broad and ample tract of country, after which the region I am describing skirts our sea, stretching from Phoenicia along the coast of Palestine-Syria till it comes to Egypt, where it terminates. This entire tract contains but three nations. The whole of Asia west of the country of the Persians is comprised in these two regions.[2]

Aristotle (350 B.C.) also refers to Palestine and mentions the Dead Sea by mentioning the “lake” that is “bitter” and “makes salt.”

Again if, as is fabled, there is a lake in Palestine, such that if you bind a man or beast and throw it in it floats and does not sink, this would bear out what we have said. They say that this lake is so bitter and salt that no fish live in it and that if you soak clothes in it and shake them it cleans them. The following facts all of them support our theory that it is some earthy stuff in the water which makes it salt.[3]

Flavius Josephus (A.D. 37 – A.D. 100 ) also refers to the land of Palestine in his Antiquities of the Jews Book XX, Section 11.

I shall now, therefore, make an end here of my Antiquities; after the conclusion of which events, I began to write that account of the war; and these Antiquities contain what hath been delivered down to us from the original creation of man, until the twelfth year of the reign of Nero, as to what hath befallen the Jews, as well in Egypt as in Syria, and in Palestine . . . [4]

Therefore, it is correct to conclude that the modern definition of the term Palestine refers to the entire land of ancient Canaan and that was the land the Israelites possessed during the time of Joshua and King David. Palestine also refers to the land occupied by the Israelites before Christ and during Christ’s time until the Romans defeated the nation in A.D. 70. Therefore, the definition of Palestine includes the ancient land of Canaan, and the land that Herodotus, Aristotle, Flavius Josephus called Palestine. The definition is unchanged today.  Therefore, the term or the name of Palestine has only one meaning.

Conclusion:

The Bible prophesied that the Promised Land would be given once again to the Jewish people some time in the future after the second coming of Jesus, when He reigns over the entire world (Ezekiel 47:13-20). During this time the promised land will finally be realized to its fullest extent and control all of the earth (Daniel 2:35, 44).

References:

1. Yohanan et al. The MacMillian Bible Atlas. MacMillian Publishing Co. 1968. maps 48, 50. 2. Herodotus. The History. Book IV. Melpomene. 3. Aristotle, Meteorology, Book 2, Section 3. 4. Flavius Josephus and William Whiston, The Works of Josephus: Complete and Unabridged (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1987), 541.

Suggested Links:

To the glory of god.

Thus says the LORD, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me . . . Jeremiah 9:23-24

Like The Master Ministries

P.O. Box 31976 Tucson, AZ  85751

A non-profit, 501(c)3 corporation. Donations to this ministry are tax-deductible.

Getting Acquainted

• Our Purpose
• Origin of Our Name
• What We Believe
• About the Author
• Copyright Policy
• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Use
• Donate to NeverThirsty
• Submit A Bible Question
• Newsletter Signup

Jacob, it works according to our faith and obedience. I'm going to see how the others are doing.

whether it's to food, or to find the promised land.

Look! Land!

The promised land.

Lehi's Family Arrives at the Promised Land | 1 Nephi 18:23

Description, related collections.