Book of Mormon/Nephi's killing of Laban

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Nephi's killing of Laban in the Book of Mormon

Summary: How can Latter-day Saints point to Nephi's killing of Laban as an example of a positive example of a Book of Mormon character? Wasn't this cold-blooded murder? And doesn't this passage then justify the killing of "the wicked" by anyone who feels that God has told them to do so?

Jump to Subtopic:

• Ethical considerations related to Nephi's killing of Laban
• Since Nephi beheaded Laban, wouldn't there be a large amount of blood afterward?

Ethical considerations related to Nephi's killing of Laban

Jump to Subtopic:

• Jeffery R. Holland: "It is wrong to assume that Nephi in any way wished to take Laban’s life"
• Question: Did Nephi commit "cold blooded murder" when he killed Laban?
• Question: Could Satan have deceived Nephi into killing Laban?
• Question: Could the angel which came to Nephi have been a demonic "angel of light" sent to deceive him?
• Question: Was Nephi simply listening to "a voice in his head" telling him to kill Laban as the result of a psychosis or delusion?
• Question: Why didn't God simply preserve Nephi's life using divine power instead of requiring him to kill Laban?
• Question: Do the legal concepts in the Book of Mormon better match Joseph Smith's day, or the ancient world?
• John W. Welch, "Legal Perspectives on the Slaying of Laban"

Nephi's killing of Laban: blood loss from decapitation

Jump to Subtopic:

• Question: Since Nephi beheaded Laban, wouldn't there be a large amount of blood afterward?
• Question: Is the story of Nephi killing Laban and then putting on his clothes believable?