A whole new meaning

I've read The Book of Mormon a bunch of times. Like, probably at least 60-70 times, start to finish. Even more if you count the times I plowed through Book of Mormon Stories as a kid. When it was my turn to give the Family Home Evening lesson, I told the story of Captain Moroni and the title of liberty literally every time over a two or three year period.

Because I've read the BOM so many times, in recent years I often find myself going through it on autopilot, not really thinking about much about what I'm reading. This is of course not an ideal way to study the scriptures, but it's better than not reading at all. Every once in a while, though, I read a passage that clicks with me in a way it never has before in dozens of previous readings.

One of the most memorable of these instances happened when I was reading about the first battle of the aforementioned Captain Moroni. Moroni's army had surrounded the enemy Lamanites, but since Moroni was not a violent or vicious man, he halted the attack and gave his enemies an option: surrender your weapons and vow never to come to war against us again, and we'll let you go. If not, we'll continue to kill you until you accept our terms.

The soon-to-be-scalped Lamanite leader, Zerahemnah, declined the offer. Captain Moroni responded "Now I cannot recall the words which I have spoken" (Alma 44:11). Of course, he meant that he would not take back his words or change his mind on the terms of surrender he had laid out. But this one time I read it, my brain interpreted it to mean that Moroni couldn't remember what he had just said to Zerahemnah. It made me laugh then, and has done the same on each subsequent reading. I'll never be able to read that verse again without thinking about that other, wrong interpretation.

Many people dismiss these "war chapters" of The Book of Mormon as unimportant. Even the Church crams this large section into just a couple of weeks of Gospel Doctrine study, including ten chapters to read for this week's lesson (you'd better get started if you haven't already). But there's plenty of good stuff in the last 20 chapters of Alma, even for those who aren't into the whole neverending Nephite-Lamanite war narrative. I've gained many insights on gospel principles in these pages that have strengthened my faith and solidified my commitment to the Lord and His church. I'm hoping to learn even more as I read these pages for the umpteenth time these next few weeks. And I know, if I do, that I'll never read the scriptures the same way again.

Have you ever misinterpreted a scripture in a funny way? What gospel insights have you gained while studying the "war chapters?"