Flashbacks in the Book of Mosiah

The narratives in the book of Mosiah do not always follow in strict chronological order. The two major flashbacks, Zeniff's and Alma's accounts, illustrate that the book of Mosiah was put together by use of historical records of several authors. These flashbacks also attest to the historicity of the Book of Mormon, because it would have been difficult for the Prophet Joseph Smith to dictate these historically complex flashbacks and still keep his facts straight. In this chart the bars represent the narrative content and flow of the books of Omni and Mosiah over time, while the two flashback episodes are shown in relation to their placement in the book of Mosiah and to the time spans they cover, which predate the time of Mosiah.