KnoWhy #554 - Why Did Jacob Include the Case of Sherem? (Jacob 7:14)

After reading and interpreting the Allegory of the Olive Tree to the people in the city of Nephi, Jacob wrote what seems like a conclusive and final farewell. Yet Jacob later added an account of his public debate with a man named Sherem. Careful examination reveals that the exchange between Jacob and Sherem is a legal case that hinged on the three interrelated accusations of apostasy, blasphemy, and false prophecy. The outcome of the case provided irrefutable evidence that prophecies about Christ were true and established legal precedent with protected generations of Nephite prophets from the the same charges Jacob faced.