PUZZLE #14 - The RED Way

Mormonism claims that the Bible was altered so much that we can't trust it, but that the Book of Mormon was hidden in a rock box on the side of a hill so that it would
be preserved for our day. God kept it from being changed by men, by keeping it away from men.

2nd Nephi 19:1 (Page 89) includes the word 'RED' in the name of a road, but the word 'RED' is not part of Isaiah 9:1 in the Bible. Did Isaiah write down the word 'RED'? Notice that this verse is a description of a place in northern Canaan, near the territories held by the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali in Old Testament times.

The 'way of the sea' is the via mares or the road along the sea. It is still the main highway passing thru the Holy Land connecting Syria with Egypt. You should find it on your Bible map.

This passage speaks specifically of Galilee. Isaiah was pointing to the spot where Jesus would begin His mortal ministry, and Matthew 4:15 quotes this verse. The 'way
of the sea' was a road that passed through Capernaum, where Jesus began His ministry. If there were a 'way of the Red sea', it would be along the Red Sea, which is 250 miles to the South, and it would a be a completely different road from the 'way of the sea'.

Why does the Book of Mormon tie this verse to the 'RED' sea? It's a PUZZLE. The RED SEA isn't where Jesus began His work. Had the author of these Book of Mormon words ever lived in Jerusalem? Did he know the difference between the Red Sea and the Sea of Galilee?

"Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in
the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Matthew 4:12-17)

As it turns out, there is no reason to believe that the word 'Red' was ever part of what Isaiah wrote down. 2nd Nephi 19:1 makes absolutely no sense when that word is inserted into it. Can we see that Joseph Smith was using the text of Isaiah, and altering it to make his new book look authentic? Did he add words here and there,
removing some and changing some, and then claim that the Bible had been altered by evil men? It's a PUZZLE alright.

There may come a time when the Mormon Church will change or eliminate this word, but until then, it will continue to prove that 2nd Nephi wasn't written by a Hebrew prophet. Anyone who had lived in Jerusalem would known the difference between the Sea of Galilee and the RED Sea.