Stretched-forth Necks
Recently I was reading in 2 Nephi chapter 13, one of the Isaiah chapters. I won't discuss all the verses, but one in particular stood out, verse 16:
"Moreover, the Lord saith: Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched-forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet."
It is my understanding that when the scriptures refer to a specific people "of Zion," in this case "daughters of Zion," it is more in reference to members of the Church. It can certainly apply to people in a broader sense as well. But in a general sense, Zion is in reference to the land of America (more particularly North America) and Jerusalem refers to the land of Israel.
So, "daughters of Zion" could refer to both members of the Church and those who live in America.
Before I get into an impression/thought I had regarding verse 16, we need to define a few words. Too often we think we know what a word means, but we forget that the Book of Mormon was translated using early nineteenth century English.
Using the Webster's Dictionary from 1828, which is found online, here are a few words. I have emphasized a few of the meanings. http://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/
"HAUGHTY, adjective hau'ty. [from haught.]
"1. Proud and disdainful; having a high opinion of one's self, with some contempt for others; lofty and arrogant; supercilious.
"His wife was a woman of a haughty and imperious nature.
"A haughty spirit goeth before a fall. Proverbs 16:18.
"2. Proceeding from excessive pride, or pride mingled with contempt; manifesting pride and disdain; as a haughty air or walk.
"3. Proud and imperious; as a haughty nation.
"4. Lofty; bold; of high hazard; as a haughty enterprise."
As a side note, it is interesting that many of the definitions I look up use scriptures as an example. Haughty was defined as expected. Basically it is excessive pride.
"Mincing MIN'CING, participle present tense Cutting into small pieces; speaking or walking affectedly."
And a more interesting definition.
"Wanton
"WANTON, adjective
"1. Wandering or roving in gaiety or sport; sportive; frolicsome; darting aside, or one way and the other. wanton boys kill flies for sport.
"Not a wild and wanton herd.
"2. Moving or flying loosely; playing in the wind.
"She her unadorned golden tresses wore disheveld, but in wanton ringlets wavd.
"3. Wandering from moral rectitude; licentious; dissolute; indulging in sensuality without restraint; as men grown wanton by prosperity.
"My plenteous joys, wanton in fullness--
"4. More appropriately, deviating from the rules of chastity; lewd; lustful; lascivious; libidinous.
"Thou art froward by nature, enemy to peace, lascivious wanton
"Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton James 5:5.
"5. Disposed to unchastity; indicating wantonness. Isaiah 3:16.
"6. Loose; unrestrained; running to excess.
"How does your tongue grow wanton in her praise!
"7. Luxuriant; overgrown.
"What we by day lop overgrown, one night or two with wanton growth derides, tending to wild.
"8. Extravagant; as wanton dress.
"9. Not regular; not turned or formed with regularity.
"The quaint mazes in the wanton green.
"WANTON, noun
"1. A lewd person; a lascivious man or woman.
"2. A trifler; an insignificant flutterer.
"3. A word of slight endearment.
"Peace, my wanton--[Little used.]
"WANTON, verb transitive
"1. To rove and ramble without restraint, rule or limit; to revel; to play loosely.
"Nature here wantond as in her prime.
"Her golden tresses wanton in the wind.
"2. To ramble in lewdness; to play lasciviously.
"3. To move briskly and irregularly."
So, the daughters of Zion are prideful and are wandering away from chastity and modesty.
But, the imagery that caught my thoughts was that they "walk with stretched-forth necks and wanton eyes."
Unless the scriptures specifically identify something as being allegorical, a metaphor, or compared to something else, as in "like" or "as," we should assume that while there can be spiritual meanings, there are also literal meanings as well.
The footnote for "walk" in this verse is "walk in darkness," but there is, I believe, a literal meaning.
Think about how people look when they walk around texting or using their smartphones...
And, while men do this, I tend to see more women doing this, at least while walking.
The image matches. Most people have their heads forward, looking at their small screens. Their necks are "stretched-forth" and it is actually causing neck and spinal problems for many people. You can search for "text neck" and find articles discussing this problem.
For a visual reference, search online for "woman texting while walking" or "girl texting walking" and view the images. Here's one (which I selected because it was labeled for reuse):
It would be interesting to know how much of texts might fit into one or more of the definitions of "wanton."
It was an interesting thought as I read the scriptures.
"Moreover, the Lord saith: Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched-forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet."
It is my understanding that when the scriptures refer to a specific people "of Zion," in this case "daughters of Zion," it is more in reference to members of the Church. It can certainly apply to people in a broader sense as well. But in a general sense, Zion is in reference to the land of America (more particularly North America) and Jerusalem refers to the land of Israel.
So, "daughters of Zion" could refer to both members of the Church and those who live in America.
Before I get into an impression/thought I had regarding verse 16, we need to define a few words. Too often we think we know what a word means, but we forget that the Book of Mormon was translated using early nineteenth century English.
Using the Webster's Dictionary from 1828, which is found online, here are a few words. I have emphasized a few of the meanings. http://webstersdictionary1828.com/Dictionary/
"HAUGHTY, adjective hau'ty. [from haught.]
"1. Proud and disdainful; having a high opinion of one's self, with some contempt for others; lofty and arrogant; supercilious.
"His wife was a woman of a haughty and imperious nature.
"A haughty spirit goeth before a fall. Proverbs 16:18.
"2. Proceeding from excessive pride, or pride mingled with contempt; manifesting pride and disdain; as a haughty air or walk.
"3. Proud and imperious; as a haughty nation.
"4. Lofty; bold; of high hazard; as a haughty enterprise."
As a side note, it is interesting that many of the definitions I look up use scriptures as an example. Haughty was defined as expected. Basically it is excessive pride.
"Mincing MIN'CING, participle present tense Cutting into small pieces; speaking or walking affectedly."
And a more interesting definition.
"Wanton
"WANTON, adjective
"1. Wandering or roving in gaiety or sport; sportive; frolicsome; darting aside, or one way and the other. wanton boys kill flies for sport.
"Not a wild and wanton herd.
"2. Moving or flying loosely; playing in the wind.
"She her unadorned golden tresses wore disheveld, but in wanton ringlets wavd.
"3. Wandering from moral rectitude; licentious; dissolute; indulging in sensuality without restraint; as men grown wanton by prosperity.
"My plenteous joys, wanton in fullness--
"4. More appropriately, deviating from the rules of chastity; lewd; lustful; lascivious; libidinous.
"Thou art froward by nature, enemy to peace, lascivious wanton
"Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton James 5:5.
"5. Disposed to unchastity; indicating wantonness. Isaiah 3:16.
"6. Loose; unrestrained; running to excess.
"How does your tongue grow wanton in her praise!
"7. Luxuriant; overgrown.
"What we by day lop overgrown, one night or two with wanton growth derides, tending to wild.
"8. Extravagant; as wanton dress.
"9. Not regular; not turned or formed with regularity.
"The quaint mazes in the wanton green.
"WANTON, noun
"1. A lewd person; a lascivious man or woman.
"2. A trifler; an insignificant flutterer.
"3. A word of slight endearment.
"Peace, my wanton--[Little used.]
"WANTON, verb transitive
"1. To rove and ramble without restraint, rule or limit; to revel; to play loosely.
"Nature here wantond as in her prime.
"Her golden tresses wanton in the wind.
"2. To ramble in lewdness; to play lasciviously.
"3. To move briskly and irregularly."
So, the daughters of Zion are prideful and are wandering away from chastity and modesty.
But, the imagery that caught my thoughts was that they "walk with stretched-forth necks and wanton eyes."
Unless the scriptures specifically identify something as being allegorical, a metaphor, or compared to something else, as in "like" or "as," we should assume that while there can be spiritual meanings, there are also literal meanings as well.
The footnote for "walk" in this verse is "walk in darkness," but there is, I believe, a literal meaning.
Think about how people look when they walk around texting or using their smartphones...
And, while men do this, I tend to see more women doing this, at least while walking.
The image matches. Most people have their heads forward, looking at their small screens. Their necks are "stretched-forth" and it is actually causing neck and spinal problems for many people. You can search for "text neck" and find articles discussing this problem.
For a visual reference, search online for "woman texting while walking" or "girl texting walking" and view the images. Here's one (which I selected because it was labeled for reuse):
It would be interesting to know how much of texts might fit into one or more of the definitions of "wanton."
It was an interesting thought as I read the scriptures.
----
Oct 12, 2021 - For some context behind this post, I posted another post More on Stretched Forth Necks. This is the same link I mentioned in a reply comment, but I though a clickable link would be easier for those interested.
How does a book from 800BCE refer to America??? You completely took this out of context. No legit scholar or preacher would agree with this. It’s Jewish literature. Ask a rabbi or ask a priest. The ‘me-ism’ of Christianity is a problem. The Bible is FOR us; it’s about God. Stop finding yourself in scripture and focus on finding God in it.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately the 4,096 character limitation doesn't allow me to post in this reply my complete response.
DeleteI apologize I was not very clear in the context and understanding from which I wrote the post, and I've created a new post with the full response.
https://fulnessoftimes.blogspot.com/2021/10/more-on-stretched-forth-necks.html
Thank you for your post. It engaged me to dig deeper in an effort to help others better understand where I'm coming from.