Book of Moses writing project: Dividing into Parts

I’m attempting a paper on the Book of Moses, which will focus on Adam and Eve, the transition from a couple-priesthood to a generational-priesthood, and the effect of the formation of Zion. For today, I just want to share how I see the Book of Moses dividing itself up into parts:

Part 1, Moses chapter 1, contains Moses’s encounters with God and Satan. God shows Moses a vision of the earth, and all the inhabitants, which prompts Moses to ask for more of the story. By the end of chapter 1, the conversation between God and Moses has wrapped up, and it ends with an “Amen.”

Part 2, Moses chapters 2-4, begins God’s account of the heavens and the earth. The central narrative story is about the creation of Adam & Eve and the Fall. This part also ends with an “Amen.”

Part 3, Moses 5, describes Adam and Eve’s life outside the Garden of Eden, including their labors, efforts to teach their children, and their children’s rebellion. It ends with two verses describing how God has reached out to Adam’s family so far (5:58-59), then ends with an “Amen.”

Part 4, Moses chapter 6 (first half), contains the story of righteous sons, grandsons, and so on, and the formation of a Priesthood. A record of Adam’s genealogy is kept, and quoted. I choose to see the end of the quotation, with the two verses which re-summarize the record (v. 22-23), as the end of part 4.

Part 5, Moses chapters 6 (second half)-7, contains the story of Enoch, including his vision and the building of the city Zion. Chapter 7 ends with Zion being taken to heaven and the all-capital words: “ZION IS FLED.”

Part 6, chapter 8, picks up the story after Enoch’s city leaves. It contains the story of Noah, up to the point where God decides to destroy the people.