According to Daniel Rolph, it is interesting that in Legends of the Jews we find a similar story to that of Nephi and Laban. In that story a renegade prophet named Balaam sold out to the Moabites. He is specifically addressed by Phineas as an archetype for that "Aramaean Laban who tried to destroy our father Jacob," and, like the Laban of Nephi's time, this Laban/Balaam's head was struck off by Phineas with a special sword. Furthermore, this Phineas might also have been an archetype for Nephi, or for those Nephite prophets and kings descended from the tribe of Joseph. Phineas (or Phinehas), the grandson of Aaron (Exodus 6:25), considered to be a descendant of Levi, is traditionally stated to have descended also through the lineage of Joseph. Moses reportedly bestowed upon him the leadership of the people while the Israelites were fighting the Midianites of the trans-Jordan region, along with the ark of the covenant, the Urim and Thummim, and the gold plate of the mitre that rested on the high priest's forehead. [Daniel N. Rolph, "Prophets, Kings, and Swords: The Sword of Laban and Its Possible Pre-Laban Origin," in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, Spring 1993, pp. 76-77] [See the commentary on 2 Nephi 7 by Richard Anthony]