According to Matthew Brown, the lambskin apparel mentioned in 3 Nephi 4:7 has strong affinities with the ritual aprons of ancient Israel, Egypt, and Mesoamerica… . English dictionaries from the time when the Book of Mormon was being translated indicate that the words “girdle” and “apron” could be used interchangeably… . It is also fairly common for Bible commentators to note that in the Old Testament the Hebrew word translated as “apron” (hagorah) is sometimes also translated as “girdle,” and that the two words can be used interchangeably. Likewise, in the New Testament the Greek word that is translated as “apron” (simikinthion) literally means “half-girdle.” … Is it possible that when Joseph Smith translated these passages from a modified form of Hebrew/Egyptian, he understood the Gadianton “girdle” to be an “apron”? … At the present time we do not possess a detailed account of Nephite temple activities… . we also do not find within [the Book of Mormon] pages a detailed description of the ritual clothing worn by the Nephite temple priests during their ministrations. But because they were orthodox Israelites, it is probably safe to assume that the Nephites wore the very same ritual attire that is divinely prescribed in Exodus 28… .
The temple connection is significant because the temple priests of ancient Israel wore a piece of ritual clothing called the ephod. Some scholars believe that in some instances this item of apparel was “a kind of leather apron.” … In Genesis 3:7 the aprons worn by Adam and Eve were girded about their waists so as to enclose and cover the area of their lap or loins… . One ancient account of the priestly investiture ceremony says that the apron was symbolic of “prophetic power.” This connection can be seen in the belief that the ephod originated as the apparel of deity and was worn on the earth by those who represented and spoke in deity’s behalf… . In some Hebrew theological circles it was held that Adam was the first earthly king, and the kings of Israel were thus seen as imitators of the first man (see Genesis 1:26-28)… .
Hebrew legends taught that the tree of knowledge of good and evil was a fig tree and it was from this tree’s leaves that Adam constructed his apron… . A strong connection was made in ancient Near Eastern religious thought between the king and the tree of life even to the point where the king was seen as a personification of that tree… . Since Adam wore an apron made of fig leaves (see Genesis 3:7), is it possible that the apron worn by Israel’s king [and High Priest] somehow imitated the one worn by Adam? …
A type of foliated apron was also worn by the Maya kings of Mesoamerica. The Maya royal apron was knee length, covered only the front part of the body, was worn underneath a royal belt, and was decorated with a glyph known as god C. The phonetic reading of this glyph is k’ul, which is the Maya word for sacred, holy, or divinity. Therefore this glyph is an identifying icon for the attribute of “holiness” and designates the object to which it is attached as being in such a state. More significant, however, is the nature of the god C glyph because it is derived from the Wacah Chan, the Maya “world tree” or tree of life symbol. The Maya king was considered to be a personification of that tree and the central axis of the Maya cosmos… .
The astute reader of the Book of Mormon has no doubt also noticed that in 3 Nephi 4:7, and in other places where the skin girdle is mentioned, the context is that of war. In this regard it is interesting to note that as part of his special war regalia the Maya king girded himself with the world tree apron. It is evident from surviving artistic examples that many of the Maya royal aprons had an additional emblem attached to them, a woven mat design that was symbolic of the king’s throne and thus his “authority, overlordship and power.” …
We have already mentioned that the prophets, priests, and kings of ancient Israel wore aprons that symbolized their prophetic power… . A curious passage in John 19:23 says that the Lord possessed a robe “without seam,” which he wore to the crucifixion and may have had with him during the Upper Room activities that commence with John 13. Commentators see in this reference a direct parallel to the robe of Israel’s high priest, which was constructed after the same manner (see Exodus 28:31-32). In John 13:4-5 we read that Jesus “took a towel, and girded himself … and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.” The word translated here as “towel” can also be translated as “servant’s apron.” …
The next pertinent question we should ask ourselves is, What kind of leather were the Christian aprons made of? Various traditions hold that Elijah, Elisha, Ezekiel the temple priest, and several early Christian Saints wore sheepskin clothing. Why so? Perhaps the idea goes back to the story of God providing “coats of skins” for Adam and Eve (see Genesis 3:21). Some Hebrew traditions maintain that this divine clothing was made from sheepskin. Other traditions claim that Adam‘s raiment was nothing less than the prototype of the high priest’s temple robes (see Exodus 28) and that he, and righteous firstborn sons after him, wore this clothing when they offered sacrifices.
This perspective may help explain the warning given by the Lord to his disciples to beware of “false prophets which come to you in sheep’s clothing” (Matthew 7:15; 3 Nephi 14:15). In Zechariah 13:4 we learn that false prophets were in the habit of dressing in the same distinctive vestments worn by the true prophets in order to deceive the people with their message. This is also reminiscent of 2 Corinthians 11:13-14, where we learn that false prophets somehow “transform” themselves to be like the Lord’s apostles just as “Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light” (emphasis added). Curiously enough, Joseph Smith taught that one of the ploys Satan uses to deceive others into thinking that he is an “angel of light” is that he wears “holy garb.” This leads us directly back to the circumstances surrounding 3 Nephi 4:7 and a possible explanation for why the lambskin apparel is mentioned there… .
There is evidence within the Book of Mormon itself that members of the secret combinations were blasphemous imitators of the holy order of God. And since the objectives of priestcraft and the secret combinations were one and the same (to get gain) it is proposed that this is the context in which the lambskin apparel of 3 Nephi 4:7 can best be understood… . The express purpose of those who joined the secret combinations was for them to obtain power (see Helaman 2:8; Ether 8:14-19, 22-23; 11:15). What could have been a more meaningful symbol for them than an emblem which for long ages past had represented the very thing for which they sought?
Sorenson has demonstrated several parallels between the Gadianton robbers and ancient Mesoamerican secret societies. Members of one secret society, called the nahualistas, carried pieces of sacred animal skin on their person as a symbol of the “power” given to them by their nahual or guardian animal spirit. New members of these societies were required to go through an initiation ceremony in which they were taught secret knowledge by a “religious” or semipriestly order known as “master magicians.” This is particularly intriguing because in Mormon 1:18-19 a connection is made between the secret combinations and the practice of magic. In Moses 5:30-31 and 49 a connection is also made between secret combinations and the strange title Master Mahan… . Footnote d for Moses 5:31, offers several possible meanings for Mahan based on its etymological root. Of the choices offered I [Matt Brown] personally feel that “destroyer” is the most probable one. My reasoning for this is that the Hebrew word maha means “destroy.” and the addition of an n would make the word a noun. Hence, maha(n) = destroy(er)
In conclusion, the lambskin apparel mentioned in 3 Nephi 4:7 has strong affinities with the ritual aprons of ancient Israel, Egypt, and Mesoamerica… . Why was the leather apparel worn by those among the secret combinations? If they were, indeed, imitating the ritual apron worn by the legitimate prophets, priests, and kings of Israel, these apostates would have been hard pressed to find a better symbol of the power and authority that they so much desired to usurp for themselves (see Helaman 7:4; Alma 25:4-5; D&C 76:28; 29:36; Moses 4:1-3). Why did the Book of Mormon authors make sure that this particular theme was presented to us in the latter-days? Perhaps to warn us of wolves in sheep’s clothing (see Alma 5:59-60). Matthew B. Brown, “Girded about with a Lambskin,” in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 6/2, 1997, pp. 124-151]
3 Nephi 4:7 They [the Gadianton robbers] had a lamb-skin about their loins ([Illustration] Figure 1. Theodore C. Foote, “The Ephod,” Journal of Biblical Literature 21 (1902): 42. Figure 2. William Smith and Samuel Cheetham, A Dictionary of Christian Antiquities (New York: Kraus, 1968), 2:1307. Figure 4. The Maya tree of life and its transformation into the royal apron. Linda Schele and Mary Ellen Miller, The Blood of Kings: Dynassty and Ritual in Maya Art (Fort Worth: Kimbell Art Museum, 1986), 77. Matthew B. Brown, “Girded about with a Lambskin,” in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 6/2, 1997, pp. 135,137,142]