"If Ye Believe on His Name": Wordplay on the Name Samuel in Helaman 14:2,1213 & 3 Nephi 23:9 and the Doctrine of Christ

Abstract: The Semitic/Hebrew name Samuel (šĕmûʾēl) most likely means "his name is El" — i.e., "his name [the name that he calls upon in worship] is El" — although it was also associated with "hearing" (šāmaʿ) God (e.g., 1 Samuel 3:9–11). In the ancient Near East, the parental hope for one thus named is that the son (and "his name") would glorify El (a name later understood in ancient Israel to refer to God); or, like the biblical prophet Samuel, the child would hear El/God ("El is heard"). ...