pgs. 56 and 57...and he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain.

25 And I exceedingly fear and tremble because of you, lest he shall suffer again; for behold, ye have ^aaccused him that he sought power and ^bauthority over you; but I know that he hath not sought for power nor authority over you, but he hath sought the glory of God, and your own eternal welfare.

26 And ye have murmured because he hath been plain unto you. Ye say that he hath used ^asharpness; ye say that he hath been angry with you; but behold, his ^bsharpness was the sharpness of the power of the word of God, which was in him; and that which ye call anger was the truth, according to that which is in God, which he could not restrain, manifesting boldly concerning your iniquities.

27 And it must needs be that the ^apower of God must be with him, even unto his commanding you that ye must obey. But behold, it was not he, but it was the ^bSpirit of the Lord which was in him, which ^copened his mouth to utterance that he could not shut it.

28 And now my son, Laman, and also Lemuel and Sam, and also my sons who are the sons of Ishmael, behold, if ye will hearken unto the voice of Nephi ye shall not perish. And if ye will hearken unto him I leave unto you a ^ablessing, yea, even my first blessing.

29 But if ye will not hearken unto him I take away my ^afirst blessing, yea, even my blessing, and it shall rest upon him.

30 And now, Zoram, I speak unto you: Behold, thou art the ^aservant of Laban; nevertheless, thou hast been brought out of the land of Jerusalem, and I know that thou art a true ^bfriend unto my son, Nephi, forever.

31 Wherefore, because thou hast been faithful thy seed shall be blessed ^awith his seed, that they dwell in prosperity long upon the face of this land; and nothing, save it shall be iniquity among them, shall harm or disturb their prosperity upon the face of this land forever.

32 Wherefore, if ye shall keep the commandments of the Lord, the Lord hath consecrated this land for the security of thy seed with the seed of my son.

CHAPTER 2

Redemption cometh through the Holy Messiah—Freedom of choice (agency) is essential to existence and progression—Adam fell that men might be—Men are free to choose liberty and eternal life. Between 588 and 570 B.C.

1 And now, Jacob, I speak unto you: Thou art my ^afirst-born in the days of my tribulation in the wilderness. And behold, in thy childhood thou hast suffered afflictions and much sorrow, because of the rudeness of thy brethren.

2 Nevertheless, Jacob, my first-born in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God; and he shall consecrate thine ^aafflictions for thy gain.

3 Wherefore, thy soul shall be blessed, and thou shalt dwell safely with thy brother, Nephi; and thy days shall be ^aspent in the service of thy God. Wherefore, I know that thou art redeemed, because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer; for thou hast ^bbeheld that in the ^cfulness of time he cometh to bring salvation unto men.

4 And thou hast ^abeheld in thy youth his glory; wherefore, thou art blessed even as they unto whom he shall minister in the flesh; for the Spirit is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. And the way is prepared from the fall of man, and ^bsalvation is ^cfree.

5 And men are instructed sufficiently that they ^aknow good from evil. And the ^blaw is given unto men. And by the law no flesh is ^cjustified; or, by the law men are ^dcut off. Yea, by the temporal law they were cut off; and also, by the spiritual law they perish from that which is good, and become miserable forever.

6 Wherefore, ^aredemption cometh in and through the ^bHoly ^cMessiah; for he is full of ^dgrace and truth.

7 Behold, he offereth himself a ^asacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit; and unto ^bnone else can the ^cends of the law be answered.

8 Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, ^asave it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who ^blayeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the ^cresurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise.

9 Wherefore, he is the firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make ^aintercession for all the children of men; and they that believe in him shall be saved.

10 And because of the intercession for ^aall, all men come unto God; wherefore, they stand in the presence of him, to be ^bjudged of him according to the truth and ^choliness which is in him. Wherefore, the ends of the law which the Holy One hath given, unto the inflicting of the ^dpunishment which is affixed, which punishment that is affixed is in opposition to that of the happiness which is affixed, to answer the ends of the ^eatonement—

11 For it must needs be, that there is an ^aopposition in all things. If not so, my first-born in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither holiness nor misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore, all things must needs be a compound in one; wherefore, if it should be one body it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility.


In these verses Lehi explains why there is opposition and why we all must suffer affliction. I think this is one of the most misunderstood concepts in the world today. So many people say that if there was a God, He would not bad things happen to His children. These verses explain that to be false logic. I found 3 quotes on this that sum the concept up better than I could.

1. “We knew before we were born that we were coming to the earth for bodies and experience and that we would have joys and sorrows, ease and pain, comforts and hardships, health and sickness, successes and disappointments, and we knew also that after a period of life we would die. We accepted all these eventualities with a glad heart, eager to accept both the favorable and unfavorable. We eagerly accepted the chance to come earthward even though it might be for only a day or a year. Perhaps we were not so much concerned whether we should die of disease, of accident, or of senility. We were willing to take life as it came and as we might organize and control it, and this without murmur, complaint, or unreasonable demands” (Spencer W. Kimball, Faith Precedes the Miracle, p. 106).

2. “If we can bear our afflictions with the understanding, faith, and courage, . . . we shall be strengthened and comforted in many ways. We shall be spared the torment which accompanies the mistaken idea that all suffering comes as chastisement for transgression. . . . “. . . I have seen the remorse and despair in the lives of men who, in the hour of trial, have cursed God and died spiritually. And I have seen people rise to great heights from what seemed to be unbearable burdens” (Marion G. Romney in Conference Report, Oct. 1969, pp. 59–60).

3. “At various times in our lives, probably at repeated times in our lives, we do have to acknowledge that God knows what we do not know and sees what we do not see. ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord’ (Isaiah 55:8). “If you have troubles at home with children who stray, if you suffer financial reverses and emotional strain that threaten your homes and your happiness, if you must face the loss of life or health, may peace be unto your soul. We will not be tempted beyond our ability to withstand. Our detours and disappointments are the straight and narrow path to Him, as we sing in one of our favorite hymns:
When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply.
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design
Thy dross to consume and thy gold to refine. (‘How Firm a Foundation,’ Hymns [1985], no. 85)” (Howard W. Hunter in Conference Report, Oct. 1987, p. 71; or Ensign, Nov. 1987, p. 60).