pgs. 12 and 13...the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him.

CHAPTER 7

Lehi’s sons return to Jerusalem and enlist Ishmael and his household in their cause—Laman and others rebel—Nephi exhorts his brethren to have faith in the Lord—They bind him with cords and plan his destruction—He is freed by the power of faith—His brethren ask forgiveness—Lehi and his company offer sacrifice and burnt offerings. Between 600 and 592 B.C.

1 And now I would that ye might know, that after my father, Lehi, had made an end of ^aprophesying concerning his seed, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto him again, saying that it was not meet for him, Lehi, that he should take his family into the wilderness alone; but that his sons should take ^bdaughters to ^cwife, that they might raise up ^dseed unto the Lord in the land of promise.

2 And it came to pass that the Lord ^acommanded him that I, Nephi, and my brethren, should again return unto the land of Jerusalem, and bring down Ishmael and his family into the wilderness.

3 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did ^aagain, with my brethren, go forth into the wilderness to go up to Jerusalem.

4 And it came to pass that we went up unto the house of Ishmael, and we did gain favor in the sight of Ishmael, insomuch that we did speak unto him the words of the Lord.

5 And it came to pass that the ^aLord did soften the heart of Ishmael, and also his household, insomuch that they took their journey with us down into the wilderness to the tent of our father.

6 And it came to pass that as we journeyed in the wilderness, behold Laman and Lemuel, and two of the ^adaughters of Ishmael, and the two ^bsons of Ishmael and their families, did ^crebel against us; yea, against me, Nephi, and Sam, and their father, Ishmael, and his wife, and his three other daughters.

7 And it came to pass in the which rebellion, they were desirous to return unto the land of Jerusalem.

8 And now I, Nephi, being ^agrieved for the hardness of their hearts, therefore I spake unto them, saying, yea, even unto Laman and unto Lemuel: Behold ye are mine elder brethren, and how is it that ye are so hard in your hearts, and so blind in your minds, that ye have need that I, your ^byounger brother, should speak unto you, yea, and set an ^cexample for you?

9 How is it that ye have not hearkened unto the word of the Lord?

10 How is it that ye have ^aforgotten that ye have seen an angel of the Lord?

11 Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten what great things the Lord hath done for us, in ^adelivering us out of the hands of Laban, and also that we should obtain the record?

12 Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all ^athings according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise ^bfaith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him.

13 And if it so be that we are faithful to him, we shall obtain the ^aland of promise; and ye shall know at some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled concerning the ^bdestruction of ^cJerusalem; for all things which the Lord hath spoken concerning the destruction of Jerusalem must be fulfilled.

14 For behold, the ^aSpirit of the Lord ^bceaseth soon to strive with them; for behold, they have ^crejected the prophets, and ^dJeremiah have they cast into prison. And they have sought to take away the ^elife of my father, insomuch that they have driven him out of the land.

15 Now behold, I say unto you that if ye will return unto Jerusalem ye shall also perish with them. And now, if ye have choice, go up to the land, and remember the words which I speak unto you, that if ye go ye will also perish; for thus the Spirit of the Lord constraineth me that I should speak.

16 And it came to pass that when I, Nephi, had spoken these words unto my brethren, they were angry with me. And it came to pass that they did lay their hands upon me, for behold, they were exceedingly wroth, and they did ^abind me with cords, for they sought to take away my life, that they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts.

17 But it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord, saying: O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea, even give me ^astrength that I may ^bburst these bands with which I am bound.

18 And it came to pass that when I had said these words, behold, the bands were loosed from off my hands and feet, and I stood before my brethren, and I spake unto them again.

19 And it came to pass that they were angry with me again, and sought to lay hands upon me; but behold, one of the ^adaughters of Ishmael, yea, and also her mother, and one of the sons of Ishmael, did plead with my brethren, insomuch that they did soften their hearts; and they did cease striving to take away my life.

20 And it came to pass that they were sorrowful, because of their wickedness, insomuch that they did bow down before me, and did plead with me that I would ^aforgive them of the thing that they had done against me.

21 And it came to pass that I did frankly ^aforgive them all that they had done, and I did exhort them that they would pray unto the Lord their God for ^bforgiveness. And it came to pass that they did so. And after they had done praying unto the Lord we did again travel on our journey towards the tent of our father.

22 And it came to pass that we did come down unto the tent of our father. And after I and my brethren and all the house of Ishmael had come down unto the tent of my father, they did give ^athanks unto the Lord their God; and they did offer ^bsacrifice and burnt offerings unto him.


In this chapter the whole attitude toward going back, yet again, to Jerusalem seems a lot lighter to me and I wonder if it is because the brothers knew their future wives were part of Ishmael's family. {Leave it to me to put a little romantic twist on things :)} BUT, on the way back into the wilderness the conflict between Nephi/Sam and Laman/Lemuel flares back up and, once again, Nephi shows INCREDIBLE faith by asking the Lord to break the cords and save him from the beasts in the wilderness. Just as amazing to me as this faith and miracle is that Nephi then goes on to forgive his brothers so quickly in verse 21. Wow. I don't think anyone would have blamed Nephi for holding on to his anger after what his brothers did to him, but he still willingly forgave them. I hope I can be as forgiving as Nephi.

P.S. I hope you will take the time to read the comments that others leave on the posts. They have all been wonderful and each one has taught me something.

pgs. 10 and 11...these plates of brass should never perish; neither should they be dimmed any more by time.

CHAPTER 5

Sariah complains against Lehi—Both rejoice over the return of their sons—They offer sacrifices—The plates of brass contain writings of Moses and the prophets—They identify Lehi as a descendant of Joseph—Lehi prophesies concerning his seed and the preservation of the plates. Between 600 and 592 B.C.

1 And it came to pass that after we had come down into the wilderness unto our father, behold, he was filled with joy, and also my mother, Sariah, was exceedingly glad, for she truly had mourned because of us.

2 For she had supposed that we had perished in the wilderness; and she also had ^acomplained against my father, telling him that he was a ^bvisionary man; saying: Behold thou hast led us forth from the land of our inheritance, and my sons are no more, and we perish in the wilderness.

3 And after this manner of language had my mother complained against my father.

4 And it had come to pass that my father spake unto her, saying: I know that I am a ^avisionary man; for if I had not seen the things of God in a ^bvision I should not have known the goodness of God, but had tarried at Jerusalem, and had perished with my brethren.

5 But behold, I have ^aobtained a ^bland of promise, in the which things I do rejoice; yea, and I ^cknow that the Lord will deliver my sons out of the hands of Laban, and bring them down again unto us in the wilderness.

6 And after this manner of language did my father, Lehi, ^acomfort my mother, Sariah, concerning us, while we journeyed in the wilderness up to the land of Jerusalem, to obtain the record of the Jews.

7 And when we had returned to the tent of my father, behold their joy was full, and my mother was comforted.

8 And she spake, saying: Now I know of a surety that the Lord hath ^acommanded my husband to ^bflee into the wilderness; yea, and I also know of a surety that the Lord hath protected my sons, and delivered them out of the hands of Laban, and given them power whereby they could ^caccomplish the thing which the Lord hath commanded them. And after this manner of language did she speak.

9 And it came to pass that they did rejoice exceedingly, and did offer ^asacrifice and burnt offerings unto the Lord; and they gave ^bthanks unto the God of Israel.

10 And after they had given thanks unto the God of Israel, my father, Lehi, took the records which were engraven upon the ^aplates of brass, and he did search them from the beginning.

11 And he beheld that they did contain the five ^abooks of Moses, which gave an account of the creation of the world, and also of Adam and Eve, who were our first parents;

12 And also a ^arecord of the Jews from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah;

13 And also the prophecies of the holy prophets, from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of ^aZedekiah; and also many prophecies which have been spoken by the mouth of ^bJeremiah.

14 And it came to pass that my father, Lehi, also found upon the ^aplates of brass a ^bgenealogy of his ^cfathers; wherefore he knew that he was a descendant of ^dJoseph; yea, even that Joseph who was the son of ^eJacob, who was ^fsold into Egypt, and who was ^gpreserved by the hand of the Lord, that he might preserve his father, Jacob, and all his household from perishing with famine.

15 And they were also ^aled out of captivity and out of the land of Egypt, by that same God who had preserved them.

16 And thus my father, Lehi, did discover the genealogy of his fathers. And Laban also was a descendant of ^aJoseph, wherefore he and his fathers had kept the ^brecords.

17 And now when my father saw all these things, he was filled with the Spirit, and began to prophesy concerning his seed—

18 That these ^aplates of brass should go forth unto all ^bnations, kindreds, tongues, and people who were of his seed.

19 Wherefore, he said that these plates of brass should ^anever perish; neither should they be dimmed any more by time. And he prophesied many things concerning his seed.

20 And it came to pass that thus far I and my father had kept the commandments wherewith the Lord had commanded us.

21 And we had obtained the records which the Lord had commanded us, and searched them and found that they were desirable; yea, even of great ^aworth unto us, insomuch that we could ^bpreserve the commandments of the Lord unto our children.

22 Wherefore, it was wisdom in the Lord that we should carry them with us, as we journeyed in the wilderness towards the land of promise.

CHAPTER 6

Nephi writes of the things of God—His purpose is to persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham and be saved. Between 600 and 592 B.C.

1 And now I, Nephi, do not give the genealogy of my fathers in ^athis part of my record; neither at any time shall I give it after upon these ^bplates which I am ^cwriting; for it is given in the record which has been kept by my ^dfather; wherefore, I do not write it in this work.

2 For it sufficeth me to say that we are descendants of ^aJoseph.

3 And it mattereth not to me that I am particular to give a full account of all the things of my father, for they cannot be written upon ^athese plates, for I desire the room that I may write of the things of God.

4 For the fulness of mine intent is that I may ^apersuade men to ^bcome unto the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and be saved.

5 Wherefore, the things which are ^apleasing unto the world I do not write, but the things which are pleasing unto God and unto those who are not of the world.

6 Wherefore, I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men.

Sariah is one of few women written about in the Book of Mormon and therefore fascinates me! The testimony given by her in Chapter 5 verse 8 is beautiful. It is also nice to know that she wasn't always perfect in her faith (verse 2) and complained once in a while. I'm touched by the way Lehi comforted her and I'm sure a lot of missionary mom's have received similar comfort when their children have been away serving the Lord.

These pages are also where we learn that Lehi is a descendant of Joseph and how much he values his genealogy and the commandments of the Lord as recorded on the plates. Nephi only briefly mentions his ancestry because it had all been recorded previously by his father. It is said that those are the writings that were lost in the 116 pages that Joseph gave to Martin Harris. Hopefully someday we will have a chance to read more of Lehi's writings. For now I am thankful for the 531 pages that we do have.

pgs. 8 and 9 ...and I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do.

3 Now behold ye know that this is true; and ye also know that an ^aangel hath spoken unto you; wherefore can ye ^bdoubt? Let us go up; the Lord is able to ^cdeliver us, even as our fathers, and to destroy Laban, even as the Egyptians.

4 Now when I had spoken these words, they were yet wroth, and did still continue to murmur; nevertheless they did follow me up until we came without the walls of Jerusalem.

5 And it was by night; and I caused that they should hide themselves without the walls. And after they had hid themselves, I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban.

6 And I was ^aled by the Spirit, not ^bknowing beforehand the things which I should do.

7 Nevertheless I went forth, and as I came near unto the house of Laban I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was ^adrunken with wine.

8 And when I came to him I found that it was Laban.

9 And I beheld his ^asword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof; and the hilt thereof was of pure gold, and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine, and I saw that the blade thereof was of the most precious steel.

10 And it came to pass that I was ^aconstrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and would that I might not slay him.

11 And the Spirit said unto me again: Behold the ^aLord hath ^bdelivered him into thy hands. Yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had ^ctaken away our property.

12 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands;

13 Behold the Lord ^aslayeth the ^bwicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is ^cbetter that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in ^dunbelief.

14 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: ^aInasmuch as thy seed shall keep my ^bcommandments, they shall ^cprosper in the ^dland of promise.

15 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the ^alaw of Moses, save they should have the law.

16 And I also knew that the ^alaw was engraven upon the plates of brass.

17 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause—that I might obtain the records according to his commandments.

18 Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own ^asword.

19 And after I had smitten off his head with his own sword, I took the garments of Laban and put them upon mine own body; yea, even every whit; and I did gird on his armor about my loins.

20 And after I had done this, I went forth unto the treasury of Laban. And as I went forth towards the treasury of Laban, behold, I saw the ^aservant of Laban who had the keys of the treasury. And I commanded him in the voice of Laban, that he should go with me into the treasury.

21 And he supposed me to be his master, Laban, for he beheld the garments and also the sword girded about my loins.

22 And he spake unto me concerning the ^aelders of the Jews, he knowing that his master, Laban, had been out by night among them.

23 And I spake unto him as if it had been Laban.

24 And I also spake unto him that I should carry the engravings, which were upon the ^aplates of brass, to my elder brethren, who were without the walls.

25 And I also bade him that he should follow me.

26 And he, supposing that I spake of the ^abrethren of the ^bchurch, and that I was truly that Laban whom I had slain, wherefore he did follow me.

27 And he spake unto me many times concerning the elders of the Jews, as I went forth unto my brethren, who were without the walls.

28 And it came to pass that when Laman saw me he was exceedingly frightened, and also Lemuel and Sam. And they fled from before my presence; for they supposed it was Laban, and that he had slain me and had sought to take away their lives also.

29 And it came to pass that I called after them, and they did hear me; wherefore they did cease to flee from my presence.

30 And it came to pass that when the servant of Laban beheld my brethren he began to tremble, and was about to flee from before me and return to the city of Jerusalem.

31 And now I, Nephi, being a man large in stature, and also having received much ^astrength of the Lord, therefore I did seize upon the servant of Laban, and held him, that he should not flee.

32 And it came to pass that I spake with him, that if he would hearken unto my words, as the Lord liveth, and as I live, even so that if he would hearken unto our words, we would spare his life.

33 And I spake unto him, even with an ^aoath, that he need not fear; that he should be a ^bfree man like unto us if he would go down in the wilderness with us.

34 And I also spake unto him, saying: Surely the Lord hath ^acommanded us to do this thing; and shall we not be diligent in keeping the commandments of the Lord? Therefore, if thou wilt go down into the wilderness to my father thou shalt have place with us.

35 And it came to pass that ^aZoram did take courage at the words which I spake. Now Zoram was the name of the servant; and he promised that he would go down into the wilderness unto our father. Yea, and he also made an oath unto us that he would tarry with us from that time forth.

36 Now we were desirous that he should tarry with us for this cause, that the Jews might not know concerning our flight into the wilderness, lest they should pursue us and destroy us.

37 And it came to pass that when Zoram had made an ^aoath unto us, our ^bfears did cease concerning him.

38 And it came to pass that we took the plates of brass and the servant of Laban, and departed into the wilderness, and journeyed unto the ^atent of our father.






I remember clearly the shock I felt over Laban's murder when I read this as a teenager. To be perfectly honest, it still shocks me every time I read this chapter. I am only pacified by Nephi's desire to preserve the law of Moses so it could be lived by his people in the land of promise. When I think how easily available the scriptures are to us today I feel so blessed. So many have sacrificed so much for them over the generations of time. Even today they are not available to many who would like to read them. In 1997 a taxi driver in Jerusalem asked me if I could tell him about the Book of Mormon but, of course, it was against the law so I couldn't.


My mom also pointed out to me how powerful Nephi's oath is to Zoram. Making an oath has a lot of power in the scriptures and in the gospel. We found a quote about this by Hugh Nibley that illustrates this.

"Nephi, a powerful fellow, held the terrified Zoram in a vice-like grip long enough to swear a solemn oath in his ear, ‘as the Lord liveth, and as I live’ (1 Ne. 4:32), that he would not harm him if he would listen. Zoram immediately relaxed, and Nephi swore another oath to him that he would be a free man if he would join the party: ‘Therefore, if thou wilt go down into the wilderness to my father thou shalt have place with us.’ (1 Ne. 4:34.)

“The reaction of both parties makes sense when one realizes that the oath is the one thing that is most sacred and inviolable among the desert people and their descendants: ‘Hardly will an Arab break his oath, even if his life be in jeopardy,’ for ‘there is nothing stronger, and nothing more sacred than the oath among the nomads,’ and even the city Arabs, if it be exacted under special conditions.But not every oath will do. To be most binding and solemn an oath should be by the life of something, even if it be but a blade of grass. The only oath more awful than that ‘by my life’ or (less commonly) ‘by the life of my head,’ is the wa hayat Allah ‘by the life of God,’ or ‘as the Lord Liveth,’ the exact Arabic equivalent of the ancient Hebrew hai Elohim. . . .

“So we see that the only way that Nephi could possibly have pacified the struggling Zoram in an instant was to utter the one oath that no man would dream of breaking, the most solemn of all oaths to the Semite: ‘As the Lord liveth, and as I live!’ (1 Ne. 4:32.)” (Hugh Nibley, An Approach to the Book of Mormon, pp. 103–5).

pgs. 6 and 7...I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded

6 Therefore go, my son, and thou shalt be favored of the Lord, because thou hast ^anot ^bmurmured.

7 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father: I ^awill go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no ^bcommandments unto the children of men, save he shall ^cprepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.

8 And it came to pass that when my father had heard these words he was exceedingly glad, for he knew that I had been blessed of the Lord.

9 And I, Nephi, and my brethren took our journey in the wilderness, with our tents, to go up to the land of Jerusalem.

10 And it came to pass that when we had gone up to the land of Jerusalem, I and my brethren did consult one with another.

11 And we ^acast lots—who of us should go in unto the house of Laban. And it came to pass that the lot fell upon Laman; and Laman went in unto the house of Laban, and he talked with him as he sat in his house.

12 And he desired of Laban the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, which contained the ^agenealogy of my father.

13 And behold, it came to pass that Laban was angry, and thrust him out from his presence; and he would not that he should have the records. Wherefore, he said unto him: Behold thou art a robber, and I will slay thee.

14 But Laman fled out of his presence, and told the things which Laban had done, unto us. And we began to be exceedingly sorrowful, and my brethren were about to return unto my father in the wilderness.

15 But behold I said unto them that: ^aAs the Lord liveth, and as we live, we will not go down unto our father in the wilderness until we have ^baccomplished the thing which the Lord hath commanded us.

16 Wherefore, let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; therefore let us go down to the land of our father’s ^ainheritance, for behold he left gold and silver, and all manner of riches. And all this he hath done because of the ^bcommandments of the Lord.

17 For he knew that Jerusalem must be ^adestroyed, because of the wickedness of the people.

18 For behold, they have ^arejected the words of the prophets. Wherefore, if my father should dwell in the land after he hath been ^bcommanded to flee out of the land, behold, he would also perish. Wherefore, it must needs be that he flee out of the land.

19 And behold, it is wisdom in God that we should obtain these ^arecords, that we may preserve unto our children the language of our fathers;

20 And also that we may ^apreserve unto them the words which have been spoken by the mouth of all the holy ^bprophets, which have been delivered unto them by the Spirit and power of God, since the world began, even down unto this present time.

21 And it came to pass that after this manner of language did I ^apersuade my brethren, that they might be faithful in keeping the commandments of God.

22 And it came to pass that we went down to the land of our inheritance, and we did gather together our ^agold, and our silver, and our precious things.

23 And after we had gathered these things together, we went up again unto the house of Laban.

24 And it came to pass that we went in unto Laban, and desired him that he would give unto us the records which were engraven upon the ^aplates of brass, for which we would give unto him our gold, and our silver, and all our precious things.

25 And it came to pass that when Laban saw our property, and that it was exceedingly great, he did ^alust after it, insomuch that he thrust us out, and sent his servants to slay us, that he might obtain our property.

26 And ^ait came to pass that we did flee before the servants of Laban, and we were obliged to leave behind our property, and it fell into the hands of Laban.

27 And it came to pass that we fled into the wilderness, and the servants of Laban did not overtake us, and we ^ahid ourselves in the cavity of a rock.

28 And it came to pass that Laman was angry with me, and also with my father; and also was Lemuel, for he hearkened unto the words of Laman. Wherefore Laman and Lemuel did speak many ^ahard words unto us, their younger brothers, and they did smite us even with a rod.

29 And it came to pass as they smote us with a rod, behold, an ^aangel of the Lord came and stood before them, and he spake unto them, saying: Why do ye smite your younger brother with a rod? Know ye not that the Lord hath chosen him to be a ^bruler over you, and this because of your iniquities? Behold ye shall go up to Jerusalem again, and the Lord will ^cdeliver Laban into your hands.

30 And after the ^aangel had spoken unto us, he departed.

31 And after the angel had departed, Laman and Lemuel again began to ^amurmur, saying: How is it possible that the Lord will deliver Laban into our hands? Behold, he is a mighty man, and he can command fifty, yea, even he can slay fifty; then why not us?

CHAPTER 4

Nephi slays Laban at the Lord’s command and then secures the plates of brass by stratagem—Zoram chooses to join Lehi’s family in the wilderness. Between 600 and 592 B.C.

1 And it came to pass that I spake unto my brethren, saying: Let us go up again unto Jerusalem, and let us be ^afaithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; for behold he is mightier than all the earth, then why not ^bmightier than Laban and his fifty, yea, or even than his tens of thousands?

2 Therefore let us go up; let us be ^astrong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red ^bSea and they divided hither and thither, and our fathers came through, out of captivity, on dry ground, and the armies of Pharaoh did follow and were drowned in the waters of the Red Sea.


This must be one of the most well known stories of the Book of Mormon. The willingness of Nephi to travel back to Jerusalem shows legendary faith. It is estimated the journey Nephi and his brothers took to Jerusalem was at least a 12-14 day trip through hot, barren country each way. I can see why Laman and Lemuel decided to murmur...although I find it interesting that they even murmured after the angel of the Lord appeared to them. I often think of this when I hear people say, "I would believe the gospel if I could see an angel." Would seeing an angel really help a person if they aren't willing to exercise faith?

pgs. 4 and 5...he built an altar of stones and made an offering unto the Lord.

5 And he came down by the borders near the shore of the ^aRed Sea; and he traveled in the wilderness in the borders which are nearer the Red Sea; and he did travel in the wilderness with his family, which consisted of my mother, Sariah, and my elder brothers, who were Laman, Lemuel, and Sam.

6 And it came to pass that when he had traveled three days in the wilderness, he pitched his tent in a ^avalley by the side of a ^briver of water.

7 And it came to pass that he built an ^aaltar of ^bstones, and made an ^coffering unto the Lord, and gave ^dthanks unto the Lord our God.

8 And it came to pass that he called the name of the river, Laman, and it emptied into the Red Sea; and the valley was in the borders near the mouth thereof.

9 And when my father saw that the waters of the river emptied into the ^afountain of the Red Sea, he spake unto Laman, saying: O that thou mightest be like unto this river, continually running into the fountain of all righteousness!

10 And he also spake unto Lemuel: O that thou mightest be like unto this valley, ^afirm and ^bsteadfast, and immovable in keeping the commandments of the Lord!

11 Now this he spake because of the ^astiffneckedness of Laman and Lemuel; for behold they did ^bmurmur in many things against their ^cfather, because he was a ^dvisionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness. And this they said he had done because of the foolish imaginations of his heart.

12 And thus Laman and Lemuel, being the eldest, did murmur against their ^afather. And they did ^bmurmur because they ^cknew not the dealings of that God who had ^dcreated them.

13 Neither did they ^abelieve that Jerusalem, that great city, could be ^bdestroyed according to the words of the prophets. And they were like unto the Jews who were at Jerusalem, who sought to take away the life of my father.

14 And it came to pass that my father did speak unto them in the ^avalley of Lemuel, with ^bpower, being filled with the Spirit, until their frames did ^cshake before him. And he did confound them, that they durst not utter against him; wherefore, they did as he commanded them.

15 And my father dwelt in a ^atent.

16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the ^amysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did ^bvisit me, and did ^csoften my heart that I did ^dbelieve all the words which had been spoken by my ^efather; wherefore, I did not ^frebel against him like unto my brothers.

17 And I spake unto Sam, making known unto him the things which the Lord had manifested unto me by his Holy Spirit. And it came to pass that he believed in my words.

18 But, behold, Laman and Lemuel would not hearken unto my words; and being ^agrieved because of the hardness of their hearts I cried unto the Lord for them.

19 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy ^afaith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart.

20 And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall ^aprosper, and shall be led to a ^bland of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands.

21 And inasmuch as thy brethren shall rebel against thee, they shall be ^acut off from the presence of the Lord.

22 And inasmuch as thou shalt keep my commandments, thou shalt be made a ^aruler and a teacher over thy brethren.

23 For behold, in that day that they shall ^arebel against me, I will ^bcurse them even with a sore curse, and they shall have no power over thy seed except they shall ^crebel against me also.

24 And if it so be that they rebel against me, they shall be a ^ascourge unto thy seed, to ^bstir them up in the ways of remembrance.

* VERSE 4 (600 B.C.).

CHAPTER 3

Lehi’s sons return to Jerusalem to obtain the plates of brass—Laban refuses to give them up—Nephi exhorts and encourages his brethren—Laban steals their property and attempts to slay them—Laman and Lemuel smite Nephi and are reproved by an angel. Between 600 and 592 B.C.

1 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, returned from ^aspeaking with the Lord, to the tent of my father.

2 And it came to pass that he spake unto me, saying: Behold I have dreamed a ^adream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brethren shall ^breturn to Jerusalem.

3 For behold, Laban hath the record of the Jews and also a ^agenealogy of my forefathers, and they are ^bengraven upon plates of brass.

4 Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban, and seek the records, and bring them down hither into the wilderness.

5 And now, behold thy brothers murmur, saying it is a hard thing which I have required of them; but behold I have not required it of them, but it is a commandment of the Lord.


Lehi's actions in verse 7 show true discipleship. He built an altar of stones and made an offering and gave thanks unto the Lord. We know that this was in obedience to a commandment found in Exodus 20:24-26 and Deuteronomy 27:5-6 which means Lehi was doing what all of us are trying to do...learn and follow the commandments given in the scriptures.
I read a story in the Ensign a while ago written by a woman who crocheted a beautiful cloth to be used in a new LDS temple that was being built in her area. What I remember from the story was that she worked tirelessly for hours and hours and was determined to have it be perfect and beautiful for all who came to the temple to see. When she was finished she was ironing it and noticed a small mistake in one of the sections of her pattern. She was so sad. She couldn't understand how she had missed it earlier and only noticed it now that it was too late to be fixed. At first she thought she would have to start all over but after praying about it she felt at peace about giving it to the temple. They accepted it and she realized that even though we are not perfect we can still show the Lord we love and respect Him by giving him offerings and making sacrifices for Him. He will accept our sincere efforts. It seems to me that Lehi understood this and that is why one of the first things he did when he arrived in the wilderness was build an altar.

Pages 2 and 3... the tender mercies of the Lord are over all whom he hath chosen.

6 And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a ^apillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did ^bquake and tremble exceedingly.

7 And it came to pass that he returned to his own house at Jerusalem; and he cast himself upon his bed, being ^aovercome with the Spirit and the things which he had seen.

8 And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a ^avision, even that he saw the ^bheavens open, and he thought he ^csaw God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God.

9 And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his ^aluster was above that of the sun at noon-day.

10 And he also saw ^atwelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament.

11 And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth; and the first came and ^astood before my father, and gave unto him a ^bbook, and bade him that he should read.

12 And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the ^aSpirit of the Lord.

13 And he read, saying: Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine ^aabominations! Yea, and many things did my father read concerning ^bJerusalem—that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be ^ccarried away captive into Babylon.

14 And it came to pass that when my father had read and seen many great and marvelous things, he did exclaim many things unto the Lord; such as: Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty! Thy throne is high in the heavens, and thy ^apower, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of the earth; and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who ^bcome unto thee that they shall perish!

15 And after this manner was the language of my father in the praising of his God; for his soul did rejoice, and his whole heart was filled, because of the things which he had seen, yea, which the Lord had shown unto him.

16 And now I, Nephi, do not make a full account of the things which my father hath written, for he hath written many things which he saw in ^avisions and in ^bdreams; and he also hath written many things which he ^cprophesied and spake unto his children, of which I shall not make a full account.

17 But I shall make an account of my proceedings in my days. Behold, I make an ^aabridgment of the record of my ^bfather, upon ^cplates which I have made with mine own hands; wherefore, after I have abridged the record of my ^dfather then will I make an account of mine own life.

18 Therefore, I would that ye should know, that after the Lord had shown so many marvelous things unto my father, Lehi, yea, concerning the ^adestruction of Jerusalem, behold he went forth among the people, and began to ^bprophesy and to declare unto them concerning the things which he had both seen and heard.

19 And it came to pass that the ^aJews did ^bmock him because of the things which he testified of them; for he truly testified of their ^cwickedness and their abominations; and he testified that the things which he saw and heard, and also the things which he read in the book, manifested plainly of the coming of a ^dMessiah, and also the redemption of the world.

20 And when the Jews heard these things they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had ^acast out, and stoned, and slain; and they also ^bsought his life, that they might take it away. But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender ^cmercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of ^ddeliverance.

CHAPTER 2

Lehi takes his family into the wilderness by the Red Sea—They leave their property—Lehi offers a sacrifice to the Lord and teaches his sons to keep the commandments—Laman and Lemuel murmur against their father—Nephi is obedient and prays in faith; the Lord speaks to him, and he is chosen to rule over his brethren. Between 600 and 592 B.C.

1 For behold, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto my father, yea, even in a dream, and said unto him: Blessed art thou Lehi, because of the things which thou hast done; and because thou hast been faithful and declared unto this people the things which I commanded thee, behold, they seek to ^atake away thy ^blife.

2 And it came to pass that the Lord ^acommanded my father, even in a ^bdream, that he should ^ctake his family and depart into the wilderness.

3 And it came to pass that he was ^aobedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him.

4 And it came to pass that ^ahe *departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and departed into the wilderness.



Isn't the faith and courage of Lehi so inspiring? He was blessed with wonderful knowledge of the eternities but the people around him would not believe him when he tried to share his knowledge with them. He was mocked and his contemporaries sought to take his life but he did not retreat. He stayed strong in his faith and close to the Spirit as he was asked to go to a new place. He was willing to leave behind his home and all of his wealth to obey the Lord. It touches me to think that as Nephi writes this about his father he wants us as the reader to know that the Lord blessed Lehi with tender mercies as he went through his trials and journey of faith.

Here we go.... the explanation and FIRST NEPHI!

A BRIEF EXPLANATION ABOUT THE BOOK OF MORMON

The Book of Mormon is a sacred record of peoples in ancient America, and was engraved upon sheets of metal. Four kinds of metal record plates are spoken of in the book itself:

1. The Plates of Nephi, which were of two kinds: the Small Plates and the Large Plates. The former were more particularly devoted to the spiritual matters and the ministry and teachings of the prophets, while the latter were occupied mostly by a secular history of the peoples concerned (1 Nephi 9: 2-4). From the time of Mosiah, however, the large plates also included items of major spiritual importance.
2. The Plates of Mormon, which consist of an abridgment by Mormon from the Large Plates of Nephi, with many commentaries. These plates also contained a continuation of the history by Mormon and additions by his son Moroni.
3. The Plates of Ether, which present a history of the Jaredites. This record was abridged by Moroni, who inserted comments of his own and incorporated the record with the general history under the title “Book of Ether.”
4. The Plates of Brass brought by the people of Lehi from Jerusalem in 600 B.C. These contained “the five books of Moses, . . . And also a record of the Jews from the beginning, . . . down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah; And also the prophecies of the holy prophets” (1 Nephi 5: 11-13). Many quotations from these plates, citing Isaiah and other biblical and nonbiblical prophets, appear in the Book of Mormon.

The Book of Mormon comprises fifteen main parts or divisions, known, with one exception, as books, each designated by the name of its principal author. The first portion (the first six books, ending with Omni) is a translation from the Small Plates of Nephi. Between books of Omni and Mosiah is an insert called The Words of Mormon. This insert connects the record engraved on the Small Plates with Mormon’s abridgment of the Large Plates.

The longest portion, from Mosiah to Mormon, chapter 7, inclusive, is a translation of Mormon’s abridgment of the Large Plates of Nephi. The concluding portion, from Mormon, chapter 8, to the end of the volume, was engraved by Mormon’s son Moroni, who, after finishing the record of his father’s life, made an abridgment of the Jaredite record (as the Book of Ether) and later added the parts known as the Book of Moroni.

In or about the year A.D. 421, Moroni, the last of the Nephite prophet-historians, sealed the sacred record and hid it up unto the Lord, to be brought forth in the latter days, as predicted by the voice of God through his ancient prophets. In A.D. 1823, this same Moroni, then a resurrected personage, visited the Prophet Joseph Smith and subsequently delivered the engraved plates to him.

About this edition: Some minor errors in the text have been perpetuated in past editions of the Book of Mormon. This edition contains corrections that seem appropriate to bring the material into conformity with prepublication manuscripts and early editions edited by the Prophet Joseph Smith.

THE FIRST BOOK OF NEPHI
HIS REIGN AND MINISTRY

An account of Lehi and his wife Sariah and his four sons, being called, (beginning at the eldest) Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi. The Lord warns Lehi to depart out of the land of Jerusalem, because he prophesieth unto the people concerning their iniquity and they seek to destroy his life. He taketh three days’ journey into the wilderness with his family. Nephi taketh his brethren and returneth to the land of Jerusalem after the record of the Jews. The account of their sufferings. They take the daughters of Ishmael to wife. They take their families and depart into the wilderness. Their sufferings and afflictions in the wilderness. The course of their travels. They come to the large waters. Nephi’s brethren rebel against him. He confoundeth them, and buildeth a ship. They call the name of the place Bountiful. They cross the large waters into the promised land, and so forth. This is according to the account of Nephi; or in other words, I, Nephi, wrote this record.

CHAPTER 1

Nephi begins the record of his people—Lehi sees in vision a pillar of fire and reads from a book of prophecy—He praises God, foretells the coming of the Messiah, and prophesies the destruction of Jerusalem—He is persecuted by the Jews. About 600 B.C.

1 I, Nephi, having been ^aborn of ^bgoodly ^cparents, therefore I was ^dtaught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many ^eafflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a ^frecord of my proceedings in my days.

2 Yea, I make a record in the ^alanguage of my father, which consists of the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians.

3 And I know that the record which I make is ^atrue; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my knowledge.

4 For it came to pass in the commencement of the ^afirst year of the reign of ^bZedekiah, king of Judah, (my father, Lehi, having dwelt at ^cJerusalem in all his days); and in that same year there came many ^dprophets, prophesying unto the people that they must ^erepent, or the great city ^fJerusalem must be destroyed.

5 Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his ^aheart, in behalf of his people.


I like the Brief Explanation because it helps me see the Book of Mormon in segments. I had a college professor explain it to me as follows...the first 142 pages (Nephi thru Omni) come from the small plates of Nephi...then we have a few pages of explanation from the plates of Mormon called The Words of Mormon... then from Mosiah to Mormon chapter 7 (336 pages) is the prophet Mormon's abridgement of the large plates of Nephi. The last 50 pages (Mormon chapter 8 through Moroni) is Moroni finishing his father Mormon's record as well as abridging the Jaredite record (Plates of Ether) and adding his own words (Book of Moroni.)


As we start First Nephi I am overwhelmed by how many themes it touches on...goodly parents, afflictions, knowledge, and the goodness and mysteries of God... and that's just the first verse!!! There is no way to elaborate on all of the wonders of these writings in one blog entry so I will just be commenting on one or two things each day. I hope if you have any thoughts or insights you will add them in the comments section so we can all learn from each other!