pgs. 48 and 49...I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

CHAPTER 21

Messiah shall be a light to the Gentiles and shall free the prisoners—Israel shall be gathered with power in the last days—Kings shall be their nursing fathers—Compare Isaiah 49. Between 588 and 570 B.C.

1 ^aAnd again: Hearken, O ye house of Israel, all ye that are broken off and are driven out because of the wickedness of the pastors of my people; yea, all ye that are broken off, that are scattered abroad, who are of my people, O house of Israel. Listen, O ^bisles, unto me, and hearken ye people from ^cfar; the Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.

2 And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me;

3 And said unto me: Thou art my ^aservant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.

4 Then I said, I have labored in ^avain, I have spent my strength for naught and in vain; surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God.

5 And now, saith the Lord—that ^aformed me from the womb that I should be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him—though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my ^bstrength.

6 And he said: It is a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the ^atribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel. I will also give thee for a ^blight to the ^cGentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the ends of the earth.

7 Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nations abhorreth, to servant of rulers: Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful.

8 Thus saith the Lord: In an acceptable time have I heard thee, O isles of the sea, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and give thee ^amy servant for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages;

9 That thou mayest say to the ^aprisoners: Go forth; to them that sit in ^bdarkness: Show yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their ^cpastures shall be in all high places.

10 They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.

11 And I will make all my mountains a way, and my ^ahighways shall be exalted.

12 And then, O house of Israel, behold, ^athese shall come from far; and lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.

13 ^aSing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; for the feet of those who are in the east shall be established; and ^bbreak forth into singing, O mountains; for they shall be smitten no more; for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his ^cafflicted.

14 But, behold, Zion hath said: The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me—but he will show that he hath not.

15 For can a ^awoman forget her sucking child, that she should not have ^bcompassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may ^cforget, yet will I not forget thee, O house of Israel.

16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the ^apalms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.

17 Thy children shall make haste against thy destroyers; and they that made thee ^awaste shall go forth of thee.

18 Lift up thine eyes round about and behold; all these ^agather themselves together, and they shall come to thee. And as I live, saith the Lord, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on even as a bride.

19 For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants; and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away.

20 The children whom thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the first, shall ^aagain in thine ears say: The place is too strait for me; give place to me that I may dwell.

21 Then shalt thou say in thine heart: Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am ^adesolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? And who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where have they been?

22 Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the ^aGentiles, and set up my ^bstandard to the people; and they shall bring thy sons in their ^carms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.

23 And ^akings shall be thy ^bnursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their face towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that ^cwait for me.

24 For shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the ^alawful captives delivered?

25 But thus saith the Lord, even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children.

26 And I will ^afeed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; they shall be drunken with their own blood as with sweet wine; and all flesh shall ^bknow that I, the Lord, am thy ^cSavior and thy Redeemer, the ^dMighty One of Jacob.

I feel so inadequate to comment on this chapter. There is SO MUCH SYMBOLISM! I have been trying to reach my mom and she isn't available so I've been reading in a few Book of Mormon study guides about this chapter (and yesterday's chapter as well.) These are some of the things that I have learned in my study....

1. pastors in verse one probably refers to leaders or teachers.
2. isles in verse one and later verses refers to all far away nations and lands.
3. the expression "from the womb" is referring to foreordination.
4. in verse 8 servant = prophets, i.e Joseph Smith.
5. in verse 9 the prisoners are those who are in spiritual darkness.
6. in verse 9 the "pastures in high places" means the gospel of Christ.
7. in verse 11 "mountains" are symbolic of temples
8. in verse 12 it is thought that the word Sinim refers to inhabitants of southern China.
9. in verse 16 the Savior's hands being "engraved" shows that the atonement is his work, just as blisters or callouses would show the work of a carpenter.
10. in verse 16 the "walls" would represent a persons house so the Savior is saying "I know where you live and what help you need."
11. in verse 17 the phrase "thy children shall make haste against the destroyers" is thought to mean "your descendants will over take your enemies."
12. in verse 21 Isaiah is saying that in the last days Israel will ask "where did all these Israelites come from...I thought we were all destroyed?" and the Lord answers them in verse 22 when he says "Gentile nations will help gather Israel."
13. some think verse 23 was partially fulfilled when Great Britain helped establish a homeland for the Jews in Palestine after World War 1 and helped them become a member of the United Nations.
14. verse 26 says those who oppress Israel "shall be drunken with their own blood as with sweet wine" which is thought to mean that the enemies of Israel will turn against each other and destroy themselves.

I hope some of these "crib notes" help you as much as they have helped me. They mostly came from "The Book of Mormon Made Easier" by David J. Ridges. In tomorrows pages Nephi will summarize these 2 chapters from Isaiah and that should help us understand more too.

If you have any other input or knowledge about the symbolism or meanings in these pages please leave it in a comment! You don't have to have a google account to leave a comment...you just click on the word "comments" and then select "anonymous" or "name." It's easy! =)

pgs. 46 and 47...I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning.

18 And I, Nephi, have written these things unto my people, that perhaps I might persuade them that they would ^aremember the Lord their Redeemer.

19 Wherefore, I speak unto all the house of Israel, if it so be that they should obtain ^athese things.

20 For behold, I have workings in the spirit, which doth ^aweary me even that all my joints are weak, for those who are at Jerusalem; for had not the Lord been merciful, to show unto me concerning them, even as he had prophets of old, I should have perished also.

21 And he surely did show unto the ^aprophets of old all things ^bconcerning them; and also he did show unto many concerning us; wherefore, it must needs be that we know concerning them for they are written upon the plates of brass.

22 Now it came to pass that I, Nephi, did teach my brethren these things; and it came to pass that I did read many things to them, which were engraven upon the ^aplates of brass, that they might know concerning the doings of the Lord in other lands, among people of old.

23 And I did read many things unto them which were written in the ^abooks of Moses; but that I might more fully persuade them to believe in the Lord their Redeemer I did read unto them that which was written by the prophet ^bIsaiah; for I did ^cliken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our ^dprofit and learning.

24 Wherefore I spake unto them, saying: Hear ye the words of the prophet, ye who are a ^aremnant of the house of Israel, a ^bbranch who have been broken off; ^chear ye the words of the prophet, which were written unto all the house of Israel, and liken them unto yourselves, that ye may have hope as well as your brethren from whom ye have been broken off; for after this manner has the prophet written.

CHAPTER 20

The Lord reveals his purposes to Israel—They have been chosen in the furnace of affliction and are to go forth from Babylon—Compare Isaiah 48. Between 588 and 570 B.C.

1 ^aHearken and hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel, and are come forth out of the waters of Judah, or out of the waters of ^bbaptism, who ^cswear by the name of the Lord, and make mention of the God of Israel, yet they swear ^dnot in truth nor in righteousness.

2 Nevertheless, they call themselves of the ^aholy city, but they do ^bnot stay themselves upon the God of Israel, who is the Lord of Hosts; yea, the Lord of Hosts is his name.

3 Behold, I have declared the ^aformer things from the beginning; and they went forth out of my mouth, and I showed them. I did show them suddenly.

4 And I did it because I knew that thou art obstinate, and thy ^aneck is an iron sinew, and thy brow brass;

5 And I have even from the beginning declared to thee; before it came to pass I ^ashowed them thee; and I showed them for fear lest thou shouldst say—Mine idol hath done them, and my graven image, and my molten image hath commanded them.

6 Thou hast seen and heard all this; and will ye ^anot declare them? And that I have showed thee new things from this time, even hidden things, and thou didst not know them.

7 They are created now, and not from the beginning, even before the day when thou heardest them not they were declared unto thee, lest thou shouldst say—Behold I knew them.

8 Yea, and thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest not; yea, from that time thine ear was not opened; for I knew that thou wouldst deal very treacherously, and wast called a ^atransgressor from the womb.

9 Nevertheless, for my ^aname’s sake will I defer mine anger, and for my praise will I refrain from thee, that I cut thee not off.

10 For, behold, I have refined thee, I have chosen thee in the furnace of ^aaffliction.

11 For mine own sake, yea, for mine own sake will I do this, for I will not suffer my ^aname to be polluted, and I will ^bnot give my glory unto another.

12 Hearken unto me, O Jacob, and Israel my called, for I am he; I am the ^afirst, and I am also the last.

13 Mine hand hath also ^alaid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens. I ^bcall unto them and they stand up together.

14 All ye, assemble yourselves, and hear; who among them hath declared these things unto them? The Lord hath loved him; yea, and he will ^afulfil his word which he hath declared by them; and he will do his pleasure on ^bBabylon, and his arm shall come upon the Chaldeans.

15 Also, saith the Lord; I the Lord, yea, I have spoken; yea, I have called ^ahim to declare, I have brought him, and he shall make his way prosperous.

16 Come ye near unto me; I have not spoken in ^asecret; from the beginning, from the time that it was declared have I spoken; and the Lord God, and his ^bSpirit, hath sent me.

17 And thus saith the Lord, thy ^aRedeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I have sent him, the Lord thy God who teacheth thee to profit, who ^bleadeth thee by the way thou shouldst go, hath done it.

18 O that thou hadst hearkened to my ^acommandments—then had thy ^bpeace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea.

19 Thy ^aseed also had been as the sand; the offspring of thy bowels like the gravel thereof; his name should not have been cut off nor destroyed from before me.

20 ^aGo ye forth of Babylon, flee ye from the ^bChaldeans, with a voice of singing declare ye, tell this, utter to the end of the earth; say ye: The Lord hath redeemed his ^cservant Jacob.
21 And they ^athirsted not; he led them through the deserts; he caused the waters to flow out of the ^brock for them; he clave the rock also and the waters gushed out.

22 And notwithstanding he hath done all this, and greater also, there is no ^apeace, saith the Lord, unto the wicked.

In chapter 20 Nephi starts to share from the record that he took from Laban. Chapter 20 and 21 are both his recap of two Isaiah chapters to his family. It is possible that they couldn't read so maybe this is the only way they would hear the message. Nephi clearly thought that this was important information if he decided to record it again. I know there is a lot of symbolism in these verses. I don't understand all of it. The following description of the term babylon helped me understand this chapter a little better.

"Babylon," as used in verse 20, is very symbolic. Anciently, it was an actual country and city, basically where Iraq is today. Isaiah as well as many other prophets use "Babylon" to symbolize wickedness, and to represent Satan's kingdom. The imagery is fascinating, because Babylon was a fearsome enemy of Israel. The huge city of Babylon was so enormous that is took 56 miles of walls to surround and protect it. These walls were 335 feet high and 85 feet wide (see Bible Dictionary, pg 618). It was a center of wickedness, and thus came to symbolize general wickedness and the devil's domain in many scriptures. In fact, part of the imagery of Babylon is that it seemed indestructible, just as Satan's kingdom and domain on earth seems powerful and indestructible. However, Babylon fell in 538 B.C. and was never rebuilt, just as Satan's kingdom will eventually fall, and never be rebuilt as he and his evil followers are cast into outer darkness."
(David J. Ridges, The Book of Mormon Made Easier, pg.155)

pgs. 44 and 45...the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at naught and trample under their feet.

CHAPTER 19

Nephi makes plates of ore and records the history of his people—The God of Israel shall come six hundred years from the time Lehi left Jerusalem—Nephi tells of His sufferings and crucifixion—The Jews shall be despised and scattered until the latter days, when they will return unto the Lord. Between 588 and 570 B.C.

1 And it came to pass that the Lord commanded me, wherefore I did make plates of ore that I might engraven upon them the ^arecord of my people. And upon the plates which I made I did ^bengraven the record of my ^cfather, and also our journeyings in the wilderness, and the prophecies of my father; and also many of mine own prophecies have I engraven upon them.

2 And I knew not at the time when I made them that I should be commanded of the Lord to make ^athese plates; wherefore, the record of my father, and the genealogy of his fathers, and the more part of all our proceedings in the wilderness are engraven upon those first plates of which I have spoken; wherefore, the things which transpired before I made ^bthese plates are, of a truth, more particularly made mention upon the first plates.

3 And after I had made these plates by way of commandment, I, Nephi, received a commandment that the ministry and the prophecies, the more plain and precious parts of them, should be written upon ^athese plates; and that the things which were written should be kept for the instruction of my people, who should possess the land, and also for other ^bwise purposes, which purposes are known unto the Lord.

4 Wherefore, I, Nephi, did make a record upon the ^aother plates, which gives an account, or which gives a greater account of the wars and contentions and destructions of my people. And this have I done, and commanded my people what they should do after I was gone; and that these plates should be handed down from one generation to another, or from one prophet to another, until further commandments of the Lord.

5 And an account of my ^amaking these plates shall be given hereafter; and then, behold, I proceed according to that which I have spoken; and this I do that the more sacred things may be ^bkept for the knowledge of my people.

6 Nevertheless, I do not ^awrite anything upon plates save it be that I think it be ^bsacred. And now, if I do err, even did they err of old; not that I would excuse myself because of other men, but because of the ^cweakness which is in me, according to the flesh, I would excuse myself.

7 For the things which some men esteem to be of great worth, both to the body and soul, others set at ^anaught and trample under their feet. Yea, even the very God of Israel do men ^btrample under their feet; I say, trample under their feet but I would speak in other words—they set him at naught, and ^chearken not to the voice of his counsels.

8 And behold he ^acometh, according to the words of the angel, in ^bsix hundred years from the time my father left Jerusalem.

9 And the world, because of their iniquity, shall judge him to be a thing of naught; wherefore they scourge him, and he suffereth it; and they smite him, and he suffereth it. Yea, they ^aspit upon him, and he suffereth it, because of his loving ^bkindness and his ^clong-suffering towards the children of men.

10 And the ^aGod of our fathers, who were ^bled out of Egypt, out of bondage, and also were preserved in the wilderness by him, yea, the ^cGod of Abraham, and of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, ^dyieldeth himself, according to the words of the angel, as a man, into the hands of ^ewicked men, to be ^flifted up, according to the words of ^gZenock, and to be ^hcrucified, according to the words of Neum, and to be buried in a ⁱsepulchre, according to the words of ^jZenos, which he spake concerning the three days of ^kdarkness, which should be a sign given of his death unto those who should inhabit the isles of the sea, more especially given unto those who are of the ^lhouse of Israel.

11 For thus spake the prophet: The Lord God surely shall ^avisit all the house of Israel at that day, some with his ^bvoice, because of their righteousness, unto their great joy and salvation, and others with the ^cthunderings and the lightnings of his power, by tempest, by fire, and by ^dsmoke, and ^evapor of ^fdarkness, and by the opening of the ^gearth, and by ^hmountains which shall be carried up.

12 And ^aall these things must surely come, saith the prophet ^bZenos. And the ^crocks of the earth must rend; and because of the ^dgroanings of the earth, many of the kings of the isles of the sea shall be wrought upon by the Spirit of God, to exclaim: The God of nature suffers.

13 And as for those who are at Jerusalem, saith the prophet, they shall be ^ascourged by all people, because they crucify the God of Israel, and turn their hearts aside, rejecting signs and wonders, and the power and glory of the God of Israel.

14 And because they turn their hearts aside, saith the prophet, and have ^adespised the Holy One of Israel, they shall wander in the flesh, and perish, and become a ^bhiss and a ^cbyword, and be ^dhated among all nations.

15 Nevertheless, when that day cometh, saith the prophet, that they ^ano more ^bturn aside their hearts against the Holy One of Israel, then will he remember the ^ccovenants which he made to their fathers.

16 Yea, then will he remember the ^aisles of the sea; yea, and all the people who are of the house of Israel, will I ^bgather in, saith the Lord, according to the words of the prophet Zenos, from the four quarters of the earth.

17 Yea, and all the earth shall ^asee the salvation of the Lord, saith the prophet; every nation, kindred, tongue and people shall be blessed.

It is nice to read Nephi's explanation to all of us in verse 6 asking us to excuse him if we don't agree with his definition of what is sacred. To me it shows humility and makes him seem more human and real. I'm sure it must have been hard for him to decide what to write in which set of plates. I think all of us struggle with that in our own journal writing. We want to record the things that will be most beneficial to us and our posterity in the future but sometimes it is hard to know what those things will be when we are actually living them. I am thankful to Nephi...I think he did a great job and I hope to never "trample his teachings under my feet!"

pgs. 42 and 43...I did look unto my God, and I did praise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions.

8 And it came to pass after we had all gone down into the ship, and had taken with us our provisions and things which had been commanded us, we did put forth into the ^asea and were driven forth before the wind towards the ^bpromised land.

9 And after we had been ^adriven forth before the wind for the space of many days, behold, my brethren and the sons of Ishmael and also their wives began to make themselves merry, insomuch that they began to dance, and to sing, and to speak with much ^brudeness, yea, even that they did forget by what power they had been brought thither; yea, they were lifted up unto exceeding rudeness.

10 And I, Nephi, began to fear exceedingly lest the Lord should be angry with us, and smite us because of our iniquity, that we should be swallowed up in the depths of the sea; wherefore, I, Nephi, began to speak to them with much soberness; but behold they were ^aangry with me, saying: We will not that our younger brother shall be a ^bruler over us.

11 And it came to pass that Laman and Lemuel did take me and ^abind me with cords, and they did treat me with much harshness; nevertheless, the Lord did suffer it that he might show forth his power, unto the fulfilling of his word which he had ^bspoken concerning the wicked.

12 And it came to pass that after they had bound me insomuch that I could not move, the ^acompass, which had been prepared of the Lord, did cease to work.

13 Wherefore, they knew not whither they should steer the ship, insomuch that there arose a great ^astorm, yea, a great and terrible tempest, and we were ^bdriven back upon the waters for the space of three days; and they began to be frightened exceedingly lest they should be drowned in the sea; nevertheless they did not loose me.

14 And on the fourth day, which we had been driven back, the tempest began to be exceedingly sore.

15 And it came to pass that we were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea. And after we had been driven back upon the waters for the space of four days, my brethren began to ^asee that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they must perish save that they should repent of their iniquities; wherefore, they came unto me, and loosed the bands which were upon my wrists, and behold they had swollen exceedingly; and also mine ankles were much swollen, and great was the soreness thereof.

16 Nevertheless, I did look unto my God, and I did ^apraise him all the day long; and I did not murmur against the Lord because of mine afflictions.

17 Now my father, Lehi, had said many things unto them, and also unto the sons of ^aIshmael; but, behold, they did breathe out much threatenings against anyone that should speak for me; and my parents being ^bstricken in years, and having ^csuffered much grief because of their ^dchildren, they were brought down, yea, even upon their sick-beds.

18 Because of their grief and much sorrow, and the iniquity of my brethren, they were brought near even to be carried out of this time to meet their God; yea, their ^agrey hairs were about to be brought down to lie low in the dust; yea, even they were near to be cast with sorrow into a watery grave.

19 And Jacob and Joseph also, being young, having need of much nourishment, were grieved because of the afflictions of their mother; and also ^amy wife with her tears and prayers, and also my children, did not soften the hearts of my brethren that they would loose me.

20 And there was nothing save it were the power of God, which threatened them with destruction, could soften their ^ahearts; wherefore, when they saw that they were about to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea they repented of the thing which they had done, insomuch that they loosed me.

21 And it came to pass after they had loosed me, behold, I took the compass, and it did work whither I desired it. And it came to pass that I ^aprayed unto the Lord; and after I had prayed the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm.

22 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did guide the ship, that we sailed again towards the promised land.

23 And it came to pass that after we had sailed for the space of many days *we did arrive at the ^apromised land; and we went forth upon the land, and did pitch our tents; and we did call it the promised land.

24 And it came to pass that we did begin to till the earth, and we began to plant seeds; yea, we did put all our ^aseeds into the earth, which we had brought from the land of Jerusalem. And it came to pass that they did grow exceedingly; wherefore, we were blessed in abundance.

25 And it came to pass that we did find upon the land of promise, as we journeyed in the wilderness, that there were ^abeasts in the forests of every kind, both the cow and the ox, and the ass and the horse, and the goat and the wild goat, and all manner of wild animals, which were for the use of men. And we did find all manner of ^bore, both of ^cgold, and of silver, and of copper.

* VERSE 23 (PROBABLY ABOUT 589 B.C.).

I love verse 16. I am so humbled when I read it. I guess it is because I feel like Nephi would have been justified in murmuring since he was in so much pain. But murmuring would have been blaming the Lord and the Lord is not responsible for the actions of Nephi's brothers. Nephi shows so much faith by praising the Lord even during his afflictions.
Have you read the book "Glimpses" about the life of Marjorie Hinckley? To me she is a modern example of showing faith rather than complaining. In the book her daughter tells of how upset all of the kids would be when they had to say goodbye to their dad when he went on long assignments as an Apostle. Her mom always cheered them up and said, "Let's make your favorite dinner and turn on some fun music!" When I read that I thought if anyone should have been sad about him leaving, it should have been his wife. But she chose not to murmur and complain about all the work she had to do in the home while he was gone. I hope I can follow that example!

pgs. 40 and 41...If God had commanded me to do all things I could do them.

42 And they did harden their hearts from time to time, and they did ^arevile against ^bMoses, and also against God; nevertheless, ye know that they were led forth by his matchless power into the land of promise.

43 And now, after all these things, the time has come that they have become wicked, yea, nearly unto ripeness; and I know not but they are at this day about to be ^adestroyed; for I know that the day must surely come that they must be destroyed, save a few only, who shall be led away into captivity.

44 Wherefore, the Lord ^acommanded my father that he should depart into the wilderness; and the Jews also sought to take away his life; yea, and ^bye also have sought to take away his life; wherefore, ye are murderers in your hearts and ye are like unto them.

45 Ye are ^aswift to do iniquity but slow to remember the Lord your God. Ye have seen an ^bangel, and he spake unto you; yea, ye have heard his voice from time to time; and he hath spoken unto you in a still small voice, but ye were ^cpast feeling, that ye could not feel his words; wherefore, he has spoken unto you like unto the voice of thunder, which did cause the earth to shake as if it were to divide asunder.

46 And ye also know that by the ^apower of his almighty word he can cause the earth that it shall pass away; yea, and ye know that by his word he can cause the rough places to be made smooth, and smooth places shall be broken up. O, then, why is it, that ye can be so hard in your hearts?

47 Behold, my soul is rent with anguish because of you, and my heart is pained; I fear lest ye shall be cast off forever. Behold, I am ^afull of the Spirit of God, insomuch that my frame has ^bno strength.

48 And now it came to pass that when I had spoken these words they were angry with me, and were desirous to throw me into the depths of the sea; and as they came forth to lay their hands upon me I spake unto them, saying: In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that ye ^atouch me not, for I am filled with the ^bpower of God, even unto the consuming of my flesh; and whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall ^cwither even as a dried reed; and he shall be as naught before the power of God, for God shall smite him.

49 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto them that they should murmur no more against their father; neither should they withhold their labor from me, for God had commanded me that I should ^abuild a ship.

50 And I said unto them: ^aIf God had commanded me to do all things I could do them. If he should command me that I should say unto this water, be thou earth, it should be earth; and if I should say it, it would be done.

51 And now, if the Lord has such great power, and has wrought so many miracles among the children of men, how is it that he cannot ^ainstruct me, that I should build a ship?

52 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said many things unto my brethren, insomuch that they were ^aconfounded and could not contend against me; neither durst they lay their hands upon me nor touch me with their fingers, even for the space of many days. Now they durst not do this lest they should wither before me, so powerful was the ^bSpirit of God; and thus it had wrought upon them.

53 And it came to pass that the Lord said unto me: Stretch forth thine hand again unto thy brethren, and they shall not wither before thee, but I will ^ashock them, saith the Lord, and this will I do, that they may know that I am the Lord their God.

54 And it came to pass that I stretched forth my hand unto my brethren, and they did not wither before me; but the Lord did shake them, even according to the word which he had spoken.

55 And now, they said: We know of a surety that the Lord is ^awith thee, for we know that it is the power of the Lord that has shaken us. And they fell down before me, and were about to ^bworship me, but I would not suffer them, saying: I am thy brother, yea, even thy younger brother; wherefore, worship the Lord thy God, and honor thy father and thy mother, that thy ^cdays may be long in the land which the Lord thy God shall give thee.

CHAPTER 18

The ship is finished—The births of Jacob and Joseph are mentioned—The company embarks for the promised land—The sons of Ishmael and their wives join in revelry and rebellion—Nephi is bound, and the ship is driven back by a terrible tempest—Nephi is freed, and by his prayer the storm ceases—They arrive in the promised land. About 590—589 B.C.

1 And it came to pass that they did ^aworship the Lord, and did go forth with me; and we did work timbers of curious ^bworkmanship. And the Lord did show me from time to time after what manner I should work the timbers of the ^cship.

2 Now I, Nephi, did not work the timbers after the manner which was learned by men, neither did I build the ship after the manner of men; but I did build it after the manner which the Lord had shown unto me; wherefore, it was not after the manner of men.

3 And I, Nephi, did go into the mount oft, and I did ^apray oft unto the Lord; wherefore the Lord ^bshowed unto me ^cgreat things.

4 And it came to pass that after I had finished the ship, according to the word of the Lord, my brethren beheld that it was good, and that the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine; wherefore, they did ^ahumble themselves again before the Lord.

5 And it came to pass that the voice of the Lord came unto my father, that we should arise and go down into the ship.

6 And it came to pass that on the morrow, after we had prepared all things, much fruits and ^ameat from the wilderness, and honey in abundance, and provisions according to that which the Lord had commanded us, we did go down into the ship, with all our loading and our ^bseeds, and whatsoever thing we had brought with us, every one according to his age; wherefore, we did all go down into the ^cship, with our wives and our children.


I read a commentary on this section that draws some comparisons to our journey on earth and Nephi's journey on the ship. The crossing of the water to get to the promised land is said to symbolize baptism and the ship symbolizes the help of God to get us to heaven. The ship is not "after the manner of men" (verse 2) which symbolizes that we can't get to heaven by living the lifestyle of the world. Nephi "praying oft" (verse 3) symbolizes our constant need for communication with God throughout our lives. The author (David Ridges) didn't mention Laman and Lemuel but I think they could symbolize the constant pull from Satan in our lives. Time and time again Laman and Lemuel let go of their faith and of course evil influences are right there to pull them away from the Spirit of the Lord. It is easy when reading about them to wonder how they could waiver so many times but I think all of us have been like Laman and Lemuel at some time in our lives and let go of our faith. The challenge to all of us is to maintain faith like Nephi, not waiver like Laman and Lemuel, while we are on our own "ships" to the "promised land." (My Mom's institute teacher called them Lemon and Lime-an...which gave me a laugh!)

pgs. 38 and 39...Behold, the Lord esteemeth all flesh in one; he that is righteous is favored of God.

19 And now it came to pass that I, Nephi, was exceedingly sorrowful because of the hardness of their hearts; and now when they saw that I began to be sorrowful they were glad in their hearts, insomuch that they did ^arejoice over me, saying: We knew that ye could not construct a ship, for we knew that ye were lacking in judgment; wherefore, thou canst not accomplish so great a work.

20 And thou art like unto our father, led away by the foolish ^aimaginations of his heart; yea, he hath led us out of the land of Jerusalem, and we have wandered in the wilderness for these many years; and our women have toiled, being big with child; and they have borne children in the wilderness and suffered all things, save it were death; and it would have been better that they had died before they came out of Jerusalem than to have suffered these afflictions.

21 Behold, these many years we have suffered in the wilderness, which time we might have enjoyed our possessions and the land of our inheritance; yea, and we might have been happy.

22 And we know that the people who were in the land of Jerusalem were a ^arighteous people; for they kept the statutes and judgments of the Lord, and all his commandments, according to the law of Moses; wherefore, we know that they are a righteous people; and our father hath judged them, and hath led us away because we would hearken unto his words; yea, and our brother is like unto him. And after this manner of language did my brethren murmur and complain against us.

23 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, spake unto them, saying: Do ye believe that our fathers, who were the children of Israel, would have been led away out of the hands of the ^aEgyptians if they had not hearkened unto the words of the Lord?

24 Yea, do ye suppose that they would have been led out of bondage, if the Lord had not commanded Moses that he should ^alead them out of bondage?

25 Now ye know that the children of Israel were in ^abondage; and ye know that they were laden with ^btasks, which were grievous to be borne; wherefore, ye know that it must needs be a good thing for them, that they should be ^cbrought out of bondage.

26 Now ye know that ^aMoses was commanded of the Lord to do that great work; and ye know that by his ^bword the waters of the Red Sea were divided hither and thither, and they passed through on dry ground.

27 But ye know that the Egyptians were ^adrowned in the Red Sea, who were the armies of Pharaoh.

28 And ye also know that they were fed with ^amanna in the wilderness.

29 Yea, and ye also know that Moses, by his word according to the power of God which was in him, ^asmote the rock, and there came forth water, that the children of Israel might quench their thirst.

30 And notwithstanding they being led, the Lord their God, their Redeemer, going before them, ^aleading them by day and giving light unto them by night, and doing all things for them which were ^bexpedient for man to receive, they hardened their hearts and blinded their minds, and ^creviled against Moses and against the true and living God.

31 And it came to pass that according to his word he did ^adestroy them; and according to his word he did ^blead them; and according to his word he did do all things for them; and there was not any thing done save it were by his word.

32 And after they had crossed the river Jordan he did make them mighty unto the ^adriving out of the children of the land, yea, unto the scattering them to destruction.

33 And now, do ye suppose that the children of this land, who were in the land of promise, who were driven out by our fathers, do ye suppose that they were righteous? Behold, I say unto you, Nay.

34 Do ye suppose that our fathers would have been more choice than they if they had been righteous? I say unto you, Nay.

35 Behold, the Lord esteemeth all ^aflesh in one; he that is ^brighteous is ^cfavored of God. But behold, this ^dpeople had rejected every word of God, and they were ripe in iniquity; and the fulness of the wrath of God was upon them; and the Lord did curse the land against them, and bless it unto our fathers; yea, he did curse it against them unto their destruction, and he did bless it unto our fathers unto their obtaining power over it.

36 Behold, the Lord hath created the ^aearth that it should be ^binhabited; and he hath created his children that they should possess it.

37 And he ^araiseth up a righteous nation, and destroyeth the nations of the wicked.

38 And he leadeth away the righteous into precious ^alands, and the wicked he ^bdestroyeth, and curseth the land unto them for their sakes.

39 He ruleth high in the heavens, for it is his throne, and this earth is his ^afootstool.

40 And he loveth those who will have him to be their God. Behold, he loved our ^afathers, and he ^bcovenanted with them, yea, even Abraham, ^cIsaac, and ^dJacob; and he remembered the covenants which he had made; wherefore, he did bring them out of the land of ^eEgypt.

41 And he did straiten them in the wilderness with his rod; for they ^ahardened their hearts, even as ye have; and the Lord straitened them because of their iniquity. He sent fiery flying ^bserpents among them; and after they were bitten he prepared a way that they might be ^chealed; and the labor which they had to perform was to look; and because of the ^dsimpleness of the way, or the easiness of it, there were many who perished.




My Mom was trying to explain to me what it means to be favored of God as mentioned in verse 35. In D&C 1:35 we are told that "the Lord is no respecter of persons." If all are respected equally how can any be favored? My Mom points out there is a difference between being favored versus being favorite. The Lord has no favorites...he loves all of us equally, every single one. He does favor those who are righteous. It's a very small nuance in our English language but very important in our effort to understand the Lord's love for all of us.