pgs. 146 and 147...And they pitched their tents round about the temple, every man having his tent with the door thereof towards the temple...

6 O my sons, I would that ye should remember that these sayings are true, and also that these records are ^atrue. And behold, also the plates of Nephi, which contain the records and the sayings of our fathers from the time they left Jerusalem until now, and they are true; and we can know of their surety because we have them before our eyes.

7 And now, my sons, I would that ye should remember to ^asearch them diligently, that ye may profit thereby; and I would that ye should ^bkeep the commandments of God, that ye may ^cprosper in the land according to the ^dpromises which the Lord made unto our fathers.

8 And many more things did king Benjamin teach his sons, which are not written in this book.

9 And it came to pass that after king Benjamin had made an end of teaching his sons, that he waxed ^aold, and he saw that he must very soon go the way of all the earth; therefore, he thought it expedient that he should confer the kingdom upon one of his sons.

10 Therefore, *he had Mosiah brought before him; and these are the words which he spake unto him, saying: My son, I would that ye should make a proclamation throughout all this land among all this ^apeople, or the people of Zarahemla, and the people of Mosiah who dwell in the land, that thereby they may be gathered together; for on the morrow I shall proclaim unto this my people out of mine own mouth that thou art a ^bking and a ruler over this people, whom the Lord our God hath given us.

11 And moreover, I shall give this people a ^aname, that thereby they may be distinguished above all the people which the Lord God hath brought out of the land of Jerusalem; and this I do because they have been a ^bdiligent people in keeping the commandments of the Lord.

12 And I give unto them a name that never shall be blotted out, except it be through ^atransgression.

13 Yea, and moreover I say unto you, that if this highly favored people of the Lord should fall into ^atransgression, and become a wicked and an adulterous people, that the Lord will deliver them up, that thereby they become ^bweak like unto their brethren; and he will no more ^cpreserve them by his matchless and marvelous power, as he has hitherto preserved our fathers.

14 For I say unto you, that if he had not extended his arm in the preservation of our fathers they must have fallen into the hands of the Lamanites, and become victims to their hatred.

15 And it came to pass that after king Benjamin had made an end of these sayings to his son, that he gave him ^acharge concerning all the affairs of the kingdom.

16 And moreover, he also gave him charge concerning the records which were engraven on the ^aplates of brass; and also the plates of Nephi; and also, the ^bsword of Laban, and the ^cball or director, which led our fathers through the wilderness, which was prepared by the hand of the Lord that thereby they might be led, every one according to the heed and diligence which they gave unto him.

17 Therefore, as they were ^aunfaithful they did not prosper nor progress in their journey, but were ^bdriven back, and incurred the displeasure of God upon them; and therefore they were smitten with famine and sore ^cafflictions, to stir them up in ^dremembrance of their duty.

18 And now, it came to pass that Mosiah went and did as his father had commanded him, and proclaimed unto all the people who were in the land of Zarahemla that thereby they might gather themselves together, to go up to the ^atemple to hear the words which his father should speak unto them.

* VERSE 10 (ABOUT 124 B.C.).

CHAPTER 2

King Benjamin addresses his people—He recounts the equity, fairness, and spirituality of his reign—He counsels them to serve their heavenly King—Those who rebel against God shall suffer anguish like unquenchable fire. About 124 B.C.

1 And it came to pass that after Mosiah had done as his father had commanded him, and had made a proclamation throughout all the land, that the people ^agathered themselves together throughout all the land, that they might go up to the ^btemple to ^chear the ^dwords which king Benjamin should speak unto them.

2 And there were a great number, even so many that they did not number them; for they had multiplied exceedingly and waxed great in the land.

3 And they also took of the ^afirstlings of their flocks, that they might offer ^bsacrifice and ^cburnt ^dofferings ^eaccording to the law of Moses;

4 And also that they might give thanks to the Lord their God, who had brought them out of the land of Jerusalem, and who had delivered them out of the hands of their enemies, and had ^aappointed just men to be their ^bteachers, and also a just man to be their king, who had established peace in the ^cland of Zarahemla, and who had taught them to ^dkeep the commandments of God, that they might rejoice and be filled with ^elove towards God and all men.

5 And it came to pass that when they came up to the temple, they pitched their tents round about, every man according to his ^afamily, consisting of his wife, and his sons, and his daughters, and their sons, and their daughters, from the eldest down to the youngest, every family being separate one from another.

6 And they pitched their tents round about the temple, every man having his ^atent with the door thereof towards the temple, that thereby they might remain in their tents and hear the words which king Benjamin should speak unto them;




I love to imagine the families in their tents facing toward the temple. Could it have been something like the feeling we get during General Conference time on Temple Square? There must have been a strong feeling of peace and unity among those righteous people.

I am also fascinated by the idea and meaning of king Benjamin giving the whole group a name in verse 11. (We read later that the name he gave them was Christ.) There are many instances in the scriptures where an individual is given a "new" name to signify their conversion to the Lord, i.e. Saul to Paul and Jacob to Israel. I don't know of any times besides this where a name is given to an entire group. In a commentary on this chapter by a CES teacher named David J. Ridges the name "symbolized that they were now "new people" with a new set of privileges and opportunities for progression, which they would not have had without making covenants with God."
Sounds good to me!

pgs. 144 and 145...I do not know all things; but the Lord knoweth all things, which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do...his will.

7 And I do this for a ^awise ^bpurpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but the Lord ^cknoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he ^dworketh in me to do according to his ^ewill.

8 And my ^aprayer to God is concerning my brethren, that they may once again come to the knowledge of God, yea, the redemption of Christ; that they may once again be a ^bdelightsome people.

9 And now I, Mormon, *proceed to finish out my record, which I take from the plates of Nephi; and I make it according to the knowledge and the ^aunderstanding which God has given me.

10 Wherefore, it came to pass that after Amaleki had ^adelivered up these plates into the hands of king Benjamin, he took them and put them with the ^bother plates, which contained records which had been handed down by the ^ckings, from generation to generation until the days of king Benjamin.

11 And they were handed down from king Benjamin, from generation to generation until they have fallen into ^amy hands. And I, Mormon, pray to God that they may be preserved from this time henceforth. And I know that they will be preserved; for there are great things written upon them, out of which ^bmy people and their brethren shall be ^cjudged at the great and last day, according to the word of God which is written.

12 And now, concerning this king Benjamin—he had somewhat of contentions among his own people.

13 And it came to pass also that the armies of the Lamanites came down out of the ^aland of Nephi, to battle against his people. But behold, king Benjamin gathered together his armies, and he did stand against them; and he did fight with the strength of his own arm, with the ^bsword of Laban.

14 And in the ^astrength of the Lord they did contend against their enemies, until they had slain many thousands of the Lamanites. And it came to pass that they did contend against the Lamanites until they had driven them out of all the lands of their ^binheritance.

15 And it came to pass that after there had been false ^aChrists, and their mouths had been shut, and they punished according to their crimes;

16 And after there had been ^afalse prophets, and false preachers and teachers among the people, and all these having been punished according to their crimes; and after there having been much contention and many dissensions away ^bunto the Lamanites, behold, it came to pass that king Benjamin, with the assistance of the holy ^cprophets who were among his people—

17 For behold, king Benjamin was a ^aholy man, and he did reign over his people in righteousness; and there were many holy men in the land, and they did speak the word of God with ^bpower and with authority; and they did use much ^csharpness because of the stiffneckedness of the people—

18 Wherefore, with the help of these, king ^aBenjamin, by laboring with all the might of his body and the ^bfaculty of his whole soul, and also the prophets, did once more establish peace in the land.

THE BOOK OF MOSIAH

CHAPTER 1

King Benjamin teaches his sons the language and prophecies of their fathers—Their religion and civilization have been preserved because of the records kept on the various plates—Mosiah is chosen as king and is given custody of the records and other things. About 130—124 B.C.

1 And now there was no more contention in all the ^aland of Zarahemla, among all the people who belonged to king Benjamin, so that king Benjamin had continual peace all the remainder of his days.

2 And it came to pass that he had three ^asons; and he called their names Mosiah, and Helorum, and Helaman. And he caused that they should be ^btaught in all the ^clanguage of his fathers, that thereby they might become men of understanding; and that they might know concerning the prophecies which had been spoken by the mouths of their fathers, which were delivered them by the hand of the Lord.

3 And he also taught them concerning the records which were engraven on the ^aplates of brass, saying: My sons, I would that ye should remember that were it not for these ^bplates, which contain these records and these commandments, we must have suffered in ^cignorance, even at this present time, not knowing the mysteries of God.

4 For it were not possible that our father, Lehi, could have remembered all these things, to have taught them to his children, except it were for the help of these plates; for he having been taught in the ^alanguage of the Egyptians therefore he could read these engravings, and teach them to his children, that thereby they could teach them to their children, and so fulfilling the commandments of God, even down to this present time.

5 I say unto you, my sons, ^awere it not for these things, which have been kept and ^bpreserved by the hand of God, that we might ^cread and understand of his ^dmysteries, and have his ^ecommandments always before our eyes, that even our fathers would have dwindled in unbelief, and we should have been like unto our brethren, the Lamanites, who know nothing concerning these things, or even do not believe them when they are taught them, because of the ^ftraditions of their fathers, which are not correct.

The Words of Mormon are his explanation between two sets of records. The plates that were handed down from generation to generation ending up with Mormon contained the history of two different groups that left Jerusalem and journeyed to the promised land. The first was Lehi's group and we just read all that was written from Nephi down to his last living heir, Amaleki, who had no children. After many years Lehi's descendants met up with the other group which was being led by King Benjamin. Amaleki gave the record to King Benjamin because he felt he was a good man (Omni v. 25.) King Benjamin then kept them with the plates that had been handed down to him through generations of kings (Words of Mormon v. 10.) Both sets of plates continued to be handed down and eventually ended up with Mormon who abridged them.

Mormon is now explaining this to readers because there is a transition in the abridgment from Lehi's group to King Benjamin's group. A part of this transition is that it changes from first person to third person. Even though Mormon abridged the books we have just read, the abridgment was not what ended up being translated by Joseph Smith. For some reason the Lord had Joseph Smith translate the original record. But, the next books we are about to read are in the third person because they are from Mormon's abridgment.

pgs. 142 and 143...come unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption.

18 But it came to pass that Mosiah caused that they should be taught in his ^alanguage. And it came to pass that after they were taught in the language of Mosiah, Zarahemla gave a genealogy of his fathers, according to his memory; and they are written, but ^bnot in these plates.

19 And it came to pass that the people of Zarahemla, and of Mosiah, did ^aunite together; and ^bMosiah was appointed to be their king.

20 And it came to pass in the days of Mosiah, there was a large ^astone brought unto him with engravings on it; and he did ^binterpret the engravings by the gift and power of God.

21 And they gave an account of one ^aCoriantumr, and the slain of his people. And Coriantumr was discovered by the people of Zarahemla; and he dwelt with them for the space of nine moons.

22 It also spake a few words concerning his fathers. And his first parents came out from the ^atower, at the time the Lord ^bconfounded the language of the people; and the severity of the Lord fell upon them according to his judgments, which are just; and their ^cbones lay scattered in the land northward.

23 Behold, I, Amaleki, was born in the days of Mosiah; and I have lived to see his death; and ^aBenjamin, ^bhis son, reigneth in his stead.

24 And behold, I have seen, in the days of king Benjamin, a serious war and much bloodshed between the Nephites and the Lamanites. But behold, the Nephites did obtain much advantage over them; yea, insomuch that king Benjamin did drive them out of the land of Zarahemla.

25 And it came to pass that I began to be old; and, having no seed, and knowing king ^aBenjamin to be a just man before the Lord, wherefore, I shall ^bdeliver up ^cthese plates unto him, exhorting all men to come unto God, the Holy One of Israel, and believe in prophesying, and in revelations, and in the ministering of angels, and in the gift of speaking with tongues, and in the gift of interpreting languages, and in all things which are ^dgood; for there is nothing which is good save it comes from the Lord; and that which is evil cometh from the devil.

26 And now, my beloved brethren, I would that ye should ^acome unto Christ, who is the Holy One of Israel, and partake of his salvation, and the power of his redemption. Yea, come unto him, and ^boffer your whole souls as an ^coffering unto him, and continue in ^dfasting and praying, and endure to the end; and as the Lord liveth ye will be saved.

27 And now I would speak somewhat concerning a certain ^anumber who went up into the wilderness to ^breturn to the ^cland of Nephi; for there was a large number who were desirous to possess the land of their inheritance.

28 Wherefore, they went up into the wilderness. And their leader being a strong and mighty man, and a stiffnecked man, wherefore he caused a contention among them; and they were ^aall slain, save fifty, in the wilderness, and they returned again to the land of Zarahemla.

29 And it came to pass that they also took others to a considerable number, and took their journey again into the wilderness.

30 And I, Amaleki, had a brother, who also went with them; and I have not since known concerning them. And I am about to lie down in my grave; and ^athese plates are full. And I make an end of my speaking.

THE WORDS OF MORMON

CHAPTER 1

Mormon abridges their history onto the plates of Mormon—He inserts the plates of Nephi into the abridgement—King Benjamin establishes peace in the land. About A.D. 385

1 And now I, Mormon, being about to deliver up the ^arecord which I have been making into the hands of my son Moroni, behold I have witnessed almost all the destruction of my people, the Nephites.

2 And it is ^amany hundred years after the coming of Christ *that I deliver these records into the hands of my son; and it supposeth me that he will witness the entire ^bdestruction of my people. But may God grant that he may survive them, that he may write somewhat concerning them, and somewhat concerning Christ, that perhaps some day it may ^cprofit them.

3 And now, I speak somewhat concerning that which I have written; for after I had made an ^aabridgment from the ^bplates of Nephi, down to the reign of this king Benjamin, of whom Amaleki spake, I searched among the ^crecords which had been delivered into my hands, and I found these plates, which contained this small account of the prophets, from Jacob down to the reign of this king ^dBenjamin, and also many of the words of Nephi.

4 And the things which are upon these plates ^apleasing me, because of the prophecies of the coming of Christ; and my fathers knowing that many of them have been fulfilled; yea, and I also know that as many things as have been ^bprophesied concerning us down to this day have been fulfilled, and as many as go beyond this day must surely come to pass—

5 Wherefore, I chose ^athese things, to finish my ^brecord upon them, which remainder of my record I shall take from the ^cplates of Nephi; and I cannot write the ^dhundredth part of the things of my people.

6 But behold, I shall take these plates, which contain these prophesyings and revelations, and put them with the remainder of my record, for they are choice unto me; and I know they will be choice unto my brethren.

The "certain number" that Amaleki mentions in verse 27, and that include his brother, never made it back to Jerusalem. They return from the wilderness in Mosiah chapter 7 so that is something to remember when we get to that passage.
The wisdom of Mormon in deciding which records to abridge is truly inspired. The loss of the book of Lehi to Martin Harris was prepared for. I like this quote that elaborates on this subject:

“The two pages comprising The Words of Mormon are approximately five hundred years out of context. Note that the approximate date at the end of the book of Omni is 130 B.C. whereas the Words of Mormon are dated about 385 A.D. (See 4 Nephi 48 and Mormon 1:2; 6:5 for the major dates in the life of Mormon.) However, the approximate date of the beginning of the book of Mosiah is once again 130 B.C.

“The Words of Mormon were apparently written near the end of Mormon’s life for the purpose of connecting two major records. It was made known to Mormon ‘by the workings of the Spirit of the Lord’ that the small plates of Nephi (which ended when Benjamin was a relatively young man) might be used to replace his abridgment of the book of Lehi [the first book on the large plates of Nephi] (which ended when Benjamin was an old man about ready to die). So that a gap would not occur in the history of the Nephites, Mormon included the major events of the lifetime of King Benjamin in The Words of Mormon, thus connecting the account on the small plates of Nephi with Mormon’s abridgment of the book of Mosiah” (Daniel H. Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon, p. 171).

pgs. 140 and 141...Inasmuch as ye will not keep my comandments ye shall not prosper in the land.

CHAPTER 1

Omni, Amaron, Chemish, Abinadom, and Amaleki, each in turn, keep the records—Mosiah discovers the people of Zarahemla who came from Jerusalem in the days of Zedekiah—He is made king over them—The Mulekites had discovered Coriantumr, the last of the Jaredites—King Benjamin succeeds Mosiah—Men should offer their souls as an offering to Christ. Between 361 and 130 B.C.

1 Behold, it came to pass that I, Omni, being commanded by my father, Jarom, that I should write somewhat upon ^athese plates, to preserve our genealogy—

2 Wherefore, in my days, I would that ye should know that I fought much with the sword to preserve my people, the Nephites, from falling into the hands of their enemies, the Lamanites. But behold, I of myself ^aam a wicked man, and I have not kept the statutes and the commandments of the Lord as I ought to have done.

3 And it came to pass that *two hundred and seventy and six years had passed away, and we had many seasons of peace; and we had many ^aseasons of serious war and bloodshed. Yea, and in fine, *two hundred and eighty and two years had passed away, and I had kept these plates according to the ^bcommandments of my ^cfathers; and I ^dconferred them upon my son Amaron. And I make an end.

4 And now I, Amaron, write the things whatsoever I write, which are few, in the book of my father.

5 Behold, it came to pass that *three hundred and twenty years had passed away, and the more wicked part of the Nephites were ^adestroyed.

6 For the Lord would not suffer, after he had led them out of the land of Jerusalem and kept and preserved them from falling into the hands of their enemies, yea, he would not suffer that the words should not be verified, which he spake unto our fathers, saying that: ^aInasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall not ^bprosper in the land.

7 Wherefore, the Lord did visit them in great judgment; nevertheless, he did spare the righteous that they should not perish, but did deliver them out of the hands of their enemies.

8 And it came to pass that I did deliver the plates unto my brother Chemish.

9 Now I, Chemish, write what few things I write, in the same book with my brother; for behold, I saw the last which he wrote, that he wrote it with his own hand; and he wrote it in the day that he delivered them unto me. And after this manner we keep the ^arecords, for it is according to the commandments of our fathers. And I make an end.

10 Behold, I, Abinadom, am the son of Chemish. Behold, it came to pass that I saw much war and contention between my people, the Nephites, and the Lamanites; and I, with my own sword, have taken the lives of many of the Lamanites in the defence of my brethren.

11 And behold, the ^arecord of this people is engraven upon plates which is had by the ^bkings, according to the generations; and I know of no revelation save that which has been written, neither prophecy; wherefore, that which is sufficient is written. And I make an end.

12 Behold, I am Amaleki, the son of Abinadom. Behold, I will speak unto you somewhat concerning ^aMosiah, who was made king over the ^bland of Zarahemla; for behold, he being ^cwarned of the Lord that he should ^dflee out of the ^eland of ^fNephi, and as many as would hearken unto the voice of the Lord should also ^gdepart out of the land with him, into the wilderness—

13 And it came to pass that he did according as the Lord had commanded him. And they departed out of the land into the wilderness, as many as would hearken unto the voice of the Lord; and they were led by many preachings and prophesyings. And they were admonished continually by the word of God; and they were led by the power of his ^aarm, through the wilderness until they came down into the land which is called the ^bland of Zarahemla.

14 And they discovered a ^apeople, who were called the people of Zarahemla. Now, there was great rejoicing among the people of Zarahemla; and also Zarahemla did rejoice exceedingly, because the Lord had sent the people of Mosiah with the ^bplates of brass which contained the record of the Jews.

15 Behold, it came to pass that Mosiah discovered that the people of ^aZarahemla came out from Jerusalem at the time that ^bZedekiah, king of Judah, was carried away captive into Babylon.

16 And they ^ajourneyed in the wilderness, and were brought by the hand of the Lord across the great waters, into the land where Mosiah discovered them; and they had dwelt there from that time forth.

17 And at the time that Mosiah discovered them, they had become exceedingly numerous. Nevertheless, they had had many wars and serious contentions, and had fallen by the sword from time to time; and their ^alanguage had become corrupted; and they had brought no ^brecords with them; and they denied the being of their Creator; and Mosiah, nor the people of Mosiah, could understand them.

Wow, in the first 11 verses of these pages the plates change hands four times from Omni to Amaron to Chemish to Abinadom. Each author is brief and seems to make a comment that alludes to the unrighteousness of the Nephites. In verse 5 Amoron tells us that the wicked among the Nephites were destroyed. In verse 11 Abinodom tells us that his writing is brief since the record is meant for recording prophecy and revelation and there hadn't been any (only because they were not worthy of it I'm sure.) Amaleki's record is valuable in the sense that it tells us about a second group of Jews who escaped from Jerusalem to the promised land. These people are referred to as the Mulekites and Mosiah was their king. We will be getting to know Mosiah and his people better in our upcoming reading.

pgs. 138 and 139...Inasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land.

THE BOOK OF JAROM

CHAPTER 1

The Nephites keep the law of Moses, look forward to the coming of Christ, and prosper in the land—Many prophets labor to keep them in the way of truth. Between 420 and 361 B.C.

1 Now behold, I, Jarom, write a few words according to the commandment of my father, Enos, that our ^agenealogy may be kept.

2 And as ^athese plates are ^bsmall, and as these things are ^cwritten for the intent of the benefit of our brethren the ^dLamanites, wherefore, it must needs be that I write a little; but I shall not write the things of my prophesying, nor of my revelations. For what could I write more than my fathers have written? For have not they revealed the plan of salvation? I say unto you, Yea; and this sufficeth me.

3 Behold, it is expedient that much should be done among this people, because of the hardness of their hearts, and the deafness of their ears, and the blindness of their minds, and the ^astiffness of their necks; nevertheless, God is exceedingly merciful unto them, and has not as yet ^bswept them off from the face of the land.

4 And there are many among us who have many ^arevelations, for they are not all ^bstiffnecked. And as many as are not stiffnecked and have faith, have ^ccommunion with the Holy Spirit, which maketh manifest unto the children of men, according to their faith.

5 And now, behold, *two hundred years had passed away, and the people of Nephi had waxed strong in the land. They observed to ^akeep the law of Moses and the ^bsabbath day holy unto the Lord. And they ^cprofaned not; neither did they ^dblaspheme. And the ^elaws of the land were exceedingly strict.

6 And they were scattered upon ^amuch of the face of the land, and the Lamanites also. And they were exceedingly more ^bnumerous than were they of the Nephites; and they loved ^cmurder and would drink the ^dblood of beasts.

7 And it came to pass that they came many times against us, the Nephites, to battle. But our ^akings and our ^bleaders were mighty men in the faith of the Lord; and they taught the people the ways of the Lord; wherefore, we withstood the Lamanites and swept them away out of ^cour lands, and began to fortify our cities, or whatsoever place of our inheritance.

8 And we multiplied exceedingly, and spread upon the face of the land, and became exceedingly rich in ^agold, and in silver, and in precious things, and in fine ^bworkmanship of wood, in buildings, and in ^cmachinery, and also in iron and copper, and brass and steel, making all manner of tools of every kind to till the ground, and ^dweapons of war—yea, the sharp pointed arrow, and the quiver, and the dart, and the javelin, and all preparations for war.

9 And thus being prepared to meet the Lamanites, they did not prosper against us. But the word of the Lord was verified, which he spake unto our fathers, saying that: ^aInasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall ^bprosper in the land.

10 And it came to pass that the prophets of the Lord did threaten the people of Nephi, according to the word of God, that if they did not keep the commandments, but should fall into transgression, they should be ^adestroyed from off the face of the land.

11 Wherefore, the prophets, and the priests, and the ^ateachers, did labor diligently, exhorting with all long-suffering the people to ^bdiligence; teaching the ^claw of Moses, and the intent for which it was given; persuading them to ^dlook forward unto the Messiah, and believe in him to come ^eas though he already was. And after this manner did they teach them.

12 And it came to pass that by so doing they kept them from being ^adestroyed upon the face of the land; for they did ^bprick their hearts with the word, ^ccontinually stirring them up unto repentance.

13 And it came to pass that *two hundred and thirty and eight years had passed away—after the manner of wars, and ^acontentions, and dissensions, for the space of ^bmuch of the time.

14 And I, Jarom, do not write more, for the plates are ^asmall. But behold, my brethren, ye can go to the ^bother plates of Nephi; for behold, upon them the records of our wars are engraven, according to the writings of the ^ckings, or those which they caused to be written.

15 And I deliver these plates into the hands of my son Omni, that they may be kept according to the ^acommandments of my fathers.

* verse 5 (399 B.C.); Verse 13 (361 B.C.).

Jarom is Lehi's great grandson which helps me to understand the timing of his writing. Even though his writing is only 15 verses he teaches many important things. Here is a summary of his teachings from the Book of Mormon Student Manual.

Even at this early period, the Nephites who kept the record understood that it would be for the benefit of the Lamanites (see Jarom 1:2).

Apostasy was rampant among the Nephites (see v. 3).

There was a strong group of believers who “had communion with the Holy Spirit” and kept the commandments (see vv. 4–5).

The Nephite laws were exceedingly strict (see v. 5).

The Lamanites were more numerous than the Nephites and had degenerated into a primitive state of existence (see v. 6).

The Nephites were led by righteous men and thus prevailed in battle (see v. 7).

The Nephites had expanded beyond a simple agricultural form of society (see v. 8).

Only constant preaching kept the Nephites from being destroyed by the Lamanites. Jarom recorded that their prophets “did prick their hearts with the word” (v. 12). It was this principle that later motivated Alma to resign his position as chief judge in order to preach the gospel (see Alma 4:19, 31:5).

Another thing that jumped out to me was Jarom's comment about the sabbath day in verse 5. It is just one of those reminders that the laws of God never change and that the people in Jarom's time were expected to keep the sabbath day then just as we are now. And even then it was a command that some people chose not to follow.

pgs. 136 and 137...whatsoever thing ye shall ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive in the name of Christ, ye shall receive it.

THE BOOK OF ENOS

CHAPTER 1

Enos prays mightily and gains a remission of his sins—The voice of the Lord comes into his mind promising salvation for the Lamanites in a future day—Nephites sought to reclaim the Lamanites in their day—Enos rejoices in his Redeemer. Between 544 and 420 B.C.

1 Behold, it came to pass that I, ^aEnos, knowing my father that ^bhe was a just man—for he ^ctaught me in his language, and also in the ^dnurture and admonition of the Lord—and blessed be the name of my God for it—

2 And I will tell you of the ^awrestle which I had before God, before I received a ^bremission of my sins.

3 Behold, I went to hunt beasts in the forests; and the words which I had often heard my father speak concerning eternal life, and the ^ajoy of the saints, ^bsunk deep into my heart.

4 And my soul ^ahungered; and I ^bkneeled down before my Maker, and I ^ccried unto him in mighty ^dprayer and supplication for mine own soul; and all the day long did I cry unto him; yea, and when the night came I did still raise my voice high that it reached the heavens.

5 And there came a ^avoice unto me, saying: Enos, thy sins are ^bforgiven thee, and thou shalt be blessed.

6 And I, Enos, knew that God ^acould not lie; wherefore, my guilt was swept away.

7 And I said: Lord, how is it done?

8 And he said unto me: ^aBecause of thy ^bfaith in Christ, whom thou hast never before heard nor seen. And many years pass away before he shall manifest himself in the flesh; wherefore, go to, thy faith hath made thee ^cwhole.

9 Now, it came to pass that when I had heard these words I began to feel a ^adesire for the ^bwelfare of my brethren, the Nephites; wherefore, I did ^cpour out my whole soul unto God for them.

10 And while I was thus struggling in the spirit, behold, the voice of the Lord came into my ^amind again, saying: I will visit thy brethren according to their diligence in keeping my commandments. I have ^bgiven unto them this land, and it is a holy land; and I ^ccurse it not save it be for the cause of iniquity; wherefore, I will visit thy brethren according as I have said; and their ^dtransgressions will I bring down with sorrow upon their own heads.

11 And after I, Enos, had heard these words, my ^afaith began to be ^bunshaken in the Lord; and I ^cprayed unto him with many long ^dstrugglings for my brethren, the Lamanites.

12 And it came to pass that after I had ^aprayed and labored with all diligence, the Lord said unto me: I will grant unto thee according to thy ^bdesires, because of thy faith.

13 And now behold, this was the desire which I desired of him—that if it should so be, that my people, the Nephites, should fall into transgression, and by any means be ^adestroyed, and the Lamanites should not be ^bdestroyed, that the Lord God would ^cpreserve a record of my people, the Nephites; even if it so be by the power of his holy arm, that it might be ^dbrought forth at some future day unto the Lamanites, that, perhaps, they might be ^ebrought unto salvation—

14 For at the present our strugglings were ^avain in restoring them to the true faith. And they swore in their wrath that, if it were possible, they would ^bdestroy our records and us, and also all the traditions of our fathers.

15 Wherefore, I knowing that the Lord God was able to ^apreserve our records, I cried unto him continually, for he had said unto me: Whatsoever thing ye shall ask in faith, believing that ye shall receive in the name of Christ, ye shall receive it.

16 And I had faith, and I did cry unto God that he would ^apreserve the ^brecords; and he covenanted with me that he would ^cbring ^dthem forth unto the Lamanites in his own due time.

17 And I, Enos, ^aknew it would be according to the covenant which he had made; wherefore my soul did rest.

18 And the Lord said unto me: Thy fathers have also required of me this thing; and it shall be done unto them according to their faith; for their faith was like unto thine.

19 And now it came to pass that I, Enos, went about among the people of Nephi, prophesying of things to come, and testifying of the things which I had heard and seen.

20 And I bear record that the people of Nephi did seek diligently to ^arestore the Lamanites unto the true faith in God. But our ^blabors were vain; their ^chatred was fixed, and they were led by their evil nature that they became wild, and ferocious, and a ^dblood-thirsty people, full of ^eidolatry and ^ffilthiness; feeding upon beasts of prey; dwelling in ^gtents, and wandering about in the wilderness with a short skin girdle about their loins and their heads shaven; and their skill was in the ^hbow, and in the cimeter, and the ax. And many of them did eat nothing save it was raw meat; and they were continually seeking to destroy us.

21 And it came to pass that the people of Nephi did till the land, and ^araise all manner of grain, and of fruit, and ^bflocks of herds, and flocks of all manner of cattle of every kind, and goats, and wild goats, and also many horses.

22 And there were exceedingly many ^aprophets among us. And the people were a ^bstiffnecked people, hard to understand.

23 And there was nothing save it was exceeding ^aharshness, ^bpreaching and prophesying of wars, and contentions, and destructions, and continually ^creminding them of death, and the duration of eternity, and the judgments and the power of God, and all these things—stirring them up ^dcontinually to keep them in the fear of the Lord. I say there was nothing short of these things, and exceedingly great plainness of speech, would keep them from going down speedily to destruction. And after this manner do I write concerning them.

24 And I saw ^awars between the Nephites and Lamanites in the course of my days.

25 And it came to pass that I began to be old, *and an hundred and seventy and nine years had passed away from the time that our father Lehi ^aleft Jerusalem.

26 And I saw that I ^amust soon go down to my grave, having been wrought upon by the power of God that I must preach and prophesy unto this people, and declare the word according to the truth which is in Christ. And I have declared it in all my days, and have rejoiced in it above that of the world.

27 And I soon go to the place of my ^arest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall ^brest. And I rejoice in the day when my ^cmortal shall put on ^dimmortality, and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me: Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the ^emansions of my Father. Amen.

* VERSE 25 (420 B.C.).

Even though the book of Enos is relatively short the message is simple and powerful. Enos uses beautiful language in his writing. Expressions such as "my soul hungered", "mighty prayer and supplication" and "I shall see his face with pleasure" are all touching and poignant. The experience of Enos is evidence that change in a person's life can happen quickly and repentance is a beautiful blessing to any who are willing to use it.

pgs. 134 and 135...our lives passed away like as it were unto us a dream.

6 And it came to pass that he came unto me, and on this wise did he speak unto me, saying: Brother Jacob, I have sought much opportunity that I might speak unto you; for I have heard and also know that thou goest about much, preaching that which ye call the ^agospel, or the doctrine of Christ.

7 And ye have led away much of this people that they pervert the right way of God, and ^akeep not the law of Moses which is the right way; and convert the law of Moses into the worship of a being which ye say shall come many hundred years hence. And now behold, I, Sherem, declare unto you that this is ^bblasphemy; for no man knoweth of such things; for he cannot ^ctell of things to come. And after this manner did Sherem contend against me.

8 But behold, the Lord God poured in his ^aSpirit into my soul, insomuch that I did ^bconfound him in all his words.

9 And I said unto him: Deniest thou the Christ who shall come? And he said: If there should be a Christ, I would not deny him; but I know that there is no Christ, neither has been, nor ever will be.

10 And I said unto him: Believest thou the scriptures? And he said, Yea.

11 And I said unto him: Then ye do not understand them; for they truly testify of Christ. Behold, I say unto you that none of the ^aprophets have written, nor ^bprophesied, save they have spoken concerning this Christ.

12 And this is not all—it has been made manifest unto me, for I have heard and seen; and it also has been made manifest unto me by the ^apower of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, I know if there should be no atonement made all mankind must be ^blost.

13 And it came to pass that he said unto me: Show me a ^asign by this power of the Holy Ghost, in the which ye know so much.

14 And I said unto him: What am I that I should ^atempt God to show unto thee a sign in the thing which thou knowest to be ^btrue? Yet thou wilt deny it, because thou art of the ^cdevil. Nevertheless, not my will be done; but if God shall smite thee, let that be a ^dsign unto thee that he has power, both in heaven and in earth; and also, that Christ shall come. And thy will, O Lord, be done, and not mine.

15 And it came to pass that when I, Jacob, had spoken these words, the power of the Lord came upon him, insomuch that he fell to the earth. And it came to pass that he was nourished for the space of many days.

16 And it came to pass that he said unto the people: Gather together on the morrow, for I shall die; wherefore, I desire to speak unto the people before I shall die.

17 And it came to pass that on the morrow the multitude were gathered together; and he spake plainly unto them and denied the things which he had taught them, and confessed the Christ, and the power of the Holy Ghost, and the ministering of angels.

18 And he spake plainly unto them, that he had been ^adeceived by the power of the ^bdevil. And he spake of hell, and of ^ceternity, and of eternal ^dpunishment.

19 And he said: I ^afear lest I have committed the ^bunpardonable sin, for I have lied unto God; for I denied the Christ, and said that I believed the scriptures; and they truly testify of him. And because I have thus lied unto God I greatly fear lest my case shall be ^cawful; but I confess unto God.

20 And it came to pass that when he had said these words he could say no more, and he ^agave up the ^bghost.

21 And when the multitude had witnessed that he spake these things as he was about to give up the ghost, they were astonished exceedingly; insomuch that the power of God came down upon them, and they were ^aovercome that they fell to the earth.

22 Now, this thing was pleasing unto me, Jacob, for I had requested it of my Father who was in heaven; for he had heard my cry and answered my prayer.

23 And it came to pass that peace and the ^alove of God was restored again among the people; and they ^bsearched the scriptures, and hearkened no more to the words of this wicked man.

24 And it came to pass that many means were devised to ^areclaim and restore the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth; but it all was ^bvain, for they delighted in ^cwars and ^dbloodshed, and they had an eternal ^ehatred against us, their brethren. And they sought by the power of their arms to destroy us continually.

25 Wherefore, the people of Nephi did fortify against them with their arms, and with all their might, trusting in the God and ^arock of their salvation; wherefore, they became as yet, conquerors of their enemies.

26 And it came to pass that I, Jacob, began to be old; and the record of this people being kept on the ^aother plates of Nephi, wherefore, I conclude this record, declaring that I have written according to the best of my knowledge, by saying that the time passed away with us, and also our ^blives passed away like as it were unto us a ^cdream, we being a ^dlonesome and a solemn people, ^ewanderers, cast out from Jerusalem, born in tribulation, in a wilderness, and hated of our brethren, which caused wars and contentions; wherefore, we did mourn out our days.

27 And I, Jacob, saw that I must soon go down to my grave; wherefore, I said unto my son ^aEnos: Take these ^bplates. And I told him the things which my brother Nephi had ^ccommanded me, and he promised obedience unto the commands. And I make an end of my writing upon these plates, which writing has been small; and to the reader I bid farewell, hoping that many of my brethren may read my words. Brethren, adieu.


These are the last pages of Jacob's teachings. I'm really inspired by the way he handles Sherem. It is nice to see Sherem eventually come around to the Lord's way. I wonder what Sherem meant when he testified of the ministering of angels in verse 17.
When Jacob comes to the end of his life he says in verse 26 that "it has passed away like unto a dream." Hearing that helps me realize how quickly life does pass us by. All of us will come to the end of our time on earth at some point. This is a good reminder to appreciate every day of our lives and spend our time on the things that matter most.