#19 JANUARY 27 - FEBRUARY 2, 1 NEPHI 19-22

Friday, January 31, 2020

#19 JANUARY 27 – FEBRUARY 2, 1 NEPHI 19-22

Introductory Comments

How did they make the Book of Mormon videos?

            One of our daughters, Carrie, sent me an email today after reading the last blog post in which I expressed amazement at the Book of Mormon videos and wondered how they created the storm scene on the ocean from Chapter 18. I posted this as a comment to the last blog, but I’ll copy it here.

I also noticed from your blog that you were wondering about how they made the ship and storm at sea for the BOM videos. I love those videos and have gotten really into them! If you look at “Additional Videos” in the “Book of Mormon Videos” section of the Gospel Library app., there is a behind-the-scenes video that shows how they did that. It’s pretty incredible! It also interviews one of the directors of the videos, a woman, who talks about the deliberate attempts in this project to make the women more visible and vocal. I’ve really noticed that—even if you look ahead to Jacob and Enos, every prophet has a strong, supportive wife standing by his side as he preaches. And the women in Lehi’s and Ishmael’s families are certainly more major figures in these videos than they seem to be in the text. I really appreciate that focus!

Thanks, Carrie, for those good observations! I just watched the video about the making of the Book of Mormon videos for First Nephi. It was really interesting! You may want to take time to look at it yourself. Here is the link: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/video/additional-videos/2019-09-0100-book-of-mormon-videos-behind-the-scenes-1-nephi-1080p-eng?lang=eng

Carrie is right about the videos portraying the strength of the women. I really noticed it when they were traveling through the desert. That is consistent with what Nephi wrote in 1 Nephi 17:2 And so great were the blessings of the Lord upon us, that while we did live upon raw meat in the wilderness, our women did give plenty of suck for their children, and were strong, yea, even like unto the men; and they began to bear their journeyings without murmurings.

You also see the strength of the women confronting the rebellious brothers in the desert and on the ship. And you see the strength of Sariah on a number of occasions. One time she says to rebellious Laman, “This isn’t who you are!” That’s not a scripture quote but consistent with the strength we know she had. These women are good models for women (and men) of today for their strength, courage and determination to do the Lord’s will.

Not much more history from Nephi

            In 18 chapters, Nephi has gotten his family from Jerusalem to the land of promise in the Americas. There won’t be much more history in the book of First Nephi, just a little in the next chapter about making the plates. And in the book of Second Nephi, there are only two chapters (4 and 5) that deal with history at all. Other than that, it will be doctrine, prophecy and exhortation. Nephi told us that his history is written in his “other plates”, so it’s not surprising that we won’t get much more history from him in the Small Plates. The Book of Mormon is not intended to be a history book. It is a book of scripture written with the intent to invite us to Christ and His gospel. The historical content is just the framework on which the doctrine and gospel are built. When I was a younger reader, I liked the history best, including the wars, and was bored with the sermons and doctrinal chapters. Now it is just the opposite. Even though it is easier (and a little more fun) to write in this blog about the historical stuff, it is the doctrine, testimony, prophecy, exhortation, etc. that keep me coming back to the Book of Mormon.

            For those of you who are new to the Book of Mormon or teaching it to others who are, it is ok to concentrate on the history. There are good life lessons in the historical events from which to learn. And understanding the history will help you and them put the doctrines in context and remember how to find them in the book for future reference. The new Book of Mormon videos are especially good for teaching the history. Lori and I have said many times when reading stories like getting the Plates of Brass from Laban or the storm at sea, “This really needs to be made into a movie!” And now it has! What a blessing!

            Don’t be overwhelmed by the doctrinal chapters. It is the curriculum for a lifetime to plumb the depths of doctrine found in the pages of the Book of Mormon. No one gets it all the first time, or the tenth or the fiftieth. Like the temple, I don’t think anyone gets it all in this life. But don’t stop trying. The Book of Mormon will reward you each time you come back to it. Each page has new treasures to discover. As you go through life, encounter new challenges and gain new maturity and wisdom, the Book of Mormon will, like the Rod of Iron faithfully following the Strait and Narrow Path, always be there with you and for you to teach, testify, edify, comfort and bless you. If it hasn’t already, it can become your faithful, cherished friend. So, keep reading!

1 Nephi Chapter 19

19:1-5  Two sets of plates

            In 1 Nephi Chapter 9, Nephi told us that he had been commanded to make a second set of plates for the special purpose that there should be an account engraven of the ministry of my people. And that the Lord hath commanded me to make these plates for a wise purpose in him, which purpose I know not. (1 Nephi 9:3, 5) Now he is going to basically tell us that same thing again in this chapter. Why tell us twice? These two chapters and these explanations of the two sets of plates serve as “bookends” to this part of his history, the part contained in the book of First Nephi. Chapter 9 came after telling some of the history of his father including his father’s dream of the Tree of Life. Nephi begins telling his own history in Chapter 10. He has now told his history up to the time the family arrives in the promised land. So he reminds us again that there are two sets of plates, sort of as an explanation and apology that he isn’t giving us more detail of the history. After this explanation, he will give some doctrine and prophecy, quote two chapters from Isaiah, explain those chapters and then end his book of First Nephi.

            Notice that there are two books of Nephi, the same person Nephi, First Nephi and Second Nephi. None of the other prophet-writers of the Book of Mormon get two books named after them. (Third and Fourth Nephi were different Nephi’s – father and son). It wasn’t some Latter-day church leader or scholar or even Joseph Smith who divided Nephi’s writings into two books; he did it himself. It sounds like he wanted to separate his story in the “old world” and when the family was together into one book and his story in the “new world” and after the family became divided into a second book.

            Nephi explains that when he wrote the history on the first set of plates, the Large Plates, he didn’t know that the Lord would command him to make another set of plates, the Small Plates. He explains about these Small Plates that the ministry and the prophecies, the more plain and precious parts of them, should be written upon these 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 wise purposes, which purposes are known unto the Lord. Further, he explains that these plates should be handed down from one generation to another, or from one prophet to another, until further commandments of the Lord. That’s just what happened – the Large Plates were passed down through the line of the kings but the Small Plates were passed down through the line of the prophets. It wasn’t until Mosiah and Benjamin, both kings and prophets, that the Large Plates were kept by a prophet (as far as I can tell.) By that time the Small Plates were full. They were given to Benjamin, but he didn’t write on them because there was no room. The last writer of these Small Plates was Amaleki. Writing in the Book of Omni, he wrote in his last verse, these plates are full. (Omni 1:30) The Small Plates were then handed down by the prophets until they came into the possession of Mormon, who didn’t use them for his abridgment. He used the Large Plates, but, after making an abridgment of the Book of Lehi from the Large Plates, he found the Small Plates and added those to the Book of Mormon record. So we have been reading the words of Nephi, not Mormon. This is not an abridgment. These are the things Nephi specifically selected to write because they are plain and precious. What a treasure!

19:6. Because of the weakness which is in me

            Nephi goes on to say that he won’t write anything on these plates unless he thinks it is sacred. And then he makes an apology, if I do err, even did they err of old; not that I would excuse myself because of other men, but because of the weakness which is in me, according to the flesh, I would excuse myself. Nephi is doing his best, but he knows that he is just a man, though an inspired prophet, so he apologizes for any errors of judgment as to what is sacred and should be included.

Interestingly, the last writer of the Book of Mormon, Moroni, writing nearly 1000 years later makes a similar apology. The Lord has commanded him to write about the experience of the Brother of Jared and other sacred things. Moroni protests saying:

Lord, the Gentiles will mock at these things, because of our weakness in writing; for Lord thou hast made us mighty in word by faith, but thou hast not made us mighty in writing; for thou hast made all this people that they could speak much, because of the Holy Ghost which thou hast given them;

And thou hast made us that we could write but little, because of the awkwardness of our hands. Behold, thou hast not made us mighty in writing like unto the brother of Jared, for thou madest him that the things which he wrote were mighty even as thou art, unto the overpowering of man to read them.

Thou hast also made our words powerful and great, even that we cannot write them; wherefore, when we write we behold our weakness, and stumble because of the placing of our words; and I fear lest the Gentiles shall mock at our words.

Moroni is a soldier. He has big, battle-worn hands that aren’t made for artfully writing on the metal plates. And he feels that his words are awkward compared to the writing of the Brother of Jared, which he has read on the 24 Gold Plates. But the Lord responds with a profound truth:

And when I had said this, the Lord spake unto me, saying: Fools mock, but they shall mourn; and my grace is sufficient for the meek, that they shall take no advantage of your weakness;

And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.

Ether 12:23-27

The Lord’s grace is sufficient for our weaknesses. We don’t have to repent for our weaknesses! We repent for our sins and transgressions and we may be forgiven through the Atonement of Christ. The Atonement is also for our weaknesses, but not so that we can be forgiven for them, but that so, through His grace, if we are meek, humble and have faith in Christ, our weaknesses will be made strong. Profound! We’ll talk more about this when we get to Ether 12 later this year.

On a much smaller scale, as I write about the Book of Mormon in this blog, I can relate to both Nephi and Moroni. Even though I don’t have to inscribe on metal plates as they did, I feel that I stumble over my words as I write. I’ve always been fairly comfortable at the pulpit or teaching a class, but writing is different. To paraphrase Moroni, “when [I] write [I] behold [my] weakness, and stumble because of the placing of [my] words.” Thanks for being a sympathetic and understanding audience. I appreciate your patience as I try to put into writing the things that are in my mind and in my heart about the Book of Mormon. It never seems to come out quite right on the page. I just hope the Spirit I feel and my love for the book come through to each reader.

19:7-21 Prophecies of the Savior

            Following this apology, Nephi makes a transitional observation that some things which are precious to one person both body and soul are set at naught by others. Even the very God of Israel do men trample under their feet; I say, trample under their feet but I would speak in other words—they set him at naught, and hearken not to the voice of his counsels.

            Having shifted the focus from himself to the “God of Israel”, Nephi now goes on to prophesy about Him. Much of what he says must have come from his profound vision, which is contained in Chapters 11-14. He begins by affirming again that Christ (he doesn’t use that term) will come 600 years after his father left Jerusalem. Referring to his father, this prophecy was already recorded in 1 Nephi 10:4. But he doesn’t attribute the prophecy to his father but to “the angel.” It sounds like Nephi learned of the timing of the coming of the Messiah in his vision, just like his father learned it in his. They are both witnesses of this prophecy of the coming of the Savior. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. (2 Cor 13:1)

            Nephi then proceeds to reiterate prophecies about the life and ministry of the Savior calling upon the words of three prophets presumably from the Plates of Brass (of which we have no record) Zenock, Neum  and Zenos. Nephi refers to their prophecies about the Savior, His ministry and the events surrounding His death. Staying with the prophecies of Zenos, Nephi speaks of the Jews, their sufferings and dispersion, and then of the gathering of the house of Israel including those who are on the isles of the sea. This must have been a great comfort to him because he and his family have come across the ocean to an “isle” in the sea. It is a comforting promise that they won’t be forgotten by the Lord.

19:22-24 I did liken all scriptures unto us, that it might be for our profit and learning.

            Nephi concludes the chapter by telling us that he taught these things to his brethren and that he read to them from the Plates of Brass. He read from the writings 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 Isaiah.

            Nephi is going to teach his brethren (and us) from the words of the prophet Isaiah as contained on the Plates of Brass. Books have been written about how to understand Isaiah. I am certainly no Isaiah expert. But I will try to help you with it a little. Many readers, especially those fairly new to the Book of Mormon, “hit the wall” when they get to Isaiah in this book and the next. Don’t let that happen to you. You can do it! Keep reading.

1 Nephi Chapter 20 – Isaiah 48

            Isaiah lived about 100 years before Lehi. Many times when the Book of Mormon, especially Nephi, uses the phrase “the prophet”, it is referring to Isaiah. There were many prophets in ancient Israel, but Isaiah was one of the greatest and perhaps the greatest in his prophecies of the Savior and the future of Israel. Nephi had been forbidden to write about some of the things he saw in his vision, but Isaiah saw and wrote about the same things. So Nephi can “get around” being forbidden to write about the last days and events leading up to the Second Coming by quoting Isaiah and then commenting on what Isaiah wrote.

            It helps that Nephi and his brethren were from Jerusalem and understood poetic writing of the prophets of Israel. They understand the references, allegories and idioms much better than we do. But with all our limitations, there is still much to be gleaned from the Isaiah chapters.

            Let me make one simple suggestion for you to try with these two chapters of Isaiah. Try listening to them as you read. On the Gospel Library app, when you open to 1 Nephi 20, you will see a round orange circle in the right lower corner of the page with a pair of headphones in the circle. Touch that icon and it will open for you an audio player to play a voice recording of this chapter. Over to the far right of the time line on the audio player, you will see three vertical lines. Touch on those and you can chose the speed of playback, whether to have Continuous Play and whether the main voice is male or female. If you choose the male voice as the main voice, the female reader will read the chapter summary and the male reader will read the chapter. Try listening to the female read this chapter to you. Follow along on your device to read the words. Listen to the beauty of this ancient, prophetic poetry translated into English. Even if you understood nothing, just listening is soothing and uplifting. Then watch for words or phrases that you recognize. In some ways, like music, we “feel” Isaiah as much or more than we “understand” it. At least, that is true for me. Try it. Maybe try the female reading this chapter and the male the next to see which you prefer.

            The Lord begins by chastising Israel for being obstinate, for rejecting Him and following idols. As in other chapters we have seen with chiastic form, look at the middle verses in the chapter for the most important thought. In this chapter, they are verses 12 and 13.

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

Mine hand hath also laid the foundation of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens. I call unto them and they stand up together.

1 Nephi Chapter 21 – Isaiah 49

            Isaiah prophecies that Israel will be gathered in the latter days, that the Gentiles and kings and queens will help to gather Israel.

            Messiah tells Israel that He will never forget her with these tender words:

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

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

We are engraven on the palms of His hands. He still bears the tokens of His atoning sacrifice in His hands to remind us, when we see Him what He did for us, and perhaps to remind Him that He will always be our Savior. Elder Holland has spoken about this eloquently (as have others). In a 1995 General Conference talk speaking of the sacrament and of the Savior, he said:

In fact, in a resurrected, otherwise perfected body, our Lord of this sacrament table has chosen to retain for the benefit of his disciples the wounds in his hands and his feet and his side—signs, if you will, that painful things happen even to the pure and perfect. Signs, if you will, that pain in this world is not evidence that God doesn’t love you. It is the wounded Christ who is the captain of our soul—he who yet bears the scars of sacrifice, the lesions of love and humility and forgiveness.

“This do in Remembrance of Me”, Ensign, November 1995

1 Nephi 22 What meaneth these things which ye have read?

            After reading to them the words of Isaiah from the Plates of Brass, Nephi’s brethren ask him to explain what these things mean. They want to know if these prophecies are just “spiritual”, probably meaning allegorical, or will they come to pass “in the flesh”, meaning “will these things really happen?” Nephi tells them that they are both. It sounds like their questions are sincere. They don’t seem to be reviling against Nephi (for once) or against Isaiah so Nephi goes ahead to give them good answers.

            Compared to reading Isaiah, reading Nephi is a “piece of cake!” I don’t claim to understand everything he writes, but the rest of this chapter is so clear. The best commentary on prophets comes from other prophets. Nephi “glories in plainness” (2 Nephi 33:6). His writing is much easier to understand than that of Isaiah.

            Nephi uses the words of Isaiah to go back to his great vision. He speaks again of the gathering of Israel, of the role of the Gentiles, of kings and queens helping to foster the gathering, of a “mighty nation among the Gentiles” and “a marvelous work” which the Lord will do among the Gentiles, of the restoration of the gospel and the true church.

            When writing about his vision, Nephi was stopped by the Spirit at this point from writing more, but using Isaiah as his cover, he goes on to tell us more of what he saw in his vision – wars and destruction, the fall of the Great and Abominable Church, the binding of Satan by the righteousness of the people and “the fullness of the wrath of God” being poured out. The promise to the righteous is that he will preserve the righteous by his power, and the righteous need not fear; for thus saith the prophet, they shall be saved, even if it so be as by fire. That sounds pretty scary! But the promise is For behold, the righteous shall not perish; but all they who fight against Zion shall be cut off. And again he promises the righteous need not fear. It is the wicked who need to be afraid.

            The Savior will come! The Holy One of Israel must reign in dominion, and might, and power, and great glory. He gathereth his children from the four quarters of the earth; and he numbereth his sheep, and they know him; and there shall be one fold and one shepherd; and he shall feed his sheep, and in him they shall find pasture. All nations, kindreds, tongues, and people shall dwell safely in the Holy One of Israel if it so be that they will repent.

            Nephi has seen all of this and more. He’d like to tell it all to us, but I durst not speak further as yet concerning these things. He has said all that he dares. But he has given us so much!

Return to obedience

            In the last two verses of this chapter, Nephi returns to his favorite subject – obedience! Remember, he is the “poster child” of obedience in the Book of Mormon. Referring to the Plates of Brass, he says they testify that a man must be obedient to the commandments of God. . . . Wherefore, if ye shall be obedient to the commandments, and endure to the end, ye shall be saved at the last day. And thus it is.

            This is Nephi’s great plea and promise – be obedient to the commandments and endure to the end and you will find your land of promise.

Amen

            Notice that he closes with an Amen. This is the 4^th “Amen chapter” in the Book of Mormon. The first three were 1 Nephi 9, 14 and 15. Three of the chapters close (like this one does) And thus it is. Amen. Nephi is saying, “This is how it is. I’m not lying. These things are true. I hope you are listening!”

            I join my testimony with Nephi’s, though puny compared to his; these things are true. This book is true. The Restoration of the gospel and church is true. Jesus is the Christ, the literal Son of God. The truth is the truth – regardless of where we stand in relation to it. And thus it is. Amen.

Enjoy Sunday School this week. I hope I’ve given you something to think about as you prepare to share with your family and ward members.

Thanks for reading!

Richard