2 Nephi 4:13-14

In Nephi’s record, we have an account of the blessings Lehi gave to Laman, Lemuel, the children of Laman and Lemuel, the sons of Ishmael, Zoram, Joseph, Jacob, and Sam.  One name is missing from the list – Nephi’s.

Why didn’t Nephi leave a record of the blessing he received from Lehi?  It’s possible Lehi didn’t give Nephi a blessing.  Evidence does not support this explanation.  Lehi gave all his sons along with some of his grandchildren, his sons-in-law as well as a Laban’s slave who was not a formal member of the family.  (No doubt Zoram was accepted as a member of the family.)  If all these people received a specific blessing, it doesn’t make sense that Nephi would not have received a blessing since the record tells us that, based on Laman and Lemuel’s wickedness, he would receive the first-born’s blessing.

In the book Understanding the Book of Mormon, Grant Hardy looks at the question, “Why did Nephi leave his blessing out of his record?”  While we don’t the actual reason, Hardy speculates that Lehi charged Nephi with keeping the family together.  He did not want to see his family separate into different groups.  As we will see, the family did separate shortly after Lehi’s death.  Hardy suggests it’s Nephi’s failure to keep the family together that kept him from recording his blessing. 

Regardless of the reason, it is strange that Nephi would ignore his blessing when making his second set of plates.

Little time passed before the problems between Nephi and Laman, Lemuel, and the sons of Ishmael became serious.  We read that that they “were angry with [Nephi] because of the admonitions of the Lord” (2 Nephi 4:13).  Once again, the same group is angered by Nephi preaching the word of the Lord and calling them to repentance.

Nephi did record his words, but they were recorded on the other set of plates. The foundations for the separation of the family have been laid.