After presenting the Nephite Ten Commandments, Jacob spoke
against sinning against God. This is one
the devil’s tools, to entice us to sin.
Nephi would later write:
For
behold, at that day shall [the devil] rage in the hearts of the children of
men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.
And
others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will
say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth
their souls, and leadeth them away carefully down to hell.
And
behold, others he flattereth away, and telleth them there is no hell; and he
saith unto them: I am no devil, for there is none—and thus he whispereth in
their ears, until he grasps them with his awful chains, from whence there is no
deliverance.
2 Nephi 28:20-22
King Benjamin would echo Jacob’s words in his final sermon:
But,
O my people, beware lest there shall arise contentions among you, and ye list
to obey the evil spirit, which was spoken of by my father Mosiah…
And
ye will not suffer your children that they go hungry, or naked; neither will ye
suffer that they transgress the laws of God, and fight and quarrel one with
another, and serve the devil, who is the master of sin, or who is the evil
spirit which hath been spoken of by our fathers, he being an enemy to all
righteousness.
Mosiah 2:32, 4:14
What are the consequences of giving into the enticings of
the devil? “[T]o be carnally-minded is death” (2 Nephi 9:39). What are the consequences to obeying the word
of God? “[T]o be spiritually–minded is life eternal” (2 Nephi 9:39). Paul would tell the Romans, “[T]o be carnally minded is death; but to be
spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:6). “As
righteousness tendeth to life: so he that pursueth evil pursueth it to his own
death” (Proverbs 11:19).
Jacob tells the people, “Do
not say that I have spoken hard things against you” (2 Nephi 9:40). “Just as the word of God can be comforting to
those who accept it, it can be discomforting—‘hard,’ ‘sharp,’ or ‘strict’—to
those who reject it. This dichotomy is a prevalent theme in the Book of Mormon.”[1]
Solomon wrote, “Correction
is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way: and he that hateth reproof shall die”
(Proverbs 15:10). Speaking to King Noah and his priests, Abinadi told them, “Yea, and I perceive that it cuts you to
your hearts because I tell you the truth concerning your iniquities” (Mosiah
13:7).
The classic example of those murmuring against the
admonitions of the Lord was Laman and Lemuel.
AND
now it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had made an end of speaking to my
brethren, behold they said unto me: Thou hast declared unto us hard things,
more than we are able to bear.
And
it came to pass that I said unto them that I knew that I had spoken hard things
against the wicked, according to the truth; and the righteous have I justified,
and testified that they should be lifted up at the last day; wherefore, the guilty
taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the very center.
1 Nephi 16:1-2
Like his brother, Nephi, Jacob reminded them he was teaching
them the word of the Lord. “[T]he the words of truth are chard
against all uncleanness; but the righteous fear them not, for they love the
truth and are not shaken” (2 Nephi 9:40).
And, we are all familiar with the words of Solomon, “The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but
the righteous are bold as a lion” (Proverbs 28:1).
[1] The
Word of God, Leslie A. Taylor, Provo, Utah: Maxwell
Institute, accessed September 10, 2013.
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