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 destroyed from off the face of the land.
11 Wherefore, the
prophets, and the priests, and the teachers, did labor diligently, exhorting
with all long-suffering the people to diligence; teaching the claw
of Moses, and the intent for which it was given; persuading them to look
forward unto the Messiah, and believe in him to come as 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 destroyed upon the face of the land;
for they did prick their hearts with the word, continually stirring them up
unto repentance.
13 And it came to pass
that two hundred and thirty and eight years had passed away [361 B.C.]—after
the manner of wars, and contentions, and dissensions, for the space of much of
the time.
14 And I, Jarom, do
not write more, for the plates are small.
But behold, my brethren, ye can go to the other plates of Nephi; for
behold, upon them the records of our wars are engraven, according to the
writings of the kings, 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 commandments
of my fathers.
Jarom 1:10-15
Even though the Nephites had survived previous Lamanite
attacks, the prophets “did threaten the
people of Nephi … that if they did not keep the commandments … they should be
destroyed from off the face of the land.”
These teachings go back to Nephi and his great vision.
And
while the angel spake these words, I beheld and saw that the seed of my brethren
did contend against my seed, according to the word of the angel; and because of
the pride of my seed, and the temptations of the devil, I beheld that the seed
of my brethren did overpower the people of my seed.
And
it came to pass that I beheld, and saw the people of the seed of my brethren
that they had overcome my seed; and they went forth in multitudes upon the face
of the land.
1 Nephi 12:19-20
The prophets, priests, and teachers labored, teaching the
people the Law of Moses. Even though the
Nephites knew about the coming of Christ, they were still expected to keep the
Law of Moses. “Behold, they believed in Christ and worshiped the Father in his name,
and also we worship the Father in his name.
And for this intent we keep the law of Moses, it pointing our souls to
him; and for this cause it is sanctified unto us for righteousness, even as it
was accounted unto Abraham in the wilderness to be obedient unto the commands
of God in offering up his son Isaac, which is a similitude of God and his Only
Begotten Son” (Jacob 4:5).
Ammon, Aaron, Omner, and Himni taught the Lamanites. The Anti-Nephi-Lehis kept the Laws of Moses.
15
Yea, and they did keep the law of Moses; for it was expedient that they should
keep the law of Moses as yet, for it was not all fulfilled. But notwithstanding the law of Moses, they
did look forward to the coming of Christ, considering that the law of Moses was
a type of his coming, and believing that they must keep those outward performances
until the time that he should be revealed unto them.
16
Now they did not suppose that salvation came by the law of Moses; but the law
of Moses did serve to strengthen their faith in Christ; and thus they did
retain a hope through faith, unto eternal salvation, relying upon the spirit of
prophecy, which spake of those things to come.
Alma 25:15-16
The intent of the teachings were to convince the Nephites to
look forward to the coming of Christ while believing “in him … as though he already was.” This belief goes back to Nephi. “Behold,
my soul delighteth in proving unto my people the truth of the coming of Christ;
for, for this end hath the law of Moses been given; and all things which have
been given of God from the beginning of the world, unto man, are the typifying
of him” (2 Nephi 11:4).
26
And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy
of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know
to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.
27
Wherefore, we speak concerning the law that our children may know the deadness
of the law; and they, by knowing the deadness of the law, may look forward unto
that life which is in Christ, and know for what end the law was given. And after the law is fulfilled in Christ,
that they need not harden their hearts against him when the law ought to be
done away.
2 Nephi 25:26-27
King Benjamin taught, “And
the Lord God hath sent his holy prophets among all the children of men, to
declare these things to every kindred, nation, and tongue, that thereby
whosoever should believe that Christ should come, the same might receive remission
of their sins, and rejoice with exceedingly great joy, even as though he had
already come among them” (Mosiah 3:13).
“For every Book of Mormon prophet, the Atonement is already a done deal.
It was already in place, before Adam was even set on the earth.”[1]
While we don’t know much about Jarom, he gives us some
hints. While he writes about his prophesies
and revelations, when he refers to the prophets, priests, and teachers, he
refers to them in third-person. This
implies he may well have been an outsider, not a part of the religious
leadership like his grandfather, Jacob.[2]
Why the constant preaching?
The preaching kept the Nephites safe.
The preaching of the church leaders pierced their hearts and stirred
them up to repentance.
Abridging Alma2’s book, Mormon wrote, “And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the
people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the
minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had happened unto
them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of
the word of God” (Alma 31:5). Enos
always wrote, “And there was nothing save
it was exceeding harshness, preaching and prophesying of wars, and contentions,
and destructions, and continually reminding them of death, and the duration of
eternity, and the judgments and the power of God, and all these things—stirring
them up continually 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.” (Enos 1:23).
Hugh Nibley explains the emphasis on destruction.
Why this constant insistence on
destruction—can't the people simply be punished or corrected? The ceaseless
labors of prophets, priests, and teachers are all that "kept them from
being destroyed upon the face of the land; for they did prick their hearts with
the word, continually stirring them up unto repentance" (Jarom 1:12). Apparently
the severe penalty clause for those who fail to meet conditions of survival in
the promised land comes with the territory. And who are the righteous in this
land of backsliding Nephites and depraved Lamanites? The answer is written all
over the Book of Mormon—the righteous are whoever are repenting. (Emphasis
in original).[3]
Hugh Nibley also reminds us the Book of Mormon was written
for us today.
And why should the true Church be
any more immune to the blandishments of money and fine clothes and beautiful
churches today than it was in the days of the Nephites? Unless even these times
are "cut short in righteousness," who shall be saved? If the Book of
Mormon is to be trusted, the members of the Church as well as the nonmembers
need someone to "prick their hearts with the word, continually stirring
them up unto repentance" (Jarom 1:12). Why should they now think that all
these warnings are not meant for them, but only for the wicked outsiders? It is
exactly the attitude which Nephi and Samuel the Lamanite attacked with such
vigor. The Book of Mormon was given to us because it was meant for us.[4]
There is another way to describe the warnings and teachings
in the Book of Mormon, “The penalty is destruction; the deliverance,
repentance.”[5]
Even though most of the people were righteous, that does not
mean there were no problems. Even this
early in history, “Throughout their history a high degree of mixing of
populations took place between Nephite and Lamanite factions. “Dissensions"
from the early Nephites in the land of Nephi were noted by Jarom as early as
the fourth century B.C. (see Jarom 1:13).”[6] Nephites
were dissenting and leaving the Nephite society. There were also wars and contentions.
The record of Jarom we read was found on the small plates of
Nephi. We again learn that the plates
are small. He may well have had problems
engraving the plates, like Jacob did (Jacob 4:1). He also references the large plates, which he
apparently had no part in keeping. “[U]pon them the records of our wars are
engraven, according to the writings of the kings.”
Jarom concludes his short record at this point, giving the
plates to his son, Omni.
[1] Abinadi:
The Message and the Martyr (Part 2), Todd Parker, Maxwell Institute,
accessed June 3, 2014.
[2] Jacob
and His Descendants as Authors, John S. Tanner, Maxwell Institute, accessed
June 3, 2014.
[3] Scriptural
Perspectives on How to Survive the Calamities of the Last Days, Hugh
Nibley, Maxwell Institute, accessed June 3, 2014.
[4] Prophecy
in the Book of Mormon: The Three Periods, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute,
accessed June 3, 2014.
[5] Last
Call: An Apocalyptic Warning from the Book of Mormon, Maxwell Institute,
accessed June 3, 2014.
[6] Religious
Groups and Movements among the Nephites, 200-1 B.C., John L. Sorenson,
Maxwell Institute, accessed June 3, 2014.
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