Before we move on to
Nephi’s account, I want to mention a couple more things to keep in mind as we
read Nephi’s account.
That which we study
is more a memoir than a day-to-day account of what occurred. It is written
through the eyes of Nephi. He is writing this record, using his previous record,
having had time to evaluate events and their place in what had occurred during
those forty years. “Nephi’s voice is privileged above all others – as editor
and sole narrator he always has the final say – and his standing as a prophet
reinforces his unique authority to interpret the events he recounts.”[1]
Returning to Nephi’s
record, he tells us that he was “taught somewhat in all the learning of my
father” (1 Nephi 1:2). The record he writes is recorded in the language of his
father. This “language” consists of the learning of the Jews and the language
of Egyptians.
The language used
during Lehi’s time was old Hebrew. The Judean kingdom was using Egyptian
numerals and other Egyptian materials as well.[2]
Daniel C. Peterson speaks
to this Egyptian influence. “1 Nephi 1:2 suggests cultural connections between
Egypt and Israel in Lehi and Nephi’s time, and these connections seem to be
consistent with what scholars are learning. Interestingly, the very name ‘Nephi’
turns out to be authentically Egyptian. Thus, Nephi’s claim that his father
knew Egyptian is borne out by his own name.”[3]
Matthew L. Bowen adds:
“That Lehi would give his son an Egyptian name is not unlikely, since Lehi’s
language ‘consist[ed] of the learning of the Jews and the language of the
Egyptians’ (1 Nephi 1:2). One reason Nephi was quick to point out his father’s
knowledge of Egyptian may have been to explain the origin of his non-Hebrew name.”[4]
Nephi testifies to
the truthfulness of his record. He is making it with his hand and it is based
on what he has learned. King Benjamin probably had this in mind when he told
his sons, “I would that ye should remember that these sayings are true, and
also that these records are true. 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” (Mosiah 1:6).
We learn about the
beginnings of the record with his father, Lehi. Lehi’s story begins in the
first year of the reign of Zedekiah. At the time of Zedekiah, Judea was a loyal
vassal state of the Babylonian empire. Zedekiah was hand-picked and put on the
throne because the Babylonians knew he would be a loyal vassal.[5]
“Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he
began to reign, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem” (2 Kings 24:18); “And
when the year was expired, king Nebuchadnezzar sent, and brought him to
Babylon, with the goodly vessels of the house of the LORD, and made Zedekiah
his brother king over Judah and Jerusalem” (2 Chronicles 36:10).
“Lehi was born in
Jerusalem and had dwelt there ‘all his days’ (1 Nephi 1:4). He was likely a
husband and father of young children during Josiah’s reforms. If we are to
believe 2 Kings 23:2, he was present at the reading of the book of the law that
formed the basis of those reforms. I believe that Lehi would have taken these
reforms to heart and done his best to teach them to his children. This may
explain why one of the central themes of the Book of Mormon is this idea of
alternate blessings or curses, depending on the righteousness of the people.”[6]
“And the LORD God of
their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes [HEB early,
promptly], and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his
dwelling place:
“But they mocked the
messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the
wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy” (2
Chronicles 36:15–16). Lehi was one of those messengers sent to call the people
of Jerusalem to repentance.
If they didn’t
repent, Jerusalem would be destroyed.
“Then rose up
certain of the elders of the land, and spake to all the assembly of the people,
saying,
“Micah the
Morasthite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spake to all
the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Zion shall be plowed
like a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house
as the high places of a forest.
“Did Hezekiah king
of Judah and all Judah put him at all to death? did he not fear the LORD, and
besought the LORD, and the LORD repented him of the evil which he had
pronounced against them? Thus might we procure great evil against our souls
[JST Jer. 26:19 ... and beseech the Lord and repent? and the Lord turned away
the evil which he had pronounced against them. Thus by putting Jeremiah to
death we might procure great evil against our souls] and besought the LORD, and
the LORD repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them? Thus
might we procure great evil against our souls. and besought the LORD, and the
LORD repented him of the evil which he had pronounced against them? Thus might
we procure great evil against our souls” (Jeremiah 26:17–19).
“In order to counter
the public sentiment of confidence that emerged during the Babylonian threat,
the Lord sent prophets to warn the people … Prophets like Lehi and Jeremiah
were threatened with death when they spoke what many Jews considered to be
blasphemous words against the holy city (1 Nephi 1:20; Jeremiah 26:12–15;
38:4). In fact, the prophet Urijah was put to death by King Jehoiakim for delivering
the same message of destruction that Lehi and Jeremiah did (Jeremiah 26:20–23).”[7]
Lehi went out and
prayed on behalf of his people. He was following Jeremiah’s words, “Then shall
ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken unto you
[HEB hear you]. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me
with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:12–13). In what is called the psalm of Nephi,
he recorded his experience crying unto the Lord.
Behold, he hath heard my cry by day,
and he hath given me
knowledge by visions in the night–time.
And by day have I waxed bold in mighty prayer before him;
yea, my voice have I sent up
on high;
and angels came down
and ministered unto me.
And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away
upon exceedingly high mountains.
And mine eyes have beheld great things,
yea, even too great for man;
therefore I was bidden that
I should not write them” (2 Nephi 4:23–25).
“[Lehi] may have
gone forth and prayed unto the Lord (1 Nephi 1:5) because he was among the
prophets who were already actively crying repentance in Jerusalem, but it
appears more likely that he was profoundly moved to pray, motivated by the
problems in Jerusalem and by the messages of the prophets whom he had just
heard.”[8]
“We know virtually
nothing for certain of Lehi or his background except that he is a person of
wealth and, as his wife laments and Lehi agrees, is a ‘visionary man’
(1 Nephi 5:2, 4). His first recorded vision occurs as Lehi is praying ‘with
all his heart’ (1 Nephi 1:5) on behalf of his people. Strangely, this is
the only one of Lehi’s visions about whose content we are told nothing at all.
Nephi simply reveals that as Lehi prays, ‘there came a pillar of fire ... and
he saw and heard much’ (1 Nephi 1:6). No details of the message, no
particulars of any message, are available to distract from the fact of the
visitation itself, given to a man who shares neither the public prestige nor,
so far as we can tell, the national stewardship of his contemporary Jeremiah.”[9]
Seeing the pillar of
fire, this may have reminded Lehi of the Lord’s dealing with Moses during the
exodus. “And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead
them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by
day and night” (Exodus 13:21).
What transpired during
his vision is unknown. What Nephi wrote is “he saw and heard much; and because
of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly” (1
Nephi 1:6).
“We learn a vital
lesson from the example of Lehi in the Book of Mormon. Lehi responded in faith
to prophetic instruction and warnings concerning the destruction of Jerusalem.
He then prayed unto the Lord ‘with all his heart, in behalf of his people’ (1 Nephi 1:5; emphasis added). In answer
to this fervent prayer, Lehi was blessed with a glorious vision of God and His
Son and of the impending destruction of Jerusalem (see 1 Nephi 1:6–9, 13, 18).
Consequently, Lehi rejoiced, and his whole heart was filled because of the
things which the Lord had shown him (see 1 Nephi 1:15). Please note that the
vision came in response to a prayer for others and not as a result of a request
for personal edification or guidance.”[10]
[1] Understanding
the Book of Mormon: A Reader’s Guide, Grant Hardy, Oxford University Press,
2010, pg. 281.
[2] Discussions on the Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 1-3, KBYU,
Dr. Paul Hoskisson.
[4] Internal Textual
Evidence for the Egyptian Origin of Nephi’s Name, Matthew L.
Bowen, Provo, Utah:
Maxwell Institute.
[5] Discussions on the Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 1-3, KBYU,
Dr. Terry B. Ball.
[7] How Could
Jerusalem, “That Great City,” Be Destroyed? David R. Seely, and Fred E.
Woods, Provo, Utah:
Maxwell Institute.
[8] The Calling of
Lehi as a Prophet in the World of Jerusalem, John W. Welch, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
[9] Joseph Smith’s
American Bible: Radicalizing the Familiar, Terryl L. Givens, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
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