After his vision
ended, Lehi returned home, having been overcome by the Spirit. Nephi described
a similar experience to his brothers.
Behold, my soul is rent with anguish because of you,
and my heart is pained;
I fear lest ye shall be cast off forever.
Behold, I am full of the Spirit of God,
insomuch that my frame has
no strength.” (1 Nephi 17:47).
When Ammon met Alma2,
his joy “was so great even that he was full; yea, he was swallowed up in the
joy of his God, even to the exhausting of his strength; and he fell again to
the earth” (Alma 27:17).
No sooner had Lehi “cast
himself upon his bed,” he saw a second vision. The heavens opened. He saw God
sitting on his throne, surrounded by angels singing and praising God. Alma2
would Describing his experience to his son, Helaman, Alma2 used words
similar to Nephi’s.
Yea, methought I saw,
even as our father Lehi saw,
God sitting upon his throne,
surrounded with numberless concourses of angels,
in the attitude of singing
and praising their God;
yea, and my soul did long to be there. (Alma 36:22)
He next saw One
descending out of heaven. “[H]is luster was above that of the sun at noon-day”
(1 Nephi 1:9). Describing His luster, Richard Dilworth Rust wrote, “As Christ
is called a fire, so he is a light in the wilderness (see 1 Nephi 17:13). In
vision, Lehi saw the Son of God as glowing brighter than the sun (see 1 Nephi
1:9) … Both physically and figuratively, light and whiteness are associated
with truth, purity, and divine guidance, just as darkness is associated with
unbelief and error (for example, see Alma 40:14).”[1]
Twelve followed him,
“and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament” (1 Nephi
1:10). The twelve went forth and the One stood before Lehi.
The One, Christ,
gave Lehi a book and he was commanded to read the book. He did, and reading the
book, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord.
He read a warning
about Jerusalem. “Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations!
Yea, and many things did my father read concerning Jerusalem- that it should be
destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and
many should be carried away captive into Babylon.” (1 Nephi 1:13). This
repeated warnings from the Lord found in the Old Testament. “And the LORD said,
I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will
cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I
said, My name shall be there” (2 Kings 23:27) and “[T]he LORD sent against him
bands of the Chaldees, and bands of the Syrians, and bands of the Moabites, and
bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it,
according to the word of the LORD, which he spake by his servants the prophets”
(2 Kings 24:2).
The Lord warned the
Israelites they would be taken captive to Babylon.
“Behold, the days
come, that all that is in thine house, and that which thy fathers have laid up
in store unto this day, shall be carried into Babylon: nothing shall be left,
saith the LORD.
“And of thy sons
that shall issue from thee, which thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and
they shall be eunuchs [OR officers] in the palace of the king of Babylon” (2
Kings 20:17-18).
The day finally
arrived.
“Nebuchadrezzar king
of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and pitched against
it, and built forts [OR siege-walls] against it round about.
“So the city was
besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah.
“And in the fourth
month, in the ninth day of the month, the famine was sore in the city, so that
there was no bread [OR food] for the people of the land.
“Then the city was
broken up, and all the men of war fled, and went forth out of the city by night
by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king’s garden;
(now the Chaldeans were by the city round about:) and they went by the way of
the plain.
“Then they took [Zedekiah],
and carried him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath;
where he gave judgment upon him.
“Then he put out the
eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him in chains, and carried him
to Babylon, and put him in prison till the day of his death.
“Now in the fifth
month, in the tenth day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of
Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, came Nebuzar-adan, captain of the guard, which
served the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem,
“And burned the
house of the LORD, and the king’s house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, and
all the houses of the great men, burned he with fire:
“And all the army of
the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, brake down all the
walls of Jerusalem round about.
“Then Nebuzar-adan
the captain of the guard carried away captive certain of the poor of the
people, and the residue of the people that remained in the city, and those that
fell away [OR had deserted], that fell to the king of Babylon, and the rest of
the multitude” (Jeremiah 52:4-7, 9, 10– 15).
After reading the
book and seeing great and marvelous things, Lehi proclaimed:
Great and marvelous are thy works,
O Lord God Almighty!
Thy throne is high in the heavens.
and thy power, and goodness, and mercy
are over all the inhabitants of the earth;
and, because thou art merciful,
thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee
that they shall perish! (1 Nephi 1:14)[2]
O Lord God Almighty!
Thy throne is high in the heavens.
and thy power, and goodness, and mercy
are over all the inhabitants of the earth;
and, because thou art merciful,
thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee
that they shall perish! (1 Nephi 1:14)[2]
Nephi underscored this
principle that those who come to the Lord will not perish.
“He doeth not anything save it be for the
benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own
life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they
shall not partake of his salvation.
“Behold, doth he cry
unto any, saying: Depart from me? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; but he saith:
Come unto me all ye ends of the earth, buy milk and honey, without money and
without price.
“Behold, hath he
commanded any that they should depart out of the synagogues, or out of the
houses of worship? Behold, I say unto you, Nay.
“Hath he commanded any that they should not
partake of his salvation? Behold I say unto you, Nay; but he hath given it free
for all men; and he hath commanded his people that they should persuade all men
to repentance.
“Behold, hath the Lord commanded any that they
should not partake of his goodness? Behold I say unto you, Nay; but all men are
privileged the one like unto the other, and none are forbidden” (2 Nephi 26:24–
28).
Alma2
taught the people of Zarahemla this same principle.
“Behold, he sendeth
an invitation unto all men, for the arms of mercy are extended towards them,
and he saith: Repent, and I will receive you.
“Yea, he saith: Come
unto me and ye shall partake of the fruit of the tree of life [see 1 Nephi 8:5-28];
yea, ye shall eat and drink of the bread and the waters of life freely;
“Yea, come unto me
and bring forth works of righteousness, and ye shall not be hewn down and cast
into the fire-
“For behold, the
time is at hand that whosoever bringeth forth not good fruit, or whosoever
doeth not the works of righteousness, the same have cause to wail and mourn” (Alma
5:33–36).
The Savior, speaking
to the Nephites after the destruction at His death, reinforced this principle.
“O all ye that are
spared because ye were more righteous than they, will ye not now return unto
me, and repent of your sins, and be converted, that I may heal you?
“Yea, verily I say
unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm
of mercy is extended towards you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive;
and blessed are those who come unto me” (3 Nephi 9:13–14).
Next post here
Lehi continued to
rejoice and praise God for what he had seen. Nephi writes,
For his soul did rejoice,
and his whole heart was filled,
because of the things which he had seen,
yea, which the Lord had shown unto him. (1 Nephi 1:15)[3]
and his whole heart was filled,
because of the things which he had seen,
yea, which the Lord had shown unto him. (1 Nephi 1:15)[3]
“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.”[4]
After sharing his
father’s vision, Nephi writes he will not make a full account of everything his
father has written, all his dreams and visions, and all his prophesies on these
plates. He will make an account of his father’s record on his other plates.
He made one set of
plates, which we know them as the large plates of Nephi. The large plates
contain an account of his people’s history, their wars, etc. On these plates, which
we know as, the small plates of Nephi, contain an account of his ministry (see
1 Nephi 2-4).
Mormon explains how
he found the small plates.
“And now, I speak
somewhat concerning that which I have written; for after I had made an
abridgment from the plates of Nephi, down to the reign of this king Benjamin,
of whom Amaleki spake (see Omni 1:22-25), I searched among the records which
had been delivered into my hands, and I found these plates, which contained
this small account of the prophets, from Jacob down to the reign of this king
Benjamin, and also many of the words of Nephi.
“And the things
which are upon these plates pleasing me, because of the prophecies of the
coming of Christ; and my fathers knowing that many of them have been fulfilled;
yea, and I also know that as many things as have been prophesied concerning us
down to this day have been fulfilled, and as many as go beyond this day must
surely come to pass…
“But behold, I shall
take these plates, which contain these prophesyings and revelations, and put
them with the remainder of my record, for they are choice unto me; and I know
they will be choice unto my brethren.
“And I do this for a
wise purpose; for thus it whispereth me, according to the workings of the
Spirit of the Lord which is in me. And now, I do not know all things; but the
Lord knoweth all things which are to come; wherefore, he worketh in me to do
according to his will” (Words of Mormon 1:3-4, 6-7).
How did Nephi use
Lehi’s record? “Most of Lehi’s record must have been completed by the time
Nephi made and started writing on the large plates. This would be after
arriving in the promised land. Nephi tells us that he recorded on those plates ‘the
[abridged] record of my father, and the genealogy of his fathers, and the more
part of all our proceedings in the wilderness’ (1 Nephi 19:2). Nephi could have
obtained the genealogy from the brass plates, where Lehi had learned about it
(see 1 Nephi 5:14). But his father’s own version of the events in the
wilderness (for example, 1 Nephi 5:2-6, which happened in Nephi’s absence)
would have had to come from another source, most likely Lehi’s own. Lehi
probably had begun writing his record while still in Jerusalem so that he could
include his visions there while they were still vivid (see 1 Nephi 1:16).”[5]
Marilyn Arnold
further explains Nephi’s use of Lehi’s plates. “[We] have only a tiny fraction
of Lehi’s words. In my journal I say, referencing verse 16, ‘Nephi notes that
Lehi had written a great deal about his visions, dreams, and prophecies.’ In
fact, Nephi refers to Lehi’s writings three times in a single verse, twice
explaining that he can’t record them all, so vast are they… Both 16 and 17 are
important verses if we are to comprehend just how prolific Lehi was and Nephi’s
role in dealing with his father’s record. We tend to skip over the passages
about Lehi’s writings, and I think we should not. Nephi is careful to add that
he will not write an account of his ’proceedings’
until after he has
abridged the record of his father (see v. 17). This postponement of his own
work in order to prepare his father’s affirms the importance of Lehi’s
writings. It also underscores the great respect Nephi shows his father
throughout the narrative.”[6]
Why did Nephi make a
record of his father’s visions? “In his account of his father’s visions, Nephi
seems to be responding in some measure to his brothers’ accusation that Lehi
was a false visionary.”[7]
Having received
these visions concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, he began to prophesy to
the people of Jerusalem, telling them what the Lord had revealed to him. The
Jews reject his message. He was mocked because of his words and testimony. “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 36:16).
At the time Lehi was
preaching, Jeremiah was preaching as well.
“THE word that came
to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim
the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king
of Babylon;
“The which Jeremiah
the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of
Jerusalem, saying,
“The word that came
to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim
the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king
of Babylon;
“The which Jeremiah
the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of
Jerusalem, saying,
“From the thirteenth
year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the
three and twentieth year, the word of the Lord hath come unto me, and I have
spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened.
“And the Lord hath
sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but
ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear” (Jeremiah 25:1-4).
They were angered
because he testified of their wickedness. He clearly told them what had been
revealed to him by the Lord. He told them what he read in the book, which
testified of the coming of the Messiah to redeem the world.
What might have made
them so angry? “Now this man, coming from one of the oldest families and having
a most unobjectionable background and education, suddenly found himself in bad
with the ‘people that count.’ First, there was mockery, then, anger, and
finally, plots against his life (1 Nephi 1:19-20) which, since they were
serious, must have been supported in high places, for in openly siding with
Jeremiah (cf. 1 Nephi 7:14) he had made himself a traitor to his class and his
tradition.”[8]
There were those
among the Jews who “sought his life, that they might take it away” (1 Nephi
1:20). Was Lehi’s life in immediate danger? “[When discussing the threat to
Lehi, we] probably overstate the actual danger to Lehi in Judah. While it is
true that some in Jerusalem had sought to take Lehi’s life (1 Nephi 1:20;
2:1), these may have been spontaneous attempts of individuals angry with his
prophecies, not necessarily a conspiracy in which Zedekiah or the government
was involved. Once outside the big city, on the wilderness paths to either
Jericho or Ein Gedi, Lehi was probably as secure as anyone else traveling the
byways of Judah.”[9]
Nephi closes the
first chapter by promising us, “I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender
mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their
faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance” (1 Nephi 1:20). “As
I read this sentence, it struck me that we might take this to be Nephi’s ‘thesis
statement’ for the Book of Mormon: Nephi and the other Book of Mormon prophets
give us to remember the tender mercies of the Lord so that we can be delivered
according to our faith.”[10]
[2] Formatting for verse 14, The Calling of
Lehi as a Prophet in the World of Jerusalem, John W. Welch, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
[3]Formatting for verse 15, A Reader’s
Library, Kristine Hansen, and Keith Lawrence, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
[9] The Wrong Place
for Lehi’s Trail and the Valley of Lemuel, Jeffrey R. Chadwick, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
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