Jarom 1:1-6

The Book of Jarom

The Nephites keep the law of Moses, look forward to the coming of Christ, and prosper in the land—Many prophets labor to keep them in the way of truth. About 399–361 B.C.

1 NOW behold, I, Jarom, write a few words according to the commandment of my father, Enos, that our genealogy may be kept.

2 And as these plates are small, and as these things are written for the intent of the benefit of our brethren the Lamanites, wherefore, it must needs be that I write a little; but I shall not write the things of my prophesying, nor of my revelations.  For what could I write more than my fathers have written?  For have not they revealed the plan of salvation?  I say unto you, Yea; and this sufficeth me.

3 Behold, it is expedient that much should be done among this people, because of the hardness of their hearts, and the deafness of their ears, and the blindness of their minds, and the stiffness of their necks; nevertheless, God is exceedingly merciful unto them, and has not as yet swept them off from the face of the land.

4 And there are many among us who have many revelations, for they are not all stiffnecked.  And as many as are not stiffnecked and have faith, have communion with the Holy Spirit, which maketh manifest unto the children of men, according to their faith.

5 And now, behold, two hundred years had passed away [399 B.C.], and the people of Nephi had waxed strong in the land.  They observed to keep the law of Moses and the sabbath day holy unto the Lord.  And they profaned not; neither did they blaspheme.  And the laws of the land were exceedingly strict.

6 And they were scattered upon much of the face of the land, and the Lamanites also.  And they were exceedingly more numerous than were they of the Nephites; and they loved murder and would drink the blood of beasts.

Jarom 1:1-6

Jarom introduces himself by telling us he was commanded by his Father, Enos to keep the plates, “that our genealogy may be kept.”

He faced a problem.  He explains the plates are small.  “[T]hese things are written for the intent of the benefit of our brethren the Lamanites.”

Why does the fact the plates were small matter?

“[I]t is not a simple task to make gold plates. Gold is hard to come by. It undoubtedly wasn’t as hard to come by in Nephi’s day as it is today, because most gold areas have been mined out, but it would still have been very difficult to mine. And the various writers of the Book of Mormon in many places express that they wish they could write more, but they did not have room on the plates they had (Jarom 1:2; Omni 1:30; Ether 12:25).”[1]

Little needs to be written on the plates concerning Jarom’s prophesying and revelations.  “For what could I write more than my fathers have written?”  He writes his fathers have revealed the plan of salvation.

“By the way, in Jarom 1:2 we get a line we never get in the Bible. It’s ‘the plan of salvation.’ That is latter-day revelation. That is not in the Bible, and most Christians think this whole thing kind of unfolded. They don’t realize there was a plan from the beginning, that there was a Savior from the beginning.”[2]

We are then told that Jarom is facing the same problem faced by his father, Enos.  The Nephites are a hard-hearted people, they do not hear the word of the Lord, and they are a stiff-necked people. 

In spite of this, “God is exceedingly merciful unto them, and has not as yet swept them off the face of the land.”  In Ether, we learn the Lord’s attitude towards the Promised Land.

“And [the Lord] had sworn in his wrath unto the brother of Jared, that whoso should possess this land of promise, from that time henceforth and forever, should serve him, the true and only God, or they should be swept off when the fulness of his wrath should come upon them.

“And now, we can behold the decrees of God concerning this land, that it is a land of promise; and whatsoever nation shall possess it shall serve God, or they shall be swept off when the fulness of his wrath shall come upon them.  And the fulness of his wrath cometh upon them when they are ripened in iniquity.

“For behold, this is a land which is choice above all other lands; wherefore he that doth possess it shall serve God or shall be swept off; for it is the everlasting decree of God.  And it is not until the fulness of iniquity among the children of the land, that they are swept off” (Ether 2:8-10).

Hugh Nibley writes about the Nephites at this time.

“Were the Nephites good people? Some of the time, but by no means always. Early in their history Jarom marvels that they have not long since been destroyed because of their sins (Jarom 1:3), and tells how the prophets had to threaten and protest continually and how the laws had to be savagely severe to keep the people in line.”[3]

Jarom is not the only Nephite receiving revelations.  There are righteous among the Nephites, being filled and in communication with the Holy Spirit. 

We have reached the bicentennial of the Nephites settling in the New World (about 399 B.C.).  Even though the Nephites know about Christ, His mission, and the plan of salvation, they continue to keep the Law of Moses.  Still the laws of the land were strict.

By Jarom’s time, the Nephites had spread throughout the land.  The Lamanites were also spread throughout the land.  They were also more numerous than the Nephites.  According to Jarom, the Lamanites “loved murder and drank the blood of beasts.”  During Ammon’s time, he would describe the Lamanites.

“Now do ye remember, my brethren, that we said unto our brethren in the land of Zarahemla, we go up to the land of Nephi, to preach unto our brethren, the Lamanites, and they laughed us to scorn?

“For they said unto us: Do ye suppose that ye can bring the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth?  Do ye suppose that ye can convince the Lamanites of the incorrectness of the traditions of their fathers, as stiffnecked a people as they are; whose hearts delight in the shedding of blood; whose days have been spent in the grossest iniquity; whose ways have been the ways of a transgressor from the beginning?  Now my brethren, ye remember that this was their language.

“And moreover they did say: Let us take up arms against them, that we destroy them and their iniquity out of the land, lest they overrun us and destroy us” (Alma 26:23-25).

Drinking the blood of beasts would have been abhorrent to the Nephites.  It was clear to them the Lord commanded them not to drink blood.

“For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off” (Leviticus 17:14).

“Only be sure that thou eat not the blood: for the blood is the life; and thou mayest not eat the life with the flesh” (Deuteronomy 12:23).

“And Saul said, Disperse yourselves among the people, and say unto them, Bring me hither every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them here, and eat; and sin not against the LORD in eating with the blood” (1 Samuel 14:34).

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[1] Metallurgy, S. Kent Brown and Peter Johnson, Maxwell Institute.

[2] Abinadi: The Message and the Martyr, Todd Parker, Maxwell Institute.

[3]Good People and Bad People, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute.