DAY 6 – I Nephi 2:1-35

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EDITOR'S NOTE

Just joining us? you can catch up on all the past readings at www.bookofmormonyear.blogspot.com.

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CHAPTER 2

1 And now I, Nephi, do not give the genealogy of my fathers in this part of my record; neither at any time shall I give it after upon these plates which I am writing; for it is given in the record which has been kept by my father; wherefore I do not write it in this work.

2 For it sufficeth me to say that we are a descendant of Joseph.

3 And it mattereth not to me that I am particular to give a full account of all the things of my father, for they can not be written upon these plates, for I desire the room that I may write of the things of God.

4 For the fullness of mine intent is that I may persuade men to come unto the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and be saved.

5 Wherefore the things which are pleasing unto the world, I do not write, but the things which are pleasing unto God and unto those who are not of the world.

6 Wherefore I shall give commandment unto my seed, that they shall not occupy these plates with things which are not of worth unto the children of men.

7 And now I would that ye might know, that after my father Lehi had made an end of prophesying concerning his seed, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto him again, saying, that it was not meet for him, Lehi, that he should take his family into the wilderness alone; but that his sons should take daughters to wife, that they might raise up seed unto the Lord in the land of promise.

8 And it came to pass that the Lord commanded him that I, Nephi, and my brethren, should again return unto the land of Jerusalem, and bring down Ishmael and his family into the wilderness.

9 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did again, with my brethren, go forth into the wilderness to go up to Jerusalem.

10 And it came to pass that we went up unto the house of Ishmael, and we did gain favor in the sight of Ishmael, insomuch that we did speak unto him the words of the Lord.

11 And it came to pass that the Lord did soften the heart of Ishmael and also his household, insomuch that they took their journey with us down into the wilderness to the tent of our father.

12 And it came to pass that as we journeyed in the wilderness, behold Laman and Lemuel, and two of the daughters of Ishmael, and the two sons of Ishmael, and their families, did rebel against us; yea, against me, Nephi, and Sam, and their father Ishmael, and his wife, and his three other daughters.

13 And it came to pass in the which rebellion they were desirous to return unto the land of Jerusalem.

14 And now I, Nephi, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts, therefore I spake unto them, saying, yea, even unto Laman and unto Lemuel, Behold ye are mine elder brethren; and how is it that ye are so hard in your hearts, and so blind in your minds, that ye have need that I, your younger brother, should speak unto you, yea, and set an example for you?

15 How is it that ye have not hearkened unto the word of the Lord?

16 How is it that ye have forgotten that ye have seen an angel of the Lord?

17 Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten what great things the Lord hath done for us in delivering us out of the hands of Laban, and also that we should obtain the record?

18 Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him; wherefore let us be faithful to him.

19 And if it so be that we are faithful to him, we shall obtain the land of promise; and ye shall know at some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled concerning the destruction of Jerusalem;

20 For all things which the Lord hath spoken concerning the destruction of Jerusalem must be fulfilled.

21 For behold, the Spirit of the Lord ceaseth soon to strive with them;

22 For behold they have rejected the prophets and Jeremiah have they cast into prison.

23 And they have sought to take away the life of my father, insomuch that they have driven him out of the land.

24 Now behold, I say unto you, that if ye will return unto Jerusalem ye shall also perish with them.

25 And now, if ye have choice, go up to the land, and remember the words which I speak unto you, that if ye go ye will also perish; for thus the Spirit of the Lord constraineth me that I should speak.

26 And it came to pass that when I, Nephi, had spoken these words unto my brethren they were angry with me.

27 And it came to pass that they did lay their hands upon me -for behold, they were exceeding wroth -- and they did bind me with cords, for they sought to take away my life, that they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts.

28 But it came to pass that I prayed unto the Lord, saying, O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren;

29 Yea, even give me strength that I may burst these bands with which I am bound.

30 And it came to pass that when I had said these words, behold, the bands were loosed from off my hands and feet, and I stood before my brethren, and I spake unto them again.

31 And it came to pass that they were angry with me again, and sought to lay hands upon me;

32 But behold, one of the daughters of Ishmael, yea, and also her mother, and one of the sons of Ishmael, did plead with my brethren, insomuch that they did soften their hearts; and they did cease striving to take away my life.

33 And it came to pass that they were sorrowful, because of their wickedness, insomuch that they did bow down before me, and did plead with me, that I would forgive them of the thing that they had done against me.

34 And it came to pass that I did frankly forgive them all that they had done, and I did exhort them that they would pray unto the Lord their God for forgiveness.

35 And it came to pass that they did so.

DAY 5 – I Nephi 1:134-172

134 And it came to pass that when the servant of Laban beheld my brethren, he began to tremble, and was about to flee from before me, and return to the city of Jerusalem.

135 And now I, Nephi, being a man large in stature, and also having received much strength of the Lord, therefore I did seize upon the servant of Laban, and held him that he should not flee.

136 And it came to pass that I spake with him, that if he would hearken unto my words, as the Lord liveth, and as I live, even so that if he would hearken unto our words, we would spare his life.

137 And I spake unto him, even with an oath, that he need not fear; that he should be a free man like unto us, if he would go down in the wilderness with us.

138 And I also spake unto him, saying, Surely the Lord hath commanded us to do this thing, and shall we not be diligent in keeping the commandments of the Lord?

139 Therefore, if thou wilt go down into the wilderness to my father, thou shalt have place with us.

140 And it came to pass that Zoram did take courage at the words which I spake.

141 Now Zoram was the name of the servant; and he promised that he would go down into the wilderness unto our father.

142 And he also made an oath unto us, that he would tarry with us from that time forth.

143 Now we were desirous that he should tarry with us for this cause, that the Jews might not know concerning our flight into the wilderness, lest they should pursue us and destroy us.

144 And it came to pass that when Zoram had made an oath unto us, our fears did cease concerning him.

145 And it came to pass that we took the plates of brass and the servant of Laban, and departed into the wilderness, and journeyed unto the tent of our father.

146 And it came to pass that after we had come down into the wilderness unto our father, behold he was filled with joy, and also my mother Sariah was exceeding glad, for she truly had mourned because of us; for she had supposed that we had perished in the wilderness;

147 And she also had complained against my father, telling him that he was a visionary man; saying, Behold thou hast led us forth from the land of our inheritance, and my sons are no more, and we perish in the wilderness.

148 And after this manner of language had my mother complained against my father.

149 And it had come to pass that my father spake unto her, saying, I know that I am a visionary man; for if I had not seen the things of God in a vision, I should not have known the goodness of God, but had tarried at Jerusalem, and had perished with my brethren.

150 But behold I have obtained a land of promise, in the which things I do rejoice;

151 Yea, and I know that the Lord will deliver my sons out of the hands of Laban, and bring them down again unto us in the wilderness.

152 And after this manner of language did my father Lehi comfort my mother Sariah concerning us, while we journeyed in the wilderness up to the land of Jerusalem, to obtain the record of the Jews.

153 And when we had returned to the tent of my father, behold their joy was full, and my mother was comforted;

154 And she spake, saying, Now I know of a surety that the Lord hath commanded my husband to flee into the wilderness;

155 Yea, and I also know of a surety that the Lord hath protected my sons, and delivered them out of the hands of Laban, and gave them power whereby they could accomplish the thing which the Lord hath commanded them.

156 And after this manner of language did she speak.

157 And it came to pass that they did rejoice exceedingly, and did offer sacrifice and burnt offerings unto the Lord; and they gave thanks unto the God of Israel.

158 And after they had given thanks unto the God of Israel, my father Lehi took the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, and he did search them from the beginning.

159 And he beheld that they did contain the five books of Moses, which gave an account of the creation of the world;

160 And also of Adam and Eve, who were our first parents;

161 And also a record of the Jews from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah;

162 And also the prophecies of the holy prophets, from the beginning, even down to the commencement of the reign of Zedekiah;

163 And also many prophecies which have been spoken by the mouth of Jeremiah.

164 And it came to pass that my father Lehi also found upon the plates of brass a genealogy of his fathers;

165 Wherefore he knew that he was a descendant of Joseph; yea, even that Joseph who was the son of Jacob, who was sold into Egypt, and who was preserved by the hand of the Lord, that he might preserve his father Jacob and all his household from perishing with famine.

166 And they were also led out of captivity and out of the land of Egypt, by that same God who had preserved them.

167 And thus my father Lehi did discover the genealogy of his fathers.

168 And Laban also was a descendant of Joseph, wherefore he and his fathers had kept the records.

169 And now when my father saw all these things he was filled with the Spirit, and began to prophesy concerning his seed; that these plates of brass should go forth unto all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, who were of his seed.

170 Wherefore he said that these plates of brass should never perish, neither should they be dimmed any more by time.

171 And he prophesied many things concerning his seed.

172 And it came to pass that thus far I and my father had kept the commandments wherewith the Lord had commanded us.

173 And we had obtained the record which the Lord had commanded us, and searched them and found that they were desirable; yea, even of great worth unto us, insomuch that we could preserve the commandments of the Lord unto our children.

174 Wherefore it was wisdom in the Lord that we should carry them with us as we journeyed in the wilderness towards the land of promise.

DAY 4 - I Nephi 1:97-133

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Editors Note:

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Thank you and have a great weekend!

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97 And after the angel had departed, Laman and Lemuel again began to murmur, saying, How is it possible that the Lord will deliver Laban into our hands?

98 Behold he is a mighty man, and he can command fifty, yea, even he can slay fifty; then why not us?

99 And it came to pass that I spake unto my brethren, saying, Let us go up again unto Jerusalem, and let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; for behold he is mightier than all the earth, then why not mightier than Laban and his fifty, yea, or even than his tens of thousands.

100 Therefore let us go up; let us be strong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea, and they divided hither and thither, and our fathers came through out of captivity on dry ground, and the armies of Pharaoh did follow and were drowned in the waters of the Red Sea.

101 Now behold ye know that this is true; and ye also know that an angel hath spoken unto you, wherefore can ye doubt?

102 Let us go up; the Lord is able to deliver us, even as our fathers, and to destroy Laban even as the Egyptians.

103 Now when I had spoken these words, they were yet wroth, and did still continue to murmur; nevertheless they did follow me up until we came without the walls of Jerusalem.

104 And it was by night: and I caused that they should hide themselves without the walls.

105 And after they had hid themselves, I, Nephi, crept into the city, and went forth towards the house of Laban.

106 And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do.

107 Nevertheless I went forth, and as I came near unto the house of Laban, I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine.

108 And when I came to him I found that it was Laban.

109 And I beheld his sword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof, and the hilt thereof was of pure gold, and the workmanship thereof was exceeding fine: and I saw that the blade thereof was of the most precious steel.

110 And it came to pass that I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban;

111 But I said in my heart, Never at any time have I shed the blood of man, and I shrunk and would that I might not slay him.

112 And the Spirit said unto me again, Behold the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands; yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had taken away our property.

113 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again, Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands.

114 Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes.

115 It is better that one man should perish, than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief.

116 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying, That inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise.

117 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses, save they should have the law.

118 And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass.

119 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause, that I might obtain the records according to his commandments.

120 Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own sword.

121 And after I had smitten off his head with his own sword, I took the garments of Laban and put them upon mine own body; yea, even every whit; and I did gird on his armor about my loins.

122 And after I had done this, I went forth unto the treasury of Laban.

123 And as I went forth towards the treasury of Laban, behold I saw the servant of Laban, who had the keys of the treasury.

124 And I commanded him in the voice of Laban, that he should go with me into the treasury; and he supposed me to be his master Laban, for he beheld the garments and also the sword girded about my loins.

125 And he spake unto me concerning the elders of the Jews, he knowing that his master Laban had been out by night among them.

126 And I spake unto him as if it had been Laban.

127 And I also spake unto him that I should carry the engravings which were upon the plates of brass, to my elder brethren, who were without the walls.

128 And I also bade him that he should follow me.

129 And he supposing that I spake of the brethren of the church, and that I was truly that Laban whom I had slain, wherefore he did follow me.

130 And he spake unto me many times concerning the elders of the Jews, as I went forth unto my brethren, who were without the walls.

131 And it came to pass that when Laman saw me, he was exceedingly frightened, and also Lemuel and Sam.

132 And they fled from before my presence; for they supposed it was Laban, and that he had slain me, and had sought to take away their lives also.

133 And it came to pass that I called after them, and they did hear me; wherefore they did cease to flee from my presence.

DAY 3 – I Nephi 1:59-96

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Editors Note:

It seems we have a problem with text running off the edge of the page! I'm trying to fix this problem, but in the meantime, here's a handy hint from Dennis Malone: "When I open the e-mail, the last few letters of each verse do not appear on screen. [However,] if i open a window in 'printable view', I can slide the page to the left a little so that the entire verse is visible on screen."
Thanks Dennis!

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59 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, returned from speaking with the Lord, to the tent of my father.

60 And it came to pass that he spake unto me, saying: Behold I have dreamed a dream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brethren shall return to Jerusalem.

61 For behold, Laban hath the record of the Jews, and also a genealogy of thy forefathers, and they are engraven upon plates of brass.

62 Wherefore the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban, and seek the records, and bring them down hither into the wilderness.

63 And now, behold thy brothers murmur, saying it is a hard thing which I have required of them; but behold I have not required it of them; but it is a commandment of the Lord.

64 Therefore go, my son, and thou shalt be favored of the Lord, because thou hast not murmured.

65 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, said unto my father, I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them.

66 And it came to pass that when my father had heard these words, he was exceeding glad, for he knew that I had been blessed of the Lord.

67 And I, Nephi, and my brethren took our journey in the wilderness with our tents, to go up to the land of Jerusalem.

68 And it came to pass that when we had come up to the land of Jerusalem, I and my brethren did consult one with another; and we cast lots who of us should go in unto the house of Laban.

69 And it came to pass that the lot fell upon Laman; and Laman went in unto the house of Laban, and he talked with him as he sat in his house.

70 And he desired of Laban the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, which contained the genealogy of my father.

71 And behold it came to pass that Laban was angry, and thrust him out from his presence; and he would not that he should have the records.

72 Wherefore, he said unto him, Behold thou art a robber, and I will slay thee.

73 But Laman fled out of his presence, and told the things which Laban had done, unto us.

74 And we began to be exceeding sorrowful, and my brethren were about to return unto my father in the wilderness.

75 But, behold, I said unto them, that as the Lord liveth, and as we live, we will not go down unto our father in the wilderness, until we have accomplished the thing which the Lord hath commanded us.

76 Wherefore let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord;

77 Therefore let us go down to the land of our father’s inheritance, for behold he left gold and silver, and all manner of riches.

78 And all this he hath done, because of the commandments of the Lord; for he knowing that Jerusalem must be destroyed, because of the wickedness of the people.

79 For behold, they have rejected the words of the prophets.

80 Wherefore if my father should dwell in the land after he hath been commanded to flee out of the land, behold he would also perish.

81 Wherefore it must needs be that he flee out of the land.

82 And behold it is wisdom in God that we should obtain these records, that we may preserve unto our children the language of our fathers;

83 And also that we may preserve unto them the words which have been spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets, which have been delivered unto them by the spirit and power of God, since the world began, even down unto this present time.

84 And it came to pass that after this manner of language did I persuade my brethren, that they might be faithful in keeping the commandments of God.

85 And it came to pass that we went down to the land of our inheritance, and we did gather together our gold, and our silver, and our precious things.

86 And after we had gathered these things together, we went up again unto the house of Laban.

87 And it came to pass that we went in unto Laban, and desired him that he would give unto us the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, for which we would give unto him our gold, and our silver, and all our precious things.

88 And it came to pass that when Laban saw our property, that it was exceeding great, he did lust after it, insomuch that he thrust us out, and sent his servants to slay us, that he might obtain our property.

89 And it came to pass that we did flee before the servants of Laban, and we were obliged to leave behind our property, and it fell into the hands of Laban.

90 And it came to pass that we fled into the wilderness, and the servants of Laban did not overtake us, and we hid ourselves in the cavity of a rock.

91 And it came to pass that Laman was angry with me, and also with my father, and also was Lemuel; for he hearkened unto the words of Laman.

92 Wherefore Laman and Lemuel did speak many hard words unto us, their younger brothers, and they did smite us even with a rod.

93 And it came to pass as they smote us with a rod, behold an angel of the Lord came and stood before them, and he spake unto them saying, Why do ye smite your younger brother with a rod?

94 Know ye not that the Lord hath chosen him to be a ruler over you, and this because of your iniquities?

95 Behold ye shall go up to Jerusalem again, and the Lord will deliver Laban into your hands.

96 And after the angel had spoken unto us, he departed.

DAY 2 – I Nephi 1:18-58

18 Therefore, I would that ye should know, that after the Lord had shewn so many marvelous things unto my father Lehi, yea, concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, behold he went forth among the people, and began to prophesy and to declare unto them concerning the things which he had both seen and heard.

19 And it came to pass that the Jews did mock him because of the things which he testified of them; for he truly testified of their wickedness and their abominations;

20 And he testified that the things which he saw and heard, and also the things which he read in the book, manifested plainly of the coming of a Messiah, and also the redemption of the world.

21 And when the Jews heard these things, they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had cast out, and stoned, and slain;

22 And they also sought his life, that they might take it away.

23 But behold I, Nephi, will shew 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.

24 For behold it came to pass that the Lord spake unto my father, yea, even in a dream, and said unto him, Blessed art thou Lehi, because of the things which thou hast done;

25 And because thou hast been faithful and declared unto this people the things which I commanded thee, behold they seek to take away thy life.

26 And it came to pass that the Lord commanded my father, even in a dream, that he should take his family and depart into the wilderness.

27 And it came to pass that he was obedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him.

28 And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness.

29 And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and he departed into the wilderness;

30 And he came down by the borders near the shore of the Red Sea;

31 And he traveled in the wilderness in the borders which were nearer the Red Sea;

32 And he did travel in the wilderness with his family which consisted of my mother Sariah, and my elder brothers, who were Laman, Lemuel, and Sam.

33 And it came to pass that when he had traveled three days in the wilderness, he pitched his tent in a valley by the side of a river of water.

34 And it came to pass that he built an altar of stones, and he made an offering unto the Lord, and gave thanks unto the Lord our God.

35 And it came to pass that he called the name of the river Laman, and it emptied into the Red Sea; and the valley was in the borders near the mouth thereof.

36 And when my father saw that the waters of the river emptied into the fountain of the Red Sea, he spake unto Laman, saying, O that thou mightest be like unto this river, continually running into the fountain of all righteousness.

37 And he also spake unto Lemuel: O that thou mightest be like unto this valley, firm and steadfast, and immovable in keeping the commandments of the Lord.

38 Now this he spake because of the stiffneckedness of Laman and Lemuel; for behold they did murmur in many things against their father, because he was a visionary man, and had led them out of the land of Jerusalem, to leave the land of their inheritance, and their gold, and their silver, and their precious things, to perish in the wilderness.

39 And this they said he had done because of the foolish imaginations of his heart.

40 And thus Laman and Lemuel, being the eldest, did murmur against their father.

41 And they did murmur because they knew not the dealings of that God who had created them.

42 Neither did they believe that Jerusalem, that great city, could be destroyed according to the words of the prophets.

43 And they were like unto the Jews, who were at Jerusalem, who sought to take away the life of my father.

44 And it came to pass that my father did speak unto them in the valley of Lemuel, with power, being filled with the Spirit, until their frames did shake before him.

45 And he did confound them, that they durst not utter against him; wherefore they did as he commanded them.

46 And my father dwelt in a tent.

47 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceeding young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God,

48 Wherefore I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers.

49 And I spake unto Sam, making known unto him the things which the Lord had manifested unto me by his Holy Spirit.

50 And it came to pass that he believed in my words;

51 But behold Laman and Lemuel would not hearken unto my words:

52 And being grieved because of the hardness of their hearts, I cried unto the Lord for them.

53 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying, Blessed art thou Nephi, because of thy faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart.

54 And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands.

55 And inasmuch as thy brethren shall rebel against thee, they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord.

56 And inasmuch as thou shalt keep my commandments, thou shalt be made a ruler and a teacher over thy brethren.

57 For behold, in that day that they shall rebel against me, I will curse them even with a sore curse, and they shall have no power over thy seed, except they shall rebel against me also.

58 And if it so be that they rebel against me, they shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in the ways of remembrance.