DAY 33 – II Nephi 4:31-5:29

31 Wherefore, the word of the Lord was fulfilled which he spake unto me, saying: That inasmuch as they will not hearken unto thy words, they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord.
32 And behold they were cut off from his presence.
33 And he had caused the cursing to come upon them, yea, even a sore cursing, because of their iniquity.
34 For behold, they had hardened their hearts against him, that they had become like unto a flint;
35 Wherefore, as they were white, and exceeding fair and delightsome, that they might not be enticing unto my people, the Lord God did cause a skin of blackness to come upon them.
36 And thus saith the Lord God, I will cause that they shall be loathsome unto thy people, save they shall repent of their iniquities.
37 And cursed shall be the seed of him that mixeth with their seed: for they shall be cursed even with the same cursing.
38 And the Lord spake it, and it was done.
39 And because of their cursing which was upon them, they did become an idle people, full of mischief and subtlety, and did seek in the wilderness for beasts of prey.
40 And the Lord God said unto me, They shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in remembrance of me;
41 And inasmuch as they will not remember me, and hearken unto my words, they shall scourge them even unto destruction.
42 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did consecrate Jacob and Joseph, that they should be priests and teachers over the land of my people.
43 And it came to pass that we lived after the manner of happiness.
44 And thirty years had passed away from the time we left Jerusalem.
45 And I, Nephi, had kept the records upon my plates, which I had made of my people, thus far.
46 And it came to pass that the Lord God said unto me, Make other plates; and thou shalt engraven many things upon them which are good in my sight, for the profit of thy people.
47 Wherefore, I, Nephi, to be obedient to the commandments of the Lord, went and made these plates upon which I have engraven these things.
48 And I engraved that which is pleasing unto God.
49 And if my people are pleased with the things of God, they will be pleased with mine engravings which are upon these plates.
50 And if my people desire to know the more particular part of the history of my people, they must search mine other plates.
51 And it sufficeth me to say, that forty years had passed away, and we had already had wars and contentions with our brethren.

CHAPTER 5

1 The word of Jacob, the brother of Nephi, which he spake unto the people of Nephi.
2 Behold, my beloved brethren, I, Jacob, having been called of God, and ordained after the manner of his holy order,
3 And having been consecrated by my brother, Nephi, unto whom ye look as a king or a protector, and on whom ye depend for safety,
4 Behold, ye know that I have spoken unto you exceeding many things;
5 Nevertheless, I speak unto you again; for I am desirous for the welfare of your souls.
6 Yea, mine anxiety is great for you; and ye yourselves know that it ever has been.
7 For I have exhorted you with all diligence; and I have taught you the words of my father;
8 And I have spoken unto you concerning all things which are written from the creation of the world.
9 And now, behold, I would speak unto you concerning things which are, and which are to come;
10 Wherefore, I will read you the words of Isaiah.
11 And they are the words which my brother has desired that I should speak unto you.
12 And I speak them unto you for your sakes, that ye may learn and glorify the name of your God.
13 And now the words which I shall read, are they which Isaiah spake concerning all the house of Israel;
14 Wherefore, they may be likened unto you; for ye are of the house of Israel.
15 And there are many things which have been spoken by Isaiah, which may be likened unto you, because ye are of the house of Israel.
16 And now, these are the words:
17 Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people;
18 And they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.
19 And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers:
20 They shall bow down to thee with their faces towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet;
21 And thou shalt know that I am the Lord: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.
22 And now I, Jacob, would speak somewhat concerning these words: For behold, the Lord has shewn me that those who were at Jerusalem, from whence we came, have been slain and carried away captive;
23 Nevertheless, the Lord has shewn unto me that they should return again.
24 And he also has shewn unto me, that the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, should manifest himself unto them in the flesh;
25 And after he should manifest himself, they should scourge him and crucify him, according to the words of the angel, who spake it unto me.
26 And after they have hardened their hearts and stiffened their necks against the Holy One of Israel, behold the judgments of the Holy One of Israel shall come upon them.
27 And the day cometh that they shall be smitten and afflicted.
28 Wherefore, after they are driven to and fro, for thus saith the angel, many shall be afflicted in the flesh and shall not be suffered to perish, because of the prayers of the faithful, they shall be scattered, and smitten, and hated;
29 Nevertheless, the Lord will be merciful unto them, that when they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer, they shall be gathered together again to the lands of their inheritance.

DAY 32 – II Nephi 3:51-4:30

51 O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul?
52 Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine enemies?
53 Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin?
54 May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite?
55 O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road?
56 O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness?
57 O Lord, wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies?
58 Wilt thou make my path straight before me?
59 Wilt thou not place a stumbling block in my way?
60 But that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but the ways of mine enemy.
61 O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee for ever.
62 I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh.
63 Yea, cursed is he that putteth his trust in man, or maketh flesh his arm.
64 Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh.
65 Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss: therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness.
66 Behold, my voice shall for ever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen.

CHAPTER 4

1 Behold, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did cry much unto the Lord my God, because of the anger of my brethren.
2 But behold, their anger did increase against me; insomuch that they did seek to take away my life.
3 Yea, they did murmur against me, saying: Our younger brother thinks to rule over us; and we have had much trial because of him; wherefore, now let us slay him, that we may not be afflicted more because of his words.
4 For behold, we will not have him to be our ruler: for it belongs unto us, who are the elder brethren, to rule over this people.
5 Now I do not write upon these plates, all the word which they murmured against me.
6 But it sufficeth me to say, that they did seek to take away my life.
7 And it came to pass that the Lord did warn me, that I, Nephi, should depart from them, and flee into the wilderness, and all those who would go with me.
8 Wherefore, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did take my family, and also Zoram and his family, and Sam, mine elder brother, and his family, and Jacob, and Joseph, my younger brethren, and also my sisters, and all those who would go with me.
9 And all those who would go with me, were those who believed in the warnings and the revelations of God; wherefore, they did hearken unto my words.
10 And we did take our tents and whatsoever things were possible for us, and did journey in the wilderness for the space of many days.
11 And after we had journeyed for the space of many days, we did pitch our tents.
12 And my people would that we should call the name of the place Nephi; wherefore, we did call it Nephi.
13 And all those who were with me, did take upon them to call themselves the people of Nephi.
14 And we did observe to keep the judgments, and the statutes, and the commandments of the Lord, in all things, according to the law of Moses.
15 And the Lord was with us; and we did prosper exceedingly: for we did sow seed, and we did reap again in abundance.
16 And we began to raise flocks, and herds, and animals of every kind.
17 And I, Nephi, had also brought the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass; and also the ball, or compass, which was prepared for my father, by the hand of the Lord, according to that which is written.
18 And it came to pass that we began to prosper exceedingly, and to multiply in the land.
19 And I, Nephi, did take the sword of Laban, and after the manner of it did make many swords, lest by any means the people who were now called Lamanites, should come upon us and destroy us:
20 For I knew their hatred towards me and my children, and those who were called my people.
21 And I did teach my people to build buildings, and to work in all manner of wood, and of iron, and of copper, and of brass, and of steel, and of gold, and of silver, and of precious ores, which were in great abundance.
22 And I, Nephi, did build a temple; and I did construct it after the manner of the temple of Solomon, save it were not built of so many precious things:
23 For they were not to be found upon the land;
24 Wherefore, it could not be built like unto Solomon’s temple.
25 But the manner of the construction was like unto the temple of Solomon; and the workmanship thereof was exceeding fine.
26 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did cause my people to be industrious, and to labor with their hands.
27 And it came to pass that they would that I should be their king.
28 But I, Nephi, was desirous that they should have no king; nevertheless, I did for them according to that which was in my power.
29 And behold, the words of the Lord had been fulfilled unto my brethren, which he spake concerning them, that I should be their ruler and their teacher;
30 Wherefore, I had been their ruler and their teacher, according to the commandment of the Lord, until the time they sought to take away my life.

DAY 31 – II Nephi 3:1-50

CHAPTER 3

1 And now I, Nephi, speak concerning the prophecies of which my father hath spoken, concerning Joseph, who was carried into Egypt:
2 For behold, he truly prophesied concerning all his seed.
3 And the prophecies which he wrote, there are not many greater.
4 And he prophesied concerning us, and our future generations;
5 And they are written upon the plates of brass.
6 Wherefore, after my father had made an end of speaking concerning the prophecies of Joseph, he called the children of Laman, his sons, and his daughters, and said unto them,
7 Behold my sons, and my daughters, who are the sons and daughters of my first born, I would that ye should give ear unto my words:
8 For the Lord God hath said, That inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the land;
9 And inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments, ye shall be cut off from my presence.
10 But behold, my sons and my daughters, I can not go down to my grave, save I should leave a blessing upon you:
11 For behold, I know that if ye are brought up in the way ye should go, ye will not depart from it.
12 Wherefore, if ye are cursed, behold, I leave my blessing upon you, that the cursing may be taken from you, and be answered upon the heads of your parents.
13 Wherefore, because of my blessing, the Lord God will not suffer that ye shall perish; wherefore, he will be merciful unto you, and unto your seed for ever.
14 And it came to pass that after my father had made an end of speaking to the sons and daughters of Laman, he caused the sons and daughters of Lemuel to be brought before him.
15 And he spake unto them, saying: Behold, my sons and my daughters, who are the sons and the daughters of my second son;
16 Behold, I leave unto you the same blessing, which I left unto the sons and daughters of Laman; wherefore, thou shalt not utterly be destroyed; but in the end thy seed shall be blessed.
17 And it came to pass that when my father had made an end of speaking unto them, behold, he spake unto the sons of Ishmael, yea, and even all his household.
18 And after he had made an end of speaking unto them, he spake unto Sam, saying:
19 Blessed art thou, and thy seed: for thou shalt inherit the land, like unto thy brother Nephi.
20 And thy seed shall be numbered with his seed;
21 And thou shalt be even like unto thy brother, and thy seed like unto his seed; and thou shalt be blessed in all thy days.
22 And it came to pass after my father Lehi had spoken unto all his household, according to the feelings of his heart, and the Spirit of the Lord which was in him, he waxed old.
23 And it came to pass that he died, and was buried.
24 And it came to pass that not many days after his death, Laman and Lemuel, and the sons of Ishmael, were angry with me because of the admonitions of the Lord:
25 For I, Nephi, was constrained to speak unto them, according to his word.
26 For I had spake many things unto them, and also my father, before his death;
27 Many of which sayings, are written upon mine other plates: for a more history part are written upon mine other plates.
28 And upon these, I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptures which are engraven upon the plates of brass:
29 For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children.
30 Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth continually upon the things which I have seen and heard.
31 Nevertheless, the great goodness of the Lord, in showing me his great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth, O wretched man that I am; yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh.
32 My soul grieveth because of mine iniquities.
33 I am encompassed about because of the temptations and the sins which doth so easily beset me.
34 And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless, I know in whom I have trusted.
35 My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.
36 He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh.
37 He hath confounded mine enemies, unto the causing of them to quake before me.
38 Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night time.
39 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.
40 And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceeding high mountains.
41 And mine eyes have beheld great things; yea, even too great for man; therefore I was bidden that I should not write them.
42 O then, if I have seen so great things; if the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men, hath visited me in so much mercy, why should my heart weep, and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow, and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions?
43 And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh?
44 Yea, why should I give way to temptations, that the evil one have place in my heart, to destroy my peace and afflict my soul?
45 Why am I angry because of mine enemy?
46 Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin.
47 Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no more for the enemy of my soul.
48 Do not anger again, because of mine enemies.
49 Do not slacken my strength, because of mine afflictions.
50 Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say, O Lord, I will praise thee for ever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation.

DAY 30 – II Nephi 2:10-50

10 For Joseph truly testified, saying: A seer shall the Lord my God raise up, who shall be a choice seer unto the fruit of my loins.
11 Yea, Joseph truly said, Thus saith the Lord unto me: A choice seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and he shall be esteemed highly among the fruit of thy loins.
12 And unto him will I give commandment, that he shall do a work for the fruit of thy loins, his brethren, which shall be of great worth unto them, even to the bringing of them to the knowledge of the covenants which I have made with thy fathers.
13 And I will give unto him a commandment, that he shall do none other work save the work which I shall command him.
14 And I will make him great in mine eyes: for he shall do my work.
15 And he shall be great like unto Moses, whom I have said I would raise up unto you, to deliver my people, O house of Israel.
16 And Moses will I raise up, to deliver thy people out of the land of Egypt.
17 But a seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins; and unto him will I give power to bring forth my word unto the seed of thy loins;
18 And not to the bringing forth my word only, saith the Lord, but to the convincing them of my word, which shall have already gone forth among them.
19 Wherefore, the fruit of thy loins shall write; and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write;
20 And that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow together,
21 Unto the confounding of false doctrines, and laying down of contentions, and establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins,
22 And bringing them to the knowledge of their fathers in the latter days;
23 And also to the knowledge of my covenants, saith the Lord.
24 And out of weakness he shall be made strong, in that day when my work shall commence among all my people, unto the restoring thee, O house of Israel, saith the Lord.
25 And thus prophesied Joseph, saying: Behold, that seer will the Lord bless;
26 And they that seek to destroy him, shall be confounded:
27 For this promise, of which I have obtained of the Lord, of the fruit of thy loins, shall be fulfilled.
28 Behold, I am sure of the fulfilling of this promise.
29 And his name shall be called after me; and it shall be after the name of his father.
30 And he shall be like unto me; for the thing which the Lord shall bring forth by his hand, by the power of the Lord shall bring my people unto salvation;
31 Yea, thus prophesied Joseph, I am sure of this thing, even as I am sure of the promise of Moses: for the Lord hath said unto me, I will preserve thy seed for ever.
32 And the Lord hath said, I will raise up a Moses; and I will give power unto him in a rod;
33 And I will give judgment unto him in writing.
34 Yet I will not loose his tongue, that he shall speak much: for I will not make him mighty in speaking.
35 But I will write unto him my law, by the finger of mine own hand; and I will make a spokesman for him.
36 And the Lord said unto me also, I will raise up unto the fruit of thy loins: and I will make for him a spokesman.
37 And I, behold, I will give unto him, that he shall write the writing of the fruit of thy loins, unto the fruit of thy loins; and the spokesman of thy loins shall declare it.
38 And the words which he shall write, shall be the words which are expedient in my wisdom should go forth unto the fruit of thy loins.
39 And it shall be as if the fruit of thy loins had cried unto them from the dust; for I know their faith.
40 And they shall cry from the dust; yea, even repentance unto their brethren, even after many generations have gone by them.
41 And it shall come to pass that their cry shall go, even according to the simpleness of their words.
42 Because of their faith, their words shall proceed forth out of my mouth unto their brethren, who are the fruit of thy loins;
43 And the weakness of their words will I make strong in their faith; unto the remembering of my covenant which I made unto thy fathers.
44 And now, behold, my son Joseph, after this manner did my father of old prophesy.
45 Wherefore, because of this covenant thou art blessed: for thy seed shall not be destroyed, for they shall hearken unto the words of the book.
46 And there shall raise up one mighty among them, who shall do much good, both in word and in deed, being an instrument in the hands of God, with exceeding faith,
47 To work mighty wonders, and do that thing which is great in the sight of God, unto the bringing to pass much restoration unto the house of Israel, and unto the seed of thy brethren.
48 And now, blessed art thou, Joseph.
49 Behold, thou art little; wherefore, hearken unto the words of thy brother Nephi, and it shall be done unto thee, even according to the words which I have spoken.
50 Remember the words of thy dying father. Amen.

DAY 29 – II Nephi 1:101 - 2:9

101 And I, Lehi, according to the things which I have read, must needs suppose that an angel of God, according to that which is written, had fallen from heaven;
102 Wherefore he became a devil, having sought that which was evil before God.
103 And because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable for ever, he sought also the misery of all mankind.
104 Wherefore, he said, unto Eve, yea, even that old serpent, who is the devil, who is the father of all lies; wherefore he said, Partake of the forbidden fruit, and ye shall not die, but ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil.
105 And after Adam and Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit, they were driven out of the garden of Eden, to till the earth.
106 And they have brought forth children; yea, even the family of all the earth.
107 And the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God, that they might repent while in the flesh;
108 Wherefore, their state became a state of probation, and their time was lengthened, according to the commandments which the Lord God gave unto the children of men.
109 For he gave commandment that all men must repent;
110 For he shewed unto all men that they were lost, because of the transgression of their parents.
111 And now, behold, if Adam had not transgressed, he would not have fallen; but he would have remained in the garden of Eden.
112 And all things which were created, must have remained in the same state which they were, after they were created; and they must have remained for ever, and had no end.
113 And they would have had no children; wherefore, they would have remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no misery; doing no good, for they knew no sin.
114 But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things.
115 Adam fell, that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy.
116 And the Messiah cometh in the fullness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall.
117 And because that they are redeemed from the fall, they have become free for ever, knowing good from evil;
118 To act for themselves, and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the Lord, at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.
119 Wherefore, men are free according to the flesh; and all things are given them which are expedient unto man.
120 And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life, through the great mediation of all men, or to choose captivity and death, according to the captivity and power of the devil:
121 For he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.
122 And now, my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator, and hearken unto his great commandments;
123 And be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal life, according to the will of his Holy Spirit,
124 And not choose eternal death, according to the will of the flesh and the evil which is therein,
125 Which giveth the spirit of the devil power to captivate, to bring you down to hell, that he may reign over you in his own kingdom.
126 I have spoken these few words unto you all, my sons, in the last days of my probation;
127 And I have chosen the good part, according to the words of the prophet.
128 And I have none other object, save it be the everlasting welfare of your souls. Amen.

CHAPTER 2

1 And now I speak unto you, Joseph, my last born.
2 Thou wast born in the wilderness of mine afflictions; yea, in the days of my greatest sorrow did thy mother bear thee.
3 And may the Lord consecrate also unto thee this land, which is a most precious land, for thine inheritance and the inheritance of thy seed with thy brethren, for thy security for ever, if it so be that ye shall keep the commandments of the Holy One of Israel.
4 And now, Joseph, my last born, whom I have brought out of the wilderness of mine afflictions, may the Lord bless thee for ever, for thy seed shall not utterly be destroyed.
5 For behold, thou art the fruit of my loins; and I am a descendant of Joseph, who was carried captive into Egypt.
6 And great were the covenants of the Lord, which he made unto Joseph; wherefore, Joseph truly saw our day.
7 And he obtained a promise of the Lord, that out of the fruit of his loins, the Lord God would raise up a righteous branch unto the house of Israel;
8 Not the Messiah, but a branch which was to be broken off; nevertheless, to be remembered in the covenants of the Lord,
9 That the Messiah should be made manifest unto them in the latter days, in the spirit of power, unto the bringing of them out of darkness unto light; yea, out of hidden darkness and out of captivity unto freedom.