A little break

My family and I are taking on a challenge to read the Book of Mormon and mark every time we come across certain things like Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost, or other doctrines. So, to this blog, I will say goodbye for a while. Thanks for reading, friend!

2 Nephi 1:21-22

"21 And now that my soul might have joy in you, and that my heart might leave this world with gladness because of you, that I might not be brought down with grief and sorrow to the grave, arise from the dust, my sons, and be ^amen, and be determined in ^bone mind and in one heart, united in all things, that ye may not come down into captivity;

"22 That ye may not be ^acursed with a sore cursing; and also, that ye may not incur the displeasure of a ^bjust God upon you, unto the destruction, yea, the eternal destruction of both soul and body."

I have heard the middle part of verse 21 quoted a number of times before. However, I didn't remember who said it and why. Lehi continues his discussion about life with his family. He is speaking to his sons, Laman and Lemuel. Lehi is about to die and he is worried about their disobedience. He says that in order that his soul might have joy for them, and that he might pass away with happiness with them, and not sorrow, he tells them to arise from the dust and be men. Arise from being idol with works of righteousness and to take on the challenge to follow the commandments and work hard to implement them in their lives. He challenges them to accomplish this by being of one heart and one mind, united in all things, so that they would not be held captive by the devil because they would be cut off from the presence of the Lord for not following the commandments.

Lehi feels that a sore cursing is imminent. This is not the first time he has mentioned it, I believe. He asks them to do things that would not incur the displeasure of a just God. God must be just with the wicked and the righteous. Lehi does not want his sons to receive the eternal destruction of both soul and body. This is a pretty heavy statement. Later we learn that Lehi blesses Laman and Lemuel's posterity so that the sin of the children and their posterity fall upon Laman and Lemuel (see 2 Nephi 4:6). With this in mind, it seems to be more realistic now and not so heavy.

I wonder if Lehi has felt these things all along or has just realized that this would happen recently, little by little. In any case, it is a testimony to us that we need to always follow the Lord.

2 Nephi 1:19-20

"19 O my sons, that these things might not come upon you, but that ye might be a choice and a ^afavored people of the Lord. But behold, his will be done; for his ^bways are righteousness forever.

"20 And he hath said that: ^aInasmuch as ye shall keep my ^bcommandments ye shall ^cprosper in the land; but inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from my presence."

Lehi does not want his sons and their posterity to be cursed and led by the devil for generations. He wishes them to be a choice and favored people of the Lord. These desires mirror what he has thought for many years. He has even dreamed about it. It is a part of Lehi's dream.

We turn for a moment to 1 Nephi 8. Lehi has seen his dream and is about to share it with his family. He begins by saying that he is happy for Nephi and Sam and has reason to believe that they and their posterity will be saved. In verse 4 we read, "4 But behold, ^aLaman and Lemuel, I fear exceedingly because of you..." He does not think this is the case for Laman and Lemuel. Lehi then sees the tree with the precious fruit, walks along the path to it, and partakes of the fruit. He wants to share it with his family. They all come and eat, except Laman and Lemuel. He does not find them at first. In verse 17, we read:

"17 And it came to pass that I was desirous that Laman and Lemuel should come and partake of the fruit also; wherefore, I cast mine eyes towards the head of the river, that perhaps I might see them.

"18 And it came to pass that I saw them, but they would ^anot come unto me and partake of the fruit."

Laman and Lemuel are discussed at the end of the chapter. In verses 35-38, we read:

"35 And ^aLaman and Lemuel partook not of the fruit, said my father.

"36 And it came to pass after my father had spoken all the words of his dream or vision, which were many, he said unto us, because of these things which he saw in a vision, he exceedingly feared for Laman and Lemuel; yea, he feared lest they should be cast off from the presence of the Lord.

"37 And he did ^aexhort them then with all the feeling of a tender parent, that they would hearken to his words, that perhaps the Lord would be merciful to them, and not cast them off; yea, my father did preach unto them.

"38 And after he had preached unto them, and also prophesied unto them of many things, he bade them to keep the commandments of the Lord; and he did cease speaking unto them."

Lehi has spoken with Laman and Lemuel many times like this. Such exhortation and prophesies require and are much labor in the Spirit. If we know someone is not following the commandments, how much do we testify to them and exhort them to follow the commandments?

We know that the fruit of the tree is the gospel and the love of God. Laman and Lemuel did not want to be a part of that. This is what worries Lehi. Their behavior indicates that they are not converted and won't anytime soon. Lehi is about to die and is pleading desperately with them to follow the commandments and be a part of the gospel. Lehi is pulling the last card in his deck. The ace. The clincher. However, it is still up to Laman and Lemuel to follow.

In verse 20 (of 2 Nephi 1), Lehi again quotes the Lord. Inasmuch as you follow the commandments you will prosper. If you do not, you will be cut off from His presence. I wonder if we are like Laman and Lemuel, in that the Lord has to sometimes tell is straight out and several times. We have Stake Conference this week. What messages will we hear?

2 Nephi 1:17-18

" 17 My heart hath been weighed down with sorrow from time to time, for I have feared, lest for the hardness of your hearts the Lord your God should come out in the fulness of his ^awrath upon you, that ye be ^bcut off and destroyed forever;

"18 Or, that a ^acursing should come upon you for the space of ^bmany generations; and ye are visited by sword, and by famine, and are hated, and are led according to the will and captivity of the ^cdevil."

Lehi continues his laments and worries about his two oldest sons. He states that from time to time his heart has been weighed down with sorrow. In the beginning of their journey to the promised land, Lehi preached to Laman and Lemuel. He even named geological features after them to help them to remember to be steadfast (see 1 Nephi 2:10 and on). He was really sad at their behavior on the ship across the ocean so much so that he was brought to bed rest (see 1 Nephi 18:17).

Lehi also noticed that they have been neglecting the commandments for such a long time and they didn't seem about to start. He knew that the judgments of God will come upon the unrepentant whether in this life or the next. Thus, he feared that the Lord would cut them off. Imagine that you had two wayward sons. I think that it would pain me beyond anything I could imagine to watch them be cut off from the presence of the Lord and destroyed. Then, to see their lives be cursed for many generations, visited by sword and famine, hated, and led according to the will and captivity of the devil. Thus, their example being the means whereby many live in this world without the knowledge of the gospel and then sent unprepared to meet their Maker (see Alma 48:23).

So, how does this apply to us? Let us follow the Lord and not be cut off from His influence by following the commandments.

2 Nephi 1:16

"16 And I desire that ye should remember to observe the ^astatutes and the judgments of the Lord; behold, this hath been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning."

Lehi desires for Laman and Lemuel (and others whose actions have been questionable up to this point) that they observe the statutes and judgments of the Lord. A statute is a law decreed by God, or in other words, the commandments. He also wants them to observe the judgments of the Lord. What does that exactly mean? Is it saying the same as observing statutes or commandments? What do you think?

I find it interesting that Lehi states that he has been anxious about the behavior of his sons from the beginning. It seems then that Laman and Lemuel have always been a problem. Or, they started to be a problem when Lehi first told them that they were going to leave Jerusalem. It seems to me that it all depends on when "the beginning" was. However, the important point is that the current direction on the road to the Celestial Kingdom for those two is not in the right direction. Lehi is very worried about this. We shall see more in the upcoming verses.

2 Nephi 1:15

"15 But behold, the Lord hath ^aredeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his ^bglory, and I am encircled about eternally in the ^carms of his ^dlove."

As we continue with our scripture study, we come back into Nephi's record of Lehi's final discussion of the most important gospel topics with his entire family. I am inferring that they are the most important things because if you think about it, what would you say, and to whom would you speak, when you know that you are going to pass on from this life.

It is a blessing for Lehi for him to know, and as such testify, that the Lord has redeemed his soul. He has saved him from the depths of hell. It is a blessing for Lehi to have seen the glory of the Lord. It is possible that he has seen the glory of the Lord on a number of occasions. If we remember back to the first chapter of 1 Nephi, we have an account of a time, most likely the first, when he beheld His glory (1 Nephi 1:5-15):

"5 Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his ^aheart, in behalf of his people [the Jews at Jerusalem].

"6 And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a ^apillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did ^bquake and tremble exceedingly.

"7 And it came to pass that he returned to his own house at Jerusalem; and he cast himself upon his bed, being ^aovercome with the Spirit and the things which he had seen.

"8 And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a ^avision, even that he saw the ^bheavens open, and he thought he ^csaw God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God.

"9 And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his ^aluster was above that of the sun at noon-day.

"10 And he also saw ^atwelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament.

"11 And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth; and the first came and ^astood before my father, and gave unto him a ^bbook, and bade him that he should read.

"12 And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the ^aSpirit of the Lord.

"13 And he read, saying: Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine ^aabominations! Yea, and many things did my father read concerning ^bJerusalem—that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be ^ccarried away captive into Babylon.

"14 And it came to pass that when my father had read and seen many great and marvelous things, he did exclaim many things unto the Lord; such as: Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty! Thy throne is high in the heavens, and thy ^apower, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of the earth; and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who ^bcome unto thee that they shall perish!

"15 And after this manner was the language of my father in the praising of his God; 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."

I am particularly touched by the last part of this verse. He is encircled eternally in the arms of His love. I know that we can have an inkling of what that is in this life. There have been many times in which I have been sad, hurt, or frustrated. I have prayed for such love, calmness, and peace and have received it.

2 Nephi 1:13-14

"13 O that ye would awake; awake from a deep ^asleep, yea, even from the sleep of ^bhell, and shake off the awful ^cchains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal ^dgulf of misery and woe.

"14 Awake! and arise from the dust, and hear the words of a trembling ^aparent, whose limbs ye must soon lay down in the cold and silent ^bgrave, from whence no traveler can ^creturn; a few more ^ddays and I go the ^eway of all the earth."

Lehi calls to his oldest sons, and probably the sons of Ishmael, too, for them to awaken out of their deep sleep of hell. What a great metaphor. I have seen people in my life who are "sleeping." It saddens me so much that they don't realize how they sound when they talk of their ideas or plans. You know in your heart that they are not seeking what they should and are blinded by things they really want, but you realize that they aren't going to work and you feel for them. Later, when what has happened happens and they are sad and in worse shape than they were before, it is like they are in a gulf of misery and woe. There are extreme versions of this which come to pass for the few truly wicked, but I think that this scripture can apply for those righteous who are deceived.

He uses another wonderful metaphor for the reality of being ensnared by the devil. He says that those people are bound by chains. A good cross reference to this is 2 Nephi 26:22, which says:

"22 And there are also secret ^acombinations, even as in times of old, according to the combinations of the ^bdevil, for he is the founder of all these things; yea, the founder of murder, and ^cworks of darkness; yea, and he leadeth them by the neck with a flaxen cord, until he bindeth them with his strong cords forever."

If you follow the temptations of the devil, he will first bind you with a flaxen cord, by having you do little things that seem to not be really bad or forbidden, but that are not good, too. You could break free of it when you choose and the bondage is not strong. But, when we "like" it we follow those temptations more and more, thus binding ourselves further until we are bound with strong cords and chains. We are bound by the consequences of our decisions. They may be temporal or spiritual, but most likely both.

Lehi then calls again to them to awake and hear the words of your trembling parent. Who in a few days will die. It reminds me of missionaries that leave their area. They make one more effort to try and convince those they have taught and loved to get baptized or come to church. In a few days they will be gone. Lehi loves his sons very much and has pleaded with them to follow the commandments and prosper.

We must think of ourselves first here. Could it be possible that we are bound and not know it? How does our family feel about our spirituality? It is likely that if they are following the commandments, they can be a good source of advice or perspective. What do our spiritual leaders say? Think about and read from General Conference talks. Are we following their counsel?

2 Nephi 1:11-12

"11 Yea, he will bring ^aother nations unto them, and he will give unto them power, and he will take away from them the lands of their possessions, and he will cause them to be ^bscattered and smitten.

"12 Yea, as one generation passeth to another there shall be ^abloodsheds, and great visitations among them; wherefore, my sons, I would that ye would remember; yea, I would that ye would hearken unto my words."

We continue with Lehi and his prophesies concerning the land of the Americas. In verse 11, he is referring to his descendants and those that choose not to follow the commandments. He says that the Lord will bring other nations to this land and it is from the Lord their power will come. This has happened. Nations from Europe have come to colonize America. The natives were pushed out of their lands and possessions. Remember that this did not just happen in North America, but South America, too. They were scattered and smitten.

In verse 12 we see that Lehi prophesies wars and destruction for the Americas in his time and onward if the people do not repent. An interesting cross-reference given in this verse is Doctrine and Covenants 87:6. Really the entire section talks about the fact that the Civil War would take place. It counsels that the people should stand in holy places and be not moved. This is what we should do always, for more troubled times are still ahead, I believe.