1 Nephi 1

All of my own thoughts are in blue type.Red font added 4/20.Green 1/21 Orange 2022 Brown 2023 Yellow highlights are text I am commenting on. The Black text is original Book of Mormon text.

THE FIRST BOOK OF NEPHI
HIS REIGN AND MINISTRY

An account of Lehi and his wife Sariah and his four sons, being called, (beginning at the eldest) Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi. The Lord warns Lehi to depart out of the land of Jerusalem to my knowledge, Lehi is not a prophet at this point, and has not been told by a prophet to flee.  Could we also receive direction to flee
before the prophet directs it?, because he prophesieth unto the people concerning their iniquity, So, maybe he IS a prophet because he's prophesying to the people and they seek to destroy his life.This would be all the prompting I would need… He taketh three days’ journey into the wilderness with his family. Nephi taketh his brethren and returneth to the land of Jerusalem after the record of the Jews. The account of their sufferings. They take the daughters of Ishmael to wife. They take their families and depart into the wilderness. Their sufferings and afflictions in the wilderness. The course of their travels. They come to the large waters. Nephi’s brethren rebel against him. He confoundeth them, and buildeth a ship. They call the name of the place Bountiful. They cross the large waters into the promised land, and so forth. This is according to the account of Nephi; or in other words, I, Nephi, wrote this record. While there were probably many “good” days in the years it took them to get to the promised land…Nephi chooses to record their sufferings…for it is how we handle life's “tests” that teach us most. Perhaps he records their sufferings so we can more easily see the "tender mercies of the Lord" in response to their trials.

CHAPTER 1

Nephi begins the record of his people—Lehi sees in vision a pillar of fire and reads from a book of prophecy—He praises God, foretells the coming of the Messiah, and prophesies the destruction of Jerusalem—He is persecuted by the Jews. About 600 B.C.

  1 I, Nephi, having been ^aborn of ^bgoodly ^cparents, Goodly…of means, wealthy So wealth doesn't HAVE to corrupt people, because it clearly didn't corrupt Lehi (Lamen and Lemuel are a different matter) having been ^dtaught somewhat I wonder if he qualifies it with “somewhat” because his learning was interrupted by their leaving Jerusalem, or if he only occasionally received formal learning. in all the learning of my father; what was “all” the “learning of my father”?  Was he taught “by” his father, whatever his father knew or was he saying he had the same “kind” of education as his father. including Lehi's trade...Or did “all” mean both? Someone suggested that it means Lehi taught him the language of the Lord and the scriptures and having seen many ^eafflictions in the course of my days, he’s writing this at an older age, I believe, maybe 30ish, looking back… nevertheless, having been highly favored is being “favored” of the Lord something we can seek or something the Lord chooses to do? Or is it a state of gratitude…the way we see our lives being blessed. I would think, if God is no respecter of persons, that we become favored by certain conditions being met. of the Lord in all my days; I hope at the end of my life, I will see that I have been highly favored of the Lord, despite the afflictions I may have seen… yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God the greatest man can receive..seeing Christ and having the “world” shown him, therefore I make a ^frecord of my proceedings in my days.

  2 Yea, I make a record in the ^alanguage of my father, which consists of the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians.  So Lehi, a Jew, was educated as a Jew, but also learned Egyptian. Was that because he was a merchant? Was Nephi’s education the same via his father or from the Egyptians?  Earlier he says he was taught somewhat in all the learning of his father, and now he says he makes a record in the language of his father, which consists of the "learning" of the Jews and the "language" of the Egyptians. Might mean that the earlier reference to "learning" wasn't just language. Also might mean he wrote how the Jews wrote but used Egyptian words/characters. 

  3 And I know that the record which I make is ^atrue Already in verse 3 we have a testimony, a witness that this record is true.  Read it with faith that it is so and that you can know it as well; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my knowledge. We could have the same words in our own journal record. Certainly my record would acknowledge that "my knowledge" was limited or subject to limitations of my understanding or memory. Could this be what Moroni meant when he said "if there are mistakes they are the mistakes of men"?

  4 For it came to pass in the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, (my father, Lehi, having dwelt at Jerusalem in all his days);born and raised, then? and in that same year there came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed.

  5 Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people

The first thing to note here is that some of the motivation for Lehi’s concern for Jerusalem was that it was his HOME…he grew up there; knew it well; knew and loved the people, the places, etc.  The thought of it and them being destroyed probably aroused great emotion, and it is EMOTION that is the impetus for faith. (moving forward in action…)

The second thing to note is the fact that there were MANY prophets telling the people to repent or the city would be destroyed. and they all seemed to have appeared "in that same year". What a scene that would cause to suddenly have these prophets all appear preaching repentance!  This must have created a feeling of urgency and anxiety that time was running short to repent…so short, in fact that it says “Lehi, AS he went forth prayed unto the Lord.”  Did he pray AS he went about, feeling there was either no time to stop and pray, or to cease praying?  Either way, he did so “even with ALL HIS HEART”.  What does it mean to pray “with all your heart” as opposed to not praying with all your heart?  To me, it suggests emotion added to words…a critical component to praying with FAITH.

The third thing to note, is that Lehi was not prophesying to the people at this point.  He was just a citizen of the community who was troubled by the prophecies that he was hearing.  He wasn’t praying to know if they were true, or if he should join the preaching, it just says that he was praying “in behalf of his people” suggesting that he was praying they would soften their hearts and repent and change so they and the city would NOT be destroyed. I also wonder what happened to the “many prophets” who were preaching repentance.  Were their lives not also in danger? Did the Lord take them and their families away? There was only one record, or were there more copies? so what would they have taken with them? Why did the Lord not have them join Lehi’s group?  I guess it just shows that we each have a “mission” and it’s different for everyone. I suppose those prophets still have the same reward, even if they were killed, or left, or remained and were taken captive or destroyed with the wicked…And under what form of church organization or lack thereof, does the Lord call “many” prophets? We have ONE prophet, yet the apostles are also prophets. Were these men with the “gift of prophecy” or did they have a position and official “calling”?

6 And it came to pass as he prayed sometimes answers come while we are still praying unto the Lord, there came a ^apillar of fire what other times in scripture do we find a pillar of fire? There was Moses and the Egyptians when it served as a barrier between the army of Pharaoh and the children of Israel, In this instance, it sounds like the Lord looks on the Egyptians through the pillar, so it sounds like it’s hiding Him from them. Nephi and Lehi were encircled by a pillar of fire and conversed with angels and it caused their faces to shine. When the Lamanites prayed to have faith and repented, they too were encircled by a pillar of fire which protected them and allowed them to hear/see wonderful things as well. Christ says that He and his Apostles will come forth in a pillar of fire at the last day. Joseph Smith says the Father and the Son appeared to him in a pillar of light above the brightness of the Sun. I suppose he could have called it a pillar of fire as well. He says it fell upon him, so we could assume he was “in” the pillar of fire too. The common thread here seems to be that when mortal man comes in contact with the divine, the pillar of fire surrounds him and for man to converse with him, he must be included in that circle. This could be the first reference to "fire" which could represent the "baptism of fire" that we are ALL to receive. Is it called "fire" because, as these records show, it brings us into the presence of the Divine? and dwelt upon a rock before him; Although Lehi says the pillar was before him, not upon him. But maybe since he only saw and heard, and did not converse he was not included in the pillar of fire. and he saw and heard much; what did he see, how was it shown to him and who was talking to him? What was the significance of the “pillar”? Was it hiding a heavenly presence? Was it the means of showing him what he saw? In any case, the manifestation was indisputably and undeniably real. 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. Does he share later what he saw/heard that caused him to quake and tremble? What physical effect does being so fully in the presence of the Spirit do to our bodies? Why do they become weak?

  8 And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a ^avision,  was this vision a repeat of what he just saw and heard? even that he saw the ^bheavens open, and he thought interesting expression…”thought”…was he not sure? he ^csaw God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God some religions believe this is what we do in heaven forever…just sing and praise God.  Sounds silly to me…so he must be seeing a celebration or an event of some kind?…. or perhaps, we are in a continual attitude/state of praise and gratitude, but not always manifesting it outwardly?

  9 And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven perhaps this is what they were singing for…in anticipation of the arrival of Christ, and he beheld that his ^aluster was above that of the sun at noon-day. Was this not Joseph Smith’s description. We’ll assume this meant he was in a pillar of light again.

 10 And he also saw ^atwelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament. Notice they shown as well, but not as bright as Christ. This makes it sound like the light emanates FROM the person, not something that is “put upon” them…

 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. Interesting that they would appear to him and have him read out of a book instead of talking to him or showing him what they wanted him to know….Does this teach the importance of the scriptures? Christ taught from the scriptures as well, even though He was scripture personified! 

 12 And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the ^aSpirit of the Lord. Is this a key to revelation? Is this a key to being filled with the Spirit of God? READ THE SCRIPTURES? What if it is just that literal?  

 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 was this a separate thing from reading or were his spiritual eyes opened to “see” in his mind what he was reading…much like you and I do when we read a book.. 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; After seeing the destruction of Jerusalem, he must have seen good things or he would not have ended with praise. What "great and marvelous things" did he see? Why didn't he write what those were? and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who ^bcome unto thee that they shall perish! “Perish” must be more spiritual than temporal, for we know that many honest, believing people perish at the hands of wicked men… Does it have something to do with the phrase "come unto me"? There could be many "believing" people who do not fully "come" unto Christ and enter through the gate where "he employeth no servant there" and are baptized by fire and the Holy Spirit. Are we promised deliverance no matter what if we "come unto Christ" in this full manner? 

 15 And after this manner was the language of my father this reference to the "language" of his father was more about what he was saying than what dialect he was saying it in in the praising of his God; for his soul did rejoice, after the first vision, Lehi trembled and quaked because of what he had seen.  Now his soul rejoices.  Perhaps this second vision was a “part 2”…where he saw how it all fit into the grand plan and how the atonement reached into the lives of those who believe and his whole heart was filled, because of the things which he had seen, yea, which the Lord had shown unto him. Or he saw his family’s deliverance from the destruction. That would surely cause you to rejoice!

 16 And now I, Nephi, do not make a full account of the things which my father hath written, for he hath written many things which he saw in ^avisions and in ^bdreams; Here we are given validity to the reality and importance of visions and dreams...and he also hath written many things which he ^cprophesied and spake unto his children, Does this mean before his call to preach to Jerusalem, just for his own family’s benefit? of which I shall not make a full account.

 17 But I shall make an account of my proceedings in my days. Behold, I make an ^aabridgment of the record of my ^bfather, upon ^cplates which I have made with mine own hands; wherefore, after I have abridged the record of my ^dfather then will I make an account of mine own life. Nephi must have known that we would not have Lehi’s full record, so he included a summary, at least to the degree that we would understand how Nephi had been influenced by Lehi’s teachings. Or maybe he thought we WOULD have Lehi's record, so he didn't need to repeat everything...

 18 Therefore, I would that ye should know, that after the Lord had shown 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.

It seems that Lehi’s experience with the pillar of fire; all that he saw and heard there, as well as what he saw and read in a vision upon returning home, became the basis for his call as a prophet.  He was given two witnesses of what he was to preach.  There would be no doubt in his mind and heart as to what he was saying.  Perhaps he was hoping that his standing in the community, his long time associations with others would give him the credibility to be heard and listened to.  “These people know me…surely they will listen” he might have said. How wrong he was. Were the others who prophesied granted the same experience as Lehi?

 19 And it came to pass that the ^aJews did ^bmock him because of the things which he testified of them; for he truly testified of their ^cwickedness and their abominations; and he testified that the things which he saw and heard,  beyond their wickedness and abominations?…and also the things which he read in the book, Two witnesses…manifested plainly of the coming of a ^dMessiah, and also the redemption of the world. Here we are told more about what was in the book…and perhaps what he saw in the pillar of fire (so it would indeed be a second witness…) and it was this part that caused Lehi’s heart to rejoice…for he saw a way for his people to repent and be saved.  Don’t focus on the wicked part…rejoice that a Savior has been provided to make you clean again so you can live with God forever! I often picture prophets of old just crying repent or be destroyed…focusing on their wickedness…yet in reality, they probably focused on the message and hope of the Atonement. But the people never got past the accusations to hear the real message.

 20 And when the Jews heard these things they were angry with him;  yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had ^acast out, and stoned, and slain; and they also ^bsought his life, that they might take it away. here is the ultimate pride…to be so steeped in your ways, yet so bothered by your conscience that you feel the only way to silence that conscience is to silence the one “pricking” it…I have never understood why people get so riled up over someone’s belief that they demand it be silenced. If it is not true (and it’s belief only causes the believer to be kind and charitable) what is the harm in that? It is such an obvious admonition of guilt! But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender ^cmercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of ^ddeliverance. The Lord chooses us because of our faith, not because He just chooses us. And He needs to make us mighty unto deliverance, because when we choose Him, others may turn against us in dangerous ways. Perhaps once He chooses us we are asked to do things that will require great faith...and thus deliverance! Perhaps a type of the "ultimate" deliverance! How sad and frustrating to know so much that could help your friends and neighbors and associates and to be met with mocking, anger, and hatred to the degree that they would want to KILL you!  Surely you would ask the Lord why he had picked you to share these things, only to be met with such rejection!  But Nephi teaches us this important truth.  When you are chosen by the Lord, the Lord has “tender mercies” in store for you, BECAUSE of your FAITH, and He will make you mighty and deliver you by His power.  The word “mercies” is plural, suggesting that you can expect more than one.  The word “all” suggests that He has chosen MANY…even you, maybe. The key ingredient however, is FAITH! “Deliverance” can be from the wicked in this world, while remaining in the world, or literal deliverance from this world altogether.  I have to believe that the prophets who are allowed to be slain, instead of removed from the wicked, like Lehi, also received the tender mercies of the Lord in perhaps “not tasting of death” as their lives were taken from them. If the people were ALL so wicked that no one believed him, it makes me wonder if Lehi had any real friends. It's pretty hard to be close friends with someone who believes the opposite of you and does bad things while you are trying to do good. The purple highlights are a point I learned from Brother James Ferrell, author of “The Peacegiver” and “The Holy Secret”  Lehi was inspired by the words of a prophet(s), he went out somewhere to pray, he was shown a book, and his life was in jeopardy because of what he said he saw.  A type of Joseph Smith.