The Book of Nephi

An account of the death of Lehi. Nephi's brethren rebelleth against him. The Lord warns Nephi to depart into the wilderness etc. His journeyings in the wilderness etc.

1And now it came to pass after I Nephi had made an end of teaching my brethren, our father Lehi also spake many things unto them and rehearsed unto them how great things the Lord had done for them in bringing them out of the land of Jerusalem. 2And he spake unto them concerning their rebellions upon the waters and the mercies of God in sparing their lives, that they were not swallowed up in the sea.

3And he also spake unto them concerning the land of promise, which they had obtained: How merciful the Lord had been in warning us that we should flee out of the land of Jerusalem. 4For behold, saith he, I have seen a vision, in the which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed; and had we remained in Jerusalem, we should also have perished. 5But, said he, notwithstanding our afflictions, we have obtained a land of promise, a land which is choice above all other lands, a land which the Lord God hath covenanted with me should be a land for the inheritance of my seed. Yea, the Lord hath consecrated this land unto me and to my children forever, and also all they which should be led out of other countries by the hand of the Lord.

6Wherefore I Lehi prophesy according to the workings of the Spirit which is in me that there shall be none come into this land save they should be brought by the hand of the Lord. 7Wherefore this land is consecrated unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they shall serve him according to the commandments which he hath given, it shall be a land of liberty unto them; wherefore they shall never be brought down into captivity. If so, it shall be because of iniquity; for if iniquity shall abound, cursed shall be the land for their sakes. But unto the righteous it shall be blessed forever.

8And behold, it is wisdom that this land should be kept as yet from the knowledge of other nations. For behold, many nations would overrun this land, that there would be no place for an inheritance. 9Wherefore I Lehi have obtained a promise that inasmuch as they which the Lord God shall bring out of the land of Jerusalem shall keep his commandments, they shall prosper upon the face of this land. And they shall be kept from all other nations, that they may possess this land unto themselves. And if it so be that they shall keep his commandments, they shall be blessed upon the face of this land. And there shall be none to molest them nor to take away the land of their inheritance, and they shall dwell safely forever.

10But behold, when the time cometh that they shall dwindle in unbelief, after that they have received so great blessings from the hand of the Lord, having a knowledge of the creation of the earth and all men, knowing the great and marvelous works of the Lord from the creation of the world, having power given them to do all things by faith, having all the commandments from the beginning, and having been brought by his infinite goodness into this precious land of promise, behold, I say, if the day shall come that they will reject the Holy One of Israel, the true Messiah, their Redeemer and their God, behold, the judgments of him that is just shall rest upon them. 11Yea, he will bring other 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 scattered and smitten. 12Yea, as one generation passeth to another, there shall be bloodsheds and great visitations among them.

Wherefore, my sons, I would that ye would remember; yea, I would that ye would harken unto my words. 13O that ye would awake, awake from a deep sleep —yea, even from the sleep of hell— and shake off the awful chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe. 14Awake and arise from the dust and hear the words of a trembling parent, whose limbs ye must soon lay down in the cold and silent grave, from whence no traveler can return. A few more days and I go the way of all the earth. 15But behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell. I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love.

16And I desire that ye should remember to observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord. Behold, this hath been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning. 17My heart hath been weighed down with sorrow from time to time, for I have feared, lest for the hardness of your hearts, lest the Lord your God should come out in the fullness of his wrath upon you, that ye be cut off and destroyed forever, 18or that a cursing should come upon you for the space of many generations and ye are visited by sword and by famine and are hated and are led according to the will and captivity of the devil.

19O my sons, that these things might not come upon you, but that ye might be a choice and a favored people of the Lord. But behold, his will be done, for his ways are righteousness forever. 20And he hath said that inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the land. But inasmuch as ye will not keep his commandments, ye shall be cut off from his presence.

21And 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 men, and be determined in one mind and in one heart, united in all things, that ye may not come down into captivity, 22that ye may not be cursed with a sore cursing; and also that ye may not incur the displeasure of a just God upon you unto the destruction—yea, the eternal destruction—of both soul and body. 23Awake, my sons, put on the armor of righteousness, shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity and arise from the dust.

24Rebel no more against your brother, whose views have been glorious, and who hath kept the commandments from the time we left Jerusalem, and who hath been an instrument in the hands of God in bringing us forth into the land of promise. For were it not for him, we must have perished with hunger in the wilderness. Nevertheless ye sought to take away his life. Yea, and he hath suffered much sorrow because of you. 25And I exceedingly fear and tremble because of you, lest he shall suffer again.

For behold, ye have accused him that he sought power and authority over you. But I know that he hath not sought for power nor authority over you, but he hath sought the glory of God and your own eternal welfare. 26And ye have murmured because he hath been plain unto you. Ye say that he hath used sharpness; ye say that he hath been angry with you. But behold, his sharpness was the sharpness of the power of the word of God which was in him. And that which ye call anger was the truth according to that which is in God, which he could not constrain, manifesting boldly concerning your iniquities. 27And it must needs be that the power of God must be with him, even unto his commanding you that ye must obey. But behold, it was not him, but it was the Spirit of the Lord which was in him which opened his mouth to utterance, that he could not shut it.

28And now my son Laman, and also Lemuel and Sam, and also my sons which are the sons of Ishmael, behold, if ye will hearken unto the voice of Nephi, ye shall not perish. And if ye will hearken unto him, I leave unto you a blessing, yea, even my first blessing. 29But if ye will not hearken unto him, I take away my first blessing —yea, even my blessing—and it shall rest upon him.

30And now Zoram, I speak unto you: Behold, thou art the servant of Laban; nevertheless thou hast been brought out of the land of Jerusalem. And I know that thou art a true friend unto my son Nephi forever. 31Wherefore because thou hast been faithful, thy seed shall be blessed with his seed, that they dwell in prosperity long upon the face of this land. And nothing save it shall be iniquity among them shall harm or disturb their prosperity upon the face of this land forever. 32Wherefore if ye shall keep the commandments of the Lord, the Lord hath consecrated this land for the security of thy seed with the seed of my son.

2And now Jacob, I speak unto you: Thou art my first born in the days of my tribulation in the wilderness. And behold, in thy childhood thou hast suffered afflictions and much sorrow because of the rudeness of thy brethren. 2Nevertheless, Jacob my first born in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God. And he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain. 3Wherefore thy soul shall be blessed, and thou shalt dwell safely with thy brother Nephi, and thy days shall be spent in the service of thy God. Wherefore I know that thou art redeemed because of the righteousness of thy Redeemer, for thou hast beheld that in the fullness of time he cometh to bring salvation unto men.

4And thou hast beheld in thy youth his glory, wherefore thou art blessed even as they unto whom he shall minister in the flesh. For the Spirit is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and the way is prepared from the fall of man, and salvation is free. 5And men are instructed sufficiently that they know good from evil and the law is given unto men. And by the law no flesh is justified; or by the law men are cut off, yea, by the temporal law they were cut off. And also by the spiritual law they perish from that which is good and become miserable forever. 6Wherefore redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah, for he is full of grace and truth. 7Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law unto all those which have a broken heart and a contrite spirit. And unto none else can the ends of the law be answered.

8Wherefore how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God save it be through the merits and mercy and grace of the Holy Messiah, which layeth down his life according to the flesh and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise. 9Wherefore he is the firstfruits unto God, inasmuch as he shall make intercession for all the children of men, and they that believe in him shall be saved.

10And because of the intercession for all, all men cometh unto God. Wherefore they stand in the presence of him to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which is in him; wherefore the ends of the law which the Holy One hath given unto the inflicting of the punishment which is affixed, which punishment that is affixed is in opposition to that of the happiness which is affixed, to answer the ends of the atonement— 11for it must needs be that there is an opposition in all things. If not so, my first born in the wilderness, righteousness could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither happiness nor misery, neither good nor bad; wherefore all things must needs be a compound in one. Wherefore if it should be one body, it must needs remain as dead, having no life neither death, nor corruption nor incorruption, happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility. 12Wherefore it must needs have been created for a thing of naught; wherefore there would have been no purpose in the end of its creation. Wherefore this thing must needs destroy the wisdom of God and his eternal purposes, and also the power and the mercy and the justice of God.

13And if ye shall say there is no law, ye shall also say there is no sin. And if ye shall say there is no sin, ye shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be no righteousness, there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor happiness, there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not, there is no God. And if there is no God, we are not, neither the earth. For there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon; wherefore all things must have vanished away.

14And now my sons, I speak unto you these things for your profit and learning. For there is a God and he hath created all things, both the heavens and the earth and all things that in them is, both things to act and things to be acted upon. 15And to bring about his eternal purposes in the end of man —after that he had created our first parents and the beasts of the field and the fowls of the air and, in fine, all things which are created— it must needs be that there was an opposition, even the forbidden fruit in opposition to the tree of life, the one being sweet and the other bitter.

16Wherefore the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself; wherefore man could not act for himself save it should be that he were enticed by the one or the other. 17And 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; wherefore he became a devil, having sought that which was evil before God. 18And because that he had fallen from heaven and had became miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind; wherefore he saith unto Eve —yea, even that old serpent which is the devil, which is the father of all lies— wherefore he saith: Partake of the forbidden fruit and ye shall not die, but ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil.

19And after that Adam and Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit, they were driven out from the garden of Eden to till the earth. 20And they have brought forth children, yea, even the family of all the earth. 21And the days of the children of men were prolonged, according to the will of God, that they might repent while in the flesh. 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. For he gave commandment that all men must repent, for he shewed unto all men that they were lost because of the transgression of their parents.

22And now behold, if Adam had not transgressed, he would not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden; and all things which were created must have remained in the same state which they were after that they were created. And they must have remained forever and had no end, 23and 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.

24But behold, all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things. 25Adam fell that men might be, and men are that they might have joy. 26And the Messiah cometh in the fullness of time that he might redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall, they have become free forever, knowing good from evil, to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment of the law at the great and last day, according to the commandments which God hath given.

27Wherefore men are free according to the flesh, and all things are given them which is expedient unto man. And they are free to choose liberty and eternal life through the great Mediator of all men, or to choose captivity and death according to the captivity and power of the devil, for he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself.

28And now my sons, I would that ye should look to the great Mediator and hearken unto his great commandments and be faithful unto his words and choose eternal life according to the will of his Holy Spirit, 29and not choose eternal death according to the will of the flesh and the evil which is therein, 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.

30I have spoken these few words unto you all, my sons, in the last days of my probation. And I have chosen the good part, according to the words of the prophet. And I have none other object save it be the everlasting welfare of your souls. Amen.