The Doctrine of Christ, Real Intent, and Enduring to the End - Second Book of Nephi, Chapter Thirty-One (2 Nephi 31)

You can read the entire chapter at the following link: https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/31?lang=eng

Nephi decides to make a summation here. He wants to make sense for the reader of everything he has previously shared—his own experiences and prophecies, the prophecies of his brother Jacob, and the words of Isaiah. It’s as if he knows that the reader is saying, “All of what you say is quite breathtaking, but what does it mean for me in my day where I live?” Nephi tells us that he “delighteth in plainness” (verse 3), which is another way of saying, “Let’s get down to what really matters.”

Little surprise that Nephi takes us directly to the life of Jesus Christ for what really matters. It’s a 2,500-year-old version of teaching via today’s well-known mantra “What would Jesus do?” Or, perhaps, more precisely, “What will Jesus do, and how can we follow his example?” Nephi simply calls these teachings “the doctrine of Christ” (verse 2).

In verses 4-9, Nephi is presumably drawing from the vision he received decades earlier just after his family left Jerusalem (see verses 27-33 of 1 Nephi 11). He relates the key aspects of the pattern that he knows Jesus will set for us during his time on earth more than 500 years later:

1. Being baptized by water in the Lord’s name
2. Receiving the Holy Ghost
3. Keeping His Father’s commandments

As Nephi says, it can be stated very plainly. And yet, Jesus is the only person on earth who was or ever will be able to do these three things without breaking any of the Father’s commandments. But even if we will not achieve the perfection Jesus achieved, by following Him we can have our sins taken away and speak with the “tongue of angels” (verse 13).

According to Nephi, via direct revelation from Christ (verse 12), a key ingredient in this process is called “real intent.” Real intent means that our motives are pure in our search for knowledge, or, in other words, that we will act in a manner that is consistent with the knowledge we are given, “acting no hypocrisy and no deception before God” (verse 13). In the last chapter of the Book of Mormon (Moroni 10), Moroni states that real intent is necessary in order for the Lord to answer our prayers regarding the truthfulness of the book. I believe that principle applies in most cases when we seek truth—the Lord will generally only reveal that truth to us once we have resolved to act in accordance with whatever His will is. Real intent turns our faith into action, which then solidifies our knowledge of divinely revealed principles of truth.

Again, according to Nephi via revelation coming from Christ, real intent is necessary for us to actually receive the Holy Ghost, which is sometimes referred to as the “baptism of fire” (verse 13). In the ordinance of confirmation in our Church, we are admonished to receive the Holy Ghost, but when this actually takes place is dependent on our faith and real intent. During the day of Pentecost, as related in Acts 2, the Holy Ghost came as with a great rushing of the wind and endowed the apostles with matchless power to convince others of the gospel of Christ. In like manner, the baptism of fire will help us in our transformation from weak but willing servants to people who have been mightily cleansed and who feel the Lord working through them. It is often accompanied by an actual feeling that can occur deep within us.

One of the reasons it is important for us to recognize our personal baptism of fire is that it strengthens us to be able to continue on in this world in a way that embodies faith, hope, charity and joy. We know that life is a series of highs and lows, and that it ultimately ends with the death of our bodies. The gift of the Holy Ghost, which is something that can only be received after entering onto the “strait and narrow path” after our baptism by one with real authority from God (verses 17-18), makes it possible for us to “endure to the end” with peace and love in our hearts. It is the answer that many search for in vain through one form of escapism or another.

To avoid deceptive and harmful paths, it is important for us to know that through the comfort and guidance of the Holy Ghost, external trials and challenges will not force us into fear, anger, and despair so long as we choose to withstand and overcome them. It is an awesome promise that hints at our divine heritage and destiny.

Nephi tells us that the Father Himself told him that the words Nephi heard from Christ are “true and faithful,” and that those who “endureth to the end” shall be saved (verse 15). Of course, greater responsibility comes with the greater power and knowledge we receive when we embark on the path of discipleship through baptism by water and fire.

After relating these amazing revelations that have come to him directly from the Father and the Son, Nephi gives the following admonition to his people, and to us (in verses 19-20):

And now, my beloved brethren, after ye have gotten into this strait and narrow path, I would ask if all is done? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for ye have not come thus far save it were by the word of Christ with unshaken faith in him, relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save.

Wherefore, ye must press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope, and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward, feasting upon the word of Christ, and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.

Light and Truth Flood the Earth and Accelerate the Work - Second Chapter of Nephi, Verse Thirty (2 Nephi 30)

You can read the entire chapter at the following link: https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/30?lang=eng

This chapter helps us better understand how direct a role the Book of Mormon is playing in the process by which Jesus Christ is carrying out Heavenly Father’s great plan of salvation and redemption. As we learned in the previous chapter, it complements the Bible and its great truths, which of course center around the life, ministry, death, resurrection, and exaltation of our Lord and Savior.

Nephi unfolds to us the effects that truth can have on people across distance and time. There are the Jews who have miraculously maintained their identity as a people over thousands of years and despite bitter hardships and persecutions. There are the lost Israelites, including the people descended from the Nephites and Lamanites on the American continent. And there are the “Gentiles,” many of whom may have ancestral connections with Israel that have been forgotten through the generations. All of them can embrace the truth and enter into the covenant based on repentance and faith in Christ (verse 2).

Great promises attend those who accept the truth and enter into the Lord’s covenant. Verse 6 gives us a taste of some of the blessings these people will find. They shall rejoice. They shall have “scales of darkness” fall from their eyes. They shall begin a process of becoming a “pure and delightsome” people.

As these people allow the Lord to reshape them into something of great virtue and power, the Lord’s work accelerates. This is of course no coincidence, for clearly the Lord uses those who covenant with him to turn to their neighbors and share the benefit of their experience. It is a classic domino or snowball effect. Among those who pay attention, there is so much to discern.

Inspired judgment and restitution are already in evidence among us, as people abide by the principles of truth Lord has taught them either directly or through His authorized messengers. When repentant and humble men and women counsel together for a righteous purpose, there’s nothing like it. The Lord elevates their efforts so that they can help “judge the poor and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth” (verse 9).

As the Lord’s work progresses, aided by the spread of truth to the corners of the world, those who are open to accepting this truth, and thus transforming their lives for the better, become separate from those who close their hearts and minds. This great division has consequences, for just as Biblical stories (especially those in Genesis about the great flood and Sodom and Gomorrah) teach us that the Lord found it necessary at certain times in the past to destroy persistent wickedness in the world, we are taught that this will take place again (verse 10).

Sad as this destruction will be for those who have chosen evil over good, it will represent a deliverance and cleansing of the earth for those who have embraced the Lord’s healing power in their lives. And no longer will they face the opposition that has plagued them and sought to slow their acquisition of further knowledge and illumination.

The point at which this division will become complete is Christ’s Second Coming, when only those who have let light into their lives will be able to abide the refining presence of the Lord. 

Nephi weaves a passage from Isaiah 11 (verses 9-15) into his prophecy to show us the poetic contrast between our current struggles and the peace that will come between all the creatures of the world, and—perhaps most important—the willingness of those who remain on earth to receive truth from whatever source provides it, even if that source is (counterintuitively) a little child rather than a more fully experienced adult. Hence the phrase “and a little child shall lead them” in verse 12.

The images of truth and knowledge flooding the earth are awe-inspiring. From verses 15-17:

For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea…. The things of all nations shall be made known…unto the children of men. There is nothing which is secret save it shall be revealed; there is no work of darkness save it shall be made manifest in the light.

Finally, we learn from Nephi (in verse 18), as we also learn from the apostle John (in Revelation 20), that Satan “shall have power over the hearts of the children of men no more.” Or at least not “for a long time” before he returns for the climactic conflict between the forces of good and evil.

Nations as Witnesses - Second Book of Nephi, Chapter Twenty-Nine (2 Nephi 29)

You can read the entire chapter at the following link: https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/29?lang=eng

In this chapter, Nephi describes in even greater detail how the coming of the Book of Mormon will affect humanity and the course of God’s plan for it. And, by speaking in the first person on behalf of the Lord, the power of his words are magnified.

As many accept the Book of Mormon and come to know of its divine origins, the process begins whereby the Lord is setting “his hand again the second time to recover my people, which are of the house of Israel” (verse 1). God does not forget or act against the covenants he has made, and it is important for Nephi to be able to demonstrate this to his people so that they are better able to understand the greater purpose of their religion and civilization. Verse 2 tells us that the record of the Nephites will “hiss forth unto the ends of the earth” through those in the latter days who accept the Book of Mormon and spread its message abroad.

What should be a glorious opportunity to spread eternal truth to others—giving them access to joy, salvation, and sanctification—ends up being met with opposition. Nephi tells us that many in the latter days will reject the Book of Mormon because they already have the Bible. As mentioned in the previous chapter, those who are not open to the idea that God reveals His will through many sources ultimately hurt themselves the most. But, as we remember from how those in the great and spacious building from Lehi’s dream (described in verses 24-28 of 1 Nephi 8) helped turn some of the partakers of the fruit from the tree of life away from truth and goodness through their skeptical mocking, the closed-minded can infect others with their cynicism. The lesson for us is to beware of our own actions in this regard.

Nephi points out the hypocrisy that people have engaged in over generations by insisting on the Bible as the only possible source of God’s truth. History has shown that some of these people have treated those whose ancestors were responsible for the Bible—the Jews—as outcasts at best, and as targets of horrendous persecution and violence at worst.

And what thank they the Jews for the Bible which they receive from them?.... O ye Gentiles, have ye remembered the Jews, mine ancient covenant people? Nay; but ye have cursed them, and have hated them, and have not sought to recover them. (verses 4-5)

Nephi goes on to remind us that the Lord is the creator and ruler of all peoples on the earth, and that He is the ultimate judge of who and how many of his peoples should be privileged to bring forth records containing His words. And, by the evidence of the Book of Mormon together with the Bible (and probably other records that will come forth from other peoples in the future), the Lord has determined to prove His existence, His attributes, His plan for our salvation through Christ’s atonement, and—most important—His love for all mankind.

For behold, I shall speak unto the Jews and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the Nephites and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto the other tribes of the house of Israel, which I have led away, and they shall write it; and I shall also speak unto all nations of the earth and they shall write it. (verse 12)

Nephi not only teaches the truth that God’s word is revealed through many different sources, but he also prophesies that the bringing together of the different records is a sign of the bringing together of the Lord’s covenant people. Why is it so wonderful that the records come together? Because that means the Lord and His servants on earth are gathering scattered people from Israel, reminding them of their divine potential and shared heritage, and helping them right their course back in His direction. Combined, the records have a power that they would not have on their own.

This prophecy closely mirrors something taught by the Old Testament prophet Ezekiel, whose ministry among the exiled Jews in Babylon began around 590 B.C. as Nephi and his family made their journey through the wilderness and to the Americas. In his account (verses 15-24 of Ezekiel 37), Ezekiel teaches that the Lord will command the families of Judah and Joseph (the sons of Jacob, also known as Israel, through whom the covenant promises flow) to each make a record on a “stick” (a wooden writing tablet). 

The stick of Judah (or the Jews) is the Bible, and the stick of Joseph is the Book of Mormon, as the Nephites come from Joseph’s ancestral line. 

Indeed, just as there is a principle that having more than one person as a witness for a specific evidentiary claim greatly validates that claim, the Lord—through Nephi—applies a similar principle to the idea of using more than one nation as a way to bolster the case for His existence and His faithfulness to the everlasting covenant He made with Abraham. 

Know ye not that the testimony of two nations is a witness unto you that I am God, that I remember one nation like unto another? Wherefore, I speak the same words unto one nation like unto another. And when the two nations shall run together the testimony of the two nations shall run together also. (verse 8)

Truth and Light to Banish Error and Darkness - Second Book of Nephi, Chapter Twenty-Eight (2 Nephi 28)

You can read the entire chapter here: https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/28?lang=eng

One of the purposes of the Book of Mormon is to put an end to contention. Verse 2 of this chapter tells us that the book’s writings shall be “of great worth unto the children of men.” Nephi foresees that a number of churches will claim, “Behold, I, I am the Lord’s,” and will take issue with one another. Verse 4 says that these churches will “teach with their learning, and deny the Holy Ghost.” This tracks with what Nephi wrote in the previous chapter, and what Jesus told Joseph Smith face-to-face during their first encounter in the grove in 1820, about men drawing near the Lord with their lips, but having their hearts far from Him. By the accuracy of its translation and its teaching of the pure doctrine of Christ, the Book of Mormon clarifies those teachings of the Bible that have been unclear and therefore subject to multiple interpretations. It does not replace the Bible, but actually complements and strengthens its message through the clarifications it provides.

But more than that, by its coming forth, the Book of Mormon teaches us that the Lord does not limit Himself to revealing his inspired words or scripture only to a certain group of people in a certain period of time. No, the Book of Mormon is part of a pattern where those who really “receive” the scripture already given to them and “lend an ear” to the Lord’s counsel are able to gain greater knowledge, wisdom and insight from the Lord. The idea that the heavens are closed is a fallacy. Those who claim that God’s work on earth is done, or that miracles don’t happen, or that we have enough scripture (verses 5-6, 29-30) reveal far more about their own willfulness or lack of faith than they do about God’s nature. The true principle is that the Lord wants to share his mysteries with us. As we seek and knock, he gives to us “line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little” (verse 30).  

And we learn only too well in this chapter why it is so important to seek out God’s truth, that we may avoid being deceived by the many ways evil tries to come upon us in the world. Darkness by definition is banished once light is thrown upon it. Nephi recognizes this, and does everything he can to expose the pernicious ways that the devil and the other spirits who follow him seek to weaken us and lead us toward misery. Nephi reckons that if we can understand how Satan operates, we’ll be better equipped to work with the Lord to prevent ourselves from falling into the many traps that are out there. Here are some of the traps he identifies for us, 2,500 years before C.S. Lewis wrote The Screwtape Letters:

1. Falling for the lie that life is consequence-free (“Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die; and it shall be well with us” – verse 7.).

Responding to our earthly desires is not wrong, but the earthly desires should never take precedence over the spiritual priority of our salvation and our ability to access the Holy Ghost.

2. A little sin is OK. God will understand and will excuse us (verse 8).

This sounds merciful, but it is a counterfeit of God’s true mercy. God may understand when we commit sin (after all, Jesus felt the pain of all sinners when he atoned for us), but He cannot excuse sin. He cannot save us unless we repent and make choices to follow him. And the idea that we can plan ahead of time to “sin a little” and then repent afterwards is completely deceptive nonsense. That is because we can choose our actions, but not the consequences. So if we sin, we lose the companionship of the Holy Ghost. How then can we have any degree of confidence that the choices we will make will be the right ones? Maybe, just maybe, we’ll have the sense of godly sorrow that leads us to seek divine forgiveness. And when that takes place, you’d better believe that the power of Christ’s atonement can work miracles and heal us. But it’s utter foolishness to take that chance in a calculating way before-the-fact. George Albert Smith, president of our Church from 1945 to 1951, provided this wise caution, “If you cross to the devil’s side of the line one inch, you are in the tempter’s power, and if he is successful, you will not be able to think or even reason properly, because you will have lost the spirit of the Lord.”

3. Getting stirred up to anger against things that are good (verse 20).

First things first. Christ has already won the victory over evil. It is done. That means if we choose evil over good, we are choosing the losing side. We are also choosing misery. But the devil wants to take as many down with him as possible, so he seeks to get us to act against our own interests through feelings of pride or envy or fear, manifesting itself in anger and rage against things and people that are good. Sometimes we need to be patient in response to a kind word of concern or correction from a family member or friend. Instead of reacting in a knee-jerk way, consider for a moment whether what this loved one has said has merit. Be honest. Often we need to be open to learn from others and to change some things in our lives. Those who are able to do this gain power over Satan, because their self-discipline is such that they’re less vulnerable to being baited into a self-defeating situation where they lose control of their emotions and actions.

4. Being lulled into “carnal security” with material possessions and comforts (verse 21).

This is the situation where being too focused on the comforts and cares of this world distracts from our eternal perspective. We lose our “edge.” We forget that there’s something beyond our senses that is a much more important reality, and we therefore lose our sense of urgency and our need to look out for others.

5. Being tricked into thinking “there is no hell” or devil (verse 22).

The truth that there is good and evil forces us to choose a side. It’s challenging work, because we must be vigilant to ward off temptation. If we no longer believe that truth, in most cases we’re not going to be willing to engage in the daily practices—sincere prayer, applying the scriptures to our lives and acting on spiritual impressions—so vital not to just staving off evil influences in our lives, but actually overcoming them. And if we don’t do these things, Nephi’s dire prophecy of our being brought into chains—ironically, by the very being whose existence we denied—will be fulfilled (verses 22-23).

Perhaps the most telling line in the chapter is this: “Wo unto all those who tremble, and are angry because of the truth of God! For behold, he that is built upon the rock receiveth it with gladness; and he that is built upon a sandy foundation trembleth lest he shall fall” (verse 28).

The Miracle of the Marvelous Work and Its Witnesses - Second Book of Nephi, Chapter Twenty-Seven (2 Nephi 27)

You can read the entire chapter at the following link: https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/27?lang=eng.

What are miracles? They are events that take place that we can’t explain. But does that mean that they are without explanation? No. One of the things that separates God from us is that He understands the workings of the universe intimately. To him, a miracle is not some way-out-of-left-field occurrence, but part of His plan, even if most or all of us mortals cannot yet comprehend it.

Sometimes we just need some help with the explanation—for the steps to be broken down for us. That is what we find in this chapter. The miracle is the coming forth of the Book of Mormon, amid the larger phenomenon of the restoration of God’s authority on earth and the gathering of the people of Israel. And an integral part of this coming forth is the establishment of witnesses.

So how does this miracle happen? Well, it starts with an inspired revelation through Isaiah. Nephi, who has the plates of brass available to him, draws from what appears to be an earlier (and probably more accurate) version of Isaiah 29. This prophecy refers to a book that contains divine revelation covering the earth’s lifespan from beginning to end. The book will come from those who have “slumbered in the dust” (we know that this refers to the Nephites after their eventual destruction around 400 A.D.) and part of the book will be “sealed,” or inaccessible.

Clearly, the Lord inspired Isaiah to write about this, and then inspired Nephi to transcribe it into his record, so that the Nephite prophets and record-keepers were clear about their duty and mission. Even if the people of their civilization were to be wiped out, the record would live on (eventually to be given new life as the Book of Mormon). So God makes sure everything is in place for the plates to be preserved and hidden.

As we know, the plates come forth to Joseph Smith in 1827. What is amazing here is that Joseph translates this chapter with the help of his scribe Oliver Cowdery in the early months of 1829, but many of the key events described therein had already taken place in 1828. Seeing confirmation that events he had experienced were the fulfillment of prophecy must have caused Joseph great wonder, and given him special confidence that his errand was truly the Lord’s.

Running through the chapter is the important theme that those who glory in their supposed power will be disabled when they act against the Lord’s purposes, and those whose natural abilities seem to be insignificant will find themselves magnified when working in line with the Lord. God declares to Nephi in verse 23 that He is a God of miracles. This never changes, but God will only show His power among men to the extent they have faith. Those who are preoccupied with their own strength without recognizing where it comes from are ultimately at a disadvantage to those who humbly acknowledge the Lord’s ability to intervene.

Some very powerful lines from the chapter rebuke those of us mortals who think that it’s somehow possible or even in their interest to ignore, outsmart, or hide things from the Lord. In 1820, nine years before Joseph translates this passage, the Father and Son appeared before him (in his first vision in Palmyra, New York). Joseph had desired to know which Christian church to join. The answer he received directly from the lips of the resurrected Savior (in verse 19 here) was that he should not join any of them, because they draw near the Lord with their lips, but “their hearts are far from me.” As Joseph translated this chapter, he must have been overcome with the memory of that earlier experience when he saw a very similar statement in verse 25 made to Nephi about 2,500 years earlier (which the Lord had perhaps shared with Isaiah even 150-200 years before Nephi).

The statement looks forward to Joseph’s day to say that as much as the people of that time draw near with their mouths and honor the Lord with their lips, but have removed their hearts from Him, and fear Him only according the “precepts of men,” the Lord will bring forth a “marvelous work and a wonder” that will overshadow anything that men concoct based on their own schemes and supposed wisdom. Verse 27 conveys the sense that Lord almost feels sorry for the pathetic delusions of people who think they can turn things “upside-down” by acting like they are superior to their Creator.

The reality is that any efforts they make to work against God’s designs—or his covenant people—are ultimately impotent. Isaiah does a good job of painting the verbal picture for us in verses 3-5. He likens the futility of working against God to people who dream of eating but wake up even hungrier than before, or who stagger through life like they are either sleepwalking or drunkenly incapacitated.

And, as mentioned before, Joseph Smith’s experience in the early months of 1828 shows us that this prophecy has concrete application and is not simply a poetic device. His experience played out as follows. Joseph’s first task, before engaging in full-on translation, was to copy some of the original characters found on the plates. Some of the plates, as foreseen in Isaiah’s and Nephi’s prophecies, were sealed. But there was an unsealed portion that would provide the source for the Book of Mormon. The characters on the unsealed plates were apparently some kind of mix of—according to Nephi (in verse 2 here)—“the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians.” Nearly 1,000 years later (in verse 32 here), Moroni (the final Nephite custodian of the plates) writes that he and others keepers of the record through various generations used “characters which are called among us the reformed Egyptian, being handed down and altered by us, according to our manner of speech.”

A man named Martin Harris was Joseph’s main benefactor at the time, and he was considering taking out a mortgage on his property in order to finance Joseph’s translation work. Before making that financial commitment, however, the conventional wisdom is that Martin was interested in getting the opinion of some academic experts on the authenticity of the characters. Historical records indicate that Martin also had received instruction from the Lord to encourage Joseph to prepare these characters and their translation for expert scrutiny. See this account. 

So we have Joseph Smith, with a very limited grade-school-level education, engaging in a work of translation that would stretch the most highly-trained and -specialized minds of the day.

Once some initial copying was done on parchment, Martin headed off to (where else?) New York City to check Joseph’s work with the most celebrated scholars of the day in ancient languages. According to Martin’s account, a professor at Columbia (then a college and not a university), Charles Anthon, verified the characters and their translation by Joseph as authentic and correct and signed a certificate to that effect. When Anthon asked about the origins of the translation, and Martin told him that Joseph had received plates from an angel, Anthon asked for the certificate back and ripped it up. He then asked Martin to bring him the book that he might inspect it directly. Martin told him that the book was sealed, and Anthon said, “I cannot read a sealed book.” This experience, as related, tracks directly with verses 15-18.

A 1942 article in the Improvement Era (a Church periodical of that day) shows incredibly compelling evidence that the characters transcribed from the plates match demotic Egyptian characters that were in use during that period in history (as these characters have been photographed by non-Mormon scholars). For years, people assumed that the transcribed characters featured in the Improvement Era article were part of the actual transcriptions seen by Anthon, but recent handwriting analysis indicates that these characters were transcribed in 1829 by another scribe (John Whitmer) after Martin’s visit to Anthon. In either case, the side-by-side photographical evidence in the 1942 article is so compelling, I believe it could be sufficient by itself to convince many people of the authenticity of the Book of Mormon. (Below is an image of the Whitmer transcription, previously known as the Anthon transcript)

After having an even more esteemed scholar, Samuel Mitchill, verify Anthon’s initial conclusions about the authenticity of the characters and translation (see the account of Martin’s encounters with the scholars in verses 64-65 of Joseph Smith’s history), Martin returned to his home in upstate New York and arranged to both finance the translation and travel to northern Pennsylvania (where Joseph and his wife were living near her parents at the time) to act as Joseph’s scribe. (Anthon apparently disputed Martin Harris’ version of the facts, but in any event, Martin clearly came away from the encounter convinced that the translation work was worth pursuing.)

So this chapter clearly reinforces for Joseph, and for us, that the translation of the Book of Mormon and the restoration of divine authority through Joseph were both directed by Christ, and that Joseph is the man who receives the book, as referred to in verses 9 and 19, with Anthon as the “learned” referred to in verses 15-20.

We receive a number of further promises with great significance. The most important is that witnesses in addition to Joseph will be able to see the “book”—with “book” in this case meaning the gold plates used as the source for the Book of Mormon. Verse 12 tells us that three witnesses will behold the book by “the power of God.” The translation of this chapter inspired Joseph and those involved with helping him translate the plates to consider who these witnesses might be, and ultimately the angel (Moroni) who was the last Nephite custodian of the plates and who directed Joseph to find them is the one who presents the plates to Oliver Cowdery, Martin Harris, and David Whitmer in 1829. Their testimony of the experience lives on, as does the testimony of the eight witnesses who are the few others God allows to see the plates (verse 13) and to whom Joseph later showed them. None ever recanted his testimony.

There is, of course, more. Through a faithful few, the Lord pours out blessings that overflow so that they might touch the lives of many others and give these others (the deaf, the blind, the meek in verses 29-30) ample opportunity to embrace the cause of salvation and righteousness that the kingdom of God represents and see the “terrible one” (Satan and anyone who identifies with him) thwarted in his designs (verse 31). And God’s plan is clearly one of redemption, where those who have “erred in spirit shall come to understanding” (verse 35). Little by little, the field where the word of God is planted will become fruitful, and then its growth will be so great that it will be “esteemed as a forest” (verse 28). We are promised that even the sealed portion of the plates will one day be read from the housetops by the power of Christ, along with “all things” (verses 11, 21-22). I’m not sure we can properly comprehend how amazing it will be to be able to receive all things from the hand of the Lord. 

Truth Revealed Through History: The Holy Ghost Will Lead Us to Christ - Second Book of Nephi, Chapter Twenty-Six (2 Nephi 26)

You can read the entire chapter at the following link: https://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/26?lang=eng.

In the previous chapter, Nephi explained the words of Isaiah and their application to the Jews who were scattered from the Holy Land after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, based largely on the visions that Nephi himself has seen of future days.

Here, he turns squarely to address his own people, the Nephites, and to unfold to them—in great plainness (we are learning that Nephi is exceptionally clear and direct)—how their history will play out as he looks ahead about 550 years.

What Nephi sees is not a pretty picture. He tells his people that they will engage in many wars and contentions through the generations. If that isn’t enough to cause Nephi great pain, what seems to trouble him even more is that his descendants will not prove to be very different from the people who will reject Jesus’s claim to be the Messiah during his life in Galilee and Judea. Many prophets will come among the Nephites to proclaim the coming of Jesus, and specific signs will point to the key events of His birth, death, and resurrection (verse 3).

Nephi communicates to his people that instead of welcoming the good tidings, their following generations will cast out and even kill those among them who are—like he and his father—reminding them of what will take place and what that should mean regarding their actions. Even though Nephi conveys the coming events to us without flinching from his duty to inform, we can sense the great sadness that pervades what he tells. He must have wondered, “How is it possible that this can happen, after all my people went through to escape the destruction in Jerusalem 50 years ago? How can the memory of that story fade from their imaginations? They have been given every advantage of evading captivity, and then ultimately they choose to put themselves in bondage and peril anyway.”

And yet, Nephi has seen the nature of man to forget, in the example of his brothers Laman and Lemuel certainly, and probably even through his own struggles to remain righteous and those of his other family members. This gives Nephi perspective to understand why the people of Jerusalem could forget the powerful stories of their deliverance from Egypt from centuries before and even the sure and more recent prophecies of Isaiah.

He writes very specifically about his people’s future sufferings at the time of Christ’s death. Mountains will cover them. Whirlwinds will carry them away. Buildings will crush them and “grind them to powder” (verse 5). Nephi relates the pain and anguish he feels at seeing this scene, and how it “well nigh consumeth me before the presence of the Lord.” But, in the end, he says that he is forced to recognize that what will take place is exactly what his people deserve (verse 7). It must be especially hard for Nephi to think that even though he spells it out plainly for his people, nothing he can say or do will change the choices that many of them make to disregard the signs that point to Christ’s coming. Many of us in this day struggle with the principle of agency that is absolute for each person—thrilling at the improbable turnaround when someone makes it back to the light, but mourning when others turn away or refuse to turn back despite ample opportunity to embrace what is right and good.

The trials are necessary as a proving ground for the righteous who heed the prophets and are steadfast in looking for the signs of Christ’s coming, amid all the persecution they face. Nephi is blessed to see that Christ, the “Son of Righteousness” (verse 9), will appear among those who have persevered in faith. We know this will take place after his final ascension from the Holy Land. And beyond that, Jesus will heal those of the Nephites who survive the cataclysm accompanying his crucifixion, and He will bring peace to them. And this peace will be long-lasting, for more than three generations (which we know to be about 300 years). Perhaps Nephi’s warnings go some distance toward encouraging the righteous core of believers to hold on when other reasons for keeping up hope seem lost.

But even this positive development won’t last forever. And we need to pay close attention to the reason for this. Nephi shares with us just how critical it is for us to keep inviting the presence and influence of the Holy Ghost into our lives. There’s a tragic, cautionary lesson for us in the downfall of the Nephites after an unparalleled run of righteousness and prosperity. And Nephi boils it down to one root cause. His descendants will choose darkness over light, and as the Spirit “ceaseth to strive with man then cometh speedy destruction” (verses 10-11).

  

It is at this point, just when we feel that all hope is lost because the Lord’s own people have let Him down, that Nephi shares with us the genius of God and His plan. Nephi reminds us that the plan encompasses the Gentiles as well as the Jews. And though it will take him a few chapters to explain how the plan unfolds, somehow by pivoting to the Gentiles, the Lord shows His great love for all His children. For in swinging the door wide open to salvation to people who were not originally part of the covenant, he is preparing through them for the redemption of the Jews and of the Nephite/Lamanite people—and indeed for all of the people of Israel who will heed the shepherd’s call to gather.  

And it’s important to note for ourselves personally how He accomplishes this. Remember, Jesus Christ was physically present among the Jews in the Holy Land and their long-lost Nephite brethren in the Americas. He does not appear directly to the non-Israelite Gentile nations, or at least not at first, but it doesn’t matter when you’ve got the secret weapon of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost is the most effective communicator of truth there is.

Again, we need to pay close attention here, because a huge lesson on faith is right in front of our faces. Most of us are the Gentiles. We do not have Jesus in person among us. And yet, if we believe in Jesus by the power of the Holy Ghost, we unlock the very same blessings that were available to the Jews and Nephites who had Jesus right in front of them. It says very plainly in verse 13 that as we do this, Christ will manifest himself “unto every nation, kindred, tongue, and people, working mighty miracles, signs, and wonders, among the children of men according to their faith.”

This is an amazing promise. One that we would do well to ponder, reflect upon, apply in every aspect of our lives, and share widely. As we seek the Holy Ghost and follow its promptings, Christ comes to us and works miracles in our lives. This may be the single-most important principle we can ever learn because it is like a treasure map leading us straight to salvation. It is both extremely practical and indicative of the profound saving and transformative power God is offering each of us. 

The overall significance of verses 12 and 13 should not be lost on us or overlooked. Indeed, the very last ancient custodian of the record that became the Book of Mormon, the prophet Moroni, recognized how critically important these verses are. Within the two short paragraphs he decides to write to provide an introductory note for the entire record (what we know as the title page to the Book of Mormon), Moroni paraphrases these verses to tell the world that a core purpose of the record is “to the convincing of the Jew and Gentile that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, manifesting himself unto all nations.”

Following Moroni’s example, it is impossible for us to say too much about the principle we find here. It deserves repeated emphasis. By following the Spirit, we bring Christ into our lives in a very real way.

There is yet more to the chapter. Nephi tells of the record his people will leave behind, primed to come forth at a later time, and unfolds the saga of the Gentiles and their many imperfections in reference to what the Lord expects. The chapters’ additional passages are rich in instruction, but I will only point to one. Amid all the intrigue that Nephi shows will come to pass among the Gentiles, he reveals in verses 23-24 that the Lord is patiently and confidently at work to make sure that despite the evils among us, we will each have the glorious opportunity to choose eternal life:

For behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you that the Lord God worketh not in darkness. He doeth not anything save it be for the benefit of the world; for he loveth the world, even that he layeth down his own life that he may draw all men unto him. Wherefore, he commandeth none that they shall not partake of his salvation.

Nephi Explains Isaiah - Second Book of Nephi, Chapter Twenty-Five (2 Nephi 25)

You can read the entire chapter at the following link: https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/bofm/2-ne/25?lang=eng

After sharing 13 chapters of Isaiah’s prophecies with his people, Nephi explains their meaning. Despite the fact that the Nephites are only a generation removed from living in Jerusalem, and a few generations from Isaiah’s own time, Nephi shares that Isaiah’s style of prophesying is not easily understandable to the Nephites in the way it is understandable to the Jews closer to Isaiah in time and place.

In order to help the Nephites—and all of us—understand Isaiah better, Nephi provides us two keys of knowledge. The first is for us to seek out the “spirit of prophecy” (verse 4) via our own direct study of Isaiah’s words and our efforts to have the Holy Ghost make these words plainer and clearer to us. The second is to heed Nephi’s own description of what Isaiah teaches. Nephi inspires our confidence when he tells us (1) that his own origins in Jerusalem make him an ideal interpreter for us of the ways of the Jews (and, by extension, the words of Isaiah), and (2) that his “soul delighteth in plainness unto my people, that they may learn” (verse 4 as well). He goes on to say that “I proceed with mine own prophecy, according to my plainness; in the which I know that no man can err.” In other words, Nephi uses Isaiah’s prophecy to reinforce the prophecy Nephi himself has to share from his own direct revelations from the Lord.

Nephi now unfolds the essential meaning of what Isaiah has said and what Nephi knows independently to be true. And he does not disappoint. Those only familiar with the Old Testament prophecies of Jesus Christ know that Isaiah and other prophets make frequent reference to the Messiah’s coming and to important aspects of his virgin birth and his divine, saving mission. But these prophecies provide nowhere near the directness and level of detail Nephi now reveals. It’s as if Nephi says to us: “You know that Isaiah was a prophet, right? This is something that is beyond questioning among our people. In the earlier pages, I’ve just laid out for you what Isaiah wrote. And guess what? I’ve seen the same things. Here’s what Isaiah was really talking about.”

We see the importance of Nephi’s use of Isaiah because Isaiah is very much a prophet of the Jews, as compared to other prophets whose mission focused on the people of Israel more broadly. The people we recognize today as Jews are largely those who hailed from the kingdom of Judah after its separation from the northern kingdom of Israel.

Because Nephi traces the Jews’ historical and future trajectory, it is important for him to do so with Isaiah’s support. Nephi does not mince words. He and his family left Jerusalem at a time when it still had a proud tradition of resistance to outside conquest, but the tale he tells is one of destruction, scattering and restoration. According to what Nephi already knows, “one generation hath been destroyed among the Jews [save those carried away captive into Babylon] because of iniquity” (verse 9).

He goes further to say that this is not the only instance where the Jews will encounter pain and suffering. After they are restored to the land of Jerusalem (under the Persians), they will reject the Only Begotten of the Father. Let us pause to understand that not all Jews rejected Christ during His life, and that Christ Himself came from among them. The New Testament provides us with account after account of those noble souls, even among the Jews’ leading councils, who recognized the goodness and (in some cases) divinity of Jesus. Yet, Nephi’s words are true by indicating that the tide of opinion among Jerusalem’s Jewish leaders of the time supported and even contributed to Christ’s crucifixion by the Romans.

Here, we witness the power of Nephi’s conviction. He provides us detail about Christ’s resurrection after three days that is absent from Old Testament prophecy. Most important is what the Resurrection means to us. Nephi writes in verse 13 of “healing in [Christ’s] wings; and all those who shall believe on his name shall be saved in the kingdom of God.” It is a wonderfully hopeful passage, followed by an exclamation of joy where Nephi makes sure to tell us, “For I have seen his day, and my heart doth magnify his holy name.” In other words, make no mistake. This will come to pass.

Nephi then tells us that after these things happen, Jerusalem will be destroyed again (which comes around 70 A.D. at the hands of the Romans), and the Jews will be scattered among all nations. He writes of many generations where the Jews will face persecution. Then Nephi boldly and unblinkingly states that two additional things will come to pass. One, “the day will come that it must needs be expedient” that the Jews will be “persuaded to believe in Christ, the Son of God, and the atonement, which is infinite for all mankind” (verse 16). And two, the Lord will restore the Jews by doing a “marvelous work and a wonder” among mankind (verse 17).

This marvelous work and wonder refers to the coming forth of Nephi’s own words and the words of his descendants in the Book of Mormon. And to ensure that there is no misunderstanding, Nephi emphasizes that the great purpose of the Book of Mormon (as its title page tells us) is to convince Jews and Gentiles that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. Nephi adds that his own study and angelic visitation have confirmed to him that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and will come among the Jews 600 years from the time Lehi departed Jerusalem with Nephi and the rest of his family.

It’s important to make a distinction between Jewish (or any other) people being persuaded that Christ’s divinity and saving power are real and being forced to confess this. For centuries stretching from their existence in segregated European ghettoes, to the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition, and ultimately to Eastern European pogroms and the Holocaust, Jews were hatefully treated as scapegoats by so-called Christians. What Nephi is writing does not justify such treatment for many reasons, one of which being that ultimate judgment regarding individuals’ actions and possible mistakes belongs to God. The broad-brush condemnation of an entire people for something in which they took no direct part is monstrously unfair. Just because Nephi sees that the Jews will suffer indignity does not mean that he or the Lord condones the morality of those who dole out such injustice. In fact, Nephi’s own Jewish origins (as someone who comes from the kingdom of Judah) and his evident love and sympathy for the Jewish people in the overall trajectory his prophecies take indicate that his teachings flatly oppose collective punishment.

What Nephi’s teachings do is lay out certain blessings that Jewish (and any other) individuals will be able to claim for themselves if they embrace Jesus as the Messiah and the Book of Mormon as a witness of this reality, and his teachings further demonstrate that a trend of greater Jewish acceptance of the gospel of Christ will bring to pass a restoration among the Jewish people. What kind of restoration? Well, the most important restoration Nephi describes is restoring people to a knowledge of what is eternally true. All other worldly outcomes, including the return to ancestral lands, pale in comparison to a person’s deep conviction that they have encountered something real and undeniable.

And so we see that Nephi’s overarching purpose, beyond anything else, is to prevent people from being deceived. He starts by addressing the Jews, but it soon becomes clear later in the chapter and in the following chapters that his message is to all of God’s children. In verse 20, he says simply, “And now, my brethren, I have spoken plainly that ye cannot err.” He connects his life’s mission as a special witness of Christ to that of Moses, and to making sure that through his own writings, the descendants of Joseph of Egypt (Nephites and Lamanites) will be preserved (fulfilling a prophecy from Amos 5:15 that predates Isaiah).

Nephi then explains to the people that the law of Moses remains in effect until Christ fulfills it through His own sacrifice, but that the law itself does not actually save them. It merely points the people in the direction of Christ, as it is by his grace that we are saved, “after all we can do” (verse 23).

Nephi’s great summation and exhortation for his people to share the knowledge he is giving them within their families comes in verse 26:

And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.