Commentary for Book of Mormon: 1 Nephi 11-15

Chapter 11 

Receiving Answers to Prayers 

In this chapter, Nephi's statement (and promise) of God showing us His mysteries based on our diligence comes to fruition.

Nephi explains

1. For it came to pass after I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain, which I never had before seen, and upon which I never had before set my foot.

Here, Nephi provides three steps to receiving answers from the Lord.

1. Have desire 
2. Believe That the Lord Will Answer 
3. Ponder 

Additional to these three components, notice what Nephi is praying for. He is praying to see what his father saw. Thus he is specific in his request. 

Pondering In The Heart 

Nephi states that has he sat pondering in his heart, he was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord. 1828 Dictionary defines pondering as the "weigh[ing] in the mind....to view with deliberation; to examine."

Furthermore, why does Nephi say he was "pondering in [his] heart." The heart pumps blood -- why does Nephi associate the heart with cognition? 

Since the Book of Mormon is a Hebrew based book, understanding the meaning of heart (Lev) in Hebrew elucidates Nephi's statement. In Biblical Hebrew (Ancient Hebrew) the heart is associated with the inner essence of the person. The heart, in other words, is who one really is. 

Seeing this, the Lord's statement in Ezekiel about creating a new heart makes sense. 

26. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 36)

This statement is referring to future gathering of Israel, where those who are gathered to Zion are given a new heart, a heart of flesh, not stone. This statement is then referring to a complete inner change of the people gathered to Zion. 

For Nephi then, his statement of pondering in his heart could refer to the degree of pondering. He thought deeply about what he desired to see. To do this kind of thinking likely didn't happen in a few minutes. Rather, it might have taken a long time. And since pondering refers to deliberation and evaluation, this type of thinking can't be rushed. 

This could be a lesson for us. Perhaps the reason why we feel the Lord doesn't answer us is because we don't seek him long enough for him to answer us. 

Based on this info, we could then describe the steps as follows: 

1. Have a desire
2. Believe that the Lord will answer
3. Ponder (deliberate, evaluate) deeply within the soul
4. Be specific in what you're asking for 

Questions To Consider

Nephi's vision is quite amazing and it goes on for a few chapters. I don't have time or space to examine each detail, but I do want to ask from questions for pondering, since there are details in this vision worth pondering on. 

Question: Why does the Spirit of the Lord, before showing him Lehi's vision, ask whether Nephi believes that Lehi saw the tree? In verse 6, the Spirit says that Nephi will see the things he desired because of his belief. How is belief and receiving answers connected? Could Nephi have seen what he desired if he didn't believe? Why is belief seemingly necessary? 

Question: Two messengers visit Nephi during his vision: 1) The Spirit of the Lord and 2) The angel. Who might the Spirit of the Lord be? 

Question: In verse 7, Nephi is told that the things he'll see are "give unto thee for a sign." What might this mean? 

Question: The Spirit explain that after Nephi sees the Tree of Life, he will see the Savior. How is the Tree of Life and the Savior connected? 

Question: Nephi sees what his father saw, but how does what he saw also differ from what his father saw? Why might this matter? (E.g., who does Nephi see in the Great and Spacious Building compared to Lehi?)

Chapter 12 

Two Groups Saved By Faith 

Continuing Nephi's dream, let's explore some additional themes. As stated above, Nephi's vision is rich, complex, and full of meaning and significance into God's working among humanity.

The first theme, which I won't discuss much of, is to pay attention to the two groups that Nephi sees.

1 And it came to pass that the angel said unto me: Look, and behold thy seed, and also the seed of thy brethren. And I looked and beheld the land of promise; and I beheld multitudes of people, yea, even as it were in number as many as the sand of the sea.

Throughout this chapter, Nephi sees the his seed (the Nephites) and the seed of his brethern (the Lamanites) and their outcome. It's worthwhile to track the outcome of each group throughout this chapter.

In addition to this, Nephi also describes those, in juxtaposition to the wicked, are saved in Christ. Let's look at both groups:

Group 1 -- the 12 Nephite Ministers

10 And these twelve ministers whom thou beholdest shall judge thy seed. And, behold, they are righteous forever; for because of their faith in the Lamb of God their garments are made white in his blood.

Group 2 -- Those of the 3rd Generation

11 And the angel said unto me: Look! And I looked, and beheld three generations pass away in righteousness; and their garments were white even like unto the Lamb of God. And the angel said unto me: These are made white in the blood of the Lamb, because of their faith in him.

A good rule-of-thumb in the scriptures is that if a word or phrase is repeated, it's for a reason. Here, Nephi sees that both the 12 Ministers and Those of the 3rd Generation (aka--those living after Christ's ministry to the Americas. He notes that for both of these people they were saved (made white) because of their faith.

Thus Nephi links faith to each group's salvation. Seeing this, we should ask: what does it mean to have faith that saves? Although not comprehensive, reading about each of these groups is illuminating into what it means to have saving faith. I won't look at them here, but it's worthwhile to read about each group and their behavior.

Mist of Darkness

The last comment deals with the mist of darkness Nephi sees. From Lehi's vision, we learn of the mist of darkness that covers and blinds people, preventing them from reaching the Tree of Life. Yet Lehi's dream doesn't tell us what the mist of darkness represent. We instead learn that in Nephi's vision.

Nephi explains that the mists of darkness represents the temptations of the devil. Most of us know this. But most of us also don't consider the entire verse as whole.

17 And the mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost.

Not only does Nephi tell what the mist of darkness represent, but he also explains its effect -- causing spiritual blindness, which leads to hardening of one's heart. This hardening ultimately leads to becoming lost.

Thus the danger of succumbing to temptation is that is leads to spiritual blindness, which blindness ultimately leads to becoming lost. And what are we lost from? The Tree of Life.

This is a complicated topic that requires adjusting the lens we read scripture with. But suffice it to say that Nephi is showing us the real reason why temptation is bad. Most of us think if we succumb to temptation, we've sinned and therefore we have some "stain" on us. Yet, Nephi doesn't bring that up. This is not to say that there is no stain. But it is to say that merely thinking to temptation giving us a "stain" misunderstands the gravity of temptation.

The real danger in succumbing to temptation is that in blinds our spiritual eyes. And by being blinded, we harden our hearts. In other chapters, Nephi is explicit that Laman and Lemuel don't understand the Lord's ways because of their hard hearts. It's their hearts that are the problem. If you read the scriptures, you will learn that the Lord's objective is to change our hearts. And as we learned earlier, our heart is who we (truly) are.

Ultimately then, when we succumb to temptation, our core-self becomes hardened, less receptive to God's spirit and influence. And being more dull to receiving the Spirit, we don't know the way forward, thus becoming lost.

To put this is another context, the Hebrew word translated as repentance (and the names of this blog) is teshuvah. The word teshuvah simply means to return. Thus to repent means to return to God. In some sense, our mortal probation is a actual journey back to the Tree of Life (the presence of God). But temptation causes us to become lost.

Therefore, temptation occurs when we are prompted to do something we know is wrong. If we heed that temptation, then we've willfully gone against light and truth. As a result, we've rejected light and accepted darkness. By so doing, we metaphorically turned off the lights in our room and chosen to dwell in darkness. If we fail to repent and correct our conduct, we'll remain in darkness. And if we remain, we'll continue accepting more and more darkness until we aren't able to comprehend the light -- this is what it means to become past feeling.

Viewed for this perspective, the reason why we are to avoid temptation is more subtle than having a "stain" or becoming unclean, but it concerns our relationship to God and our ability to access Him. Like Lehi's dream, if we are in the a dark, we can't find God.

Thinking of temptation in this way helps us to recognize that God doesn't give commands for the sake of giving them. He gives commands for us to accept more light. That is the entire purpose of God's commands. This also means, as discussed in the previous blog, that each of us will have different personal commands. We stunt our growth if we believe the only commands to follow are the one's given by the church.

Consider this verse from Doctrine and Covenants about the saints in Zion (and by Zion, I mean the millennial kingdom, not SLC).

3 Yea, blessed are they whose feet stand upon the land of Zion, who have obeyed my gospel; for they shall receive for their reward the good things of the earth, and it shall bring forth in its strength.
4 And they shall also be crowned with blessings from above, yea, and with commandments not a few, and with revelations in their time—they that are faithful and diligent before me. (Doctrine and Covenants 59)

To be part of Zion is to be blessed with additional commandments. This is because part of living in Zion involves growing in further light and truth.

But we don't have to wait for Zion to gain further light and truth. Nephi, Brother of Jared, and others were able to obtain the mysteries of God while not living in a Zion society. We can all do the same.

Chapter 13 

For this chapter, I would like to comment on two ideas: 1) The Great and Abominable Church and 2) The Significance of the Book of Mormon

The Great and Abominable Church

Despite what many may think, the Great and Abominable Church (or GAC for short) is not the Catholic Church. This for two reasons.

4 And it came to pass that I saw among the nations of the Gentiles the formation of a great church.
5 And the angel said unto me: Behold the formation of a church which is most abominable above all other churches, which slayeth the saints of God, yea, and tortureth them and bindeth them down, and yoketh them with a yoke of iron, and bringeth them down into captivity.

The first reason GAC is not the Catholic Church is based on other verses in the 1 Nephi 14, where the angel explains:

10 And he said unto me: Behold there are save two churches only; 1) the one is the church of the Lamb of God, and 2) the other is the church of the devil; wherefore, whoso belongeth not to the church of the Lamb of God belongeth to that great church, which is the mother of abominations; and she is the whore of all the earth. (1 Nephi 14) 

 Since there are two churches, the GAC must mean something more than the Catholic church, since there are only two churches. Otherwise, every other philosophy and world organization is part of the church of the Lamb of God. This can't be true. Evil exists in many form within this world. It can't all come from the Catholic Church.

This verse allows tells us that Nephi is using the word "church" broadly. He is not using it as we use it today. Instead, "church" refers to an organization or collection of people based on their thought and beliefs -- you either believe in good or evil.

The second reason is based on other books in the Bible. In 1 Nephi 14, it tells that another person, who is a disciple of Christ and named John, saw what Nephi saw and wrote about it. This John is, of course, John who wrote the Book of Revelation. He also talks about the GAC, except he refers to her as "the whore." Nephi does as well (she is the whore of all the earth.) 

In Revelation,

1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters: (Revelation 17)

Later we learn who the "whore of the earth" is.

5 And upon her forehead (the whore of the earth) was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. (Id.)

Thus, connecting Revelation's "whore of the earth" with Nephi's GAC, we learn that GAC is Babylon. Not the literal Babylon, but the spiritual Babylon, representing the evil ideology of the world.

The Significance of the Book of Mormon

In verse 20, Nephi "beholds a book" carried by the Gentiles living in the Americas. The angel then explains the following:

23 ... Behold it (the book) proceedeth out of the mouth of a Jew. And I, Nephi, beheld it; and he said unto me: The book that thou beholdest is a record of the Jews, which contains the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; and it also containeth many of the prophecies of the holy prophets; and it is a record like unto the engravings which are upon the plates of brass, save there are not so many; nevertheless, they contain the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; wherefore, they are of great worth unto the Gentiles. 

24 And the angel of the Lord said unto me: Thou hast beheld that the book proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew; and when it proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew it contained the fulness of the gospel of the Lord, of whom the twelve apostles bear record; and they bear record according to the truth which is in the Lamb of God.

The book contains the following:

1. Record of the Jews
2. Contains covenants of the Lord 
3. Record like those in the plates of brass, except not as many as are in the plates of brass 
4. Proceeds from the "mouth of a Jew"

We know this is referring to the Old Testament because the New Testament, as a compiled book, was not compiled until long after the 12 apostles. This book is the Old Testament. The Jew referenced is likely Ezra the Scribe. Verse 24 suggests that he was responsible for compiling the Old Testament. The Bible, as we know it, was complied after Babylon captivity.

In the subsequent verses, we also learn that when it was first compiled, the Old Testament contained the fulness of the Gospel. It later is distorted and many things are taken out, causing many to stumble, giving Satan power of them.

Interesting that the angel says many precious things were taken out. He never says that false things were put in? Does this difference mean anything?

Towards the end of the chapter, we learn

40 And the angel spake unto me, saying: These last records, which thou hast seen among the Gentiles, shall establish the truth of the first, which are of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, and shall make known the plain and precious things which have been taken away from them; and shall make known to all kindreds, tongues, and people, that the Lamb of God is the Son of the Eternal Father, and the Savior of the world; and that all men must come unto him, or they cannot be saved. 

41 And they must come according to the words which shall be established by the mouth of the Lamb; and the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb; wherefore they both shall be established in one; for there is one God and one Shepherd over all the earth.

These last records refers to the Book of Mormon and other records that will come forth and will teach us about the plain and precious things which were removed from the Old Testament. They will also teach that Christ is the savior of the world.

...and the words of the Lamb shall be made known in the records of thy seed, as well as in the records of the twelve apostles of the Lamb; (1 Nephi 13:41) 

Thy seed refers to Nephi's seed. This is where Nephi likely learns of the need to keep a record of his ministry, so that the words of God can be preserved for the Gentiles.

This is why the Book of Mormon is so important. Yes, it's the most correct of any other book. But what does that mean? It means that it contains the things we need to know in order to avoid be taken over by Satan. Through the Book of Mormon we are able to learn about the complete gospel. The Lord did this for us in the last days so that we, like the ancients, would have a record that is accurate and complete in describing the gospel.

And what are some of those things?

• How mysteries are made known unto man 
• To process for receiving revelation and inspiration
• The role of the gentiles in assisting the House of Israel 
• The lost teachings of Zenos 
• How to retain a remission of sins 
• The office and calling of a seer 
• The relationship between justice and mercy 
• How to receive the sealing power 
• The need to enter God's presence in mortality. 

Chapter 14

What The Gentiles Have to Gain 

It's important to remember that the plates did not have chapters. They were not divided into categories of chapter and verse like our Book of Mormon. This is important because sometimes the beginning of the chapter is not necessarily the beginning of a new thought, but is instead a continuation from the previous chapter. This is the case here. The beginning of chapter 14 is continuing from the end of chapter 13.

1 And it shall come to pass, that if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks— 

2 And harden not their hearts against the Lamb of God, they shall be numbered among the seed of thy father; yea, they shall be numbered among the house of Israel; and they shall be a blessed people upon the promised land forever; they shall be no more brought down into captivity; and the house of Israel shall no more be confounded.

That day refers to day when the Lord brings forth the records containing the previous and plain truths of the gospel. That day, in other words, is now. This verse is referring to us. These two verses explain what we, the Gentiles, need to do.

Let's then rephrase the verses. The Lord says that if the Gentiles (us) hearken unto Christ in the day he reveals other books containing the fulness of the gospel and not hardening our hearts against God (see verse 2), the following will occur.

• God will manifest himself unto us in word, power, and in deed. 
• Be numbered us among the Lamanites (i.e., seed of thy (Nephi's father)) 
• Be blessed 
• Be brought into captivity no more
• House of Israel will longer be confounded (be in disorder) 

Have these things occurred? 

• Has God brought the House of Israel out disorder? Or are they still scattered? 
• Are we out of captivity? Captivity in the Book of Mormon often refers to spiritual captivity? Are we free from temptation? 
• Are we numbered among the Lamanites? 
• Has God manifested himself unto his power? Can we confidently say that we have the same power of heaven as the ancients before us? Are we able to move mountains like Enoch? Part the Red Sea like Moses? Heal the sick and afflicted like the apostles? 

If we can't answer yes to any of these, then we have not properly hearkened to the Lord. That being the case, what are we doing about it? Are we surrender ourselves to the Lord daily, allowing our will to be subsumed in his? 

These are the things that the Lord is looking for. If going to church, fasting, and attending the temple are not producing the fruits listed above, then maybe we should reexamine what the Lord really requires of us. 

And even if we answer yes to all. What about verse 3 and 4, which states if the Gentiles hearken to the Lord the pit of the Great and Abominable church (Babylon) will be filled. Has Babylon fallen or is it stronger than ever? 

Two Great Works of God 

Nephi describes two great works that God will initiate before the Lord's Second Coming. They are the 1) Marvelous Work and Wonder and 2) Work of the Father. 

Marvelous Work and Wonder 

We may think that these two works are one and the same. But a close reading of the passages shows that this is not the case. Let's first start with a Marvelous Work and Wonder 

7 For the time cometh, saith the Lamb of God, that I will work a great and a marvelous work among the children of men; a work which shall be everlasting, either on the one hand or on the other—either to the convincing of them unto peace and life eternal, or unto the deliverance of them to the hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds unto their being brought down into captivity, and also into destruction, both temporally and spiritually, according to the captivity of the devil, of which I have spoken.

The Lord appears to speaking to Nephi, explaining that soon the Lord will work a great and marvelous work.

This work will serve two purposes: 1) convincing humanity of peace and eternal life OR 2) delivering humanity to the hardness of their heart and blindness of mind.

There are only two responses we, as humans, can chose: be convinced of peace OR be delivered to a heard heart because we rejected the gospel.

Why does God need to convince of us peace and eternal life? Could it be that the real truths of the gospel and what is required of us go against our intuition -- inasmuch that we need convincing?

Notable, the 1828 Webster's Dictionary have a few definitions for the word convince:

1. "To persuade or satisfy the mind by evidence; to subdue the opposition of the mind to truth, or to what is alleged, and compel it to yield its assent; as, to convince a man of his errors; or to convince him of the truth."
2. "To convict; to prove guilty; to constrain one to admit or acknowledge himself to be guilty."
3. "To envince; to prove."

Definitions (1) and (2) are illuminating. Although they have slightly different meaning, they both denote the idea of convincing us of our guilt or wrong. Definition (1) is also interesting because one of the definition is of convince is to "convince man of his errors" or "to convince him of truth." 

Perhaps in order to be convinced of peace and eternal life, we have be convinced of our errors and also convinced of the truth of peace and eternal life. 

If we reject the gospel, we are turned over to the hard hearts and become spiritual blind, lead in spiritual captivity and facing both spiritual and temporal destruction. The stakes are high. 

Work of the Father 

The next work, after the Marvelous Work and Wonder, is the Work of the Father. Verse 17 reads, 

17 And when the day cometh that the wrath of God is poured out upon the mother of harlots, which is the great and abominable church of all the earth, whose founder is the devil, then, at that day (the day of God's wrath), the work of the Father shall commence, in preparing the way for the fulfilling of his covenants, which he hath made to his people who are of the house of Israel.

The first indication when the Work of the Father begins is the day of God's wrath. In verse 16, we learn that this day occurs when "there [begins] to be wars and rumors of wars among all the nations which [belong] to the mother of abominations (Babylon).." 

Thus when all nation are engaged in war, God's another work, the Work of the Father begins. Unlike the Marvelous Work and Wonder, this work is specific to the House of Israel. 

The Gentiles rejection of God's gospel, will unleash his wrath. By rejecting the Gospel, the Gentiles are now under judgment. God will then turn back to the House of Israel to call them to repentance.  

We may think this is already happening through missionary work, but it appears the true gathering happens once the Gentiles reject the Gospel. It is then that the Lord will remember his covenant with the House of Israel, and bring all who repent to Zion. 

Are we there yet? Have we embraced the gospel as God intended? Again, refer to chapter 14 (verses 1 and 2). Have we seen any of those results? Has God manifested himself to us in power? Are we free from temptation?  

To receive what the Lord is offering, requires us to believe. Consider these verses from Doctrine and Covenants:

64 Therefore, as I said unto mine apostles I say unto you again, that every soul who believeth on your words, and is baptized by water for the remission of sins, shall receive the Holy Ghost.
65 And these signs shall follow them that believe—
66 In my name they shall do many wonderful works;
67 In my name they shall cast out devils;
68 In my name they shall heal the sick;
69 In my name they shall open the eyes of the blind, and unstop the ears of the deaf;
70 And the tongue of the dumb shall speak;
71 And if any man shall administer poison unto them it shall not hurt them;
72 And the poison of a serpent shall not have power to harm them.

Doctrine and Covenants 84 gives us the sings of those who believe. If you truly believe in Christ, you're able to perform miracles. Note that doing these miracles are done through belief in Christ; one does not need the priesthood to do these things.

Have these signs followed us? Do we perform these miracles? If not, we may not truly believe in Christ. And because of these, we have not fully accepted his gospel. This ultimately means that we may be more under Satan's control then we think.

If so, what are we doing about it?

Chapter 15

Because of space, I will briefly comment on chapter 15.

• In verse 11, Nephi repeats the way we receive answers from God. Let's track the elements: 1) Not harden our heart (hearts are soft)l 2) ask in faith; 3) believe that you shall receive; 4) be diligent in keeping God's commands. 
• Perhaps one explanation for not receiving answers to our prayers is that we are not satisfying all or at least one of these elements. 

• In verse 13, we learn that through us, the Gentiles, the fullness of the gospel will go forth to the Lamanites.