And it came to pass that I spake unto my brethren, saying, Let us go up again unto Jerusalem and let us be faithful in keepint the commandments of the Lord. For behold, he is mightier than all the earth, then why not mightier than Laban and his fity, yea, or even than his tens of thousands. Therefore let us go up. Let us be strong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea and they divided hither and thither and our fathers came through out of captivity on dry ground and the armies of Pharaoh did follow and were drowned in the waters of the Red Sea. Now behold, ye know that this is true; and ye also know that an angel hath spoken unto you, wherefore, can ye doubt? Let us go up; the Lord is able to deliver us, even as our fathers, and to destroy Laban, even as the Egyptians. Now when I had spoken these words they were yet wroth and did still continue to murmur; nevertheless they did follow me up until we came without the walls of Jerusalem. And it was by night, and I caused that they should hide themselves without the walls. And after they had hid themselves, I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban. And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do. Nevertheless, I went forth, and as I came near unto the house of Laban I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine. And when I came to him, I found that it was Laban, and beheld his sword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof, and the hilt thereof was of pure gold, and the workmanship thereof was exceeding fine, and I saw that the blade thereof was of the most precious steel. And it came to pass that I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban, but I said in my heart, Never at any time have I shed the blood of man, and I shrunk and would that I might not slay him. And the Spirit said unto me again, Behold, the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands. Behold, the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief. And now when I, Nephi, had heard these words I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise. Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses save they should have the law. And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass. And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause, that I might obtain the records according to his commandments; therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own sword.
Our small study group believes that, in all things, as we seek to guide ourselves to be faithful or persuade others to be faithful in keeping the commandments of God that we ought to search the scriptures and express any appeal to anyone else by referencing the scriptures.
We believe that even with a "divine" manifestation the scriptures ought to be used to gain understanding of what has been received or to determine whether the manifestation is of God or from another source.
We believe that the scriptures are exceedingly powerful in persuading all who will listen to faithfully keep the commandments of God.
We believe that these principles are what Nephi is using here to persuade his brothers, Laman and Lemuel, who have lost their resolve to obey the command given to all of them.
Isn't it interesting that Nephi uses first a reference to the scriptures to convince his brothers to be faithful?
Only after Nephi appeals to the scriptures does he mention that they also ought to remember that they had just seen an angel who had told them that the Lord would deliver Laban into their hands.
In fact, Nephi declares that Laman and Lemuel know that the scriptural account is true.
How could Laman and Lemuel know that what happened with Moses and the children of Israel is true and not believe what the angel spoke?
Are the words of scripture even more powerful than the words spoken by an angel to convince the children of men to be obedient to God?
From this experience, we see that the appearance of an angel has no power to produce faith.
Is there power in the reading of or hearing from the scriptures to produce faith?
When Ammon was with king Lamoni, after having miraculously saved the sheep and servants of the king, what did Ammon do to inspire faith in the king?
Did he cite his own miraculous power?
What did Ammon do once he knew that the king would listen to him?
"Now when Ammon had said these words he began, to the creation of the world and also the creation of Adam and told him all the things concerning the fall of man, and rehearsed and laid before him the records and the holy scriptures of the people which had been spoken by the prophets even down to the time that their father Lehi left Jerusalem...And he expounded unto them all the records and scriptures from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem down to the present time. But this is not all, for he expounded unto them the plan of redemption which was prepared from the foundation of the world, and he also made known unto them concerning the coming of Christ and all the works of the Lord did he make known unto them." (Alma 18:36 - 39, NC Alma 12 par. 16)
Would it have been possible for Ammon, or anyone else for that matter, to preach with such power if Nephi and his brothers had not been sent by the Lord to retrieve the brass plates from Laban?
Ammon's grandfather King Benjamin taught Ammon's father and uncles concerning the scriptures.
"And he also taught them concerning the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, saying, My sons, I would that ye should remember that were it not for these plates which contain these records and these commandments, we must have suffered in ignorance, even at this present time, not knowing the mysteries of God. For it were not possible that our father Lehi could have remembered all these things to have taught them to his children, except it were for the help of these plates. For he having been taught in the language of the Egyptians; therefore he could read these engravings and teach them to his children, that thereby they could teach them to their children, and so fulfilling the commandments of God even down to this present time." (Mosiah 1:3 - 4, NC Mosiah 1 par. 1)
Is this what Nephi was referring to the first time he sought to persuade his brothers not to fail in obtaining the brass plates?
"And behold, it is wisdom in God that we should obtain these records that we may preserve unto our children the language of our fathers; and also that we may preserve unto them the words which have been spoken by the mouth of all the holy prophets which have been delivered unto them by the Spirit and power of God since the world began, even down unto this present time." (1 Nephi 3:19, NC 1 Nephi 1 par. 12)
Is what King Benjamin taught his sons related to what was brought to Nephi's remembrance there on that dark street with Laban?
"...I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that inasmuch as they seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise. Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses save they should have the law. And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass." (1 Nephi 4:14 - 16, NC 1 Nephi 1 par.17)
What is it about the reading of and study of scriptures that can produce so much power unto faith and salvation?
How is it that Nephi was able to use scripture to persuade a still wroth Laman and Lemuel to go with him back to Jerusalem?
What is it about what Ammon shared with Lamoni and his household from the scriptures that had such great power to produce faith in Lamoni and the others?
Do we have any other example of the reading of scripture endowing faith and even power?
"...my father Lehi took the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, and he did search them from the beginning...And now, when my father saw all these things he was filled with the Spirit and began to prophesy concerning his seed: that these plates of brass should go forth unto all nations, kindreds, and tongues, and people who were of his seed. Wherefore, he said that these plates of brass should never perish neither should they be dimmed any more by time. And he prophesied many other things concerning his seed." (1 Nephi 5:17 - 19, NC 1 Nephi 1 par. 22)
Isn't it interesting that it was the act of studying the brass plates that filled Lehi with the Spirit to where he was able to prophesy?
Is this reminiscent of what happened to Lehi when he was caught up to the heavenly temple before they left Jerusalem?
"...and the first came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book, and bade him that he should read. And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord. And he read, saying: Wo,wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations! Yea, and many things did my father read concerning Jerusalem - that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be carried away captive into Babylon." (1 Nephi 1:12 - 13, NC 1 Nephi 1 par. 3)
Do we have any other examples of this in scripture?
There are probably many many examples but here is one that is well known.
"We, Joseph Smith Jr. and Sidney Rigdon, being in the Spirit on the sixteenth of February, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty-two, by the power of the Spirit our eyes were opened and our understandings were enlarged so as to see and understand the things of God, even those things which wer from the beginning, before the world was, which were ordained of the Father through his Only Begotten Son, who was in the bosom of the Father even from the beginning, of whom we bear record. And the record which we bear is the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, who is the Son, whom we saw and with whom we conversed in the Heavenly vision. For while we were doing the work of translation which the Lord had appointed unto us, we came to the twenty-ninth verse of the fifth chapter of John [John 5:5], which was given to us as follows, speaking of the resurrection of the dead, concerning those who shall hear the voice of the Son of Man and shall come forth, they who have done good in the resurrection of the just, and they who have done evil in the resurrection of the unjust. Now this caused us to marvel, for it was given unto us of the Spirit. And while we meditated upon these things, the Lord touched the eyes of our understandings and they were opened, and the glory of the Lord shone round about and we beheld the glory of the Son on the right hand of the Father and received of his fullness, and saw the holy angels and they who are sanctified before his throne worshipping God and the Lamb, who worship him for ever and ever."(D&C 76:11 - 21, T&C 69 pars. 3 - 4)
In every one of these examples the individuals are filled with the Spirit as they read.
There is power given by being filled with the Spirit that allows them to receive from God.
What is the "Spirit" mentioned here?
Is it related to what we are taught about the "Holy Spirit" in the Lectures on Faith, "Lecture Fifth"?
Is it the mind of God?
Are the scriptures a door to connect with the "mind of God"?
Is the following another example of this same scriptural phenomenon?
"In the midst of this war of words and tumult of opinions I often said to myself, What is to be done? Who of all these parties are right? Or are they all wrong together? And if any one of them be right, which is it? And how shall I know it? While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading in the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse [Epistle of Jacob 1:2], which reads, if any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not, and it shall be given him. Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I relflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from God, I did...I at last came to the determination to ask of God,..." (Joseph Smith History verses 10 - 13, T&C 1, JSH part 2 par. 3)
Was Joseph filled with the "Spirit" when he read those words in James [Jacob]?
Have I ever had an experience where I was filled with the "Spirit" as I have been studying the scritpures?
Have any scriptures entered into my heart with great force and conviction?
Have I received greater light, greater understanding, have I been convicted by my many sins and brought down to repent, have I been filled with the Spirit to prophesy, have the heavens been opened to my view, has any of this happened to me as a consequence of studying in the scriptures?
Do I believe that such things are still possible today?
If I do not believe such things are possible is it because I know not concerning the dealings of my Creator among men?
Do the scriptures really hold this much power?
"And now, as the preaching of the word had had a greater tendency to lead the people to do that which was just, yea, it had had more powerful effect upon the minds of the people than the sword or anything else which had happened to them, therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God." (Alma 31:5, NC Alma 16 par. 16)
When Alma was preaching what were the words he was declaring?
Weren't all of his words teachings from the scriptures?
How should I (we) consider the scriptures?
If the scriptures contain this much power what can I (we) do to access it?
Did Nephi see an appeal to the scriptures as more powerful than the words of an angel to convince his brothers to return again with him to Jerusalem?
As Nephi is going forth to the house of Laban, to keep the commandments of the Lord, he comes to a situation that must be addressed in order to understand how one is faithful to keep the commandments of the Lord.
The account of Nephi killing a drunken undefended Laban has long been a contended item.
I have heard many say that this account in the Book of Mormon is proof that the Book of Mormon is not a book from God for God would not command such a thing.
We as a group have studied some principles that I think apply here in a very important way.
1) "And now it came to pass that when Jesus had spoken these words he turned again to the multitude and did open his mouth unto them again saying, Verily, verily I say unto you, Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged, and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again." (3 Nephi 14:1 - 2, NC 3 Nephi 6 par. 2)
When Laman first went to request the plates from Laban what did Laban say to him?
Didn't Laban call Laman a robber or thief and pronounce the judgment of death upon him for that?
When the sons of Lehi brought their property to Laban to trade for the plates what did Laban do?
Didn't Laban rob them of their property?
Was the Lord visiting upon the head of Laban the same judgment Laban had pronounced upon Laman?
How should I look at this command from the Lord not to judge seeing what the Lord visited upon Laban when he judged Laman?
2) "There is a difference between virtue and righteousness. Virtue is laudable, required and necessary, but righteousness has priority. Virtue surrenders to righteousness, not vice-versa. The point can be illustrated from scripture:
It is not virtuous to kill. Nephi was repulsed at the idea, but the Lord required it, and Nephi complied. The doctrinal reasons justifying the killing are set out in The Second Comforter, and there were sufficient reasons both under the Law of Moses and the Lord’s standards of judgment to vindicate the Lord’s decision to kill Laban. The killing was offensive to virtue, but it was righteous.
It is not virtuous to mockingly taunt others. Yet Elijah was pursuing a righteous course against the priests of Baal when he did just that: “And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said, Cry aloud: for he is a god; either he is talking, or he is pursuing, or he is in a journey, orperadventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.” (1 Kings 18: 27.) Mocking is both unvirtuous and uncouth, and in this context would qualify only as righteous.
It is not virtuous to rail against the religious leaders of any faith. Yet John the Baptist rebuked the Scribes and Pharisees as a generation of vipers: “Then said he to the multitude that came forth to be baptized of him, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Luke 3: 7.) This term of derision, “generation of vipers” is graphic and in context it is both offensive and uncouth. Yet he was a righteous man, moreso than any other apart from Christ. (Luke 7: 28.)
It was not virtuous for Christ to rebuke His accusers: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! … for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. Woe unto you, ye blind guides, … ye fools and blind…” (Matt. 23: 14-17.) The language of the Lord here is quite blunt, uncouth and in the context of that language, gutteral. It was righteous, but not an example of virtuous language.
It was worse still for Christ to call Herod “that fox.” This is a term of derision comparable in our own language to calling someone a “son of a bitch.” (Luke 13: 32.) Yet it was righteous, justified and appropriate.
It was blunt and threatening for Joseph to tell his guards in Liberty Jail: “SILENCE, ye fiends of the infernal pit. In the name of Jesus Christ I rebuke you, and command you to be still; I will not live another minute and hear such language. Cease such talk, or you or I die THIS INSTANT!” (Taken from The Autobiography of Parley P. Pratt, emphasis in original.) Calling another a “fiend of the infernal pit” is quite abrasive and offensive; it was intended to be so.
Those who prefer virtue to righteousness will handicap their ability to work for the Lord’s ends. He will always require righteousness to be done. When someone prefers virtue and neglects righteousness, or condemns the righteous for their lack of virtue, their inappropriate standard serves only one purpose. It gets applied against the one proposing to use it. They get to be measured by the standard they apply. (Matt. 7: 22.)
I choose to look at Elijah, John the Baptist, Christ and Joseph Smith, as well as any other person moved to rebuke me or anyone else by the power of the Holy Ghost as fully justified and Christlike. I do not resist the challenge of a righteous rebuke. I welcome them. No one should feel they cannot “damn” me. I’ll consider it important and will respond with my defense, or an apology if I think it is warranted.
It is important for you to know that I do not think Christ is a limp-wristed, lisping chap who dotes on us and has nothing but bouquets of flowers to dispense to us. I think He’s about to return in judgment, dressed in red to burn the wicked. He has said that is who He is and I believe Him. I would like to have as many people take that seriously and consider repenting. We are mistaken in our belief that we are chosen. We are mistaken when we think we are too good to be in need of continual repentance. We are nothing before God. We are about to see His judgments. I know these ideas make me irritating.
As Hugh Nibley put it, “there is nothing so irritating as being awakened from a sound sleep.” But my hope is to awaken some few. Therefore, it is worth offending a great number if the result benefit a few. That is the way things work here and I am quite realistic about it all." ("Virtue and Righteousness," Denver Snuffer Blog, May 7, 2012.)
The above is a long quotation but it is important to see that Nephi is acting in righteousness even if we think that he is unvirtuous.
The scriptues state that Abraham's works, which included the sacrifice of Isaac on the alter, were counted unto him for righteousness. (Romans, NC Romans 1 par. 18)
Virtue would never have tied up Isaac and placed him on the alter.
Laban used his own agency to set up the situation where it was just and righteous for Nephi to kill him.
For Nephi to be obedient to every command of God he had to submit to this command as well; to kill Laban.
Nephi showed meekness in doing this.
Nephi was repulsed by the idea of killing Laban but, as we discussed in an earlier post what meekness is, he was willing to subordinate his own will to the Lord; doing something that was exceedingly unpleasant to him.
Again, we as a group believe that God in His mighty power translated the Book of Mormon and told the Prophet Joseph what was to be written.
Therefore, what we have in the Book of Mormon is God's interpretation and what He has sent to test and to try us.
This whole account of Lehi's sons retrieving the brass plates is important.
God put it there for a wise purpose.
We are sure that there are many many more things to be learned from this account and we believe that as anyone studies it they will be filled with the Spirit to enlighten their understanding and discover the great things God has placed right before our eyes, hidden in plain sight.
