1 Nephi 1:3-4

 

As I mentioned yesterday in my post, I think that most Latter-Day-Saints use the words “I know” in their testimonies more by tradition rather than actually “knowing.” Nephi on the other hand has experiences to back up his “knowing”. In 1 Nephi 1:3 he writes: “And I know that the record which I make is true; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my knowledge. (emphasis mine).

Reading the footnotes of verse 4 we can learn many things about the downfall of Jerusalem.  The footnotes lead us to three sources of the same information: 2 Kings, 2 Chronicles, and Jeremiah. Let’s take a quick look at the history that led up to Zedekiah being king; obviously a wicked king that would lead to the destruction of Jerusalem.

Zedekiah was a puppet king who was appointed by Nebuchadnezzar after Babylon invaded Jerusalem. 2 Chronicles claims Zedekiah is Nebuchadnezzar’s uncle (2 Chron. 36:17), but  2 Chronicles 36:10 claims they are brothers. In 589 BC Zedekiah revolted against the Babylonian overlords and for the second time, Nebuchadnezzar advanced on Jerusalem with a large army. In 587, the northern wall of the then starving city was breached and Zedekiah, while fleeing, was taken captive on the Jericho Plain. He was brought before Nebuchadnezzar where he was force to watch the slaying of his children.

A few curious things are brought to light during this reading. Zedekiah was 21 years old when he was appointed king; rather young to have children by today’s standards but perhaps he did. He was captured after reigning nine years, thus making him about 30 years old. Of course it is possible he had several children by the age of 30. Most curious of all is found in the book of Helaman in the Book of Mormon.

“Now the land south was called Lehi, and the land north was called Mulek, which was after the son of Zedekiah; for the Lord did bring Mulek into the land north, and Lehi into the land south.” Helaman 6:10

Here we learn that Mulek was the son of Zedekiah. The heading of the new 2013 version of the Book of Omni reads “The descendants of Mulek at Zarahemla had discovered Coriantumr, the last of the Jaredites…”  Reading this text has always made me think Mulek was their leader. Of course we don’t know the time frame of any of this but on the surface it appears Mulek was a child when in some fashion was swept out of Jerusalem and preserved from the murder of Zedekiahs’s other children.

Nephi states that “many prophets” came that year, prophesying unto the people to repent or be destroyed. Let’s discover some of those other prophets. Of course we know that Jeremiah was THE prophet of the day, but who were some of the others? Once again the footnotes help us. Jeremiah 26 tells us of two others.

18 Micah the Morasthite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah, and spake to all the people of Judah, saying, Thus saith the Lord of hosts; Zion shall be plowed like a field, and Jerusalem shall become heaps, and the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.

And

20 And there was also a man that prophesied in the name of the Lord, Urijah the son of Shemaiah of Kirjath-jearim, who prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah:

Urijah was hunted down and killed.

We also learn from The Book of Daniel that Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah (the latter three betterknow as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego) were all taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar at this time.

I realize this is a bit of a tangent, and probably fits better a little later in 1 Nephi,  but I want to take a minute to discuss this story and compare it to us in the Latter-Day church.

We learn from the Book of Daniel that there are few stories of faith that would compare to the stories of Daniel and Meshach, Shadrach, and Abed-Nego. All were taken captive by the wicked Nebuchadnezzar and were taken into slavery. All were ultimately thrown into prison and/or condemned to die because of their unwillingness to break certain commandments. All were miraculously spared by the power of God.  At the same time, Lehi and his family were warned to “get out” prior to the captivity. I ask myself why would the Lord lead some away (while still undergoing great tribulation), and allow others to be taken captive and obviously suffer great trials?

It’s obvious in hind sight, that Lehi and his family was no more righteous than Daniel and his group. The Lord allowed both to suffer, and both to be blessed. From the outside, however, if Daniel knew Lehi and his family, and knew they were led away prior to the captivity, would Daniel have wondered why he was captured while Lehi was free to do as he pleases? Are we guilty of similar thinking in the church today? Do we look around and wonder why our trials seem greater than others in our ward? If we put on our eternal perspective glasses will we see that the Lord is leading is on a path that is for our benefit? I hope so.

Next post we will discover what Lehi does to prepare himself for meeting the Lord.

I welcome your comments.

God's Mercy

Elder Gene R. Cook once wrote that one of the most misunderstood scriptures in the Book of Mormon was found in Moroni’s promise in Moroni 10:3

“Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts.”

The misunderstanding seems to come from the word “it”; the fourth word from the end. What exactly is “it” that we are to ponder in our hearts?

The common belief by most of us is that when we read “these things, if it be wisdom in God that we should read them,” that we should ponder “them” in our hearts. But this isn’t what Moroni says… he says ponder “it.” The only “it” he could be referring to in this sentence is “how merciful the Lord has been unto the children of men.” This changes our focus quite dramatically.

We have been taught by many gospel scholars over the years of the ancient literary writing style known as chiasmus. A chiasm, as I understand it, is literary writing structure that places concepts in symmetrical order. For example, suppose that the first topic in a text is labeled by A, the second topic is labeled by B and the third topic is labeled by C. If the topics in the text appear in the order ABC…CBA so that the first concept that comes up is also the last, the second is the second to last.

A simple example of a chiasm in the New Testament is found in John 1:1-2
In the beginning was the Word, (A)
and the Word was with God, (B)
and the Word was God. (B')
The same was in the beginning with God. (A')

I find it interesting that the Book of Mormon starts and ends in a similar manner. In 1 Nephi 1:20 we read: ““But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen.”

Then in Moroni 10:3 we are asked to ponder “how merciful the Lord has been.”

It is of this mercy that I wish to write today.

I have often felt throughout my life that the Lord blesses me well beyond what I deserve. I hesitate to use the word deserve because I know that I don’t really deserve anything. I guess what I mean to say is that I have feel more blessed than what my imperfect mind and heart feel I should- knowing all of my sins and imperfections. For this I am deeply grateful to my Heavenly Father.

Although I have honestly strived throughout my life to do the things the Lord asks of me, I have lived a life filled with rebellion, envy, pride, lust, and sin. Despite this behavior, the Lord has shown His tender mercies toward me and given me every opportunity to repent and to succeed. I have been given opportunity after opportunity to serve in His Kingdom. My prayers have always been answered and I have always felt the power of the Holy Ghost in my life.

Roughly seven years ago, I was living the life of a mediocre Latter Day Saint. I went to church, I read my scriptures, I said my prayers most of the time, and I attended the temple every month or two. I had a testimony… I felt it was a strong testimony. I had experienced many wonderful things that really strengthened my faith. I had repented of many things. I was busy raising my family and I was busy in my career. I felt I was doing what was required of me for the most part. Then one day, out of the blue, I was called as a member of the Stake High Council. This was the beginning of a “mighty change” in my life.
I will never forget how I felt as I first began attending High Council meetings. I felt so out of place and so unworthy to be there. I was suddenly in the midst of the greatest group of men I had ever known. I made a vow to really strive to be better… to be more repentant: To be more Christ like.

This went on for about two years. I was striving to change and to be better. The Holy Spirit was guiding me and helping me to make some changes that I needed to but in hindsight now, I can see that I wasn’t close to comprehending how much the Lord was asking me to change. He wanted me to be vastly different; He wanted me to make major changes; not just these superficial ones that I was slowly making.

In the fall of 2005 I was suddenly hit with a trial that changed every part of my life. It isn’t important to mention what the trial was, but it affected me so deeply that I didn’t know how to go on with my life. I was alone with no one to turn to but the Lord. Once again in hindsight, I feel that the Lord grabbed my attention in the only way I would listen, and proceeded to make me the person He wanted me to be. I needed to change, and the change was more drastic than I had ever imagined. Once again, His tender mercy plucked me from a life of mediocrity in the church, to one of total immersion and commitment.

Here I sit, nearly six years later, contemplating the blessings that have become mine due to a loving Heavenly Father that chose to select me for chastisement. I have learned what it means in Doctrine and Covenants 121:45 to have my “confidence was strong in the presence of God.” I know what it means to “hunger and thirst after righteousness.” I have learned why the Holy Ghost is known as the Comforter.

In the past 6 years I have had many trials. I’ve learned that when we begin to get a handle on withstanding one type of temptation, Satan is right behind with another. The closer we grow to the Lord, the more personal becomes the temptation. I have learned that Satan will do all in his power to destroy marriages and families. I’ve learned that there are countless ways for our hearts to be broken. I’ve learned that President Benson was right when he stated that the Lord will have a humble people… they can either choose to be humble, or can be compelled.

Although there have been many trials, there have been many blessings. I wouldn’t trade anything I have been through (although I wouldn’t want to relive any of it). I know that our trials are evidence of God's mercy. I have gained an unshakable testimony of the Savior. I have become immovable in my conviction of the restoration. I have learned that the Lord’s house is the source of great instruction. I have begun to see glimpses of Eternity and our part in it. I have learned that the Lord will reveal the “mysteries” of heaven to those who ask. I have come to know that D&C 93:1is indeed true:

“Verily, thus saith the Lord: It shall come to pass that every soul who forsaketh his sins and cometh unto me, and calleth on my name, and obeyeth my voice, and keepeth my commandments, shall see my face and know that I am”.

I know God lives and loves me.