1 Ne. 1

THE FIRST BOOK OF NEPHI

HIS REIGN AND MINISTRY

[ Nephis Journal - Not written, abridged or added to by any other authors. ]

An account of Lehi and his wife Sariah and his four sons, being called, (beginning at the eldest) Laman, Lemuel, Sam, and Nephi. The Lord warns Lehi to depart out of the land of Jerusalem, because he prophesieth unto the people concerning their iniquity and they seek to destroy his life. He taketh three days’ journey into the wilderness with his family. Nephi taketh his brethren and returneth to the land of Jerusalem after the record of the Jews. The account of their sufferings. They take the daughters of Ishmael to wife. They take their families and depart into the wilderness. Their sufferings and afflictions in the wilderness. The course of their travels. They come to the large waters. Nephi’s brethren rebel against him. He confoundeth them, and buildeth a ship. They call the name of the place Bountiful. They cross the large waters into the promised land, and so forth. This is according to the account of Nephi; or in other words, I, Nephi, wrote this record.[ 30 years since leaving Jerusalem. ]

CHAPTER 1

Nephi begins the record of his people—Lehi sees in vision a pillar of fire and reads from a book of prophecy—He praises God, foretells the coming of the Messiah, and prophesies the destruction of Jerusalem—He is persecuted by the Jews. [About 600 B.C.]

[ v1-3 form a "colophon", an Egyptian literary device identifying the author and when the text was written. The title page of the Book of Mormon is also a colophon. ]

[ President Nelson told the new mission presidents and their wives gathered for the 2016 Seminar for New Mission Presidents. “It is not a textbook of history, although some history is found within its pages. It is not a definitive work on ancient American agriculture or politics. It is not a record of all former inhabitants of the Western Hemisphere, but only of particular groups of people.” But President Nelson also specified everything the Book of Mormon is and all that it can teach us. ]

1 I, NEPHI, [ Means prophet or one who talks with God. How could Joseph Smith Have known that? Osiris was one of the egyptian Gods who was also known as Nephi or Knephi.The City of Memphis near Cairo was originally named after him.In Egyptian mythology Kneph was originally the breath of life, his name meaning soul-breath. Indeed, according to Plutarch and Diodorus, kneph was identical with the Greek pneuma. Kneph in this context was a spirit that breathed life into things, giving them form. Kneph eventually became considered to be the creator god himself, in Elephantine, although his identity was finally assimilated into the more important god Amun. In art, Kneph was depicted as a ram, the animal symbolic of the ba, a major aspect of the Egyptian notion of the soul; the Egyptian word for "ram" was "ba". He was also depicted wearing a uraeus, symbolic of his authority, as creator. In his hand he always bears the ankh, symbol of life. Also used are Cneph and Nef, Neph,Koub,Nouv,Nebo,Naba,Neshi,Necho, endowed with the same attributes as Khem. One of the gods of creative Force, for he is connected with the Mundane Egg. He is called by Porphyry "the creator of the world"; by Plutarch the "unmade and eternal deity"; by Eusebius he is identified with the Logos; and Jamblichus goes so far as almost to identify him with Brahma since he says of him that "this god is intellect itself, intellectually perceiving itself, and consecrating intellections to itself; and is to be worshipped in silence". One form of him, adds Mr. Bonwick "was Av meaning flesh. He was criocephalus, with a solar disk on his head, and standing on the serpent Mehen. In his left hand was a viper, and a cross was in his right. He was actively engaged in the underworld upon a mission of creation." Deveria writes: "His journey to the lower hemisphere appears to symbolise the evolutions of substances which are born to die and to be reborn". Thousands of years before Kardec, Swedenborg, and Darwin appeared, the old Egyptians entertained their several philosophies. (Eg. Belief and Mod. Thought.) ] having been born of goodly parents, [ Was he born of parents who were under the covenant? Prove it...from the seed of Joseph. ] therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; [ "somewhat" = means to a moderate degree or amount. What does that mean that he was taught somewhat in the learning of his father? Which included fluency in reading and writing Egyptian. Nephi was taught basic principles by his father, and he was also taught how to gain further light and knowledge on his own. So the somewhat meant that he learned some from his father directly, and some from his own asking and searching for the answers. Often spiritual things can only be taught so far, or you can only teach so much - the rest needs to come by being taught from God himself. (Alma 12:9-11). While he may not have taught Nephi everything that he knew - he would have certainly taught him how to obtain such knowledge for himself, Asking, prayer... Remember he was the one that upon learning of the vision that his father had of the Tree of Life, he went and ask the lord to know more and was shown his own vision of the tree of life. Both the secular learning as well as the spiritual learning. What does this imply about Nephi? That he was willing to be taught as well; while some kids would rebel nephi at least was willing to learn some of what his father attempted to teach him. So if you want to understand how Nephi got to be Nephi then you need to study the Old Testament, this is the document that Nephi studied from. We learn additional information of those things that his father (Lehi) was taught in 2 Ne. 5:15-16. ] and having seen many afflictions [ Nearly killed 4 times by his brothers and once by Laban. Presecution, un-belief, complaining against him - even his father Lehi once got discouraged. Wilderness adventures were not pleasant based on what he was used to. ] in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; [ Or he has a relationship with the Lord. The Lord himself was Nephi's foremost teacher. This is the same as with the children of Israel, as well as our day. God has always wanted to speak directly to his children; however his children have not wanted to pay the price to speak with him. President Nelson suggests to us that we need to "hear Him". Why would Nephi say this about himself and why did he feel this way when his brothers felt so picked on by the Lord? Nephi looked for the hand of the Lord in his life as a result he could see what the Lord was trying to do to help him. Yes there were challenges in life but he could see that the Lord was there with him during those challenges and that the challenges were there to help him as well. I think this is a great example of how we can look to the Lord from two different perspectives - through the eyes of Nephi or through the eyes of Laman and Lemuel, it is our choice on how we choose to see things what we look for. ] ; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, [ He knew how God worked in his life and could recognize the hand of the Lord in his life because he knew what to look for. See 1 Ne 2: 12 for the difference between he and his brothers. ] therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days. [ To recap. Let me tell you that my dad Lehi taught me a great many important things, but in addition to that the Lord taught me the mysteries of God (those things that are only appropriate to be taught by the spirit). This is why I am writing these things for you, to help you see how the Lord worked in my life, so that you can have the same experiences in your life. We can see that Nephi did just that in 1 Ne 10:17-20. He was taught by his father and then went and asked for the same vision that his father had. It is the same for us as the Lord is consistent 1 Ne 10:18 "the same yesterday and today.". His record from this point forward is really a testimony of how this has all played out in his life. ]

2 Yea, I make a record [ Chronology of the Small Plates of Nephi Nephi 1 - begins the small plates as religious sub-history of the large plates some time between 569-559 BC (cf. 2 Ne. 5:28-34) | | 15-25 yrs | Jacob - obtains plates 544 BC from Nephi1 (cf. Jacob 1:1), gives plates to son Enos (cf. Jacob 7:27), no date given | | (544 BC - 420 BC) = 124, 124/2 = 62 yrs (?) | Enos - dies 420 BC and gives plates to son Jarom (cf. Enos 1:25-26) | | 62 yrs (?) see above | Jarom - obtains plates 420 BC and passes them to son Omni in 361 BC (cf. Jarom 1:13-15) | | 59 yrs | Omni - obtains plates 361 BC and passes them to son Amaron in 317 BC (cf. Omni 1:3) | | 44 yrs | Amaron - obtains plates 317 BC and passes them to brother Chemish in 279 BC (cf. Omni 1:5-8) | | 38 yrs | Chemish - obtains plates 279 BC and passes them to his son Abinadom, but no date given, next explicit date is at the retirement of king Benjamin at 124 BC | | (279 BC - 124 BC) = 155 yrs, 155 / 3 = 52 yrs(?) | Abinadom - obtains plates and passes them to his son Amaleki, but no date given | | 52 yrs (?) see above | Amaleki - obtains plates, and turns them over to king Benjamin as he has no direct relations, no date is given | | 52 yrs (?) see above | Benjamin - receives plates, places them together with secular plates and the small plates stop being recorded as a separate religious history, he gives up throne 124 BC (cf. Mosiah 6:4) and dies 121 BC (cf. Mosiah 6:5) ] in the language of my father, which consists of the learning of the Jews [ The scriptures and the Laws as given to the Jews. ] and the language of the Egyptians. [ The only character that fits that description would be Joseph of Egypt (Moses is the other way around). Could it have been that the brass plates were started by Joseph due to his wealth and knowledge of metal. Then plates were passed on until Nephi got possession of them. Therefore, Joseph of Egypt started the Book of Mormon. According to John Tvedtnes, in 1967, Israeli archaeologists discovered at the ancient site of Arad an ostracon (pottery fragment) from shortly before 600 B.C., the time of Lehi. The text on the ostracon is written in a combination of Egyptian hieratic and Hebrew characters, but can be read entirely as Egyptian. Of the seventeen words in the text, ten are written in hieratic and seven in Hebrew. This discovery suggests that when Lehi's son Nephi spoke of writing in a language consisting of "the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians" (1 Nephi 1:2) he may have used such a combination script. Two more examples of combination Egyptian-Hebrew scripts from the same time period were discovered in the northern Sinai peninsula during the late 1970's. (John A. Tvedtnes, "Reformed Egyptian," in The Most Correct Book, p. 24 ); 2 pages of Hebrew text is equal to about 15 pages or English text, reformed egyptian yielded even more english per page. We do not know exactly what language was used on the original plates of the Book of Mormon. Nephi described the writing system as a combination of "the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians" (1 Nephi 1:2). Moroni, writing a thousand years later, called it "reformed Egyptian" (Mormon 9:32-34). This might mean that they used Egyptian symbols to represent Egyptian words, or that they used Egyptian symbols as a shorthand to represent Hebrew words, or even that they used both Egyptian and Hebrew symbols to represent Hebrew words. Whatever reformed Egyptian was, it must have been influenced by the language that the Nephites used in daily speech—Hebrew. That influence can be seen in the Hebraisms preserved in the English translation. (The Maxwell Institute - Hebrew Background of the Book Of Mormon - http://maxwellinstitute.byu.edu/publications/books/?bookid=72&chapid=862) since the publication of the Book of Mormon in 1830, critics have mocked the sheer thought that an ancient Hebrew would ever write anything sacred in the language of the hated pagan Egyptians, Israel’s longtime enemies. Most serious, believing students of the Book of Mormon, by contrast, have taken the term to refer not to a separate language but to a non-Hebrew script that, they suggest, was used to record Lehi’s and Nephi’s native early Hebrew. Only in the 20th century — far too late for Joseph to have borrowed the idea from them — did ancient Hebrew texts begin to be found that had been written in Egyptian script. some come from the very time of Lehi. Most are magical incantations in which, while the underlying language is an early form of Hebrew or (closely related) Canaanite, the script is hieratic Egyptian, a cursive (or, one might say, “reformed”) variant of the hieroglyphs with which most of us are familiar. Papyrus Amherst 63, a fourth-century B.C. document written in yet another cursive (or “reformed”) Egyptian script, called “demotic,” includes an Aramaic version of Psalm 20:2-6. Strikingly, this papyrus represents the second-oldest known biblical text. The third-oldest biblical texts are the Dead Sea Scrolls, already mentioned above. But the very earliest biblical manuscripts known to scholars were found in a tomb in Jerusalem in 1980. Dated to the time of Lehi — that is, to the end of the seventh century before Christ — they’re in the form of two rolled silver leaves that have been inscribed with the well-known “priestly blessing” of Numbers 6:24-26. For an accessible discussion of these and other interesting related topics, see John A. Tvedtnes’ “Ancient Texts in Support of the Book of Mormon,” in Donald W. Parry, Daniel C. Peterson and John W. Welch’s "Echoes and Evidences of the Book of Mormon" (Provo: FARMS, 2006). Tvedtnes’ conclusion is worth noting: "The fact", he says, "that the three earliest known manuscripts with Bible text are, respectively, written on metallic plates, written in a reformed Egyptian script reflecting an underlying Semitic language, and hidden away for future discovery demonstrates that the Book of Mormon fits an ancient pattern."]

3 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.

[ There is a pattern in scripture that we see demonstrated here as well. We see it in the Old Testament as well in the Pearl of Great Price. We see them in the story of Joseph Smith as well as Adam, Enoch, Noah, Abraham and Moses. It is as follows: 1. The situation or social iniquity. 2. The "hero's" reaction to the situation. 3. The Lord's reply to the "hero's" reaction in the form of a revelation. 4. Visions from the Lord. These visions are usually in the form of a Theophany (vision of God) and/or a Cosmology (vision of creation). 5. The "hero" returns from his vision to give a “testament and will” to his posterity and mankind. 6. The "hero's" mission, which is the preaching of the word of God. 7. The death or martyrdom of the "hero." ] 4 For it came to pass in the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, [ Nephi does not need to spend much time in explaining any more of the circumstances of this time in history as he figures they are documented else where, and noting the general time provides all the we need - we can get more info about the time by reading elsewhere in places like Jere,iah who would have been a contemporary of Legi and gives us an idea of what happened, the thoughts of the people and such at the time. ] king of Judah, (my father, Lehi, having dwelt at Jerusalem in all his days); [ Lehi would have most likely been in his early forties. ] and in that same year there came many prophets, [ HERE ARE INFORMED OF THE SITUTATION. Jerimah was the prophet of the Old Testament, Lehi was not mentioned in the Old Testament because he was not of the tribe of Judah. Jerimah was: Lehi was from the tribe of Joseph - Lehi was called to fulfill Gen 49:22 Joseph is a fruitful bough, even a fruitful bough by a well [ocean]; whose branches run over the wall [cross the ocean]. I Haven Barlow = Other prophets include {(}Zephanial? the prophet who prophesied in the days of Josiah, king of Judah (640-609 BCE). the son of Cushi, and great-great grandson of King[2] Hezekiah, is attributed a book bearing his name among the Twelve Minor Prophets, The Book of Zephaniah contains the fundamental ideas of the preaching of Zephaniah. } , {Habbakuk? active around 612 BC, was a prophet whose oracles and prayer are recorded in the Book of Habakkuk, the eighth of the collected twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew Bible. Almost nothing is known about Habakkuk, aside from what are stated within the book of the Bible bearing his name. Because the final chapter of his book is a song, it is sometimes assumed that he was a member of the tribe of Levi, which served as musicians in solomon's Temple. }, {Nahum? a minor prophet whose prophecy is recorded in the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament. His book comes in chronological order between Micah and Habakkuk in the Bible. His name means "comforter," and he was from the town of Alqosh (Nahum 1:1). Nahum's writings could be taken as prophecy or as history. One account suggests that his writings are a prophecy written in about 615 BC, just before the downfall of Assyria, while another account suggests that he wrote this passage as liturgy just after its downfall in 612 BC. }, {Ezekiel? The name Ezekiel means 'God Strengthens' and was a Hebrew prophet. He is recognized as a prophet by Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The author of the Book of Ezekiel presents himself as Ezekiel, the son of Buzzi, born into a priestly (Kohen) lineage. On the hypothesis that the "thirtieth year" of Ezekiel 1:1 refers to Ezekiel's age, Ezekiel was fifty years old when he had his final vision.[3] On the basis of dates given in the Book of Ezekiel, Ezekiel's span of prophecies can be calculated to have occurred over the course of about 22 years.[9] The last dated words of Ezekiel date to April 570 BCE. }... So we have Daniel, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Ezra, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Zechariah, Uriah and Lehi. "All the prophets had the Melchizedek Priesthood and were ordained by God himself (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith 180-81; hereafter TPJS; emphasis added). Lehi was a prophet. Nephi and Jacob were prophets. Mosiah, Benjamin, Alma, Samuel, Mormon, and Moroni all wore the prophetic mantle and held the Melchizedek Priesthood. Surely what the Lord said to Nephi, son of Helaman, was true in regard to others of the Nephite oracles who held the keys of power: "Behold, I give unto you power, that whatsoever ye shall seal on earth shall be sealed in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven; and thus shall yehave power among this people" (Helaman 10:7; compare D&C132:39). To what degree all male persons among the Nephites held the priesthood, how and under what circumstances it was conferred, and the nature of priesthood organization between 600 B.C. and 34 A.D. are not clear from the account in the Book of Mormon. ] prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed. [ The message from the prophets is to repent - nothing new I suppose, but it provides a background as to what was being taught, and the spiritual welfare of the people. If we look at this from a different perspective we can see that early on the Lord hand given them some land as their inheritance, there was associated with that land a deed restriction as well - that as long as they were to inhabit that land they needed to follow him. If they did so he would protect them. At this point they are not following him, so the restriction on the land may need to be enforced. Or they are squatters so to speak. ]

5 Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, [ Why Lehi? Well as usual the Lord has been preparing Lehi for the journey ahead for years. Lehi was according to Hugh Nibley; Lehi was a desert merchant, he was fluent in the Egyptian language and he was well versed in the trade routes as he had walked them for years. He has made his money as an "expert in caravan travel". Such that Lehi's mission was not to cry repentance as Jeremiah did, his mission was to tell of the dream that he had about the destruction of the people, to set up a camp a ways out of town, to send his son's to get the brass plates and to caravan through the desert on his way to a promised land, why perserving the unadulterated ancient records of the prophets. This is also why there is nothing about Lehi in the ancient records of the Jews. He was nobody, he was just a guy that stood up one day, for a brief second and told of the destruct that awaited them and then was never heard from again - nothing to see here folks! He was most likely in his forties at this time; Remember that Laman and Lemuel are the oldest children and neither of them are married yet. Marriage in those days took place a a much younger age as well. Women at around 14 men at the age of 16-18. When they left they had six children(Laman, Lemuel, Sam, Nephi and at least two sisters) and Sarah was still young enough to have two mire children on the journey(Jacob and Joseph). Means Jawbone see Judges 15:9-14. ] as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people. [ LEHI'S REACTION He was praying for his people, guidance as what he could do for them to strengthen them, to guild their testimony and the vision was the answer that he got. ]

6 And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; [ THE LORD"S REPLY TO LEHI'S REACTION. Compare to Joseph Smith's first vision; Pillar of Fire - is a classic OT figure of the presence of the Lord (cf.Exod. 13:21-22) ] and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly.

7 And it came to pass that he returned to his own house [ So he was somewhere else when he saw the pillar of fire - not in his house. Lehi was supposed by many to have been a merchant - so he could have been on a business trip of sorts - maybe traveling thru the desert as he was alone when he saw the pillar of fire - and it was on a rock do it would have been most likely outdoors. ] at Jerusalem; and he cast himself upon his bed, being overcome with the Spirit and the things which he had seen.

8 And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a vision, [ LEHI SEE'S THE PRE-EARTH COUNCIL. Interesting to note that in the Hebrew Bible, the Sôd of God was a council of celestial beings who consulted with God, learned His sôd/secret plan, and then fulfilled that plan. This note argues that the LDS endowment is, in part, a ritual reenactment of the sôd, where the participants observe the sôd/council of God, learn the sôd/secret plan of God, and covenant to fulfill that plan. In its broader sense the Hebrew term sôd (סוד) means a confidential discussion, a secret or plan, a circle of confidants, or co uncil.1 Nearly all scholars now agree that sôd, when used in relationship to God, refers to the heavenly council/sôd of God, which humans may sometimes visit to learn divine mysteries or obtain a prophetic message to deliver to humankind. 2 The celestial members of this council are variously called the “host of heaven” (1 Kings 22:19), “gods” or “sons of God” (Ps. 82:1, 6), or “Holy Ones.” Sôd can refer to either the divine council itself or to the deliberative secret results of that council—that is the secret plans of the council—which a prophet is sometimes permitted to learn or to reveal to humankind. Only those who are part of the divine sôd/council know the sôd/secret plan, and only those who are given explicit permission may reveal that sôd to humankind. 3 This concept is illustrated in a number of biblical passages: In 1 Kings 22:19–23, the prophet Michaiah describes his vision of the sôd as follows: 19 I saw Yhwh sitting on his throne, and all the host of heaven standing beside him on his right hand and on his left; 20 and Yhwh said, “Who will entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead?” And one said one thing, and another said another. 21 Then a spirit came forward and stood before Yhwh, saying, “I will entice him.” 22 And Yhwh said to him, “By what means?” And he said, “I will go out, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.” And he said, “You are to entice him, and you shall succeed; go out and do so.” 23 Now therefore behold, Yhwh has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these your prophets; Yhwh has declared disaster for you. Notice here that Michaiah participated in the sôd of Yhwh and therefore knows Yhwh‘s secret plan and therefore can accurately prophesy, whereas the other court prophets, with no knowledge of Yhwh‘s sôd, are deceived. Note, too, the important motif that God is sitting on his throne surrounded by his sôd. (22:19). Biblical divine enthronement scenes and throne theophanies often imply a meeting of the sôd.5 In Isaiah 6, Isaiah enters the presence of Yhwh seated on his throne in the temple (6:1). There he meets with the divine council (6:2–3) and is invested with a mission to reveal the deliberations of the council to humankind (6:8–9). Note that in Isaiah the sôd of Yhwh meets in the celestial temple, where Yhwh sits enthroned just as in Michaiah’s vision. Jeremiah 23:16–18 describes Jeremiah’s response to prophets who prophesy victory for Judah over Babylon. Jeremiah writes: 16 Thus says Yhwh of hosts: “Do not listen to the words of the [false] prophets who prophesy to you, filling you with vain hopes. They speak visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of Yhwh. 17 They say continually to those who despise the word of Yhwh, ‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’ 18 But who among them has stood in the sôd of Yhwh to see and to hear his word, or who has paid attention to his word and listened? Jeremiah 23:21–22 continues this theme, when Yhwh himself speaks: 21 “I did not send the [false] prophets, yet they ran; I did not speak to them, yet they prophesied. 22 But if they had stood in my sôd, then they would have proclaimed my words to my people, and they would have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their deeds.” The obvious implications of these two passages is that Jeremiah has “stood in the sôd of Yhwh,” just like Michaiah and Isaiah before him, and therefore knows Yhwh‘s sôd/secret plan, which he can reveal to humankind through his prophecies. The distinction between a true prophet and a false one is that the true prophet has “stood in the sôd of Yhwh,” while the false prophet hasn’t. This precisely parallels the description of Micaiah’s vision of the sôd, while the false prophets don’t know God’s sôd/secret plan. Psalm 82 offers a fascinating description of the “council of God”: 1 God (אלהים ělōhîm) has taken his place in the council (עדת ʿǎdat) of God (אל ʾel); in the midst of the gods (אלהים ělōhîm) he holds judgment. . . . 6 I [God] said, “You [of the divine council/ʿǎdat] are gods (אלהים ělōhîm), sons of the Most High (בני עליון benê ʿelyôn), all of you.” In this meeting of the “council of God,” God calls the members of his sôd “gods” and “sons of the Highest.” Amos 3:7—a passage often quoted by LDS—describes Yhwh‘s sôd as follows: “For the Lord Yhwh doesn’t do anything (דבר dābār) 6 without revealing his sôd to his servants the prophets.” Amos provides here a summary principle paralleling the explicit examples of Michaiah, Isaiah and Jeremiah given above. God reveals the sôd (secret plan) of his sôd (divine council) to his prophets. Psalm 25:14 adds an interesting covenantal aspect to the sôd. “The sôd of Yhwh is for those who honor him; he reveals his covenant (berît) to them.” In this verse knowledge of the sôd of Yhwh is directly linked with the revelation of his covenant. Finally, Job provides a description of God’s sôd, composed of the “sons of God,” meeting in council (Job 1:6, Job 2:1). In Job 15:8, Eliphaz insists that Job has not sat in the sôd and therefore cannot understand God’s will regarding Job. All of this is, of course, familiar to many Latter-day Saints, since these texts have been compared to several passages in LDS scripture which also describe the sôd of Yhwh (e.g., 1 Nephi 1:8–18; Abraham 3:22–23).7 I would like, however, to move one step further and suggest that we should understand the LDS Endowment as a ritual and dramatic participation in the sôd/divine council of God, through which God reveals to the covenanter his sôd/secret plan of salvation—the hidden meaning and purpose of creation and the cosmos. When we consider the Endowment drama in this way—remembering that in Isaiah the meeting place of the sôd of Yhwh is in the temple (Isa. 6:1)—the Endowment fits broadly in the biblical tradition of ritually observing or participating in “the council/sôd of Yhwh” described in these biblical texts. source http://www.mormoninterpreter.com/the-sod-of-yhwh-and-the-endowment/ ] even that he saw the heavens open, and he thought he saw God [ Heavenly Father. ] sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God. [ LEHI'S COSMOLOGY. Experiences a revelation quite similar to ones both Isaiah and Ezekiel experienced (v. 8-13, cp. Isa. 6, Ezek. 2)]

9 And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his luster was above that of the sun at noon-day. [ Jesus Christ. ]

10 And he also saw twelve others following him, [ The twelve apostles or at least twelve angels representing the twelve apostles. He see's this in vision 600 years before they were born. ] and their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament.

11 And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth; [ It appears as their purpose was to judge the earth see vs 13; 1 Ne 12:9 ; Mormon 3:18] and the first came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book, and bade him that he should read. [ They approach Lehi and give him a book and tell him to read it. This book not only contains prophecies about the destruction of Jerusalem, but also the Lord's plan to restore and redeem Israel in the latter days. He saw that despite Israels lost and fallen state the Lord had something incredible in store for them. ]

12 And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord. [ So the book was one which confirmed truth and peace to him, even though what he learned was not all a rosy picture. ] .

13 And he read, [ Lehi is reading this, but as far as I can tell Lehi never calls the people to repent, he has a different mission. Jeremiah and Ezekiel are doing it full time, Lehi most likely knows them as well. Lehi was not there to try to help them turn it all around, no he knows that the time to repent has past and that the Lord will now take matters into his own hands - which will include Lehi and his family being lead away for the Lord to start anew. This is why the Lord didn't give the plates to Jeremiah, because Jeremiah had a mission to stay and preach kepp trying, but God also knew that Jeremiah's days were numbered. I don't think that Jeremiah had a family as well so no way to pass them down. Lehi on the other hand had strong son's, and God was leading him away with his family and to preserve the record. Lehi was one of the few people that could have survived in this journey. At this point Lehi was most likely not a real master of the scriptures, but he is becoming to become such as he is reading from the brass plates and beginning to see that what was on the plates was not the same as what was being taught by the acribes of the day - they had already corrupted the plain and precious truths of the gospel. ] saying: Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations! [ Jeremiah and Ezekiel discuss Jerusalem's abominations at length, cf. ( Jer. 7 The temple has become a den of robbers—The Lord rejects that generation of Jews for their idolatries—They offer their children in sacrifices.) , ( Ezek. 5 The judgment of Jerusalem shall include famine, pestilence, war, and the scattering of her inhabitants because she (Jerusalem has changed and perverted the laws and ways of God).) ] 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.

14 And it came to pass that when my father had read and seen many great and marvelous things, he did exclaim many things unto the Lord; [ Why does Lehi begin to praise God in the mist of seeing so much destruction? Lehi see's the wonderous nature of Israel's eventual redemption which in turn overwhelmed Lehi. As such his sorrow was swallowed up with joy and rejoicing. When we recognize that God is in charge, and we come to trust in him completely then we come to recognize that whatever is to happen to us as individuals than it is according to the will of God. When we come to understand and know that it gives us great power in our life as we can overcome the fears of the world. ] such as: Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God [ Hebrew - Yahweh ( or Jehovah which means "to become" or "to exist") translated as Lord; Elohim translated as God ("the Gods") which together the words mean "He will cause Gods to be". ] Almighty! Thy throne is high in the heavens, and thy power, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of the earth; and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish! [ Compare to Jeremiah and Ezekiel where the Lord appears to be judgmental and merciless - Well this gives dome clues why that would be the case. The Lord offered them mercy via prophets like Lehi and they spurned both the prophet and the Lord. As such, they are exposed to the full force of the Lord's justice. ]

15 And after this manner was the language of my father in the praising of his God; for his soul did rejoice, and his whole heart [ Feelings, desires and emotions. After seeing what Lehi had seen he sets his business affairs to the side and begins to take up his new mission of preaching the gospel, and repentance no latter the cost. ] was filled, because of the things which he had seen, yea, which the Lord had shown unto him.

16 And now I, Nephi, do not make a full account of the things which my father hath written, [ Upon the large plates - In other words I Nephi chose to start my writings with a brief summation taken from my fathers writings, Nephi's abridgment of his father's material stops, and his original material starts in 10:1.. ] for he hath written many things which he saw in visions and in dreams; [ He had seen the Lord's plan from the beginning to the end. There was no doubt in his mind, he had seen it all first hand, and so he set forth to proclaim what he knew to the world. ] and he also hath written many things which he prophesied and spake unto his children, of which I shall not make a full account.

17 But I shall make an account of my proceedings in my days. [ His record is not written in the form of a journal where every day he makes a few notes as to what happened that day. Rather he will sit down later in life and write down the overview of how things happened. ] Behold, I make an abridgment of the record of my father, [ Nephi is writing this some time after which provides him with the ability to provide additional editorial oversight as to events and there significance. The vision of the tree of life is something that should be called out here. Nephi takes the time to tell or re-tell the vision that his father Lehi had, then he will also provide his vision of the tree of life. Interesting; both visions are recorded, and how important these visions are. If he took the time to write down both we need to pay special attention to them. ] upon plates which I have made with mine own hands; [ The small plates. ] wherefore, after I [ "1830 edition "after that I " How could Joseph Smith have known? Biblical Hebrew begins subordinate clauses with prepositions plus a word that translates as that, such as in Ezekiel 40:1: "after that the city was smitten." Such a use of that in English is awkward and therefore rare. Yet it appears frequently in the Book of Mormon, another evidence of Hebrew influence. It was even more frequent in the 1830 edition, but many of the thats were dropped from later editions to read more smoothly.(The Maxwell Institute - Hebrew Background of the Book Of Mormon; John A. Tvedtnes) ] have abridged the record of my father then will I make an account of mine own life.

18 Therefore, I would that ye should know, [ LEHI'S TESTAMENT AND WILL. ] that after the Lord had shown so many marvelous things unto my father, Lehi, yea, concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, behold he went forth among the people, and began to prophesy and to declare unto them concerning the things which he had both seen and heard.

19 And it came to pass that the Jews did mock him because of the things which he testified of them; for he truly testified of their wickedness and their abominations ; [ What were the Sins of Judah? Jeremiah 4:22; 5:1, 3, 6-9, 23, 25-31; 6:10, 13, 15-17, 19; 7:9-10, 17-18, 25-26, 30-31; 11:9-10, 13; 25:3-4; 29:17-19; Ezekiel 7:23; 8:17; 11:10, 12] and he testified [ LEHI'S MISSION. ] that the things which he saw and heard, and also the things which he read in the book, [ Genesis 49:10. The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come. Since he is writing this some 30 years since they left Jerusalem I assume that "the Book" to which he refers is the Biblical prophecies of Enoch, Zenos, Zenock, Neum, Elijah, Jacob(Israel) and most if not all of Jacob's sons. ] manifested plainly of the coming of a Messiah, [ This is really what got him in trouble. ] and also the redemption of the world.

20 And when the Jews heard these things [ That Lehi was testifying of a Messiah. ] they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, [ Just as they were with the rest of the prophets of that day - ( So what are the names of the prophets in the old testement that this happened too, do we have any names?)) No we don't really but there are records of those who wrote and are found in the Apocryphal texts. But we have another witness that this happened in Matt 23:37 Mosiah 13:32-33. ] whom they [ The Jewish leaders. ] had cast out, and stoned, and slain; [ Lehi's tells us what happened to these prophets. This does not fit in line with the Old Testament however. Where do we read in the old testament about prophets being slain? As E.D. Howe writes in 1834, "(The Jews] have ever held their prophets in the highest veneration, particularly those who spake clearly of the coming Messiah."(E.D. Howe pg 36) Yet here we have Lehi is claiming the complete opposite: that the Jews were angry with Lehi, like they had been angry with the "prophets of old," specifically because he foretold of a Messiah. Howe is right: there are precious few examples of "prophets of old" being "cast out, and stoned and slain" in the Bible. The traditional canon contains no record of prophets being cast out. Only one prophet was recorded as having been stoned in the Old Testament, and that was in 2 Chronicles 24:15 when Zechariah the son of Jehoida the priest was martyred in the temple. Likewise, the only "slain" prophet was cited by Jeremiah as Urijah, who was slain by the sword under Zedekiah's father when Lehi was alive, so he was not exactly a "prophet of old." Obadiah makes a reference to "prophets of the Lord" who were slain by Jezebel, but no one every explains why.(1 Kings 18:13) So here again Joseph Smith just plain got it wrong. Or did he? Well in 1912 there was a forgotten Latin manuscript that was translated and brought to America in 1912 it was called the "Ascension of Isaiah" in that manuscript and it associated text called the Vision of Isaiah it speaks of Isaiah ascending to heaven where he is instructed by the Lord himself. Because he declares this vision to the world he is acused by Belchira (a real "false prophet" of King Manasseh's court) of being a false prophet and goes into hiding along with others. ] and they also sought his life, that they might take it away. [ The Jewish leaders were going to do the same thing here to Lehi and he knew it. ] But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies [ One of the attributes of God - Lectures on Faith 3. Interesting that this is one of the primary reasons for Nephi writing this book. To demonstrate to us how merciful the lord is - how much he really loves us. Remember that here we have Nephi abridging the writings of his father as well as his own some 30 plus years after they have happened. So he has the ability to render some perspective into the summary, he gets to guide us by being able to look back and see, not trying to see the tender mercies in real time which they are often harder to do. This is one story after another of God saving his children. ] of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, [ The Lord provides for us according to the power of our faith. So if we are not getting the blessings that we desire it is solely because w lack enough faith? ] to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance. [ DEATH OF OTHER PROPHETS AND SUCH WILL FOLLOW HIM IF DOES NOT DEPART, HE IS WARNED TO FLEE. Compare with Exod 3:6-8. ]

[About 600 BC The First Year of the Reign of Zedekiah, King of Judah
Brother Woodward’s note: The following excerpts (from a few lengthy articles) provide a brief historical sketch of the history of Israel from 1,000 BC to Lehi’s call circa 600 BC. It’s my hope that knowing a few details about this time period will help you to better appreciate the rich historical, cultural, and political context in which Lehi is called to be a prophet of God in the first year of the reign of King Zedekiah as the Book of Mormon begins in 1 Nephi 1.
From King David to King Manasseh (about 1,000 BC—642 BC) David established the capital of the united kingdom in Jerusalem around 1000 BC, and his son solomon built the temple there. In 922 BC, at the beginning of the reign of solomon's son Rehoboam, the kingdoms divided between the ten northern tribes and the two southern tribes.

Israel was united under the kingship of David and solomon. During the reign of Rehoboam, however, the kingdom
divided into the 10 tribes of the Northern Kingdom (aka Israel) and the southern Kingdom (aka Judah).

In 722 BC the northern kingdom of Israel was destroyed and the ten tribes were taken into captivity by Assyria. Although many cities in the southern kingdom were destroyed by the Assyrians in 701 BC (see 2 Kings 18:13), Jerusalem was miraculously preserved because the people repented under the direction of the prophet Isaiah and the righteous king Hezekiah (715–687 BC; see 2 Kings 18–19; Isaiah 36–37). Hezekiah was followed by Manasseh, known in 2 Kings as the most wicked of all the kings of Judah. He established idolatrous worship throughout the land, even in the temple, and shed much innocent blood (see 2 Kings 21). We do not know exactly the dates of the births of Jeremiah or Lehi, but it is very likely that they were born either during or immediately after the reign of the wicked king Manasseh (687–642 BC) and that they were very close to the same age. Jeremiah was called to be a prophet as a young man in 627 BC (see Jeremiah 1:6). Lehi was called to be a prophet in 597 BC, already a man with grown sons and daughters. (Excerpted from David Rolph Seely and Jo Ann H. Seely, “Lehi and Jeremiah: Prophets Priests and Patriarchs,” in Glimpses of Lehi’s Jerusalem, ed. John W. Welch, David Rolph Seely, and Jo Ann H. Seely. (Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, Brigham Young University, 2004)).

From King Josiah to King Zedekiah
(640 BC—586 BC)
Josiah ruled as king of Judah from 640 to 609 BC. He came to the throne at the age of eight following the murder of his father Amon (2 Kings 21:23–24; 22:1), and the affairs of the kingdom were probably run by others in the royal court until he became of age.…

The kingdom's political success was built on the back of a religious revitalization instigated by Josiah. Josiah's famous religious reform began around 628/627 BC. This was the approximate time of a Babylonian revolt against Assyria, under whom Judah was still a vassal. This was also a time in which civil conflict brewing in Assyria would eventually lead to a civil war there a few years later. The eye of the Assyrians was thus cast away from Josiah and toward affairs closer to home. This Assyrian absence gave Josiah some room to maneuver.

One of the significant events that sparked Josiah's religious revival (according to the king's account) included the finding of "the book of the law" in the temple (2 Kings 22:8), giving way to Josiah's reforms. Josiah implemented a policy of centralized temple worship confined to the Jerusalem temple and overthrew idolatrous practices throughout the kingdom….

Josiah valiantly attempted to abolish idolatry during his religious reforms, but by the time of the ministries of Jeremiah and Lehi, idolatrous practices had again begun to permeate Judean mentality. The reliance on the God who had delivered their ancestors out of Egypt (which Josiah had attempted to reinstate among his people) had disappeared….

Despite Josiah's efforts, the hearts of the people failed to turn toward the Lord, and idolatrous attitudes would again show their face in the kingdom of Judah….

Josiah pursued religious reforms, economic recovery, and expansion that would forever mark him as one of the greatest and most righteous kings Judah had ever seen. His untimely death brought serious consequences and retrogression in the kingdom of Judah.

Josiah was killed by Pharaoh Necho II at Meggido in 609 BC. This occurred as the Egyptians were marching north to assist their ally (Assur-uballit II of Assyria) who was falling to the Babylonians and the Medes in western Mesopotamia. "His sudden death and the hasty departure of Necho from the land left a vacuum, which was well used by the supporters of Jehoahaz, who crowned him in place of his father." During the next four years (609–605 BC), Judah was under Egyptian domination until the Babylonian victory at Carchemish in 605. After Jehoahaz's short three-month reign in 609, he was imprisoned in Necho's headquarters in Riblah. Egypt then set Jehoiakim, brother of Jehoahaz, upon the throne, and he reigned for the next eleven years in Judah (609–598 BC; 2 Kings 23:33–34).

Jehoiakim becomes a pivotal figure in the study of the early history of the Book of Mormon, as he reigns almost to the beginning of Lehi's ministry in Jerusalem. During his reign the Babylonians defeated the Egyptians at Carchemish (605 BC), up until which time Judah had been an Egyptian vassal. Nebuchadnezzar (605–562) succeeded his father (Nabopolassar) shortly thereafter (605), and in that year Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians invaded the area of Palestine. Judah then became a part of their domain sometime around 604/603. Concerning this period, Abraham Malamat commented: "With the decline of the mighty empire of Assyria, toward the end of the seventh century BC and the striking victories of the young Nebuchadnezzar in the summer of 605 BC, a most reluctant Judah was swept into the ensuing confrontation that erupted between the Neo-Babylonian empire and Egypt," and "The small state of Judah, located at the particularly sensitive crossroads linking Asia and Africa, was influenced more than ever before by the international power system, now that the kingdom's actual existence was at stake." This would eventually create severe tension among various factions (pro-Babylonian vs. pro-Egyptian) within the kingdom of Judah.

Following a stalemate battle between Egypt and Babylon (winter of 601/600), Jehoiakim decided to revolt against Babylon. This was probably encouraged by Egypt, who was nudging Judah to defect to the Egyptian camp. For the next two years the Babylonians recuperated and eventually took action against Jehoiakim in 598 (at which time he died).

Following the death of Jehoiakim, his son Jehoiachin reigned for just over three months before he was deposed by Nebuchadnezzar (597). Thousands (including his officials) were exiled with him to Babylon [see 2 Kings 24:11-15]. This deportation would take a terrible toll on the kingdom, leaving doubts and uncertainty among the people and leadership. It is probably not a historical coincidence that amid this time of deportation and chaos Lehi began his official ministry, as guidance and direction were desperately needed (1 Nephi 1:4).

"King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon advanced against the city [Jerusalem], while his troops were besieging it. Thereupon King Jehoiachin of Judah surrendered to the king of Babylon, along with his mother, his courtiers, his commanders and his officers.... He [the king of Babylon] carried away all Jerusalem, and all the commanders, and all the warriors ... and he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon; and the king's mother, the king's wives, his officials, and the chief men of the land, he took into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon" (2 Kings 24:11–12, 14–15).

Jehoiachin's uncle, Zedekiah (also known as Mattaniah), was pronounced the new crown prince of Judah in 597 BC. He reigned until the kingdom fell to the Babylonians in 586. In 587 the final siege of Jerusalem began, and by this time most of the kingdom of Judah had fallen. Though the Egyptians moved forward to aid Zedekiah, they retreated and "Judah found herself in a highly vulnerable position. From both a diplomatic and military point of view, Judah was left in the lurch and had to face the Babylonian might alone—'all her friends have dealt treacherously with her' (Lam. 1.2)." The Babylonians eventually breached the walls of Jerusalem in 586 BC. Zedekiah escaped, but the Babylonians captured him near Jericho and took him to Riblah where they killed his sons and princes in front of him, put out his eyes, and threw him in prison in Babylon until he died there (Jeremiah 52:10–11).…

Such was the social and political climate of this late preexilic period in Judah's history, in which Lehi and Jeremiah commenced their ministries. (Excerpted from Aaron P. Schade, “The Kingdom of Judah: Politics, Prophets, and Scribes in the Late Preexilic Period,” in Glimpses of Lehi’s Jerusalem, ed. John W. Welch, David Rolph Seely, and Jo Ann H. Seely. (Neal A. Maxwell Institute for Religious Scholarship, Brigham Young University, 2004)).

Lehi is Called to be a Prophet
(597/96 BC)
The engaging story of Lehi’s call is familiar to virtually every person who has ever begun to read the Book of Mormon. It came in the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, in 597/96 B.C. This was undoubtedly an unforgettably troubling year, for in the first part of December, 598 B.C., Jehoiakim, king of Judah, had died. His son Jehoiachin, who was probably only an adolescent, was made king. Three months and ten days later, on 16 March (2 Adar) 597 B.C., Jerusalem fell, having been besieged by the Babylonians (2 Kings 24:10–16). They deposed king Jehoiachin and deported him to Babylon, along with many of the leading citizens, soldiers, and craftsmen of Jerusalem (Jeremiah 24: l), leaving Jehoiachin’s uncle, the mere twenty-one-year-old Zedekiah, on the throne as a puppet king. Therefore, at the time when Lehi became concerned about the welfare of his people, the still insurgent Jews at Jerusalem already knew well the indomitable military power of the Babylonians and were in a weakened political position with an inexperienced, twenty-one-year-old king at their helm. The situation in Jerusalem was grave and volatile, if not already desperate.

Such circumstances as trouble in the land and the coronation of a new king often precipitated prophetic action in the ancient world. One scholar, for example, has argued from circumstantial evidence in the Old Testament that prophecy played an especially important role at or around the coronation of each new king. He suggests that the distinctive council visions and messenger prophecies of Micaiah (1 Kings 22:1–38), Isaiah (Isaiah 6, 40), Ezekiel (Ezekiel 1–10), and Amos (Amos 7:1–3, 4–6, 7–9; 8:1–3; 9:1), as well as Jeremiah’s temple sermon (Jeremiah 26:1)—which have much in common with 1 Nephi 1—all occurred around the New Year, at the … day when the king was typically crowned and the fates or destinies pronounced. If there is any merit to such suggestions, we may understand more clearly the sharply negative reaction which Lehi’s public message evoked, since it was apparently near the day when the Israelites were celebrating Zedekiah’s enthronement, or at least “in the commencement” of the first year of his troubled reign, that many prophets including Lehi came forth and spoke out pessimistically against Zedekiah’s newly installed regime.

Nephi reports that “there came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed” (1 Nephi 1:4). Who were these other prophets and how do their words compare with Lehi’s? Prophetic messages of judgment and destruction were in fact common among the so-called classical prophets of Israel who are known to have been active at this time. For example during Lehi’s lifetime, Nahum (ca. 612 B.C.) proclaimed the vengeance of the Lord on his enemies and marked the fall of Nineveh. Zephaniah (who also lived during this time) prophesied that God would sweep the earth completely clean and would stretch his hand over Judah to punish its royal house and to wipe out of Jerusalem all remnants of Baal (Zephaniah 1:2–9). “The whole land shall be devoured by the fire of his jealousy,” he prophesied (Zephaniah 1:18). “Gather yourselves together, . . . O nation, . . . before the fierce anger of the Lord come upon you,” he exhorted (Zephaniah 2:1–2; cf. 3:8). Zephaniah spoke doom against Jerusalem, calling it a tyrant city, filthy and foul (Zephaniah 3:1–8), while he also promised that a poor and afflicted remnant would be preserved by finding refuge in the Lord (Zephaniah 3:11–13; cf. Isaiah 6:13, which also holds out some optimism for the return or repentance of a remnant through the power of the “holy seed”) and that the survivors would be rescued and gathered when the proper time would come (Zephaniah 3:19–20). Habakkuk (ca. 609–598 B.C.) prophesied during the reign of Jehoiakim of the destruction of the treacherous and of the overconfident, pronouncing five woes upon extortioners, exploiters, debauchery, and idolatry (Habakkuk 2:5–20), while also offering a prayer to God that He be merciful (Habakkuk 3:2). Jeremiah was also similarly active during and after Lehi’s day. And indeed, there were undoubtedly many other prophets who arose during this time for whom we have no names (2 Chronicles 36:15–16).

It is significant in seeing Lehi among his contemporaries that he was not a lone voice delivering the messages of woe, destruction, mercy, and redemption. He likewise prophesied that Jerusalem would be destroyed and that its inhabitants would perish by the sword (1 Nephi 1:13), yet he also praised the mercy of God and looked forward to the “redemption of the world” (1 Nephi 1:14, 19). Although 1 Nephi makes no explicit statement relating Lehi’s message to that of his contemporaries, the point is evident: The people in Jerusalem in Lehi’s day had been warned expressly and repeatedly.

Nephi also leaves the ill fate of these other prophets unstated. Only a few years earlier, for example, the prophet Urijah had been persecuted, had fled to Egypt, was extradited, convicted, and ignominiously executed for preaching the same message that the prophets were again preaching in the first year of the reign of Zedekiah (Jeremiah 26:20–23). Similarly 2 Chronicles 36:15–16 later explains what had happened to these prophets and why: “And the Lord God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers ... because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place: But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord arose against his people, till there was no remedy.” The fact that he was willing to deliver that very message entrusted to him by God, knowing full well that precisely the same thing would undoubtedly happen to him as had already happened to others delivering that identical message only a few months or years before, marks Lehi as a man of extraordinary courage, commitment, and devotion to the Lord and to his people, one of the hallmarks of a true prophet of the Lord. (Excerpted from John W. Welch, “The Calling of a Prophet,” in First Nephi, The Doctrinal Foundation, ed. Monte S. Nyman and Charles D. Tate Jr. (Provo, UT: Religious Studies Center, Brigham Young University, 1988), 35–54.)]