2 Nephi 1: 13-32

[pam]

Reference Search: 2 Nephi 1: 13-32

13 O that ye would awake; awake from a deep sleep, yea, even from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that they are carried away captive down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe.

14 Awake! and arise from the dust, and hear the words of a trembling parent, whose limbs ye must soon lay down in the cold and silent grave,from whence no traveler can return; a few more days and I go the way of all the earth.

15 But behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the arms of his love.

16 And I desire that ye should remember to observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord; behold, this hath been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning.

17 My heart hath been weighed down with sorrow from time to time, for I have feared, lest for the hardness of your hearts the Lord your God should come out in the fulness of his wrath upon you, that ye be cut off and destroyed forever;

18 Or, that a cursing should come upon you for the space of many generations; and ye are visited by sword, and by famine, and are hated, and are led according to the will and captivity of the devil.

19 O my sons, that these things might not come upon you, but that ye might be a choice and a favored people of the Lord. But behold, his will be done; for his ways are righteousness forever.

20 And he hath said that: inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land; but inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from my presence.

21 And now that my soul might have joy in you, and that my heart might leave this world with gladness because of you, that I might not be brought down with grief and sorrow to the grave, arise from the dust, my sons, and be men, and be determined in one mind and in one heart, united in all things, that ye may not come down into captivity;

22 That ye may not be cursed with a sore cursing; and also, that ye may not incur the displeasure of a just God upon you, unto the destruction, yea, the eternal destruction of both soul and body.

23 Awake, my sons; put on the armor of righteousness. Shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of obscurity, and arise from the dust.

24 Rebel no more against your brother, whose views have been glorious, and who hath kept the commandments from the time that we left Jerusalem; and who hath been an instrument in the hands of God, in bringing us forth into the land of promise; for were it not for him, we must have perished with hunger in the wilderness; nevertheless, ye sought to take away his life; yea, and he hath suffered much sorrow because of you.

25 And I exceedingly fear and tremble because of you, lest he shall suffer again; for behold, ye have accused him that he sought power and authority over you; but I know that he hath not sought for power nor authority over you, but he hath sought the glory of God, and your own eternal welfare.

26 And ye have murmured because he hath been plain unto you. Ye say that he hath used sharpness; ye say that he hath been angry with you; but behold, his sharpness was the sharpness of the power of the word of God, which was in him; and that which ye call anger was the truth, according to that which is in God, which he could not restrain, manifesting boldly concerning your iniquities.

27 And it must needs be that the power of God must be with him, even unto his commanding you that ye must obey. But behold, it was not he, but it was the Spirit of the Lord which was in him, which opened his mouth to utterance that he could not shut it.

28 And now my son, Laman, and also Lemuel and Sam, and also my sons who are the sons of Ishmael, behold, if ye will hearken unto the voice of Nephi ye shall not perish. And if ye will hearken unto him I leave unto you a blessing, yea, even my first blessing.

29 But if ye will not hearken unto him I take away my first blessing, yea, even my blessing, and it shall rest upon him.

30 And now, Zoram, I speak unto you: Behold, thou art the servant of Laban; nevertheless, thou hast been brought out of the land of Jerusalem, and I know that thou art a true friend unto my son, Nephi, forever.

31 Wherefore, because thou hast been faithful thy seed shall be blessed with his seed, that they dwell in prosperity long upon the face of this land; and nothing, save it shall be iniquity among them, shall harm or disturb their prosperity upon the face of this land forever.

32 Wherefore, if ye shall keep the commandments of the Lord, the Lord hath consecrated this land for the security of thy seed with the seed of my son.

Quotes for Discussion

20

Father’s Counsel

Joseph F. Smith:

And if parents fail to do this and the children go astray and turn from the truth, then the Lord has said the sin shall be upon the heads of the parents. The loss of the children will be charged to the parents and they will be responsible for their apostasy and darkness. I came to the conclusion, after reflection upon this subject,…I do not believe that it would be possible for me to be admitted into exaltation and glory in the Kingdom of God, if through my neglect of duty my children should become the children of darkness in this regard….My children must not and will not turn away with my consent. I will plead with my children; I will endeavor with all the power I possess to have them as true and faithful to this gospel as it is possible for me to be; because, without all of them in the Kingdom of God I would feel that my household was not perfect.

Ye Are the Light of the World: selected Sermons and Writings of Harold B. Lee, 274

21

Just be Good…Just be Good.

A wayward child is not the sign of a failing parent. A failing parent is one who has not taught his or her children. We are not perfect, and the Lord is surely aware of that, but we are required to try with all our heart, might, mind, and strength to teach our children the gospel of Jesus Christ (see D&C 68:25-28). As parents we must never give in, never give out, and never give up.

My father passed away on Mother’s Day in 1947. I was the youngest in our family, a twelve-year-old deacon. I tried to be a good boy. I remember that when I would ask my angel mother what she wanted for her birthday, Mother’s Day, and Christmas, the answer was always the same, “Oh, Ed, I have everything one would need. I don’t need anything.” I would implore her, “Mom, I want to give you a present.” Her answer for many years was the same, “Ed, just be good…just be good.” All she ever wanted for her children was for them to be good. Nothing else really mattered to her. I understand now that our joy and rejoicing is in our family, even as is our Heavenly Father’s joy (see Moses 1:39).

Having said all this, there are times when, after we have done all, our children may choose for a time to turn away from the truth. What do we do? We pray unceasingly (see Mosiah 27:14), plead, and exhort when moved upon by the Spirit (see D&C 100:5-6; 121:41-44), or we may seek help from others. We certainly exercise patience in longsuffering. The goodness of God will then give us a sense of peace that we have done all in our power. Heavenly Father has done all in perfectness and infinite wisdom, yet some of His children chose to disobey and follow Lucifer. We simply must “cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the utmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed” (D&C 123:17).

Ed J. Pinegar, Teachings & Commentary of the Book of Mormon, p. 79

22

After the Prophet Joseph had been confined to the squalor of Liberty Jail in Missouri at the hands of unrighteous lawmen for nearly four months, he penned a letter dated 21 March 1839 to Emma, with the salutation “Affectionate Wife.”

The Prophet shows tender concern—even asking about the family dog—within the letter: “I want to be with you very much but the powers of mobocracy are too many for me at present….My dear Emma, I very well know your toils and sympathize with you. If God will spare my life once more to have the privilege of taking care of you, I will ease your care and endeavor to comfort your heart. I want you to take the best care of the family you can, which I believe you will do all you can. I was sorry to learn that Frederick was sick but I trust he is well again and that you are all well. I want you to try to gain time and write to me a long letter and tell me all you can and even if Old Major is alive yet and what those little prattlers say that cling around your neck. Do you tell them I am in prison that their lives might be saved?” (The Personal Writings of Joseph Smith, rev. ed., comp. Dean C. Jesse [salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2002], 449; text modernized).

A few days later, on 4 April 1839, he sent another letter to Emma with similar tender expressions: “Dear Emma, I think of you and the children continually. If I could tell you my tale, I think you would say it was altogether enough for once, to gratify the malice of hell that I have suffered. I want to see little Frederick, Joseph, Julia, and Alexander, Joanna, and Old Major. And as to yourself, if you want to know how much I want to see you, examine your feelings, how much you want to see me and judge for yourself. I would gladly walk from here to you barefoot, and bareheaded, and half naked, to see you and think it great pleasure, and never count it toil, but do not think I am babyish, for I do not feel so. I bear with fortitude all my oppression, so do those that are with me. Not one of us have flinched yet. I want you should not let those little fellows forget me. Tell them Father loves them with a perfect love, and he is doing all he can to get away from the mob to come to them. Do teach them all you can, that they may have good minds. Be tender and kind to them. Don’t be fractious to them, but listen to their wants. Tell them Father says they must be good children and mind their mother. My dear Emma, there is great responsibility resting upon you, in preserving yourself in honor, and sobriety, before them, and teaching them right things, to form their young and tender minds, that they begin in right paths, and not get contaminated when young, by seeing ungodly examples” (Ibid., 464).

Thus we see the quality and depth of the Prophet Joseph’s love for his wife and children and the manner in which he offered guidance and counsel at a time of great uncertainty. As it turned out, he was able to escape his confinement several days later and spend a few more years with Emma and his family before sealing his testimony with his martyrdom. The Prophet’s example is a sobering lesson to all of us to cultivate the warmest relationships with our loved ones every day of our lives, for we are never fully certain but what it might be our last.

Richard J. Allen, Teachings & Commentary of the Book of Mormon, p. 80

23

You are the keepers of the hearth. You are the managers of the home. I charge you to stand tall and be strong in defense of those great virtues which have been the backbone of our social progress. When you are united, your power is limitless.

…You have nothing in this world more precious than your children. When you grow old, when your hair turns white and your body grows weary, when you are prone to sit in a rocker and meditate on the things of your life, nothing will be so important as the question of how your children have turned out. It will not be the money you have made. It will not be the cars you have owned. It will not be the large house in which you live. The searing question that will cross your mind again and again will be, How well have my children done?

…God bless you, dear friends. Do not trade your birthright as a mother for some bauble of passing value. Let your first interest be in your home.

President Gordon B. Hinckley, “Walking in the Light of the Lord”

[prospectmom]

What a great insight to be able to read letters from Joseph Smith.. Yime never changes the inportant things......... love for family...