2 Nephi 28:19-20

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Reference Search: 2 Nephi 28:19-20

19 For the kingdom of the devil must shake, and they which belong to it must needs be stirred up unto repentance, or the devil will grasp them with his everlasting chains, and they be stirred up to anger, and perish;

20 For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good.

Quotes for Discussion

Kingdom of the Devil…Stirred Up

During this time when nations are in distress, with perplexity, there will actually be some redemptive turbulence: “For the kingdom of the devil must shake, and they which belong to it must needs be stirred up unto repentance” (2 Nephi 28:19). Being so “stirred up” will be a real thin, though we can only speculate as to how it will be achieved.

Neal A. Maxwell, Ensign, Nov. 1998 [salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1998], 62

“Devil stirs them up to anger”

It should come as no surprise that one of the adversary’s tactics in the latter days is stirring up hatred among the children of men. He loves to see us criticize each other, make fun or take advantage of our neighbor’s known flaws, and generally pick on each other. The Book of Mormon is clear from where all anger, malice, greed, and hate come [2 Nephi 28:20]. By the looks of what we constantly see depicted in the news media, it appears that Satan is doing a pretty good job. In the name of reporting the news, we are besieged with sometimes graphic depictions—too often in living color—of greed, extortion, violent sexual crimes, and insults between business, athletic, or political opponents.

Marvin J. Ashton, Ensign, May 1992 [salt Lake City: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 1992], 19

In [2 Nephi 28:19]…notice the connection between Satan’s chains and those who are “stirred up to anger.” What a contrast between those who please Satan through anger and those who submit to the Lord by becoming “child[like],…meek, humble, patient, [and] full of love” (Mosiah 3:19).

Nephi continued this line of reasoning by speaking to the audience that also includes the youth of our time: “At that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good” (2 Nephi 28:20). In the previous verse, he spoke of those of the latter-days who wear the chains of anger, but in this verse he includes “the children of men” who “anger against that which is good.” Isn’t it possible that some of that anger is reflected in the fashion of some of our youth in their body piercing tattoos, radical hairstyles, and general conduct?

K. Douglas Bassett, Life Lessons from the Book of Mormon, Jack R. Christianson and K. Douglas Bassett [salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2003], 97-98

One day…I became angry with one of my teenage sons who had lost the oil cap to my car. Instead of telling me of the mistake when it happened he had stuffed a rag into the hole, hoping he could find the cap and replace it before I discovered the error. However, the car emptied itself of oil as I was driving on the freeway a few days later, thus putting an end to the engine.

When he confessed to the deed, I was incensed, and after an angry barrage of words, I inquired, “Son why didn’t you tell me you had lost the oil cap in the first place?”

To which he replied, “Because I thought you would act the way you’re acting right now.” I pondered his words for a moment; then I asked for a “time out” to regroup my emotions for a more suitable presentation.

While his motive for hiding the truth did not excuse his behavior or allow him to avoid the consequences, there was a lesson in this experience for me as well. Being a parent, as well as being the owner of the car, did not justify my angry tirade. The Lord admonished the Prophet Joseph to state the truth “not in haste, neither in wrath nor with strife” (D&C 60:14). The Savior did not excuse the Nephites from contention even when they were on the side of truth. He said, “He that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil” (3 Nephi 11:29). So when I stated the truth to my son in the spirit of contention, my words were still “of the devil.” Why? Because the Holy Ghost could not be there to bear witness, to comfort, and to heal. That being the case, perhaps it is easier to understand why Nephi stated that in the last days, “the children of men… [would] anger against that which is good” (2 Nephi 28:20). Children, and adults, have a tendency to respond to the method rather than the message when disciplined; such was the case on the occasion of the lost oil cap.

K. Douglas Bassett, Life Lessons from the Book of Mormon, Jack R. Christianson and K. Douglas Bassett [salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 2003], 129-130

For years, George Rona was an attorney in Vienna; but during the Second World War, he fled to Sweden….Since he could speak and write several languages, he hoped to get a position as correspondent for some firm engaged in importing or exporting. Most of the firms replied that they had no need of such services….One man…wrote George Rona a letter saying: “What you imagine about my business is not true. You are both wrong and foolish. I do not need any correspondent. Even if I did need one, I wouldn’t hire you because you can’t even write good Swedish. Your letter is full of mistakes.”

When George Rona read that letter, he was as mad as Donald Duck….Why, the letter that this Swede himself had written was full of mistakes! So George Rona wrote a letter that was calculated to burn this man up. Then he paused. He said to himself, “Wait a minute, now. How do I know this man isn’t right? I have studied Swedish, but it’s not my native language, so maybe I do make mistakes I don’t know anything about. If I do, then I certainly have to study harder if I ever hope to get a job. This man has possibly done me a favor, even though he didn’t mean to. The mere fact that he expressed himself in disagreeable terms doesn’t alter my debt to him. Therefore, I am going to write him and thank him for what he has done.”

So George Rona tore up the scorching letter he had already written, and wrote another that said: “It was kind of you to go to the trouble of writing to me, especially when you do not need a correspondent. I am sorry I was mistaken about your firm….I did not know I had made grammatical errors in my letter….I will now apply myself more diligently to the study of the Swedish language and try to correct my mistakes. I want to thank you for helping me get started on the road to self-improvement.”

Within a few days, George Rona got a letter from this man, asking Rona to come to see him. Rona went—and got a job. George Rona discovered for himself that ‘a soft answer turneth away wrath.”

Dale Carnegie, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living [New York: Simon and Schuster, 1944], 103-104

If you wish your children to be taught in the principles of the gospel, if you wish them to love the truth and understand it, if you wish them to be obedient to and united with you, love them! and prove to them that you do love them by your every word or act to them….However wayward they might be…when you speak or talk to them, do it not in anger, do it not harshly, in a condemning spirit. Speak to them kindly; get them down and weep with them if necessary….Use no lash and no violence…approach them with reason, with persuasion and love unfeigned….Our children are like we are; we couldn’t be driven; we can’t be driven now. We are like some other animals that we know of in the world. You can coax them…but you can’t drive them; they won’t be driven. We won’t be driven. Men are not in the habit of being driven; they are not made that way….

You can’t force your boys, nor your girls into heaven. You may force them to hell, by suing harsh means in the efforts to make them good, when you yourselves are not as good as you should be. The man that will be angry at his boy, and try to correct him while he is in anger, is in the greatest fault; he is more to be pitied and more to be condemned than the child who has done wrong. You can only correct your children by love, in kindness, by love unfeigned, by persuasion, and reason.

Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine [salt Lake City: Deseret Book, 1975], 316-317