1 Nephi Chapter 5 - May 5, 2017

[pam]

Discuss

[Sunday21]

This chapter testifies to me strongly the importance of daily scripture reading. Daily scripture reading helps to keep us on the path. This daily tribute to God, is am important part of grasping the iron rod. It would be disrespectful to those who suffered to obtain these scriptures not to read them daily.

[NeuroTypical]

The whole story of Lehi and family doing this stuff always amazes me.  I think of the rough analogy of any of us, getting a revelation that we need to pack up our families, head to some weird place and ask a stranger to hand over records, then go build a boat and get in it.   

It puts Saria's anxiety into perspective, and it also helps me understand Laman and Lemuel's rebellion.  I don't think I could even talk my teenage daughter into getting off the couch for something like this.

[person0]

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4 And it had come to pass that my father spake unto her, saying: I know that I am a visionary man; for if I had not seen the things of God in a vision I should not have known the goodness of God, but had tarried at Jerusalem, and had perished with my brethren.

In my mind, this verse provides additional insight to note that Lehi was likely not yet called as a prophet prior to the revelatory experiences detailed in chapter one.  This would also give further credence to the idea that if Lehi was just recently called, his family, including his wife, would not yet all have had the personal revelation to know that his calling and actions have been true.  Nephi and Sam had already received their witness; Laman and Lemuel continually rejected the opportunity to receive theirs;  now, finally, Sariah was pushed to the trial of her faith, and from my perspective she mostly failed.

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2 . . . she also had complained against my father, telling him that he was a visionary man; saying: Behold thou hast led us forth from the land of our inheritance, and my sons are no more, and we perish in the wilderness.

The fact that Sariah complained and did not initially endure her trial faithfully is important for our profit and learning.  We see in verses 4-6 that Lehi comforted Sariah.  He did this by sharing his own testimony of his experiences and of the things the Lord had called their family to do.  When we experience trials, the Lord does not want us to go it alone.  He stands ready to comfort us and bless us with His Spirit, but also often places spouses, family, friends and others who can help comfort us if we allow them to do so.  Sariah's trial is scriptural evidence that even the faithful fall and rise again.  She was the wife of a prophet was she not?  However, after the trial of her faith, she received her witness, and her experience was powerful enough for her to proclaim "Now I Know of a surety. . ."

Thomas, even an Apostle of the Lord, faltered in a similar capacity and would not even believe the witness of his brethren, but still received the mercy of the Lord further enabling him to go on to fulfill his calling.  In His mercy, even when we falter, the Lord will still provide means to strengthen us and enable us to receive of Him and to have exceeding joy, as did Sariah and the whole family upon the return of Nephi and his brothers.  No matter our experiences, murmurings and misgivings, we can find comfort, and in the end, in the Lords time, receive our own witness for each trial we are called to bear.

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10 And after they had given thanks unto the God of Israel, my father, Lehi, took the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass, and he did search them from the beginning.

21 And we had obtained the records which the Lord had commanded us, and searched them and found that they were desirable; yea, even of great worth unto us, insomuch that we could preserve the commandments of the Lord unto our children.

Prior to reading directly from the plates, it appears Lehi had little knowledge of its contents.  The opportunity to read scripture in such a fashion was a new experience for this family, and they devoured the words within excitedly.  Imagine what knowledge we could have if we sought to read the the scriptures as much as we fight over who's turn it is with the remote, or the car, or the newest Harry Potter book, or whatever it is that calls to us so strongly.  If today the First Presidency announced a new book of scripture, who among us would not jump at the chance to delve into its pages?  Yet somehow we often fail to search, ponder and pray on the words of the prophets we have today.  Hopefully we each see for ourselves that they are 'of great worth unto us' and teach our children to do the same.

[pam]

One key word that I found in verse 10 was the word "search."  It says that Lehi took the records that Nephi and his brothers brought back and searched them.  It doesn't say he read them but he searched them.  To me the word search indicates to me he was looking for something more personal or something to bring him more understanding.

Also in regards to Sariah's complaining.  How many trivial things do we complain about during our day?  Yet here was Sariah who had not yet gained a testimony of her husband's visions contemplating the loss of everything she held dear.  Her home, her sons and her friends.  Makes our little day to day complaints seem so trivial.

In verse 11 it mentions the 5 books of Moses that the records contained.  I wasn't familiar with exactly what these 5 books were.  So in doing a bit of research I found this:

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The five books of Moses are referred to as the "Pentateuch." The Bible dictionary states:

"A Greek word meaning the fivefold book; a name given to the five books that stand at the beginning of our Bible, and that contain the Torah or law of Israel. The Pentateuch was written by Moses, although it is evident that he used several documentary sources from which he compiled the book of Genesis, beside a divine revelation to him. It is also evident that scribes and copyists have left their traces upon the Pentateuch as we have it today; for example, the explanation of Moses' supposed death (Deut. 34:5-12) was surely added by a later hand. But latter-day revelation confirms that Moses was the author of the first five books of the Bible."

The first five books of Moses represent the most important of all Jewish canon. The Torah is the Jewish bible and contains nothing more than the first five books of Moses. The Talmud contains many other Old Testament writings but these are considered to be less important - doctrinally and historically.