1 Nephi 4

MDC Contents			1 Nephi 4:1 1 And it came to pass that I spake unto my brethren, saying: Let us go up again unto Jerusalem, and let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord; for behold he is mightier than all the earth, then why not mightier than Laban and his fifty, yea, or even than his tens of thousands? Laman and Lemuel (and probably all of the brothers) are hesitant to face Laban and his fifty. As Nephi is exhorting his brothers to action, he calls to mind one of the greater fears, and then augments it through exaggeration. With the strength of the Lord, what does Laban's fifty matter? What would even tens of thousands matter. This last phrase is probably inserted for dramatic effect rather than any historical reference to Laban's ability to command that many men. 1 Nephi 4:2 2 Therefore let us go up; let us be strong like unto Moses; for he truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea and they divided hither and thither, and our fathers came through, out of captivity, on dry ground, and the armies of Pharaoh did follow and were drowned in the waters of the Red Sea. 1 Nephi 4:3 3 Now behold ye know that this is true; and ye also know that an angel hath spoken unto you; wherefore can ye doubt? Let us go up; the Lord is able to deliver us, even as our fathers, and to destroy Laban, even as the Egyptians. Nephi's selection of an example is interesting. Of course it was a well known example of the miracle of the deliverance of Israel from bondage, but there were several miracles performed by the Lord, both during that Exodus and at other times. Of all of the stories he could have chosen, Nephi selects a story in which the Lord killed the enemy. Nor does Nephi stop short of making the comparison between their task and the drowning of Pharaoh, for in verse 3 he indicates that they are "to destroy Laban, even as the Egyptians". Nephi may not have had any conscious plan to find and kill Laban, but if we can assume that his speech to his brothers was inspired, then the Lord provided a precursor to the events which followed. 1 Nephi 4:4 4 Now when I had spoken these words, they were yet wroth, and did still continue to murmur; nevertheless they did follow me up until we came without the walls of Jerusalem. 1 Nephi 4:5 5 And it was by night; and I caused that they should hide themselves without the walls. And after they had hid themselves, I, Nephi, crept into the city and went forth towards the house of Laban. Nephi's speech is sufficiently effective that his brothers accompany him to the walls of Jerusalem. Nevertheless, it is Nephi alone who enters to carry out this latest mission. Since Nephi performed the mission alone, perhaps they accompanied him to assist him in carrying the plates (taking turns, as they had to have some weight to them) or perhaps to assist should he come fleeing from Laban and his fifty. 1 Nephi 4:6 6 And I was led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things which I should do. 1 Nephi 4:7 7 Nevertheless I went forth, and as I came near unto the house of Laban I beheld a man, and he had fallen to the earth before me, for he was drunken with wine. 1 Nephi 4:8 8 And when I came to him I found that it was Laban. Nephi's introduction to his experience begins with the statement that he was led by the Spirit. As with many things influenced by the Spirit, this does not necessarily mean a totally blank mind, with no previous volition. Nephi comes near to the house of Laban. It is fairly certain that at least that much information was likely in his mind before he began. Nephi knew that he must deal with Laban, and that he was most likely to find Laban at his house. Therefore, the fact that Nephi is heading in the direction of Laban's house is not in and of itself a result of the Spirit. It may be, of course, that the particular path Nephi took was dictated by the Spirit, for the essential action of the Spirit was to lead Nephi to an incapacitated Laban. 1 Nephi 4:9 9 And I beheld his sword, and I drew it forth from the sheath thereof; and the hilt thereof was of pure gold, and the workmanship thereof was exceedingly fine, and I saw that the blade thereof was of the most precious steel. 1 Nephi 4:10 10 And it came to pass that I was constrained by the Spirit that I should kill Laban; but I said in my heart: Never at any time have I shed the blood of man. And I shrunk and would that I might not slay him. It is hard to tell from the order of relating the events whether the constraint to kill came before or after Nephi draws Laban's sword. Clearly the narrative places it later, but that makes Nephi's action in drawing the sword fairly curious. Given Nephi's hesitance to kill Laban under the influence of the Spirit, it is highly unlikely that Nephi's first impulse would have been to steal the sword. There must have been some impression from the Spirit which prompted Nephi to draw the sword, and having done so, the more clear command of the Spirit came to him. It is important to note that the immediate effect of the command of the Spirit is that Nephi struggles with it and attempts to turn from it. Nephi understands that killing Laban falls under his interpretations of the injunction not to kill, and Nephi shrinks from doing so. 1 Nephi 4:11 11 And the Spirit said unto me again: Behold the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands. Yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had taken away our property. 1 Nephi 4:12 12 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands; 1 Nephi 4:13 13 Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief. The Spirit responds to Nephi's hesitation with reasons that Nephi would be able to accept. Most important among them is verse thirteens admonition that the Lord himself had slain the wicked for the benefit of his people. Whether or not this is a direct recollection of Nephi's words to his brothers concerning Pharaoh, or whether Nephi understood this in a broader context, it is clear that Nephi did understand that the command not to kill was one which the Lord himself had at times superseded. 1 Nephi 4:14 14 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: Inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise. 1 Nephi 4:15 15 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses, save they should have the law. 1 Nephi 4:16 16 And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass. 1 Nephi 4:17 17 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause--that I might obtain the records according to his commandments. 1 Nephi 4:18 18 Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own sword. Nephi's justification is to place his family in the position of Israel and the Exodus. They are leaving under command of the Lord, and will require the Law in their new life and location. To overcome his hesitance to carry out the will of the Spirit, Nephi must understand why, and that "why" is linked with the future ability of his people to know the commandments. Those commandments are contained on the brass plates, and they are therefore necessary to Nephi. Legal Analysis of Nephi's slaying of Laban: Fred Essig and H. Daniel Fuller have written a long essay entitled "Nephi's Slaying of Laban: a Legal Perspective" (FARMS 1982). The authors provide an exhaustive analysis of relevant Hebrew law during Nephi's time. The analysis takes the form of a brief for the assessment of a defense strategy for Nephi. What laws might apply? The authors examine burglary and theft as two laws which might justify Nephi's actions. They find them both failing. Burglary does not apply as Nephi's home has not been burglarized. Theft might apply, but the punishment for theft was payment of monetary damages, and never invoked the death penalty (Essig and Fuller pp. 6-7). The authors provide some background on the interpretations of a passage in Exodus which might apply to Nephi: Exodus 21:12 He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death. 13 And if a man lie not in wait, but God deliver [him] into his hand; then I will appoint thee a place whither he shall flee. "The attitude of the Rabbis on the involvement of God in Exodus 21:13 differs in some respects... Their comments are found in an Amoraic utterance that was preserved by Simeon ben Laqish. The Rabbis' thoughts are developed through a discourse that associates Exodus 21:13 with 1 Samuel 24:13. The teaching is simple. "God is absolutely just. He will deliver over to an unwitting homicide (and Exodus 21:13 killer) only a man deserving death... In other words, the man [killed] will be, say, a murderer who, owing to lack of witnesses, escaped his proper punishment" (Essig and Fuller p. 20). Essig and Fuller also note, however, that the interpretation of the culpability of the killer in this case does carry sufficient guilt that they would be worthy of the banishment to a city of refuge which would correspond to this crime, determined to be manslaughter (Essig and Fuller p. 21). Essig and Fuller conclude: "Biblical and Rabbinic law provides numerous defenses to a charge of murder. Many of these, however, such as the justifications of burglary, theft, self-defense, and minority status, do not apply to Nephi's slaying of Laban. Additionally, defenses like duress and attempted murder were probably not part of the Jewish law when the slaying occurred in 600 B.C. Probably Nephi's strongest defense would have been the procedural requirement of two eye-witnesses for a murder conviction, for no witnesses are mentioned in the scriptural account. There would still have been the possibility of false witnesses, however. A substantive defense offering some hope of protection is that found in Exodus 21:13 to killers who do not lie in wait. The variety of interpretations of the passage, however, make its application in 600 B.C. uncertain. An additional defense not formally recognized by scholars, but with some support in the scriptures, is that of obedience to a commandment of the Lord. Although Nephi plainly comes within its requirements, it probably would nat have been recognized in Jerusalem at the time of the slaying" (Essig and Fuller p. 40). Theological analysis of Laban's slaying: The legal analysis of Laban's slaying deals with the relationship of the killer to the community. Were Nephi to have stood trial for his action, the laws of the community would apply, and he would need to be reconciled against those laws, for expulsion from the community, or re-acceptance into community. While we can speculate on the applicable law, it was never brought to bear, and Nephi and his family were effectively removed from the community in any case. Therefore the laws of community had no hold upon him. Regardless of where Nephi went, however, he was always subject to the law of God, and always answerable to that law. Indeed, it is the relationship of Nephi's action to the greater moral law that is at greatest issue in this story. How is it that one who was to be a prophet of God should kill, apparently in violation of the Decalogue injunction against killing? The answer to that question can only come from God's perspective. The first question which must be asked is whether that injunction is considered inviolate to God. The answer is clearly no, if for no other event than that cited by Nephi in his exhortation to his brethren. God allowed, or caused, the death of Pharaoh and his army when the waters covered them as Israel fled before the army of Egypt. The death of some for the benefit of others appears to have precedence in the actions of the Lord. Therefore we cannot deny that the whispering of the Spirit to Nephi was valid. The action of taking a life for a larger benefit is within the known and accepted actions of the Lord. What of Nephi's position before the Lord? This is best understood by examining the nature of the injunction not to kill. For what reason was such a command given? Let us take, for the moment, the position of the person killed. Assume that the person was righteous and that the killing was grossly evil. What is the eternal effect on the person killed? Modern revelation of the Plan of Salvation indicates that the person killed will not have any eternal consequences to the shortening of his life on this earth. The Lord is able to make up the unfairness of this life, and provide all of its benefits to those who die. The important issue is the heart of the person, not the manner of their death. The injunction against killing therefore does not have any direct correlation to the quality of resurrection/exaltation of the person who is killed. Who the is effected? Why the killer, of course. The person who comes to the personal capability to take the life of another has undergone a transformation of soul which is contrary to the celestialization process. In the Sermon on the Mount Christ extends this injunction against killing to an injunction against anger with another. As with the other examples Christ gives on that occasion, the purpose is to hone in on the essential problem, not the surface law. The essential problem is the hate and anger which might lead one to take another's life. In the eternal sense, that is the damage, not the death of another, but the death of the Spirit within the one who becomes capable of killing. It is in this context that Nephi's actions have their reconciliation with eternal principles. Nephi is clearly hesitant to kill, is clearly not proceeding with an intent to murder. Nephi kills Laban only under the direction of the Spirit. Since there is no anger in Nephi's heart, the spiritual damage of murder does not apply to him. Nephi stands with a clean and open heart before the Lord, and is not guilty of an action which would eternally damn him. 1 Nephi 4:19 19 And after I had smitten off his head with his own sword, I took the garments of Laban and put them upon mine own body; yea, even every whit; and I did gird on his armor about my loins. After slaying Laban Nephi dons Laban's clothing (even every whit) and Laban's armor. Note that he specifically says that he does this after severing Laban's head. Clearly there was a significant amount of blood. Wasn't Nephi worried about wearing obviously bloodstained clothes? "Laban was wearing armor, so that the only chance of dispatching him quickly, painlessly, and safely was to cut off his head - the conventional treatment of even petty criminals in the East, where beheading has always been by the sword, and where an executioner would be fined for failing to decapitate his victim at one clean stroke.... [Nephi] was an expert hunter, a skilled swordsman and a powerful man: with due care such a one could do a quick and efficient job and avoid getting much blood on himself. But why should he worry about that? There was not one chance in a thousand of meeting any honest citizen, and in the dark no one would notice the blood anyway. What they would notice would be the armor that Nephi put on, and which, like the sword, could easily be wiped clean. The donning of the armor was the natural and the shrewd thing for Nephi to do. A number of instances from the last war could be cited to show that a spy in the enemy camp is never so safe as when he is wearing the insignia of a high military official - providing he does not hang around too long, and Nephi had no intention of doing that. No one dares challenge "big brass" too closely (least of all a grim and hot-tempered Laban): their business is at all times "top secret", and their uniform gives them complete freedom to come and to go unquestioned." (Hugh Nibley An Approach to the Book of Mormon Deseret Book 1957, p. 99-100). 1 Nephi 4:20 20 And after I had done this, I went forth unto the treasury of Laban. And as I went forth towards the treasury of Laban, behold, I saw the servant of Laban who had the keys of the treasury. And I commanded him in the voice of Laban, that he should go with me into the treasury. Certainly the most suspect part of Nephi's disguise was his own voice. In the dark, wearing the armor of Laban, he might be mistaken for Laban. But when he spoke to a servant who would surely know Laban's voice? Nephi sees and knows the servant of Laban who had the keys to the treasury. He must certainly have had that knowledge from one of the previous visits. When seeing the very person he needed, Nephi was likely bolstered in his faith that he was following the commands of the Spirit. Thus he endeavored to speak, and found that he spoke with Laban's voice. That experience would have even further supported his understanding that the Lord was behind his actions. 1 Nephi 4:21 21 And he supposed me to be his master, Laban, for he beheld the garments and also the sword girded about my loins. Whether or not the voice was precisely that of Laban, the entire effect was so certainly Laban that the servant was able to accept Nephi as Laban without hesitation. Even if the voice were somewhat different, the servant's expectation that it was Laban would have created a condition where he heard what he expected to hear, and acted accordingly. "How Nephi disguised himself in the clothes of Laban and tricked Laban's servant into admitting him into the treasury is an authentic bit if Oriental romance, and of history as well. One need but think of Sir Richard Burton's amazingly audacious masquerades in the East, carried on in broad daylight and for months on end with perfect success, to realize that such a thing is entirely possible." (Nibley Lehi in the Desert . Bookcraft. 1952. P. 117). 1 Nephi 4:22 22 And he spake unto me concerning the elders of the Jews, he knowing that his master, Laban, had been out by night among them. The servant so completely expects that he is with Laban that he carries on what would be a normal conversation. He knew that his master had been with the "elders of the Jews", and so questions Laban about them. Reynolds and Sjodahl suggest that the "elders of the Jews" were shoterim. "...the shoterim also had special duties during time of war. In the first place, they were to explain to the conscripts that certain conditions exempted them from service... When the army was ready for organization, the "officers" appointed captains to lead them. It was further, the duty of these "officers" to take messages from the commander-in-chief to the people. They might be compared to the modern adjutant generals. Considering the fact that Laban had charge of the genealogy - necessary for religious services and for census taking, in case of war; and also that he was the possessor of a sword, such as only a man of high military rank would be likely to own, we may safely conclude that his position was that of a shoterim (an "officer") in Jerusalem." (Reynolds and Sjodahl, Commentary on the Book of Mormon Deseret Press. 1976. 1:40.) 1 Nephi 4:23 23 And I spake unto him as if it had been Laban. 1 Nephi 4:24 24 And I also spake unto him that I should carry the engravings, which were upon the plates of brass, to my elder brethren, who were without the walls. 1 Nephi 4:25 25 And I also bade him that he should follow me. 1 Nephi 4:26 26 And he, supposing that I spake of the brethren of the church, and that I was truly that Laban whom I had slain, wherefore he did follow me. 1 Nephi 4:27 27 And he spake unto me many times concerning the elders of the Jews, as I went forth unto my brethren, who were without the walls. In verse 24 Nephi avoids telling a direct untruth when he indicates that he must carry the engravings to his brethren outside the walls. Nephi simply does not counter Zoram's understandable construing of that statement to mean the "elders of the Jews" with whom Laban had been meeting that evening. Nephi's requirement that Zoram should accompany him is perhaps unusual. Laban had gone forth alone previously in the night, and now requires that Zoram should accompany him. One would think that Nephi's greatest urge would be to leave without any further encumbrance. Nevertheless he brings Zoram along. Perhaps he required assistance in carrying the plates, or at least assistance in carrying them should Nephi be required to wield his sword in their defense. 1 Nephi 4:28 28 And it came to pass that when Laman saw me he was exceedingly frightened, and also Lemuel and Sam. And they fled from before my presence; for they supposed it was Laban, and that he had slain me and had sought to take away their lives also. Laman's reaction to Nephi in Laban's garb is yet another testament to the general effectiveness of the disguise for Nephi. Not only did Zoram make the assumption that it was Laban, but Laman did also. Laman's supposition that the person approaching in Laban's armor was actually Laban was bolstered by Laban's threats against Laman, and Laman's inability to succeed in collecting the brass plates. Doubtless Laman had little confidence in Nephi's ability to accomplish what Laman had failed to do. 1 Nephi 4:29 29 And it came to pass that I called after them, and they did hear me; wherefore they did cease to flee from my presence. There is not enough information in this verse to really understand the nature of Nephi's means of assuring his brothers. One may assume that simply calling to them was insufficient, for although it would likely have been Nephi's voice they heard, they would likely have misconstrued it on the basis of their assumption that it would be Laban's voice. Certainly the telephone has taught many of us that even the most familiar voices can be difficult to recognize when stripped of their context. 1 Nephi 4:30 30 And it came to pass that when the servant of Laban beheld my brethren he began to tremble, and was about to flee from before me and return to the city of Jerusalem. In the same sentence that Nephi uses to calm his brothers he terrifies Zoram. In that short space of time Zoram absorbs that the man beside him is not Laban, in spite of the armor and sword. He comprehends that the presence of Laban's armor and sword do not bode well for the well-being of Laban. He likely also understands that he has been an unwitting accomplice to what he must consider a major theft. It is no wonder that he "began to tremble, and was about to flee". 1 Nephi 4:31 31 And now I, Nephi, being a man large in stature, and also having received much strength of the Lord, therefore I did seize upon the servant of Laban, and held him, that he should not flee. 1 Nephi 4:32 32 And it came to pass that I spake with him, that if he would hearken unto my words, as the Lord liveth, and as I live, even so that if he would hearken unto our words, we would spare his life. 1 Nephi 4:33 33 And I spake unto him, even with an oath, that he need not fear; that he should be a free man like unto us if he would go down in the wilderness with us. 1 Nephi 4:34 34 And I also spake unto him, saying: Surely the Lord hath commanded us to do this thing; and shall we not be diligent in keeping the commandments of the Lord? Therefore, if thou wilt go down into the wilderness to my father thou shalt have place with us. 1 Nephi 4:35 35 And it came to pass that Zoram did take courage at the words which I spake. Now Zoram was the name of the servant; and he promised that he would go down into the wilderness unto our father. Yea, and he also made an oath unto us that he would tarry with us from that time forth. Nibley describes the nature of an oath that could assure Zoram's cooperation: "What astonishes the western reader is the miraculous effect of Nephi's oath on Zoram, who upon hearing a few conventional words promptly becomes tractable, while as for the brothers, as soon as Zoram "made an oath unto us that he would tarry with us from that time forth.. Our fears did cease concerning him." (1 Nephi 4:35,37.) The reaction of both parties makes sense when one realizes that the oath is the one thing that is most sacred and inviolable among the desert people and their descendants: "Hardly will an Arab break his oath, even if his life be in jeopardy," for "there is nothing stronger, and nothing more sacred than the oath among the nomads," and even the city Arabs, if it be exacted under special conditions... But not every oath will do. To be most binding and solemn an oath should be by the life of something, even if it be but a blade of grass. The only oath more awful than that "by my life" or (less commonly) "by the life of my head," is the wa hayat Allah "by the life of God," or "as the Lord Liveth," the exact Arabic equivalent of the ancient Hebrew hai Elohim. (Nibley An Approach to the Book of Mormon p. 110). George Lamsa describes a similarly binding oath: "I have lifted up my hand" is an Eastern saying which means "I have sworn before God." Easterners, when taking an oath, lift their hands toward heaven and invoke the name of God, whom they make a witness of the oath, "... as a faithful witness in heaven" [Psalms 89:37; 1 Samuel 12:5]. When treaties and agreements were made in the name of God they were generally respected and kept even by the future generations. Other treaties and covenants were easily broken and repudiated, just as they are broken today [Joshua 9:18]. (Lamsa, George M. Old Testament Light.Harper & Row. 1964, p. 44.) 1 Nephi 4:36 36 Now we were desirous that he should tarry with us for this cause, that the Jews might not know concerning our flight into the wilderness, lest they should pursue us and destroy us. Apparently Zoram knew from the general direction Nephi took him where the likely part of the wilderness would be into which Nephi and his brothers would flee. Even if Nephi did not think that Zoram would guess correctly, this appears to have been the most prudent action. How could Zoram have known where to find Lehi? It appears that Lehi followed fairly well known and traveled trade routes for at least the early part of his journey. Having left a particular gate of Jerusalem, the direction to the trade route may have been obvious. 1 Nephi 4:37 37 And it came to pass that when Zoram had made an oath unto us, our fears did cease concerning him. 1 Nephi 4:38 38 And it came to pass that we took the plates of brass and the servant of Laban, and departed into the wilderness, and journeyed unto the tent of our father. Journeying to the tent of Lehi might mean his encampment in this verse. In any case, it is certain that the plates and the successful mission would be reported directly to Lehi, as Lehi had commissioned the enterprise (on command from the Lord).
			by Brant Gardner. Copyright 1998