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 2
Nephi 4:1
1 AND now, I, Nephi, speak concerning the prophecies of which my father hath
spoken, concerning Joseph, who was carried into Egypt.
2 Nephi 4:2
2 For behold, he truly prophesied concerning all his seed. And the prophecies
which he wrote, there are not many greater. And he prophesied concerning us, and our future generations; and they
are written upon the plates of brass.
Verses 1 and 2 perhaps
belong better to the end of chapter 3 than the beginning of chapter 4, as they are Nephi's final summation of the
message Lehi gave to Joseph wherein Lehi cited Joseph of Egypt's prophecies. Verse 2 makes it clear that the Joseph
of Egypt prophecies were contained on the brass plates. The impact of the brass plates upon Lehi had been profound.
Not only was the excursion to obtain them ordained of the Lord, but it was fraught with personal danger, and engendered
great fear and anxiety on Lehi and Sariah as they awaited the return of their sons.
Upon receiving the plates, very clearly Lehi read them, and as his blessing to Joseph indicates, read them often
enough that he not only understood them, but was able to cite from them. It is also evident from Nephi's comment
that Nephi had also read the brass plates sufficient to understand the source of his father's citations.
2
Nephi 4:3
3 Wherefore, after my father had made an end of speaking concerning the prophecies
of Joseph, he called the children of Laman, his sons, and his daughters, and said unto them: Behold, my sons, and
my daughters, who are the sons and the daughters of my first-born, I would that ye should give ear unto my words.
Having given blessings
to his sons, Lehi turns to his grandchildren to pronounce a blessing upon them also (verse 6).
Sociological information: Lehi gives a blessing to his grandchildren, but divides those grandchildren
by their direct lineage head, one of Lehi's sons (see the similar division for the children of Lemuel in verse
8, Ishmael in 10 and Sam in 11). Very clearly Lehi saw himself in a parallel position to Jacob of old, where his
children were to form specific tribal organizations. As the populators of a new world, they would be required to
"replenish" the earth and spread over the face of the land. The initial organizational principle instigated
by Lehi followed the Old Testament model of tribes.
It is highly likely that this tribal organization continued throughout much of the socio-political history of
Lehi's descendants in the New World. Even when combined into a larger political group, such as at Zarahemla, a
tribal organization provided a finer grain of organization and control. This agglomerated tribal model appears
also to have been the basis for many of the Mesoamerican city states. The city political organization would have
a ruler, but the city itself was often divided into lineage units. The best known of these is the very late Calpulli
of the Mexica (Aztec) empire. While the Calpulli had become something more than a simple lineage, nevertheless
genealogy was a major structural factor in determining the boundaries of the Calpullin.
2
Nephi 4:4
4 For the Lord God hath said that: Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments
ye shall prosper in the land; and inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments ye shall be cut off from my presence.
The origins of this
particular promise are interesting. Lehi certainly considers this a blessing that he has obtained: "2 Nephi
1:9 Wherefore, I, Lehi, have obtained a promise, that inasmuch as those whom the Lord God shall bring out of the
land of Jerusalem shall keep his commandments, they shall prosper upon the face of this land; and they shall be
kept from all other nations, that they may possess this land unto themselves. And if it so be that they shall keep
his commandments they shall be blessed upon the face of this land, and there shall be none to molest them, nor
to take away the land of their inheritance; and they shall dwell safely forever."
It is certainly this particular promise that Lehi is reiterating here in verse 4. However, the antecedents of
this prophecy are much older. The earliest mention of this particular promise appears to be to Nephi: "1 Nephi
2:20 And inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led to a land of promise; yea,
even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a land which is choice above all other lands." See also 1
Nephi 4:14. Whether or not Lehi had also obtained this promise at that early date is unknown from the current Book
of Mormon text. It certainly would not have been unusual for the Lord to have so prophesied to both Lehi and Nephi,
but we have record only of Nephi's early promise.
Because the text we have as 1 Nephi and 2 Nephi are both written by Nephi for his own purposes, it is not surprising
that it is the record of his receipt of the promise that is recorded rather than Lehi's.
2
Nephi 4:5
5 But behold, my sons and my daughters, I cannot go down to my grave save I should
leave a blessing upon you; for behold, I know that if ye are brought up in the way ye should go ye will not depart
from it.
Lehi blesses the
lineage of Laman. He has seen the future of this lineage, and doubtless has a hard time with the blessing he will
give, because he understands the nature of the future choices of this lineage. Nevertheless, he wants to leave
a good blessing. Lehi begins the blessing with the most hopeful statement he can make, that he knows that if those
children are brought up "in the way" that they should not depart from it. "The way" is the
gospel, and Lehi is telling his grandchildren the same thing that we are told, and should be teaching our children.
If we are brought up in the gospel, if our parents teach the gospel to us, we have the best chance to remain in
the "way." Despite the prophecies, Lehi knows that this lineage is not inherently bad, but that grave
responsibility will fall upon those that will teach those children to depart from the way of the Lord.
2
Nephi 4:6
6 Wherefore, if ye are cursed, behold, I leave my blessing upon you, that the
cursing may be taken from you and be answered upon the heads of your parents.
To clarify his meaning,
Lehi explicitly states that any cursing that is due their lineage might be answered upon the heads of their parents.
Lehi clearly sees his son's culpability in the prophecies of the future of that lineage. In like manner, we as
parents are responsible for the teachings to our children: "D&C 68:25 And again, inasmuch as parents have
children in Zion, or in any of her stakes which are organized, that teach them not to understand the doctrine of
repentance, faith in Christ the Son of the living God, and of baptism and the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying
on of the hands, when eight years old, the sin be upon the heads of the parents."
2
Nephi 4:7
7 Wherefore, because of my blessing the Lord God will not suffer that ye shall
perish; wherefore, he will be merciful unto you and unto your seed forever.
Lehi cannot bless
this lineage to avoid the fate that will befall them, but he can bless them that the eternal consequences of that
fate will not be as severe. Certainly the blessing that the lineage should not perish has a temporal fulfillment,
but the nature of the prophecies of the restoration of the gospel bringing the light back to Lehi's descendants
would indicate that Lehi saw this prophecy in as much a spiritual as a temporal sense.
2
Nephi 4:8
8 And it came to pass that after my father had made an end of speaking to the
sons and daughters of Laman, he caused the sons and daughters of Lemuel to be brought before him.
As with the children
of Laman, the children of Lemuel are treated as an entity, defined and bounded by their patriarch, Lemuel.
2
Nephi 4:9
9 And he spake unto them, saying: Behold, my sons and my daughters, who are the
sons and the daughters of my second son; behold I leave unto you the same blessing which I left unto the sons and
daughters of Laman; wherefore, thou shalt not utterly be destroyed; but in the end thy seed shall be blessed.
Lehi pronounces
upon them the same blessing as upon the descendants of Laman. Doubtless, Lehi understood that the fates of those
two tribes would become as one over the years, even if he did not foresee that they and others would be subsumed
under the more general rubric of "Lamanites."
2
Nephi 4:10
10 And it came to pass that when my father had made an end of speaking unto them,
behold, he spake unto the sons of Ishmael, yea, and even all his household.
We do not have the
blessing to the house of Ishmael. Certainly there is a continuation of the tribal organizational principle, but
the blessing is not recorded. From Nephi's standpoint, the blessing must not have had a significant impact on the
spiritual future of his people, and therefore was not as important for him to record as those of his brothers.
It might also be that as a male of a different family, Nephi's history is simply uninterested in Ishmael. That
would not be unusual at all in ancient lineage records.
2
Nephi 4:11
11 And after he had made an end of speaking unto them, he spake unto Sam, saying:
Blessed art thou, and thy seed; for thou shalt inherit the land like unto thy brother Nephi. And thy seed shall
be numbered with his seed; and thou shalt be even like unto thy brother, and thy seed like unto his seed; and thou
shalt be blessed in all thy days.
Just as Lemuel receives
the same blessing as Laman, Sam receives a blessing with Nephi. Their tribal fates would be wound together just
as those of the tribes of Laman and Lemuel.
2
Nephi 4:12
12 And it came to pass after my father, Lehi, had spoken unto all his household,
according to the feelings of his heart and the Spirit of the Lord which was in him, he waxed old. And it came to
pass that he died, and was buried.
Nephi certainly
collapses time in this verse. It is quite unlikely that Lehi died immediately after pronouncing the blessings.
To have occasioned the blessings it is certain that Lehi felt the end near, but was in sufficient strength of body
and mind to pronounce those blessings. However, after that time Lehi "waxed old." His condition appears
to have deteriorated, and some time later he died. Nephi gives us no information about the ceremonies of burial.
They are nonessential to his purpose.
For Nephi, Lehi's death was not only the death of his father, but the death of his family as he had known it.
With his father's death the glue that had held together a warring family was gone, and Nephi moves quickly in his
narration to that part of the story.
2
Ne. 4:13
And it came to pass that not many days after his death, Laman and Lemuel and
the sons of Ishmael were angry with me because of the admonitions of the Lord.
This is not a new
development, but a continuation of a longstanding dispute between Nephi and Laman and Lemuel. Even while Lehi lived,
the brothers had disputed with Nephi and even sought his life, but upon the death of Lehi, the last vestige of
familial loyalty was disappearing, and the undercurrent of contention rose quickly to the surface.
It is most important that Nephi recognizes that the problem is not simply a conflict over a stolen primogeniture,
but the consequence of lives made uncomfortable by the constant reminder of the Lord and a Spirit that they had
actively denied. Once a person has turned against the Spirit, its presence in another person is uncomfortable,
and one of the common reactions is anger with the person that causes such feelings in the heart of the one who
has rejected that Spirit.
2
Ne. 4:14
14 For I, Nephi, was constrained to speak unto them, according to his word; for
I had spoken many things unto them, and also my father, before his death; many of which sayings are written upon
mine other plates; for a more history part are written upon mine other plates.
Nephi explains that
the source of the contention is not anything new, as some of the things that bother Laman and Lemuel were words
of Lehi - obviously spoken when he was alive and therefore not any new development.
Textual Analysis: Nephi also provides some more information about the construction of the texts
that comprise his record. We know that the large plates were the beginning of his record, as Nephi tells us that
the small plates are begun after the large plates (1 Nephi 9:4-6). As it is unlikely that an historical account
(as Nephi reminds us is the purpose of the large plates) would be considered "finished" it is most likely
that Nephi writes in both sets of plates basically concurrently. Neither is considered "finished" so
that the writing in the other might begin. Nephi is keeping a parallel record.
2
Ne. 4:15
And upon these I write the things of my soul, and many of the scriptures which
are engraven upon the plates of brass. For my soul delighteth in the scriptures, and my heart pondereth them, and
writeth them for the learning and the profit of my children.
Nephi echoes here
the general purpose of this set of plates that he originally described in 1 Nephi 9:4: "Upon the other plates
should be engraven an account of the reign of the kings, and the wars and contentions of my people; wherefore these
plates are for the more part of the ministry; and the other plates are for the more part of the reign of the kings
and the wars and contentions of my people."
He clarifies his original statement, however, with a personal statement of the meaning of the scriptures for
him. The scriptures are a personal delight to him, and as these plates are to be a personal record of the "ministry"
the scriptures from the brass plates are fitting.
It is interesting that this verse should indicate that he has written much from the brass plates, because to
this point in his record he has only rarely quoted large passages from the brass plates. Perhaps he knows at this
point in the construction of his text that he intends to pick up that theme, and this is a foreshadowing of the
extensive citations from Isaiah which will follow.
While Nephi clearly indicates that he is writing things for himself, things that delight his soul, he also is
writing them for the benefit of those others that he understands will also read his record. Nephi is conscious
of his ultimate audience, and desires that these scriptures that mean so much to him might also come to mean much
to his readers - all of us who read the Book of Mormon.
The Psalm of Nephi
Verses 16-35 have been labeled the psalm of Nephi because they are a marvelous poetic outpouring of feeling
similar to many of the best psalms of the Old Testament. Catherine Thomas notes:
"A psalm is a poem, a song of praise; not a sermon or doctrinal treatise, but an expression of personal
religious experience. Nephi's psalm (2 Ne. 4:16-35) employs some of the features characteristic of his Hebrew literary
heritage, such as the themes of sorrow in sin, communion with and delight in God, the search for perfection, humility
under chastening, and triumph over evil. He framed his feelings in typical Hebrew parallelism, where ideas are
repeated with variation or contrasted: "Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give
place no more for the enemy of my soul." (2 Ne. 4:28.) But of far more than literary importance is the spiritual
insight available in this passage. Though only Nephi's words appear here, the reader may see in them a progression
of thought that indicates the presence of the Lord's Spirit; it is, therefore, more of a prayerful dialogue than
a soliloquy." Thomas, Catherine "A Great Deliverance." In: STUDIES IN SCRIPTURE - VOL 7: 1 NEPHI
TO ALMA 29 , p. 108.
Nephi's psalm does not appear as a unique text without precedent, however. It is fitting that Nephi should launch
into this psalm so soon after declaring his love of the scriptures, and particularly the scriptures on the brass
plates. As Noel Reynolds points out, Nephi appears to owe structure and some content to the prayer of Zenos on
the brass plates:
"While Alma quotes Zenos's prayer as proof that Zenos knew about the Son of God and to convince the people
of Antionum they could worship outside their synagogues, Nephi appears to have applied the sentiments and language
of the prayer to his own trying circumstances, finding in Zenos's words a source of encouragement and faith in
the face of hostility and affliction. Nephi ends his psalm with a prayer of approximately the same length and in
a style similar to Zenos's prayer text. In their respective texts, Zenos uses the invocation "O God"
or "O Lord" five times; Nephi six. Nephi begins his psalm by recognizing the Lord's great goodness in
showing him "his great and marvelous works" (2 Nephi 4:17) in answer to Nephi's prayer (see 1 Nephi 11);
Zenos also begins by acknowledging God's mercy in hearing his prayers (Alma 33:4). Zenos lists the many places
in which the Lord heard his prayers, citing first an occasion when he was in the wilderness; Nephi lists many occasions
when he received blessings from God in response to his cry and "mighty prayer," citing first how God
supported him and led him through his "afflictions in the wilderness" (2 Nephi 4:20). Zenos ends by emphasizing
that because the Lord did hear him in his afflictions, he will continue to cry to him "in all mine afflictions"
(Alma 33:11); furthermore, Zenos asserts generally that God is "merciful unto [his] children when they cry
unto [him]" (Alma 33:8); Nephi knows that "God will give liberally to him that asketh" (2 Nephi
4:35). Zenos believes the Lord listened to his prayer "because of mine afflictions and my sincerity"
(Alma 33:11); Nephi expects to be blessed "because that my heart is broken and my spirit is contrite"
(2 Nephi 4:32).
The most obvious similarity between the two texts is the emphasis on the help each writer sought in dealing
with "[his] enemies." Nephi carries the problem to a higher level by also praying for help against the
"enemy of [his] soul," who tempts him and destroys his peace, the "evil one" who seeks a place
in his heart (2 Nephi 4:27-28), referring to this "enemy" three times. While neither writer names these
enemies directly, we get a clear picture that Nephi's enemies included his own brothers who "did seek to take
away [his] life" (2 Nephi 5:1-2), and Nephi reports that the Lord "confounded [his] enemies" (2
Nephi 4:22). While we have no background information about Zenos, it is possible that he had a somewhat different
experience than Nephi. The Lord answered Zenos's prayer by turning his enemies to him (Alma 33:4). Zenos states
that he had been "cast out" and "despised" by his enemies, and that upon hearing his cries
the Lord was angry with them and did "visit them in [his] anger with speedy destruction" (Alma 33:10).
Given the extreme difficulties Nephi had suffered with his own brothers, it is easy to see how this verse from
Zenos might have attracted his close attention.
Finally, both Nephi and Zenos make direct reference to the Atonement of Christ and the joy they can find through
it. Zenos explains God's mercy in terms of the Son and recognizes that it is "because of [God's] Son"
that "[God has] turned [his] judgments away from [him]" (Alma 33:11). Nephi asks himself why he should
be depressed or feel such sorrow when "the Lord in his condescension unto the children of men hath visited
men in so much mercy" (2 Nephi 4:26; cf. 1 Nephi 11:16-25). Both end their prayers by announcing the joy they
receive from the Lord's mercy to them in their afflictions. Zenos says, "In thee is my joy" (Alma 33:11),
while Nephi enjoins his heart to rejoice and cry to the Lord, saying, "My soul will rejoice in thee, my God,
and the rock of my salvation" (2 Nephi 4:30). Reynolds, Noel B. "Nephite Uses and Interpretations of
Zenos." In: THE ALLEGORY OF THE OLIVE TREE, pp. 34-36.
.2
Ne. 4:16
Behold, my soul delighteth in the things of the Lord; and my heart pondereth
continually upon the things which I have seen and heard.
2 Ne. 4:17
Nevertheless, notwithstanding the great goodness of the Lord, in showing me his
great and marvelous works, my heart exclaimeth: O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my
flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities.
Verse 16 is an essential
prelude to 17 in that it is the first part of a contrasting theme. Nephi begins in 16 with the positive experiences
he has had in the service of the Lord. Verse 17 begins with the very important "nevertheless" - the clear
indication that what will follow is to be seen in contrast to the theme of the first phrase in verse 16. It is
an important context, because it allows us to understand Nephi's poetic opening expression "O wretched man
that I am!"
In the context of Nephi's great blessings, that is a stark contrast. We would not consider a man wretched if
he had been the recipient of such blessings from the Lord. In Nephi's psalm the purpose is to create a high contrast
between the blessings and Nephi's personal unworthiness of those blessings. Nephi is not considering himself wretched
because he is not good, but because he is a fallible human, subject to this world of agency that his father
so eloquently described.
When Nephi grieves for his iniquities, we feel that they are not necessarily that onerous, but that his heightened
spiritual vision sees the imperfections more clearly than we do, and that Nephi feels more deeply the distance
from the Lord that such imperfections might cause.
2
Ne. 4:18
I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily
beset me.
Nephi continues
his theme of sin from verse 17. It is best to read this sentence as a parallel to verse 17's "Yea, my heart
sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities."
Nephi confesses that he, although blessed of the Lord, is yet subject to temptation. He indicates that this
is no rare event, but that such opportunity for sin has him "encompassed about." The opportunity to sin
is on every side, and Nephi still feels the temptations. While Nephi is freely confessing to temptation, it is
very likely that he is not confessing to succumbing as frequently to temptation, for his spiritual righteousness
was still high enough to have received tremendous spiritual experiences, experiences that were not all in his past.
2
Ne. 4:19
And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins; nevertheless,
I know in whom I have trusted.
This verse is another
transition from the lament to the praise section of the psalm. Nephi continues the lament for personal sin, and
then begins the transition to praise by shifting the emphasis from himself to God. He does this by indicating that
during his times of disconsolation, he yet remembers the deity in whom he has placed his trust in the past (and
by reference, has been the source of the many blessings and benefits implied in verse 16).
2
Ne. 4:20
My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness;
and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep.
Verse 20 begins
the section of explicit praise to God. In this case, praise for the support through the afflictions. Note that
it is very important that Nephi, unlike Laman and Lemuel, makes no imputation that the trials came through God's
hand. They were not punishments from God, they were simply trials, and Nephi lauds his God for the support through
those afflictions.
2
Ne. 4:21
He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh.
Nephi refers here
to the powerful experiences he has had with the spirit, where the presence of the spirit has had a very physical
manifestation. The "consuming of my flesh" must refer to the same experience as when the spirit is described
as a "burning." In inadequate human words, Nephi is attempting to describe the experience of feeling
filled with the spirit of the Lord.
2
Ne. 4:22
He hath confounded mine enemies, unto the causing of them to quake before me.
The next several
verses echo David psalms in their praise of God. The invoke specific experiences where the Lord has directly blessed
Nephi.
2
Ne. 4:23
Behold, he hath heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions
in the nighttime.
Note the contrasting
parallels in this short sentence. The crying is balanced by the visions (asking and receiving) and the daytime
is balanced by the nighttime. Of further interest is that Nephi specifically says that his prayers are answered
by "visions." It is a hallmark of Nephi's writing that very few visions are noted. However, there is
certainly one very lengthy recording of a vision that qualifies. Nephi may be waxing more poetic than historical
here, but he is not inaccurate. At least one vision was given him (though there was no indication that it was at
night - this is poetry, after all).
2
Ne. 4:24
And by day have I waxed bold in mighty prayer before him; yea, my voice have
I sent up on high; and angels came down and ministered unto me.
Once again Nephi
uses contrasting phrases. The voice "sent up" is balanced by the "angels came down."
2
Ne. 4:25
And upon the wings of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly
high mountains. And mine eyes have beheld great things, yea, even too great for man; therefore I was bidden that
I should not write them.
We know that Nephi
has had one recorded experience that fits this description, and it is the same vision that qualifies as the basis
for verse 23. Nephi continues to not only praise, but to do so in the very real context of his own experiences.
These are not generic praises, but heartfelt exclamations resulting from his life.
2
Ne. 4:26
O then, if I have seen so great things, if the Lord in his condescension unto
the children of men hath visited men in so much mercy, why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley
of sorrow, and my flesh waste away, and my strength slacken, because of mine afflictions?
Nephi now repeats
his cycle of sin/salvation. When he begins the psalm he starts with his blessings and moves to his temptations.
He then describes the goodness of God, and now is cycling back to his temptations. He will finish with a personal
exhortation to return to harmony with God.
Perhaps Nephi is using this set of literary parallels to describe the natural tendency of humanity to wrestle
continually with temptation, even after periods of great righteousness. With the structure of the psalm, Nephi
mirrors experience.
2
Ne. 4:27
And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh? Yea, why should I give way
to temptations, that the evil one have place in my heart to destroy my peace and afflict my soul? Why am I angry
because of mine enemy?
Nephi personalizes
his spiritual struggles by contrasting yet again the marvels of his spiritual experiences with the realities of
his various temptations. Notice that Nephi does not doubt, that he does not discount his spiritual experiences,
and that the temptations here are relatively minor. The picture is not one of an abject sinner approaching the
Lord, but of a righteous man seeing clearly his lack of perfection and need for continuing Grace.
2
Ne. 4:28
Awake, my soul! No longer droop in sin. Rejoice, O my heart, and give place no
more for the enemy of my soul.
2 Ne. 4:29
Do not anger again because of mine enemies. Do not slacken my strength because
of mine afflictions.
2 Ne. 4:30
Rejoice, O my heart, and cry unto the Lord, and say: O Lord, I will praise thee
forever; yea, my soul will rejoice in thee, my God, and the rock of my salvation.
These three verses
come in the form of a personal exhortation. Nephi is here cataloguing the types of temptations he suffers, and
exhorts himself to resist them and turn to God in praise.
2
Ne. 4:31
O Lord, wilt thou redeem my soul? Wilt thou deliver me out of the hands of mine
enemies? Wilt thou make me that I may shake at the appearance of sin?
These questions
are not questions but pleas. Nephi knows that his Lord will redeem his soul - technically. Here Nephi
specifically pleads that it be done.
2
Ne. 4:32
May the gates of hell be shut continually before me, because that my heart is
broken and my spirit is contrite! O Lord, wilt thou not shut the gates of thy righteousness before me, that I may
walk in the path of the low valley, that I may be strict in the plain road!
2 Ne. 4:33
O Lord, wilt thou encircle me around in the robe of thy righteousness! O Lord,
wilt thou make a way for mine escape before mine enemies! Wilt thou make my path straight before me! Wilt thou
not place a stumbling block in my way--but that thou wouldst clear my way before me, and hedge not up my way, but
the ways of mine enemy.
In these two verses
the plea takes a more exclamatory form, but it remains a plea. In the context of the structure of the psalm, Nephi
has stated that he has been blessed, yet beset with temptations. He then praises the Lord for having blessed him
in the past, and for providing the foundational knowledge of the goodness of God. When Nephi next laments his personal
temptations, he ends with a plea that they be removed. His confidence in God is established, and Nephi turns his
faith to the removal of these particular temptations. Above and beyond the specific temptation, in these two verses
Nephi expands his hopes to a wide context - where the true desires of his heart (exaltation) are met to the exclusion
of his passing desires (temptations).
2
Ne. 4:34
O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not
put my trust in the arm of flesh; for I know that cursed is he that putteth his trust in the arm of flesh. Yea,
cursed is he that putteth his trust in man or maketh flesh his arm.
2 Ne. 4:35
Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will
give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the
rock of my righteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God.
Amen.
Nephi concludes
by restating his faith. Where in verse 31 his plea comes in the form of a question, in verse 35 his conclusion
comes in a firm declaration "Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss."
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