Book of Mormon – Gospel
Doctrine
Lesson 4: “The Things Which I
Saw While I Was Carried Away in the Spirit”
1) Introduction
a) 1 Nephi Chapters 12-14
b) Apocalypse of Nephi
i) The Greek apokalypsis is a compound
of apo ("from") and kalypsis ("hidden"), meaning
"uncover, reveal, open up." “opening of the veil”
ii) Book of Revelations sometimes known
as the Apocalypse
c) Continuation of Nephi’s vision after
he has been shown the meaning of the tree of life vision shown to Lehi
d) Apocalyptic visions are usually
symbolic in nature
i) Quite often include a heavenly
messenger to explain the meanings of the symbols
2) A Broad and Extensive Vision
a) Covering over 2500 years
b) Very difficult for Nephi to see some
of these things
c) READ - 2 Nephi 26:7 - O the pain, and
the anguish of my soul for the loss of the slain of my people! For I, Nephi,
have seen it, and it well nigh consumeth me before the presence of the Lord;
but I must cry unto my God: Thy ways are just.
d) Reading 1A - Jedediah M. Grant's describes
Joseph Smith's vision of certain latter day events as follows: "The prophet stood in his own house when
he told several of us the night the visions of heaven were opened to him, in
which he saw the American continent drenched in blood, and he saw nation rising
against nation.... The Prophet gazed upon the scene his vision presented, until
his heart sickened and he besought the Lord to close it up again."
(Journal of Discourses, 2:146-147)
3) Nephi sees the future of his
descendants and his brothers’ descendants.
a) Chapter 12
i) Note how the angel says, “Look” or
“Behold” to explain to Nephi what he is seeing
(1) Note as you read this chapter the things to which Nephi’s attention is
directed by this heavenly messenger, using the words look and/or
behold. Ask yourself why
Nephi was instructed to focus on these things rather than the others that might
have been presented. Why did he
include these accounts in this record?
b) Reading 1 – 1 Nephi 12:1-5
1 And it
came to pass that the angel said unto me: Look, and behold thy seed, and also
the seed of thy brethren. And I looked and beheld the land of promise; and I
beheld multitudes of people, yea, even as it were in number as many as the sand
of the sea.
2 And it came to pass
that I beheld multitudes gathered together to battle, one against the other;
and I beheld wars, and rumors of wars, and great slaughters with the sword
among my people.
3 And it came to pass
that I beheld many generations pass away, after the manner of wars and
contentions in the land; and I beheld many cities, yea, even that I did not
number them.
4 And it came to pass
that I saw a mist of darkness on the face of the land of promise;
and I saw lightnings, and I heard thunderings, and earthquakes, and all manner
of tumultuous noises; and I saw the earth and the rocks, that they rent; and I saw
mountains tumbling into pieces; and I saw the plains of the earth, that they
were broken up; and I saw many cities that they were sunk; and I saw many that
they were burned with fire; and I saw many that did tumble to the earth,
because of the quaking thereof.
5 And it came to pass
after I saw these things, I saw the vapor of darkness, that it
passed from off the face of the earth; and behold, I saw multitudes who had not
fallen because of the great and terrible judgments of the Lord.
6 And I saw the heavens
open, and the Lamb of God descending out of heaven; and he came down and showed
himself unto them.
c) ASK – What is Nephi seeing here?
i) Note the mist of darkness – remember
what the mist of darkness caused the people to do in Lehi’s vision – let go of
the iron rod.
(1) Temptations of the devil
d) Reading 2 – 1 Nephi 6-9
6 And I saw the heavens open, and the
Lamb of God descending out of heaven; and he came down and showed himself unto
them.
7 And I also saw and bear
record that the Holy Ghost fell upon twelve others; and they were ordained of God, and chosen.
8 And the angel spake
unto me, saying: Behold the Twelve Disciples of
the Lamb, who are chosen to minister unto thy seed.
9 And he said unto me:
Thou rememberest the Twelve Apostles of the Lamb?
Behold they are they who shall judge the twelve tribes of
Israel; wherefore, the twelve ministers of thy
seed shall be judged of them; for ye are of the house of Israel.
e) ASK – What is Nephi seeing here?
f) Reading 3 – 1 Nephi 12: 11-17
11 And the angel said unto me: Look!
And I looked, and beheld three generations pass away in
righteousness; and their garments were white even like unto the Lamb of God. And the angel said unto me: These are made
white in the blood of the Lamb, because of their faith in him.
12 And I, Nephi, also saw
many of the fourth generation who
passed away in righteousness.
13 And it came to pass
that I saw the multitudes of the earth gathered
together.
14 And the angel said
unto me: Behold thy seed, and also the seed of
thy brethren.
15 And it came to pass
that I looked and beheld the people of my seed
gathered together in multitudes against the seed of
my brethren; and they were gathered together to battle.
16 And the angel spake
unto me, saying: Behold the fountain of filthy
water which thy father saw; yea, even the river of
which he spake; and the depths thereof are the depths of hell.
17 And the mists of
darkness are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes,
and hardeneth the hearts of the
children of men, and leadeth them away into broad
roads, that they perish and are lost.
g) More symbolism from Lehi’s vision –
fountain of filthy water, mists of darkness
h) Verse 17 – temptations of the devil
blind the eyes and harden the hearts
i) We will see this blindness and
hardening repeated in later parts of Nephi’s vision.
i)
Nephi
then saw that the descendants of his brothers would destroy Nephi’s descendants
i) ASK: How would you feel if you knew
that the grandchildren of your brothers and sisters would murder your grandchildren?
ii) This knowledge did not keep Nephi
from trying to save his brothers and Nephi’s descendants from trying to save
the descendants of Laman and Lemuel.
4) Chapter 13 – The vision broadens
a) Nephi sees the formation of the
great and abominable church, the colonization of the Americas,
the Apostasy, and the Restoration of the gospel
b) Reading 4 – 1 Nephi 13: 1-6
1 And it
came to pass that the angel spake unto me, saying: Look! And I looked and
beheld many nations and kingdoms.
2 And the angel said unto
me: What beholdest thou? And I said: I behold many nations and kingdoms.
3 And he said unto me:
These are the nations and kingdoms of the
Gentiles.
4 And it came to pass
that I saw among the nations of the Gentiles the
formation of a great church.
5 And the angel said unto
me: Behold the formation of a church which is
most abominable above all other churches, which slayeth the saints of God, yea, and tortureth them and bindeth them down,
and yoketh them with a yoke of iron, and bringeth
them down into captivity.
6 And it came to pass
that I beheld this great and abominable church; and I saw the devil that he was
the founder of it.
(a) Note – in Nephi’s vision and the Book
of Mormon generally, Gentiles usually refers to everyone who is not of the
tribe of Judah. Includes the Ten Lost Tribes.
c) ASK – Is the great and abominable
church a particular church?
i) Reading 5 - Elder Bruce R. McConkie
wrote, “The titles church of the devil and great and abominable church are used
to identify all churches or organizations of whatever name or nature—whether
political, philosophical, educational, economic, social, fraternal, civic, or
religious—which are designed to take men on a course that leads away from God
and his laws and thus from salvation in the kingdom of God” (Mormon Doctrine,
2nd ed. [1966], 137–38).
ii) Great and abominable church is
apostasy and evil in all its forms
d) Reading 6 – 1 Nephi 13: 12-14
12 And I looked and beheld a man
among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of
my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of
God, that it came down and wrought upon the man; and he went forth upon the
many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren,
who were in the promised land.
13 And it came to pass
that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought
upon other Gentiles; and they went forth out of
captivity, upon the many waters.
14 And it came to pass
that I beheld many multitudes of the Gentiles
upon the land of promise; and I beheld the wrath of God, that it was upon the seed of my brethren; and they were scattered before the
Gentiles and were smitten.
i) ASK – Who is the man among the
Gentiles who Nephi sees? – Christopher Columbus
ii) Reading 7 – Columbus wrote, "Our
Lord unlocked my mind, sent me upon the sea, and gave me fire for the deed.
Those who heard of my enterprise called it foolish, mocked me, and laughed. But
who can doubt but that the Holy Ghost inspired me?" (quoted in Studies In
Scripture, 7:46)
iii) Reading 8 – Orson Pratt said “This
same angel [the angel Moroni] was with Columbus, and gave him deep impressions,
by dreams and by visions, respecting this New World. Trammelled by poverty and
by an unpopular cause, yet his persevering and unyielding heart would not allow
an obstacle in his way too great for him to overcome; and the angel of God
helped him, was with him on the stormy deep, calmed and troubled elements, and
guided his frail vessel to the desired haven. Under the guardianship of this
same angel, or Prince of America, have the United States grown, increased, and
flourished, like the sturdy oak by the rivers of water” (Journal
of Discourses, Vol.6, p.368, Orson Hyde, July 4, 1854).
e) During this same time, the
descendants of Laman and Lemuel have become weak and scattered – Can you
imagine what would have happened to the Pilgrims in Massachusetts
or the settlers of Jamestown if they had encountered a Lamanite
army such as Captain Moroni fought? Or a Lamanite army such as killed 10,000
Nephites at a time during Mormon’s time?
f) Reading 8A - President Ezra Taft
Benson wrote: "The Pilgrims of Plymouth, the Calverts of Maryland, Roger
Williams, William Penn—all had deep religious convictions that played a
principal part in their coming to the New World. They too, I believe, came here
under the inspiration of heaven." (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p569)
g) Reading 8B - President Benson wrote: "Before the gospel could again shine
forth its resplendent light, religious and political freedom first had to be
restored. This land had been preserved as a continent apart from the religious
oppression, tyranny, and intolerance of Europe. In time, emigrants came to the
new land and established colonies. By and large, they were a God-fearing
people. A war was fought for their independence, and by God's intervention,
victory was achieved. (See 1 Nephi 13:16-19.) By that same omnipotent power the
Constitution was born (see D&C 101:80), which guaranteed religious and
political liberty (see D&C 98:5-8). Only then was the time propitious for
the kingdom of God—that 'stone cut out without hands' to be restored (see
Daniel 2:34)." (Teachings of Ezra Taft Benson, p109)
h) Reading 9 – 1 Nephi 13:10-26
20 And it came to pass that I, Nephi,
beheld that they did prosper in the land; and I beheld a book, and it was
carried forth among them.
21 And the angel said
unto me: Knowest thou the meaning of the book?
22 And I said unto him: I
know not.
23 And he said: Behold it
proceedeth out of the mouth of a Jew. And I, Nephi, beheld it; and he said unto me:
The book that thou beholdest is a record of the
Jews, which contains the covenants of the Lord,
which he hath made unto the house of Israel; and
it also containeth many of the prophecies of the holy prophets; and it is a record like unto the
engravings which are upon the plates of brass,
save there are not so many; nevertheless, they contain the covenants of the Lord, which he hath made unto the house of Israel; wherefore, they are of
great worth unto the Gentiles.
24 And the angel of the Lord said unto me: Thou hast beheld that the
book proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew; and
when it proceeded forth from the mouth of a Jew
it contained the fulness of the gospel of the Lord, of whom the
twelve apostles bear record; and they bear record according to the truth which
is in the Lamb of God.
25 Wherefore, these things
go forth from the Jews in purity unto the Gentiles, according to the truth
which is in God.
26 And after they go
forth by the hand of the twelve apostles of the Lamb, from the Jews unto the Gentiles, thou
seest the formation of that great and abominable
church, which is most abominable above all other churches; for behold, they
have taken away from the gospel of the Lamb many
parts which are plain and most precious; and also many covenants of the Lord have they taken away.
i)
ASK
– What is this book, the book of the Jews? – The Bible
j)
ASK
– When did this book lose its fullness? – Verse 26 – After it came forth from
the hands of the apostles. Plain and precious things were removed.
i) The largest changes were made immediately
after the apostles died as the bible was “corrected” by removing
doctrines that the early apostates did not like.
ii) Matthew, Mark and Luke are called the
synoptic gospels because it appears that they came from the same
source –
(1) Some books have three columns
side-by-side, comparing the account of the same thing given in each of these
three gospels
(2) If changes were not made from the
original source, why are these three gospels different?
(3) Is this the way that Peter would have
had the account of Jesus’ ministry described?
(4) Reading 9A - Hugh Nibley wrote:
"Some experts think they have a pretty good idea of the sort of people
responsible. They were people who had received the gospel from the apostles,
but immediately after the passing of the apostles proceeded to make basic
alterations, deliberately disregarding some of the most important teachings.
They were not the old Jewish-Christian communities, but various local churches
of gentile composition, into whose hands the record came at an early time (in
the 70's and 80's A.D.), and by whom the alterations—especially deletions—were
made. The changes consisted in new interpretations of the scriptures, not in
corruptions of the text, and in substantial omissions. " (Since Cumorah,
p27)
k) ASK – What happens to the iron
rod if the scriptures are corrupted?
Can we trust it? Will there be
parts that are rusted or missing?
l)
The
world has never had a complete Bible – it was corrupted before it
was printed and distributed among the Gentiles.
m) Thought experiment to see the effect
of the removal of the plain and precious things
i) ASK – How would your view of yourself
and your relationship to God be different if you knew nothing about the
Pre-existence? If you were taught that
you were created out of nothing when you were born?
n) Reading 10 – 1 Nephi 13:35-36, 38
35 For, behold, saith the Lamb: I
will manifest myself unto thy seed, that they shall write many things which I
shall minister unto them, which shall be plain and precious; and after thy seed
shall be destroyed, and dwindle in unbelief, and also the seed of thy brethren, behold, these things shall be hid up,
to come forth unto the Gentiles, by the gift and power of
the Lamb.
36 And in them shall be
written my gospel, saith the Lamb, and my rock and my salvation.
38 And it came to pass
that I beheld the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the book of the Lamb of God, which
had proceeded forth from the mouth of the Jew,
that it came forth from the Gentiles unto the remnant of
the seed of my brethren.
i) ASK – What does this refer to –
Restoration of the Book of Mormon
ii) The angel is showing Nephi that
Heavenly Father knows exactly what is going to happen and how to overcome the
forces of Satan 2500 years in the future.
5) Chapter 14 – Destruction of the Great
and Abominable Church
a) Reading 11 – 1 Nephi 14:1-7 –
Describe the blessings promised to the Gentiles in this scripture
if they remain faithful to the Lord
1 And it
shall come to pass, that if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto
them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks—
2 And harden not their
hearts against the Lamb of God, they shall be
numbered among the seed of thy father; yea, they
shall be numbered among the house of Israel; and
they shall be a blessed people upon the promised land forever; they shall be no
more brought down into captivity; and the house of
Israel shall no more be confounded.
3 And that great pit,
which hath been digged for them by that great and abominable church, which was
founded by the devil and his children, that he might lead away the souls of men down to hell—yea, that great pit which hath been
digged for the destruction of men shall be filled
by those who digged it, unto their utter destruction, saith the Lamb of God; not the destruction of
the soul, save it be the casting of it into that
hell which hath no end.
4 For behold, this is
according to the captivity of the devil, and also
according to the justice of God, upon all those
who will work wickedness and abomination before him.
5 And it came to pass
that the angel spake unto me, Nephi, saying: Thou hast beheld that if the
Gentiles repent it shall be well with them; and thou also knowest concerning
the covenants of the Lord unto the house of Israel; and thou also hast heard that whoso
repenteth not must perish.
6 Therefore, wo be unto
the Gentiles if it so be that they harden their hearts against the Lamb of God.
7 For the time cometh,
saith the Lamb of God, that I will work a great
and a marvelous work among the children of men; a
work which shall be everlasting, either on the one hand or on the other—either
to the convincing of them unto peace and life
eternal, or unto the deliverance of them to the
hardness of their hearts and the blindness of their minds unto their being brought down into
captivity, and also into destruction, both temporally and spiritually,
according to the captivity of the devil, of which I have spoken.
b) Blessings
i) The Lord will be manifest to them in
power, in word, and in deed (v1).
ii) The Lord will remove their stumbling
blocks (v1).
iii) They shall be numbered among the
house of Israel (v2).
iv) They shall be a blessed people upon
the promised land forever (v2).
v) They shall not be brought down into
captivity (v2)
c) Reading 12 – 1 Nephi 14:1-7 –
Describe the cursings promised to the Gentiles in this scripture
if they harden their hearts and turn away from the Lord
i) They shall be cast into the pit which
they have helped dig, to their utter destruction (v3).
ii) Those who repent not shall perish (v5).
iii) They shall be brought into captivity
and destruction, spiritually and temporally (v7).
d) READ – 1 Nephi 14:13-17 – the Great
and Abominable Church is destroyed
15 And it came to pass that I beheld
that the wrath of God was poured out upon that
great and abominable church, insomuch that there were wars and rumors of wars among all the nations and kindreds of the earth.
16 And as there began to
be wars and rumors of wars among all the nations
which belonged to the mother of abominations, the
angel spake unto me, saying: Behold, the wrath of
God is upon the mother of harlots; and behold,
thou seest all these things—
17 And when the day
cometh that the wrath of God is poured out upon
the mother of harlots, which is the great and
abominable church of all the earth, whose founder
is the devil, then, at that day, the work of the
Father shall commence, in preparing the way for the fulfilling of his covenants, which he hath made to his people who
are of the house of
Israel.
6) Testimony
a) There are only two forces in the
world – God and Satan
