1
Ne 4:1 The Lord is mightier than Laban and his
fifty, yea, or even than his tens of thousands.
When
one is outnumbered in the cause of truth it helps to remember how the Lord
protects his servants against the armies of the world – as seen in the
following story: Elisha had been giving
military advice to the king of Israel to help the Israelites avoid the Syrian
army. When the Syrian king heard that
Elisha’s divine interventions were giving away their military positions, he
sent his entire army to take out Elisha.
‘…behold an host (of Syrians) compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his (Elisha’s)
servant said unto him, Alas, my master! how shall we
do?
And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are
more than they that be with them.
And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes,
that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw:
and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round
about Elisha.
And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD,
and said, Smite this people, I pray thee, with blindness. And he smote them
with blindness according to the word of Elisha.’ (see 2 Kings 6:8-18)
With
the help of the Lord, Elisha and his servant defeated an entire Syrian army.
This was the same kind of faith that Nephi had. His message to his faithless
brothers was, in effect, ‘Fear not: for they that be
with us are more than they that be with them.’
Heber J. Grant
“That
is the kind of faith to have. Let us be faithful in keeping the commandments of
God and then we know that we can win the battle, though we may be opposed by a
man with his tens of thousands. The final result was that Nephi got the
plates.” (Conference Report, Oct. 1899, p. 129)
1
Ne 4:2 let us be strong like unto Moses; for he
truly spake unto the waters of the Red Sea and they divided
In
trying to encourage his brothers to believe in the power of the Lord, Nephi
reminds his brothers of the great exodus from Egypt. The exodus is referred to very frequently in the Jewish
tradition. Why? Because the Lord had shown His incredible power in such a
magnificent way – and he had done it to the greatest political power on the
earth at that time. The Lord did this so ‘That all
the people of the earth might know the hand of the LORD, that it is
mighty: that ye might fear the LORD your God for ever’ (Joshua 4:24).
The act becomes the great symbol of the power of the God of Israel. The Book of
Mormon prophets refer to this great event in many more passages. In the Bible, it is referred to at least 12
times (Deu 11:4, Josh 2:10, 4:23, 24:6, Neh 9:9, Ps 106:7,9,22, Ps 136:13,15,
Acts 7:36, and Heb 11:29).
“Nephi
was not the only prophet in scripture to shed a man's blood. Moses killed an
Egyptian when Moses saw the Egyptian beating a Hebrew slave; when he looked
around and saw that no one was watching, Moses killed the Egyptian and buried
him in the sand (Ex. 2:11Ex. 2:12Ex. 2:11-12). Fearing that he might get caught,
Moses fled to the land of Midian…Nephi's reference to Moses as he and his
brothers moved quietly toward Jerusalem that dark night turns out to be more
prophetic and more significant than Nephi probably realized at the time. Nephi
urged his brothers, ‘Let us be strong like unto
Moses. . . . Let us go up; the Lord is able to deliver us, even as our fathers,
and to destroy Laban, even as the Egyptians’ (1
Ne. 4:21 Ne. 4:31 Ne. 4:2-3). Although
Nephi had the destruction of the Egyptian army in mind (he assumed he would
encounter Laban's fifty), in the end it was not an army that Nephi destroyed,
but a single man. Nephi became strong like unto Moses, following the archetype
who set into motion the exodus of Israel from Egypt. Even so, the slaying of
Laban inexorably sealed the destiny of Lehi's party as exiles from the land of
Jerusalem until they likewise arrived at their new Promised Land. In
retrospect, the parallel between the actions of Moses and Nephi was surely
strengthened by the fact that both had been involved in the excusable killing
of a man.” (John W. Welch, “Legal Perspectives on the Slaying of Laban,” FARMS
Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, vol. 1, no. 1 (Fall 1992), 139.)
1
Ne 4:6 I was led by the Spirit
Nephi
had no idea how he was going to get the plates. He just knew that the Lord
would help him accomplish the thing which He had commanded. This is true faith
– to put your total trust in the Lord.
Harold B. Lee
“More than ever before, I understand
what the ancient prophet Nephi felt when he had been given the seemingly
insurmountable task by his father, Lehi, to gain possession of the brass
plates…I must go on many occasions, as did Nephi of old, being ‘led by the Spirit, not knowing beforehand the things
which I should do.’ Yes, though the night be dark, ‘I do not ask to see
the distant scene—one step [is] enough for me.’” (Conference Report, Apr.
1970, pp.125-126 as taken from Latter-day Commentary on the Book of Mormon
compiled by K. Douglas Bassett, p. 16)
Harold B. Lee
“Walk to the edge of the light, and perhaps
a few steps into the darkness, and you will find that the light will appear and
move ahead of you.” (Lucille C. Tate, Boyd K. Packer: A Watchman on the
Tower, p.138)
1
Ne 4:9 I beheld his sword
The
sword of Laban became a symbol of the Lord’s power to preserve the
righteous. It was built of fine
materials and was later used by Nephi as a pattern by which he made more swords
for his people (2 Ne 5:14). Laban’s
sword was preserved by the Nephites and passed down with the holy records to
the days of Moroni. DC 17:1 reveals the promise that the three witnesses of the
Book of Mormon would get the privilege of seeing the sword of Laban. That this
promise was fulfilled was attested to by the testimony of David Whitmer (see
commentary on the testimony of the three witnesses).
“In
Jerusalem around 600 B.C., the powerful Laban was slain by the young Nephi with
Laban's sword. Nephi then brought the sword with his father's family across the
ocean to the Americas. The sword was revered in Nephite history and preserved
until the nineteenth century, which hints at the importance of the blade….
Nephi ‘did take the sword of Laban, and after the
manner of it did make many swords’ (2 Ne. 5:142 Ne. 5:14). … The sword is also only mentioned
by the Nephites three times after that, which ‘suggests that the weapon was not
only well known, but also unique, wielded by kings, with no comparable weapon
being used by others.’ In this sense, the sword was strictly part of the
regalia and was not used or handled by any individuals beside the king.
“Held by the Nephite kings
and leaders, the people saw the sword of Laban as a religious symbol and a sign
of the leader's kingship and power….The scant references to the sword of Laban
in the Book of Mormon are all associated in some way with victory.
“The sword of Laban was
preserved through the centuries along with the plates, the Urim and Thummim,
and the Liahona, items which formed a collection of sacred relics. These sacred
implements were passed down by the leaders throughout Book of Mormon history.
Of these ‘national treasures a real king was required to possess anciently,’
the sword of Laban was ‘a symbol of power and rule.’ When King Benjamin transferred ‘charge concerning all the affairs
of the kingdom’ to his son Mosiah about 130 B.C., he also bequeathed the sacred
relics, including the sword of Laban (Mosiah 1:15Mosiah
1:16Mosiah 1:15-16).” (Brett L. Holbrook, “Alma
17:37Alma 17:38Alma 17:39The Sword of Laban as a Symbol of Divine
Authority and Kingship,” FARMS Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, vol.
2, no. 1 (Spring 1993), 53-4.)
1 Ne 4:9 the blade thereof was of the most precious steel
“It
is worth noting…that many critics of the Book of Mormon have cited this passage
as evidence against the Book of Mormon's historicity. ‘Steel,’ it is argued,
‘was not known to man in those days.’ Today, however, it is increasingly
apparent that the practice of ‘steeling’ iron through deliberate carburization
was well-known to the Near Eastern world from which the Lehi colony emerged.
‘It seems evident that by the beginning of the tenth century b.c. blacksmiths
were intentionally steeling iron.’ A carburized iron knife dating to the
twelfth century b.c. is known from Cyprus.fn
In addition to this,
‘A site on Mt. Adir in northern Israel has yielded an iron pick in
association with 12th-century pottery. One would hesitate to remove a sample
from the pick for analysis, but it has been possible to test the tip of it for
hardness. The readings averaged 38 on the Rockwell "C" scale of
hardness. This is a reading characteristic of modern hardened steel.’” (Matthew
Roper, FARMS: Review of Books, vol. 9, no 1, 1997)
1
Ne 4:10 I was constrained by the Spirit that I
should kill Laban
Nephi
shows incredible spiritual maturity for his age. He is able to discern between the promptings of the Spirit and
his own human emotions. Surely he would
have been angry at Laban for the way he and his brothers had been treated at
their last encounter, but his anger does not enter into the decision making
process at any point.
Nephi
is left to struggle with which of the Lord’s commandments he should keep. He
had been taught not to kill yet the Spirit was urging him to take Laban’s life.
He had to make a choice between two apparently conflicting commandments. Fortunately, this kind of spiritual
conundrum is a rare occurrence. Adam was placed in a similar situation in the
garden after Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit. He could not “multiply and replenish the earth” and “not partake”
at the same time. In these rare
spiritual conflicts, one should follow the example of Nephi and Adam and choose
the better of the two options, being ‘led by the
Spirit’ (v. 6).
1
Ne 4:10 I shrunk and would that I might not slay him
Jeffrey
Holland
“A
bitter test? A desire to shrink? Sound familiar? We don't know why those plates
could not have been obtained some other way—perhaps accidently left at the
plate polishers one night, or maybe falling off the back of Laban's chariot on
a Sabbath afternoon drive. For that matter, why didn't Nephi just leave this
story out of the book altogether?… It is not intended that either Nephi or we
be spared the struggle of this account.
“I believe that story was
placed in the very opening verses of a 531-page book and then told in painfully
specific detail in order to focus every reader of that record on the absolutely
fundamental gospel issue of obedience and submission to the communicated will
of the Lord. If Nephi cannot yield to this terribly painful command, if he
cannot bring himself to obey, then it is entirely probable that he can never succeed
or survive in the tasks that lie just ahead.
"’I will go and do the things which the Lord hath
commanded.’ ("1 Ne. 3:71 Nephi 3:7.) I confess that I wince a little
when I hear that promise quoted so casually among us. Jesus knew what that kind
of commitment would entail and so now does Nephi. And so will a host of others
before it is over. That vow took Christ to the cross on Calvary and it remains
at the heart of every Christian covenant. ‘I will go
and do the things which the Lord hath commanded’? Well, we shall see.”
(Jeffrey R. Holland and Patricia T. Holland, On Earth As It Is in Heaven,
p. 139.)
1 Ne 4:13 It is better that one man should perish than that a nation
should dwindle and perish in unbelief.
This is a powerful argument
and justifies taking the life of Laban.
Also, there is no question that those who have a murderous heart as
Laban did will eventually get their just reward. In this instance, the Lord
wrought judgment on the neck of Laban earlier than He usually does—and He did
it with the arm of Nephi.
Although this argument is
powerful, one should be careful how it is used. Can it be transferred to different situations? Can the abused
wife justify taking the life of her husband declaring, “It is better than one
man should perish than that our family should dwindle and perish in unbelief”?
Obviously not. This argument can be used for good or evil. For example, the
exact same argument that the Spirit used to constrain Nephi to take Laban’s
life was used by Caiaphas to justify taking the life of Jesus Christ, Ye know nothing at all, Nor consider that it is expedient
for us, that one man should die for the people and that the whole nation perish
not (John 11:49-50). Thus, the key factor which justified Nephi was that
he was expressly commanded of the Lord. Joseph Smith taught, “That which
is wrong under any circumstance may be and often is, right under
another…Whatever God requires is right, no matter what it is, although we may
not see the reason thereof till long after the events transpire.” (Teachings
of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 255-256 as taken from Latter-day
Commentary on the Book of Mormon compiled by K. Douglas Bassett, p. 17)
The following story shows
how cultural traditions greatly affect how we view an incident like Nephi’s
killing of Laban:
“Over
the years Hugh Nibley has enjoyed telling a story about his Arab students in
the early 1950s who were required to take the basic Book of Mormon class at
Brigham Young University. Knowing that the Laban episode had been troublesome
to the moral sensitivities of many twentieth-century readers, Nibley was
puzzled when these students found the story somewhat implausible but precisely
for the opposite reason he had expected. Instead of being troubled that Nephi
had killed the unconscious Laban, the students found it odd that he had
hesitated so long. While the reaction of these Arab students cannot be taken as
evidence of the attitudes of the inhabitants of the city of Jerusalem around
600 B.C., it does reinforce the point that different cultures have unique
values and idiosyncratic legal expectations. Accordingly, modern readers should
be willing to consider not only the implications and moral bearings of ancient
scriptural events upon contemporary society, but also to approach these
developments in terms of the ancient dispositions and legal norms that would
have operated as guiding principles in the lives of people years ago.” (John W.
Welch, “Legal Perspectives on the Slaying of Laban,” FARMS Journal of Book
of Mormon Studies, vol. 1, no. 1 (Fall 1992), 140)
1 Ne 4:18 I did obey the voice of the
Spirit…and I smote of his head
“Some
people have wondered why God needed to have Nephi kill Laban instead of telling
him simply to put on Laban's clothes and go forth in disguise to get the
plates. Leaving the drunken Laban alive, however, would probably have created
serious problems…Even if Laban spent the night in the streets, the next morning
he would have regained his senses and would have been furious. He would have
led a search party to pursue and kill Nephi and his brothers and recover the
plates of brass…With Zoram gone, people in Jerusalem could well have assumed
that Zoram was the one who had killed Laban…If Laban had not been killed,
however, he would have known Zoram and the circumstances well enough to have
suspected what had happened and to have led an effective pursuit against Nephi
and his brothers. These reasons explain why it was virtually essential to the
completion of Nephi's task that Laban be killed, and with a little imagination
several other reasons can probably be suggested.” (John W. Welch, “Legal
Perspectives on the Slaying of Laban,” FARMS Journal of Book of Mormon
Studies, vol. 1, no. 1 (Fall 1992), 132.)
1 Ne 4:22 Laban had been among the elders of the Jews
“The portrait of Laban is absolutely
marvelous…He was in charge of everything as the military governor, and the
records were kept in his office. Who was Laban? He was military governor of
Jerusalem, we are told. They were out by night, remember, in secret council
with the elders (the sarîm) and he was in his ceremonial armor when he
met with them. Laman and Lemuel said, ‘He's in charge of fifty men in the city
and ten thousand men in the field.’ He was in charge of the city police. He was
the governor of the city, and the records were kept at his house. They were
family records, and he was related to Lehi. That was where they knew they could
get their records because they were kept in the house of Laban, the military
governor. Not a likely place to keep the genealogy of the people, but that's
where it was. It was the same thing in Lachish. In a time of alarm, they were
put there for safekeeping. That was the safest place to keep them. And sure
enough, we learn from the Copper Scroll that when Jerusalem was threatened,
they took all the documents they could and hid them in various places around
the city. They were quick to get them to a safe place; that's what happened.
That's probably why the brass plates and all the genealogy were being held
under guard-kept under lock and key by Laban. Laban wouldn't let the brothers
have them unless they paid him plenty, so they paid him plenty and he said,
‘April fool.’” (Hugh Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon, lecture 6)
1 Ne 4:36 that the Jews might no know concerning our flight
Some critics of the Book of Mormon have
contended that there should have been some record of the departure of Lehi’s
family in the Bible. Nephi makes it clear that their departure was in secret. Mormon
reaffirmed this, ‘he brought our fathers out of the
land of Jerusalem, (and no one knew it save it were himself (Lehi) and those whom he brought out of that land)’ (3 Ne 5:20). This was especially
important after Nephi had killed Laban. If others had known about their
departure, they would have been (correctly) blamed for Laban’s death and been
brought to judgment.
1 Ne 4:37 when Zoram had made an oath unto us, our fears did cease
Hugh Nibley
“…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.
‘The taking of an oath is a holy thing with the Bedouins, says one authority,
‘Wo to him who swears falsely; his social standing will be damaged and his
reputation ruined. No one will receive his testimony, and he must also pay a
money fine.’
“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. ...
“So we see that the only way that Nephi
could possibly have pacified the struggling Zoram in an instant was to utter
the one oath that no man would dream of breaking, the most solemn of all oaths
to the Semite: ‘As the Lord liveth, and as I live!’”(An
Approach to the Book of Mormon, p.103-5)