My Soul Delighteth in the Scriptures

It struck me today that there are not one but two stories in the Book of Mormon where Nephi had to escape for his life with the brass plates. The first was of course with Laban when he was nearly killed trying to obtain the record. On the third attempt Nephi finally obtained the plates, and in the middle of the night he left the city and they departed back to their parents with the plates of brass. Nephi wrote, “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” (1 Nephi 4:38). Nephi showed incredible courage to obtain the word of God for his family, and this helped to guide them all the way to the promised land. After they arrived there, his father Lehi passed away and there was great strife in the family. Nephi recorded, “Behold, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did cry much unto the Lord my God, because of the anger of my brethren. But behold, their anger did increase against me, insomuch that they did seek to take away my life.” Eventually the situation became so bad that Nephi realized he had to leave: “Now I do not write upon these plates all the words which they murmured against me. But it sufficeth me to say, that they did seek to take away my life. And it came to pass that the Lord did warn me, that I, Nephi, should depart from them and flee into the wilderness, and all those who would go with me.” He was leaving to preserve his own life and to allow those who believed in the revelations to continue to worship the Lord. He recorded, “Wherefore, it came to pass that I, Nephi, did take my family, and also Zoram and his family, and Sam, mine elder brother and his family, and Jacob and Joseph, my younger brethren, and also my sisters, and all those who would go with me. And all those who would go with me were those who believed in the warnings and the revelations of God; wherefore, they did hearken unto my words.” Not only did he take with him those who believed in the warnings and revelations of God, but he also took with him those very revelations: “And I, Nephi, had also brought the records which were engraven upon the plates of brass; and also the ball, or compass, which was prepared for my father by the hand of the Lord, according to that which is written” (2 Nephi 5:1-6, 12). So, as Nephi was escaping with the believers for his life, he made sure to take the scriptures with him. And that was surely not without risk, for undoubtedly his brothers were not happy with the fact that he has the presumption to take the plates (though they likely rarely read them anyway).  

               These two stories from Nephi highlight the importance for us of the scriptures—they are worth even risking our lives for! Nephi wrote this about the word of God that he had so courageously obtained and preserved: “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. 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 Nephi 4:15-16). I love these two words saying that he “delighteth” in the scriptures and “pondereth” the scriptures. Nephi did not just read the scriptures; he loved them and pondered them and wrote them on his heart. In our home, family scripture study usually involves one kid wandering through the kitchen while eating, a younger kid bouncing around the room in total chaos, an older child intently viewing something on their phone, and a parent pleading with all of them to participate. We are certainly far from having the feeling of “delight” among us during this time, but maybe sometime we will get there as we continue to try. Surely the Lord wants us to delight in our time in His word; the scriptures were not given to us so that we would have one more thing to do but so that we could find joy as we ponder them and come unto the Lord through them. As we pick up the scriptures, perhaps we should remember the image of Nephi, at the peril of his life, leaving both Jerusalem and their first home in the promised land with the brass plates under his arms. His devotion to the word of God is a powerful example to us of the importance of the scriptures.