The Nephite Scourge

The Lord told Nephi much about his future posterity as well as the posterity of Laman and Lemuel.  One of the promises was that if the Nephites became wicked, the Lamanites would be a scourge unto them so they would remember the Lord.  At the very beginning of Lehi’s journey the Lord told Nephi, “And if it so be that they [the Nephites] rebel against me, they [the Lamanites] shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in the ways of remembrance” (1 Nephi 2:24).  The Lord repeated this many years later after Nephi and his people broke away from Laman and Lemuel: “And the Lord God said unto me: They shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them up in remembrance of me; and inasmuch as they will not remember me, and hearken unto my words, they shall scourge them even unto destruction” (2 Nephi 5:25).  I think we see this prophecy fulfilled numerous times throughout the history of the Nephite people. 

                From the beginning of the Nephite history they were at war with the Lamanites.  Nephi spoke of “wars and contentions” with the Lamanites, and Jacob lamented the wickedness of the Nephites that had already settled among them in his day.  He warned the people, “But, wo, wo, unto you that are not pure in heart, that are filthy this day before God; for except ye repent the land is cursed for your sakes; and the Lamanites, which are not filthy like unto you, nevertheless they are cursed with a sore cursing, shall scourge you even unto destruction” (Jacob 3:3).  Jarom mentioned the wars that continued to take place among the Nephites and Lamanites, and his grandson Amaron told how “the more wicked part of the Nephites were destroyed” (Omni 1:5).  Ultimately it appears that all of the Nephites were destroyed except for those who escaped with Mosiah to the land of Zarahemla, and the prophecy was fulfilled that they would be scourged “unto destruction” if they wouldn’t remember the Lord. 

                Throughout the rest of the Book of Mormon the Nephites were constantly being threatened by the Lamanites and punished by them when the Lord deemed the Nephite wickedness too great.  One of the most obvious examples of this was the city of Ammonihah.  After they rejected the word of God from Alma and Amulek, we read that “the armies of the Lamanites had come in upon the wilderness side, into the borders of the land, even into the city of Ammonihah, and began to slay the people and destroy the city” (Alma 16:2).  Later in the great war between the Nephites and the Lamanites Moroni lamented that it was really the wickedness of the Nephites that was causing the long war.  At one point he “began to doubt, because of the wickedness of the people, whether they should not fall into the hands of their brethren” (Alma 59:10).  Ultimately it was threat of the Lamanites that helped the righteous Nephite leaders purify the people and get rid of those wicked Nephites trying to overthrow the government.  In the time of Nephi the son of Nephi the wicked Gadianton robbers likewise gave the Nephites the impetus they needed to repent of their sins.  Lachoneus told the people, “As the Lord liveth, except ye repent of all your iniquities, and cry unto the Lord, ye will in nowise be delivered out of the hands of those Gadianton robbers” (3 Nephi 3:15).  They did repent and survive the great danger, and they had their enemies to thank for their repentance.

                Ultimately the Nephites were scourged “unto destruction” by the Lamanites in Mormon’s day. He had hoped that the threat of destruction from the Lamanites would bring repentance as it had in times past: “I, Mormon, saw their lamentation and their mourning and their sorrow before the Lord, my heart did begin to rejoice within me….  But behold this my joy was vain, for their sorrowing was not unto repentance” (Mormon 2:12-13).  All the Nephites were eventually killed because they would not repent when scourge of the Lamanites came upon them.  Ultimately I think what this account teaches us it that the Lord may also call us to repentance through trials and dangers that come upon us.  Challenges come upon us for many different reasons, but reacting to them by seeking to find out we can repent and become in harmony with the will of the Lord will always be our safest course of action for navigating the difficulties.