1 Nephi 7:10 - 7:14

1 Nephi 7:10 How is it that ye have forgotten that ye have seen an angel of the Lord?

Nephi must be speaking to the Laman and Lemuel, as he reminds them of the angel that had appeared to them. He points out that the angel was not pleased with their attitude or behavior and that they had better get their act together or they would be sorry for their disloyalty.

1 Nephi 7:11 Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten what great things the Lord hath done for us, in delivering us out of the hands of Laban, and also that we should obtain the record?

Nephi in order to get their loyalty back reminds them how the Lord help them with getting the plates from Laban and how they were preserved from capture and death at his hands. I guess they could not see just how miraculous was the accomplishment of their mission. Seeing how the Lord had put Laban into their hands in the form of a drunk laying the street. How the Lord made Nephi to appear as Laban to his household be able to enter his house should have at least help them to see that the Lord was behind all this. Nephi could not have done this by himself.

This begs the thought, how many of us fail to see how the Lord is helping us in our day to day lives. Are we where we live or who we associate with just happen stance? Do the people that influence us and we them, are they just ships passing in the night? I don't think so. The Lord does have the ability to put us where we are needed and to be with those who need us and we them. Can we see that is the question. Obviously few people see that and think otherwise. We will all see, however, at the judgement seat.

1 Nephi 7:12 Yea, and how is it that ye have forgotten that the Lord is able to do all things according to his will, for the children of men, if it so be that they exercise faith in him? Wherefore, let us be faithful to him.

These older boys are so caught up in their desire for luxury and a soft life style that they cannot see what the Lord is doing for them. Nephi has plainly shown them by the events surrounding the obtaining the brass plates that by following the Lord greater things than what they were desiring were possible. Greater things were being offered to them but they could only see what was immediate and of their past.

Many of us can only see what is immediately in front of us and allow our desire for stuff to influence us. The greater treasure in out of sight. The riches of eternity should be our desire. If it cost money it is of no worth. If it is free, it is priceless.

1 Nephi 7:13 And if it so be that we are faithful to him, we shall obtain the land of promise; and ye shall know at some future period that the word of the Lord shall be fulfilled concerning the destruction of Jerusalem; for all things which the Lord hath spoken concerning the destruction of Jerusalem must be fulfilled.

Nephi points out that a land of promise was in their future. Probably greater riches and comfort were being offered to them and a path to obtain it. In addition they were being taken out of harm’s way before Jerusalem would be destroyed. They were being treated with great mercy by being warned by the Lord himself to leave. Further the Lord was going to make up for their losses by giving them an even greater land or country to live in far away from the wars and political intrigues of their country. Being warned by the Lord himself would be a show of love and concern for those who were loyal to him. The people of Jerusalem certainly were not and they were not going to be treated as such.

1 Nephi 7:14 For behold, the Spirit of the Lord ceaseth soon to strive with them; for behold, they have rejected the prophets, and Jeremiah have they cast into prison. And they have sought to take away the life of my father, insomuch that they have driven him out of the land.

Nephi tells the group of travelers that is only a matter of time before even the Spirit of the Lord stops trying to influence the folks back in Jerusalem. The Holy Ghost probably stopped a while back, but the Spirit of Christ was still trying to get the message across. It takes a great deal of wickedness for the Spirit of the Lord to withdraw. Only the most grossly evil people are without it.

This wickedness is manifest by the efforts by the people to kill anyone who has the audacity to tell them they are not behaving as the Lord would want. Nephi tells, or reminds them of Jeremiah being thrown into prison. It almost sound like they either knew him or were very acquainted with his activities in Jerusalem. This incarceration may have seemed unwarranted to them and to the family may have shocked them.

And the last manifestation was the attempt even on Lehi’s life. That what was the motivation to leave the city. Political descent is not allow and punishable by death. Wickedness in a society is sometimes manifested by extreme persecutions of dissidents who might have only done so by peaceful means.