1 Nephi 13:19 - 13:23
1 Nephi 13:19 And I, Nephi, beheld that the Gentiles that had gone out of captivity were delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations.
The were delivered by the Lord. England, who was the most powerful country on the earth at the time as beaten by the poor colonists. But it is critical that we are to know that it was the Lord that beat them. Without His help the colonists could not have beaten them. We may think that it was our tenacity that beat the English, but it was the Lord working through us. We must never think that we did on our own. As soon as we think that, we are left to ourselves and we find out first hand how wrong we are but often to late to turn the situation around.
1 Nephi 13:20 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.
Nephi sees that with the danger of foreign domination over, the people now prosper. They are no longer worried about food and shelter and now are looking for their purpose in life. Hungry people are looking for food not religion. Their immediate needs take precedence over spiritual needs. The Lord knows this and wants to help with this so the Gospel can be preached to those with full stomachs. This starting of the preaching of the gospel begins with a book. Much like Lehi’s first vision in which he was shown a book.
1 Nephi 13:21 And the angel said unto me: Knowest thou the meaning of the book?
Now a teaching moment. The angel asked if Nephi knows the meaning of the book? Put a question into a person’s mind and they may become curious. They may not but if they are in the mood of wanting instruction, they will want to know what they are seeing and what it all means.
1 Nephi 13:22 And I said unto him: I know not.
Nephi confesses his ignorance.
1 Nephi 13:23 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.
The angel begins a detailed explanation of the origin of the book Nephi sees and what it contains. It is first a book written by the Jews or as I think the Israelites before part of them were lead away.
The book contains a record of the covenants that the Lord made with them. Next it contains words of the prophets that were in their mists. These revelations are also recorded on the brass plates but not as much as the plates contain. The knowledge of these covenants are of great value to the Gentiles.
It shows that the Lord is no respecter of persons, that if you except the gospel you can get the same blessing as the Jews. Birth is not the criteria for receiving blessing from the Lord. It is acceptance of the gospel and its ordinances that get you blessings not who our father was.
