1 Nephi 1:1, Part II
“…and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God…”
As I pointed out in my last post (seven months ago! Wow! How did that happen?!), education was obviously very important to Nephi. Given the fact that we are reading scripture, though, it should come as no surprise that his education includes more than just secular learning. What may surprise us, though, is how fully this integrates into the dichotomy expressed in 1 Nephi 1:1.
For those that have read the Book of Mormon before, the subtle hint that Nephi has “seen many afflictions” is a subtle use of understatement. While he indubitably lived much of his life in happiness, the scriptures rarely teach us of mundanities, preferring instead to focus on the major events of the prophets’ lives. Thus, we read of many trials through which he passed, the “refiner’s fire”of his mortality. And yet, despite these trials and his continual focus thereon, he still feels himself “highly favored of the Lord.” And why is he so “favored”? He continues: because he has been blessed with “a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God.”
Likening the scriptures unto myself:
While I haven’t passed through the kind of afflictions that Nephi outlines in his record, I have certainly been afflicted in my life. Our fertility issues alone have been enough to drive us completely crazy, and the trial of my faith surrounding our son Daniel’s death gave me more than enough provocation to abandon God entirely. We’ve spent many years in near poverty, Nevertheless, I have remained faithful—albeit far from perfect—for near 20 years, now. Why?
For those that have read the Book of Mormon before, the subtle hint that Nephi has “seen many afflictions” is a subtle use of understatement. While he indubitably lived much of his life in happiness, the scriptures rarely teach us of mundanities, preferring instead to focus on the major events of the prophets’ lives. Thus, we read of many trials through which he passed, the “refiner’s fire”of his mortality. And yet, despite these trials and his continual focus thereon, he still feels himself “highly favored of the Lord.” And why is he so “favored”? He continues: because he has been blessed with “a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God.”
Likening the scriptures unto myself:
While I haven’t passed through the kind of afflictions that Nephi outlines in his record, I have certainly been afflicted in my life. Our fertility issues alone have been enough to drive us completely crazy, and the trial of my faith surrounding our son Daniel’s death gave me more than enough provocation to abandon God entirely. We’ve spent many years in near poverty, Nevertheless, I have remained faithful—albeit far from perfect—for near 20 years, now. Why?
While I can certainly take credit for a small part of it—I did have to choose both to follow the Lord in the first place, and to continue to follow Him, in the second—the fact remains that I have been blessed both with above-average intelligence and truly great knowledge. The Lord has given me opportunity and means to receive great revelations at many times in my life, and despite my continued afflictions, I feel myself truly blessed.
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