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07 - Book of Mormon - Joseph Smith Jr · Sacred Texts Archive

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Second Nephi, Chapters one to three, The Second Book of Nephi, an
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account of the death of Lehi, Nephi's brethren rebel against him. The Lord
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warns Nephi to depart into the wilderness, his journeyings in the wilderness, and
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so forth Chapter one. And now it came to pass that after I Nephi
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had made an end of teaching my brethren our father, Lehi, also spake
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many things unto them, and rehearsed unto them, how great things the Lord
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had done for them in bringing them out of the land of Jerusalem. And
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he spake unto them concerning their rebellions upon the waters and the mercies of God,
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and sparing their lives, that they were not swallowed up in the sea.
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And he also spake unto them concerning the land of Promise which they had
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obtained. How merciful the Lord had been in warning us that we should flee
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out of the land of Jerusalem. For behold, said he, I have
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seen in a vision in which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed, And had
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we remained in Jerusalem, we should also have perished. But said he,
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notwithstanding our afflictions, we have obtained a land of promise, a land which
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is choice above all other lands. A land which the Lord God hath covenanted
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with me, should be a land for the inheritance of my seed. Yea,
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the Lord hath covenanted this land unto me and to my children forever,
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and also all those who should be led out of other countries by the hand
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of the Lord. Wherefore I lehi prophesy according to the workings of the Spirit
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which is in me, that there shall none come into this land, save
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they shall be brought by the hand of the Lord. Wherefore this land is
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consecrated unto him whom he shall bring. And if it so be that they
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shall serve him according to the commandments which he hath give, it shall be
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a land of liberty unto them, Wherefore they shall never be brought down into
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captivity. If so it shall be because of iniquity, For if iniquity shall
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abound, cursed shall be the land for their sakes. But unto the righteous
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it shall be blessed forever. And behold, it is wisdom that this land
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should be kept as yet from the knowledge of other nations. For behold,
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many nations would overrun the land, that there would be no place for an
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inheritance. Wherefore, I Lehi have obtained a promise that inasmuch as those whom
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the Lord God shall bring out of the land of Jerusalem shall keep his commandments,
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they shall prosper upon the face of this land, and they shall be
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kept from all other nations, that they may possess this land unto themselves.
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And if it so be that they shall keep His commandments, they shall be
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blessed upon the face of this land, and there shall be none to molest
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them, nor to take away the land of their inheritance. And they shall
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dwell safely forever. But behold, when the time cometh that they shall dwindle
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in unbelief, after they have received so great blessings from the hand of the
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Lord, having a knowledge of the creation of the earth, and all men
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knowing the great and marvelous works of the Lord from the creation of the world,
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having power given them to do all things by faith, having all the
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commandments from the beginning, and having been brought by His infinite goodness into this
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precious land of promise. Behold, I say, if the day shall come
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that they shall reject the Holy One of Israel, the True Messiah, their
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redeemer and their God. Behold, the judgments of Him that is just shall
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rest upon them. Yea. He shall bring other nations unto them, and
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he will give unto them power, and he will take away from them the
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lands of their possessions, and he will cause them to be scatter'd and smitten.
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Yea. As one generation passeth to another, there shall be bloodsheds and
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great visitations among them. Wherefore, my sons, I would that ye would
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remember, YEA. I would that ye would hearken unto my words, O,
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that ye would awake. Awake from a deep sleep, yea, even
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from the sleep of hell, and shake off the awful chains by which ye
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are bound, which are the chains which bind the children of men, that
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they are carried away captive, down to the eternal gulf of misery and woe.
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Awake and arise from the dust, and hear the words of a trembling
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parent, whose limbs ye must soon lay down in the cold and silent grave.
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From whence no traveler can return. A few more days, and I
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go the way of all the earth. But behold, the Lord hath redeemed
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my soul from hell. I have beheld his glory and I am encircled about
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eternally in the arms of His love, and I desire that ye should remember
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to observe the statutes and the judgments of the Lord. Behold, this hath
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been the anxiety of my soul from the beginning. My heart hath been weighed
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down with sorrow from time to time, for I have feared lest for the
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hardness of your hearts, the Lord, your God, should come out in
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the fullness of his wrath upon you, that ye be cut off and destroyed
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forever, or that a cursing should come upon you for the space of many
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generations. And ye are visited by sword and by famine, and are hated,
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and are led according to the will and captivity of the devil, all
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my sons, that these things might not come upon you, but that ye
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might be a choice and a favored people of the Lord. But behold,
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his will be done, for his ways are righteousness forever. And he hath
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said that inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the
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land. But inasmuch as ye will not keep my commandments, ye shall be
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cut off from my presence. And now that my soul might have joy in
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you and that my heart might leave this world with gladness because of you,
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that I might not be brought down with grief and sorrow to the grave.
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Arise from the dust, my sons, and be men, and be determined
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in one mind and in one heart, united in all things, that ye
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may not come down into captivity, that ye may not be cursed with a
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sore cursing, and also that ye may not incur the displeasure of a just
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God upon you unto the destruction, yea, the eternal destruction of both soul
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and body. Awake, my sons, put on the armor of righteousness,
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shake off the chains with which ye are bound, and come forth out of
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obscurity, and arise from the dust. Rebel no more against your brother,
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whose views have been glorious, and who hath kept the commandments from the time
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that we left Jerusalem, and who hath been an instrument in the hands of
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God in bringing us forth into the land of Promise. For were it not
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for him, we must have perished with hunger in the wilderness. Nevertheless,
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ye sought to take away his life, yea, and he hath suffered much
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sorrow because of you, And I exceedingly fear and tremble because of you,
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lest he shall suffer again. For behold, ye have accused him that he
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sought power and authority over you. But I know that he hath not sought
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for power nor authority over you. But he hath sought the glory of God
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and your own eternal welfare. And ye have murmured because he hath been plain
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unto you. Ye say that he hath used sharpness. Ye say that he
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hath been angry with you. But behold, his sharpness was the sharpness of
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the power of the Word of God which was in him. And that which
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ye call anger was the truth according to that which is in God, which
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he could not restrain, manifesting boldly concerning your iniquities. And it must needs
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be that the power of God must be with him, even unto his commanding
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you that ye must obey. But behold, it was not he, but
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it was the spirit of the Lord which was in him, which opened his
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mouth to utterance, that he could not shut it. And now my son
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Layman, and also Lemuel and Sam, and also my sons, who are
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the sons of Ishmael. Behold, if ye will hearken unto the voice of
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Nephi, ye shall not perish. And if ye will hearken unto him,
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I leave unto you a blessing, yea, even my first blessing. But
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if ye will not hearken unto him, I take away my first blessing,
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yea, even my blessing, and it shall rest upon him. And now
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Zorum, I speak unto you. Behold thou art the servant of Laban.
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Nevertheless, thou hast been brought out of the land of Jerusalem. And I
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know that thou art a true friend unto my son Nephi forever. Wherefore,
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because thou hast been faithful, thy seed shall be blessed with his seed,
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that they dwell in prosperity long upon the face of this land. And nothing
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save it shall be iniquity among them shall harm or disturb their prosperity upon the
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face of this land forever. Wherefore, if ye shall keep the commandments of
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the Lord, the Lord hath consecrated this land for the security of thy seed
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with the seed of my son. Chapter two. And now Jacob, I
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speak unto you, thou art my first born in the days of my tribulation
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in the wilderness. And behold in thy childhood, thou hast suffered afflictions and
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much sorrow because of the rudeness of thy brethren. Nevertheless, Jacob, my
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first born in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God, and He
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shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain. Wherefore thy soul shall be bled,
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and thou shalt dwell safely with thy brother Nephi, and thy days shall be
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spent in the service of thy God. Wherefore I know that thou art redeemed
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because of the righteousness of thy redeemer. For thou hast to be held that
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in the fullness of time he cometh to bring salvation unto men, and thou
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hast be held in thy youth his glory. Wherefore thou art blessed even as
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they unto whom He shall minister in the flesh. For the spirit is the
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same yesterday, today and forever, and the way is prepared from the fall
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of man, and salvation is free, and men are instructed sufficiently that they
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know good from evil. And the law is given unto men, and by
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the law, no flesh is justified, or by the law men are cut
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off. Yea, by the temporal law. They were cut off, and
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also by the spiritual law, they perish from that which is good and become
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miserable forever. Wherefore redemption cometh in and through the Holy Messiah, for he
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is full of grace and truth. Behold, he offereth himself a sacrifice for
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sin to answer the ends of the law. Unto all those who have a
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broken heart and a contrite spirit, and unto none else can the ends of
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the law be answered. Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things
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known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is
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no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through
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the merits and mercy and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his
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life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the
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Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being
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the first that should rise. Wherefore he is the first fruits unto God,
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inasmuch as he shall make innercession for all the children of men, and they
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that believe in Him shall be saved. And because of the innercession for all
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all men come unto God. Wherefore they stand in the presence of him,
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to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which is in him.
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Wherefore the ends of the law which the Holy One hath given unto the
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inflicting of the punishment which is affixed. Which punishment that is affixed, is
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in opposition to that of the happiness which is affixed. To answer the ends
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of the atonement, for it must needs be that there is an opposition in
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all things. If not so, my first born in the wilderness, righteousness
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could not be brought to pass, neither wickedness, neither whole, holiness nor
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misery, neither good nor bad. Wherefore all things must needs be a compound
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in one. Wherefore, if it should be one body, it must needs
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remain as dead, having no life, neither death nor corruption nor incorruption,
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happiness nor misery, neither sense nor insensibility. Wherefore it must needs have been
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created for a thing of naught, Wherefore there would have been no purpose in
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the end of its creation. Wherefore this thing must needs destroy the wisdom of
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God and his eternal purposes, and also the power and the mercy and the
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justice of God. And if ye shall say there is no law, ye
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shall also say there is no sin. If ye shall say there is no
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sin, ye shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be
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no righteousness, there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor
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happiness, there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not
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there is no God. And if there is no God, we are not
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neither the earth. For there could have been no creation of things, neither
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to act nor to be acted upon. Wherefore all things must have vanished away.
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And now, my sons, I speak unto you these things for your
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prophet and learning. For there is a God, and he hath created all
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things, both the heavens and the earth, and all things that in them
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are both things to act and things to be acted upon, and to bring
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about His eternal purposes in the end of man. After he had created our
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first parents, and the beasts of the field, and the fowls of the
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air, and in fine all things which are created. It must needs be
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that there was an opposition, even the forbidden fruit, in opposition to the
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tree of life, the one being sweet and the other bitter. Wherefore the
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Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore man could
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not act for himself, save it should be that he was enticed by the
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one or the other. And I Lehi, according to the things which I
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have read, must needs suppose that an angel of God, according to that
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which is written, had fallen from heaven. Wherefore he became a devil,
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having sought that which was evil before God. And because he had fallen from
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heaven and had become miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind.
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Wherefore he said, unto Eve, yea, even that old serpent,
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who is the devil, who is the father of all lies. Wherefore he
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said, partake of the forbidden fruit, and ye shall not die, but
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ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil. And after Adam and
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Eve had partaken of the forbidden fruit, they were driven out of the garden
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of Eden to till the earth. And they have brought forth children. Yea,
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even the family of all the earth. And the days of the children
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of men were prolonged according to the will of God, that they might repent
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while in the flesh. Wherefore their state became a state of probation, and
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their time was lengthened. According to the commandments which the Lord God gave unto
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the children of men, for he gave commandment that all men must repent,
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for he showed unto all men that they were lost because of the transgression of
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their parents. And now behold, if Adam had not transgressed, he would
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not have fallen, but he would have remained in the garden of Eden.
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And all things which were created must have remained in the same state in which
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they were after they were created, and they must have remained forever and had
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no end, and they would have had no children. Wherefore they would have
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remained in a state of innocence, having no joy, for they knew no
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misery, doing no good, for they knew no sin. But behold,
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all things have been done in the wisdom of him who knoweth all things.
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Adam felt that men might be and men are, that they might have joy.
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And the Messiah cometh in the fullness of time, that he may redeem
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the children of men from the fall. And because they are redeemed from the
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fall, they have become free forever, knowing good from evil, to act
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for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment
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of the Law at the Great and last day. According to the commandments which
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God hath given. Wherefore men are free according to the flesh, and all
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things are given them which are expedient unto man, And they are free to
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choose liberty and eternal life through the Great Mediator of all men, or to
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choose captivity and death according to the captivity and power of the devil. For
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he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself. And now,
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my sons, I would that ye should look to the Great Mediator and hearken
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unto his great commandments, and be faithful unto his words, and choose eternal
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life according to the will of his spirit, and not choose eternal death according
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to the will of the flesh and the evil which is therein which giveth the
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spirit of the devil power to captivate, to bring you down to hell,
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that he may reign over you in his own kingdom. I have spoken these
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few words unto you all, my sons, in the last days of my
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probation. And I have chosen the good part according to the words of the
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Prophet. And I have none other object save it be the everlasting welfare of
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your souls. Amen. Chapter three. And now I speak unto you Joseph,
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my last born, thou wast born in the wilderness of mine afflictions.
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Yea, in the days of my greatest sorrow, did thy mother bear thee.
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And may the Lord consecrate also unto Thee this land, which is a
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most precious land, for thine inheritance and the inheritance of thy seed with thy
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brethren, for thy security forever. If it so be that ye shall keep
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the commandments of the Holy One of Israel. And now Joseph, my last
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born, whom I have brought out of the wilderness of mine afflictions, may
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the Lord bless thee forever, for thy seed shall not utterly be destroyed.
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For behold, thou art the fruit of my loins. And I am a
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descendant of Joseph, who was carried captive into Egypt. And great were the
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covenants of the Lord which he made unto Joseph. Wherefore Joseph truly saw our
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day, and he obtained a promise of the Lord that out of the fruit
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of his loins, the Lord God would raise up a righteous branch unto the
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House of Israel, not the Messiah, but a branch which was to be
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broken off. Nevertheless, to be remembered in the covenance of the Lord,
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that the Messiah should be made manifest unto them in the latter days, in
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the spirit of power, unto the bringing of them out of darkness unto light,
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yea out of hidden darkness, and out of captivity, unto freedom.
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For Joseph truly testified, saying, a seer, shall the Lord my God
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raise up, who shall be a choice seir unto the fruit of my loins?
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Yea, Joseph truly said, thus, saith the Lord unto me a
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choice seer, will I raise up out of the fruit of thy loins,
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and he shall be esteemed highly among the fruit of thy loins. And unto
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him will I give commandment that he shall do a work for the fruit of
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thy loins his brethren, which shall be of great worth unto them, even
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to the bringing of them to the knowledge of the covenants which I have made
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with thy fathers. And I will give unto him a commandment that he shall
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do none other work save the work which I shall command him. And I
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will make him great in mine eyes, for he shall do my work,
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and he shall be great like unto Moses, whom I have said I would
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raise up unto you to deliver my people, O House of Israel, and
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Moses, will I raise up to deliver thy people out of the land of
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Egypt. But a seer will I raise up out of the fruit of thy
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loins. And unto him will I give power to bring forth my word,
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unto the seed of thy loins. And not to the bringing forth my word
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only, Saith the Lord, But to the convincing them of my word,
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which shall have already gone forth among them. Wherefore the fruit of thy loins
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shall write, and the fruit of the loins of Judah shall write. And
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that which shall be written by the fruit of thy loins, and also that
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which shall be written by the fruit of the loins of Judah, shall grow
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together unto the confounding of false doctrines, and laying down of contentions, and
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establishing peace among the fruit of thy loins, and bringing them to the knowledge
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of their fathers in the latter days, and also to the knowledge of my
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covenance, Saith the Lord. And out of weakness he shall be made strong
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in that day when my work shall commence among all my people under the restoring
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thee O House of Israel, Saith the Lord. And thus prophesied Joseph,
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saying, behold that seer will the Lord bless, and they that seek to
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destroy him shall be confounded. For this promise which I have obtained of the
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Lord of the fruit of my loins shall be fulfilled. Behold, I am
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sure of the fulfilling of this promise. And his name shall be called after
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me, and it shall be after the name of his father, and he
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shall be like unto me. For the thing which the Lord shall bring forth
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by his hand, by the power of the Lord, shall bring my people
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unto salvation. Yea, thus prophesied Joseph, I am sure of this thing,
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even as I am sure of the promise of Moses. For the Lord
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Hath said unto me, I will preserve thy seed forever. And the Lord
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Hath said, I will raise up a Moses, and I will give power
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unto him in a rod, and I will give judgment unto him in writing.
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Yet I will not loose his tongue that he shall speak much, for
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I will not make him mighty in speaking. But I will write unto him
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my law by the finger of mine own hand, and I will make a
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spokesman for him. And the Lord said unto me. Also, I will
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raise up unto the fruit of thy loins, and I will make for him
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a spokesman. And I behold, I will give unto him, that he
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shall write the writing of the fruit of thy loins, unto the fruit of
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thy loins. And the spokesman of thy loins shall declare it, And the
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words which he shall right shall be the words which are expedient in my wisdom,
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should go forth unto the fruit of thy loins. And it shall be
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as if the fruit of thy loins had cried unto them from the dust.
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For I know their faith, and they shall cry from the dust yea even
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repentance unto their brethren, even after many generations have gone by them. And
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it shall come to pass that their cry shall go even according to the simpleness
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of their words, because of their faith. Their words shall proceed forth out
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of my mouth unto their brethren, who are the fruit of thy loins.
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And the weakness of their words will I make strong in their faith under the
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remembering of my covenant which I made unto thy fathers. And now behold,
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my son Joseph, after this manner did my father of old prophesy Wherefore,
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because of this covenant, thou art blessed, for thy seed shall not be
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destroyed. For they shall hearken unto the words of the book, and there
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shall rise up one mighty among them, who shall do much good, both
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in word and in deed, being an instrument in the hands of God,
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with exceeding faith, to work mighty wonders, and do that thing which is
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great in the sight of God, unto the bringing to pass much restoration unto
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the house of Israel, and under the seed of thy brethren. And now
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blessed art thou Joseph. Behold thou art little, wherefore hearken unto the words
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of thy brother Nephi, and it shall be done unto thee even according to
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the words which I have spoken. Remember the words of thy dying father.
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Amen. End of Second Nephi, Chapters one to three.