| 11:1 For it
came to pass after I had desired to know the things that
my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able
to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine
heart I was 1caught
away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly
high mountain, which I never had before seen, and upon
which I never had before set my foot. |
[1] Acts 8:39: ...the
Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip... |
| 11:2 And the
Spirit said unto me: Behold, what desirest thou? |
|
| 11:3 And I
said: I desire to behold the things which my father saw. |
|
| 11:4 And the
Spirit said unto me: Believest thou that thy father saw
the tree of which he hath spoken? |
|
| 11:5 And I
said: Yea, thou knowest that I believe all the words of
my father. |
|
| 11:6 And
when I had spoken these words, the Spirit cried with a
loud voice, saying: Hosanna to the Lord, the most high
God; for he is God over all the earth, yea, even above
all. And blessed art thou, Nephi, because thou believest
in the Son of the most high
God; wherefore, thou shalt behold the things which thou
hast desired. |
|
| 11:7 And
behold this thing shall be given unto thee for a sign,
that after thou hast beheld the tree which bore the fruit
which thy father tasted, thou shalt also behold a man
descending out of heaven, and him shall ye witness; and
after ye have witnessed him ye shall 1bear
record that it is the Son of God. |
[1] John 1:34: And I saw,
and bare record that this is the Son of God. |
| 11:8 And it
came to pass that the Spirit said unto me: Look! And I
looked and beheld a tree; and it was like unto the tree
which my father had seen; and the 1beauty
thereof was far beyond, yea, exceeding of all beauty; and
the whiteness thereof did exceed the whiteness of the
driven snow. |
[1] Lucy Smith:‘It was
exceedingly handsome, insomuch that I looked upon it with
wonder and admiration. Its beautiful branches...’
(p. 58) |
| 11:9 And it
came to pass after I had seen the tree, I said unto the
Spirit: I behold thou hast shown unto me the tree which
is precious above all. |
|
| 11:10 And
he said unto me: What desirest thou? |
|
| 11:11 And I
said unto him: To know the interpretation thereof--for I
spake unto him as a man speaketh; for I beheld that he
was in the form of a man; yet nevertheless, I knew that
it was the Spirit of the Lord; and he spake unto me as a
man speaketh with another. |
|
| 11:12 And
it came to pass that he said unto me: Look! And I looked
as if to look upon him, and I saw him not; for he had
gone from before my presence. |
|
| 11:13 And
it came to pass that I looked and beheld the great city
of Jerusalem, and also other cities. And I beheld the
city of Nazareth; and in the city of Nazareth I beheld a 1virgin, and
she was exceedingly fair and white. |
Topic: Anachronistic
Concepts
[1] The doctrine of the Virgin Birth was introduced to
the Christians via a mistranslated verse (Isaiah 7:14) in
the Greek Septuagint. Since both the Septuagint and the
New Testament arose long after the Lehites left
Jerusalem, it is significant that the Book of Mormon
repeats this error.  |
| 11:14 And
it came to pass that I saw the heavens open; and an angel
came down and stood before me; and he said unto me:
Nephi, what beholdest thou? |
|
| 11:15 And I
said unto him: A virgin, most beautiful
and fair above all other virgins. |
|
| 11:16 And
he said unto me: Knowest thou the condescension of God? |
|
| 11:17 And I
said unto him: I know that he loveth his children;
nevertheless, I do not know the meaning of all things. |
|
| 11:18 And
he said unto me: Behold, 1the
virgin whom thou seest is the mother of
the Son of God, after the manner of the flesh. |
Topic: Textual Changes
[1] 1830 version:
...the virgin whom thou seest is the mother of God... |
| 11:19 And
it came to pass that I beheld that she was carried away
in the Spirit; and after she had been carried away in the
Spirit for the space of a time the angel spake unto me,
saying: Look! |
|
| 11:20 And I
looked and beheld the virgin again,
bearing a child in her arms. |
|
| 11:21 And
the angel said unto me: Behold 1the
Lamb of God, yea, even the Son
of the Eternal Father! Knowest thou the 2meaning
of the tree which thy father saw? |
Topic: Textual Changes
[1] 1830 version:
...the Lamb of God, yea, even the Eternal Father... [2] Lucy
Smith:‘I...inquired...the meaning of the fruit that
was so delicious.’ (p. 58)
|
| 11:22 And I
answered him, saying: Yea, it is the 1love
of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the
children of men; wherefore, it is the most desirable
above all things. |
[1] Lucy Smith:‘He told
me it was the pure love of God, shed abroad in the hearts
of all those who love him...’ (p. 59)
[1] Romans 5:5:
...the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts... |
| 11:23 And
he spake unto me, saying: Yea, and the most joyous to the
soul. |
|
| 11:24 And
after he had said these words, he said unto me: Look! And
I looked, and I beheld the Son of
God going forth among the children of men; and I saw
many fall down at his feet and worship him. |
|
| 11:25 And
it came to pass that I beheld that the rod of iron, which
my father had seen, was the word of God, which led to the
fountain of living waters, or to the tree of life; which
waters are a representation of the love of God; and I
also beheld that the tree of life was a representation of
the love of God. |
|
| 11:26 And
the angel said unto me again: Look and behold the
condescension of God! |
|
| 11:27 And I
looked and beheld the Redeemer
of the world, of whom my father had spoken; and I also
beheld the prophet who should prepare the way before him.
And the Lamb of God went forth and was baptized of him; and after he was
baptized, I beheld the heavens open, and the 1Holy Ghost come down
out of heaven and abide upon him in the form of a dove. |
[1] John 1:32: ...I saw the
Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode
upon him. |
| 11:28 And I
beheld that he went forth ministering unto the people, in
power and great glory; and the multitudes were gathered
together to hear him; and I beheld that they cast him out
from among them. |
|
| 11:29 And I
also beheld twelve others following him. And it came to
pass that they were carried away in the Spirit from
before my face, and I saw them not. |
|
| 11:30 And
it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again,
saying: Look! And I looked, and I beheld the 1heavens open again,
and I saw angels descending upon the children of men; and
they did minister unto them. |
[1] John 1:51: ...Hereafter
ye shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending
and descending upon the Son of man. |
| 11:31 And
he spake unto me again, saying: Look! And I looked, and I
beheld the Lamb of God going
forth among the children of men. And I beheld multitudes
of people who were 1sick,
and who were afflicted with all manner of diseases, and
with 2devils
and unclean spirits; and the angel spake and showed all
these things unto me. And they were healed by the power
of the Lamb of God; and the devils and the unclean
spirits were cast out. |
[1] Matthew 4:24:
...and they brought unto him all sick people that were
taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which
were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic,
and those that had the palsy; and he healed them. Topic:
Anachronistic
Concepts
[2] The ancient Jews had no doctrine of demons and
possession. While protection against evil spirits was of
great concern to their pagan neighbours, beginning with
the Sumerians from earliest times, the Jews themselves
initially had no such notion of evil spirits as separate,
individual beings. When devils are mentioned in the Old
Testament, they usually refer either to rival gods to
Yahweh, or as agents of Yahweh himself designated for an
evil task (Judges 9:23, I Samuel 16:14).
It is only after the Jews were exposed to Persian
religion that the concept of evil spirits, inferior to,
and in opposition to God developed. This may be due to
the influence of Persian Zoroastrianism on Judaism, which
teaches that God (Ahura-Mazda) is opposed by a powerful
force (Angra-Mainyu, or Ahriman). The development of
Jewish demonology is reflected in the extrabiblical
literature of the inter-testamental years, but is not
present in the Old Testament itself.
The words that Nephi uses to describe demons in this
verse (i.e. as 'unclean spirits') appear a number of
times in the New Testament. The New Testament writers
themselves derived the phrase from popular Jewish
religion, as reflected in contemporary Rabbinic
literature.
|
| 11:32 And
it came to pass that the angel spake unto me again,
saying: Look! And I looked and beheld the Lamb of God, that he was taken by
the people; 1yea,
the Son of the everlasting God was judged of the world;
and I saw and bear record. |
Topic: Textual Changes
[1] 1830 version:
...yea, the everlasting God was judged of the world... |
| 11:33 And
I, Nephi, saw that he was lifted up upon the 1cross and slain for
the sins of the world. |
Topic: Anachronistic
Concepts
[1] Crucifixion was unknown to the Jews of 600 BC. This
method of torture appears to have been invented among the
Persians. Indeed, the earliest reference to Crucifixion
is from Herodotus, who places it at the start of the
Persian period, sometime after 600 BC. From there, it
appears to have spread to the Phonecians, Egyptians, the
Grecian colonies, the Carthaginians and finally to the
Romans, who practised it with great abandon, until it was
outlawed by Constantine in the fourth century AD. The
phrase that Nephi uses to describe crucifixion, 'lifted
up on a cross', comes from the New Testament (John 3:14,
John 12:32.34).
|
| 11:34 And
after he was slain I saw the multitudes of the earth,
that they were gathered together to fight against the 1apostles of
the Lamb; for thus were the twelve called by the angel of
the Lord. |
[1] Revelation 21:14
...and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the
Lamb. |
| 11:35 And
the multitude of the earth was gathered together; and I
beheld that they were in a large and spacious building,
like unto the building which my father saw. And the angel
of the Lord spake unto me again, saying: Behold the world
and the wisdom thereof; yea, behold the house of Israel
hath gathered together to fight against the 1twelve apostles of the
Lamb. |
[1] Revelation 21:14
...and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the
Lamb. |
| 11:36 And
it came to pass that I saw and bear record, that the 1great and spacious
building was the pride of the world; and it fell, and the
fall thereof was exceedingly great. And the angel of the
Lord spake unto me again, saying: Thus shall be the
destruction of all 2nations,
kindreds, tongues, and people, that shall fight against
the 3twelve
apostles of the Lamb. |
[1] Lucy Smith:‘...I
asked my guide what was the meaning of the spacious
building which I saw. He replied, "It is Babylon, it
is Babylon, and it must fall."’ (p. 59)
[2] Revelation 7:9:
...all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues...
[3] Revelation 21:14
...and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the
Lamb. |
