purpose statement:
But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance.In this post, I will attempt to explore several of the examples of deliverance I have observed through my study of 1 Nephi. These examples are intended to be illustrative and not exhaustive.
Deliverance Example 1: Lehi's Family Delivered from Jerusalem's Destruction
In 1 Nephi 1:13, Lehi is shown a powerful vision in which he learns that Jerusalem "should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be carried away captive into Babylon." Upon learning of this tragic future, Lehi praises God with these words, "because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish!" We can see that Lehi already had great faith in the Lord's power of deliverance.
The Lord delivers Lehi from the Jews "who sought his life" as well as the destruction of Jerusalem. Nephi writes that "the Lord commanded my father, even in a dream, that he should take his family and depart into the wilderness" (1 Ne 2:2). This physical departure from Jerusalem into the wilderness delivered Lehi and his family from physical death; however, an even more concerning spiritual death awaited his posterity if they did not have the written word of God and His commandments. God solved this problem by helping Nephi retrieve the brass plates from Laban (more on that here).
Later, in 1 Nephi 17:14, the Lord tells Nephi, " After ye have arrived in the promised land, ye shall know that I, the Lord, am God; and that I, the Lord, did deliver you from destruction; yea, that I did bring you out of the land of Jerusalem." It is obvious that the Lord wanted Nephi, his posterity, and us to know of His power to deliver us. In fact the first book of Nephi is really a microcosm of our lives, similar to the experience of the Israelites in the Wilderness. We are born into a challenging world where we must choose between Babylon (worldliness) and the Promised Land (following God). If we stay neutral or luke warm, Babylon will come to us and enslave us; however, if we choose to actively obey and follow God, He will lead us away from Babylonian captivity to the Promised Land. This journey won't be easy nor quick in duration, and it will require much sacrifice, but if we trust the Lord, He will deliver us. That's the message of 1 Nephi.
Deliverance Example 2: Lehi's Sons Are Delivered Out of the Hands of Laban
As mentioned previously, Nephi was able to successfully obtain the brass plates from Laban with the help of the Lord. However, this was not so easy as it may sound. First Laban attempted to retrieve the plates. Laban tried to kill him. Next, all four brothers went to Laban offering to trade gold, silver, and precious things for the plates. Laban sent his guards to kill them. Finally, Nephi went, guided by the Spirit (1 Ne 4:6), and was successful in obtaining the plates. The Lord truly delivered these boys out of danger and brought them home safely to a relieved father and despairing mother.
Deliverance Example 3: Nephi and Sam Delivered by an Angel from the Beatings of Laman and Lemuel
After their second attempt at convincing Laban to give up the brass plates failed, Laman and Lemuel began to angrily "speak many hard words unto [Nephi and Sam], their younger brothers, and they did smite [them] even with a rod." In this case, devine deliverance comes in the form of an angelic visitation. Although Laman and Lemuel still murmur, they stop beating their younger brothers and support Nephi in his (their third) attempt to retrieve the plates.
Deliverance Example 4: Nephi's Bands Loosed, Life Saved
While Lehi's sons and Ishmael and his family were traveling from Jerusalem back to Lehi's camp, Laman and Lemuel, along with some of Ishmael's children, began to murmur and threatened to return to Jerusalem. When Nephi put them in their place, "they were exceedingly wroth, and they did bind [Nephi] with cords, for they sought to take away [his] life." After being bound, Nephi prayed that "according to [his] faith" the Lord would give him strength to break the bands. "When [he] had said these words, behold, the bands were loosed."
When they saw that Nephi was free, they were angry with him again "and sought to lay hands upon [him] to take away his life." This time, the Lord delivered him in a different way: "one of the daughters of Ishmael, yea, and also her mother, and one of the sons of Ishmael, did plead with [Laman and Lemuel], insomuch that they did soften their hearts; and they did cease striving to take away my life." Sometimes the Lord gives us strength to deliver ourselves, and sometimes He uses others to help deliver us.
Deliverance Example 5: In Lehi's Vision, He's Delivered from the Darkness
In 1 Nephi 8 Lehi describes a dream or vision that he has. In this dream, he wanders for hours in a dark and dreary waste unable to see. It wasn't until he prayed to God for deliverance that he was rescued from this darkness. He says in verses 8 and 9, "I began to pray unto the Lord that he would have mercy on me, according to the multitude of his tender mercies. And it came to pass after I had prayed unto the Lord I beheld a large and spacious field." Even during his vision, the Lord was teaching Lehi about the power of prayer and to trust that God would be there to deliver him.
Deliverance Example 6: Nephi Sees God Deliver "the Gentiles"
Nephi receives a vision in which he sees many things past and present. In this vision he sees the religious oppression that abounded in the 17th and 18th centuries in Europe. And in the vision in 13:13 he saw "the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went forth out of captivity, upon the many waters." And in verse 16 he "beheld that the Gentiles who had gone forth out of captivity did humble themselves before the Lord; and the power of the Lord was with them." He then sees the American Revolutionary War and how the Gentiles living in the promised land (the colonial Americans) "were delivered by the power of God out of the hands of all other nations." Later in verse 30, the angel recaps to Nephi, "thou beholdest that the Gentiles who have gone forth out of captivity and have been lifted up by the power of God above all other nations, upon the face of the land which is choice above all other lands..."
Deliverance Example 7: Fed in the Wilderness
Lehi and his family subsisted during their journey through the wilderness largely on the game they were able to hunt with their bows and arrows. On one such hunting trip (in chapter 16), Nephi's bow broke, and they returned to camp empty handed. This led to great hunger and murmuring by all except for Nephi. The Lord delivered them by helping them find food, but it wasn't easy. First, Nephi kept the faith and trusted in the Lord. Second, he built a new bow and arrows, all the while putting up with the murmuring of this brethren. Then he helped Lehi humble himself and go to the Lord in prayer for help to know where to go to get food. After all this work, the Lord delivered them by instructing them where to go. Even this was not easy since Nephi was instructed in verse 30 to go to "the top of the mountain." But Nephi, ever diligent, went and slay beasts and returned to his joyful family with food.
Deliverance Example 8: Lehi and Nephi Protected by the Voice of the Lord
In 1 Nephi 16:34 Ishmael dies. Understandably, this leads to much mourning, especially on the part of Ishmael's daughters. Unfortunately, this mourning leads to murmuring and anger, and pretty soon Laman was saying in verse 37, "behold, let us slay our father, and also our brother Nephi." In verse 38, "And after this manner did my brother Laman stir up their hearts to anger." Nephi and his aging father were grossly outnumbered by the angry family members, and with their own power, would not have been able to defend themselves. They needed divine assistance (again). There is not a lot of detail about the Lord's intervention in their behalf, but, once again, He did deliver them: "And it came to pass that the Lord was with us, yea, even the voice of the Lord came and did speak many words unto them, and did chasten them exceedingly; and after they were chastened by the voice of the Lord they did turn away their anger, and did repent of their sins."
Deliverance Example 9: The Lord Provides Means to Accomplish His Commandments
In 1 Nephi 17:3 Nephi explains how the Lord provided for his family while they were in the wilderness, delivering them from hunger. After their long eight-year journey, the Lord led them to a land they named Bountiful for its "much fruit and wild honey." Nephi makes it clear that the nourishment and strength that they received during this time was at the hand of the Lord to help them accomplish that which He had commanded them.
Deliverance Example 10: Nephi Given Power to Shock His Brothers
In 1 Nephi 17:48 Nephi's life is again threatened by his elder brothers who "were desirous to throw [him] into the depths of the sea." We can see through this experience that Nephi has increased greatly in his faith and confidence in God. Whereas before, his brethren were able to bind and beat him before he called upon God for deliverance, this time he is proactive in seeking deliverance. As Laman and Lemuel "came forth to lay their hands upon [him]," he boldly declared to them, "In the name of the Almighty God, I command you that ye touch me not, for...whoso shall lay his hands upon me shall wither even as a dry reed...for God shall smite him." So powerful were Nephi's words that in verse 52 his brothers were "confounded and could not contend against [him]; neither durst they lay their hands upon [him] nor touch [him]."
Nephi was also given power to shock his brothers as another miracle or physical manifestation of God's power. This helped his brothers keep a safe distance from him as well as make them willing to help him in his efforts to construct the ship.
Deliverance Example 11: Stormy Seas
In 1 Nephi 18 Laman and Lemuel once again become angry with Nephi and bind him up. As we saw in the previous chapter, Nephi has faith to act in the Lord's name and prevent such abuse; however, in this case (in verse 11), Nephi says, "the Lord did suffer it that he might show forth his power, unto the fulfilling of his word which he had spoken concerning the wicked." And so, Nephi is bound and a terrible storm arises, which threatens them with their lives. In addition to the storm, the Liahona ceases to function. Sailing blindly in a deadly storm is finally enough for Laman and Lemuel to "see that the judgments of God were upon them, and that they must perish save that they should repent of their iniquities." After they released Nephi and repented, Nephi prayed to the Lord asking that the storm should cease - in his words: "and after I had prayed the winds did cease, and the storm did cease, and there was a great calm." Again the Lord was willing to deliver them during their journey to the Promised Land.
Deliverance Example 12: Deliverance Like the Children of Israel (Isaiah)
In 1 Nephi 20:20-21 Nephi is quoting Isaiah in a plea for us to leave behind, or flee, worldliness and sin. He gives an example of how the Lord delivered Jacob's descendants, the Children of Israel, from captivity. This people fled without knowing to where they were heading. They trusted in God to deliver them, and He did. Isaiah mentions that even as they traveled through deserts, "they thirsted not" because God "caused the waters to flow out of the rock for them." Similarly, we must have faith that as we let go, or better flee, from the world, God will deliver us. Through this redemption, or deliverance, we can find true peace and righteousness (as suggested in verses 18 and 22).
Nephi further explains this deliverance as he teaches Laman and Lemuel the meaning of Isaiah's teachings in chapter 22. Whereas many of the prophecies of Isaiah applied to physical events (e.g., physical scattering and gathering of Israel), they also apply to the spiritual captivity and deliverance of all mankind. Nephi teaches (in verse 12) that the Savior will deliver the house of Israel "out of captivity", "out of obscurity", and "out of darkness", which includes a spiritual deliverance (the restoration of the gospel). In the subsequent verses, Nephi explains that the righteous need not fear for they will be saved (physical and spiritual deliverance).
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