1 Nephi 13:38

38 And it came to pass that I beheld the remnant of the seed of my brethren, and also the book of the Lamb of God, which had proceeded forth from the mouth of the Jew, that it came forth from the Gentiles unto the remnant of the seed of my brethren.

Both the Bible and the Book of Mormon are needed to grasp the fullness of the gospel. They support each other. This verse along with preceding verses tells us that the Gentiles will be the means of getting both of these records into the hands of the remnant of the seed of Lehi, thus helping to fulfill the covenants He made with Lehi.

• 2 Nephi 29:6 (4–6)
• Mormon 5:15
• Mormon 7:8 (8–9)

1 Nephi 13:37

37 And blessed are they who shall seek to bring forth my Zion at that day, for they shall have the gift and the power of the Holy Ghost; and if they endure unto the end they shall be lifted up at the last day, and shall be saved in the everlasting kingdom of the Lamb; and whoso shall publish peace, yea, tidings of great joy, how beautiful upon the mountains shall they be.

This talks of some of the blessings in store for those who strive to spread the gospel. Missionary work is highly regarded by the Lord, and He rewards well those who help Him bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man (see Moses 1:39). This is His work and His glory, and those who help him with it are blessed. They are blessed not just for this life, but if they add in enduring to the end, then the blessings are eternal as well.

• Isaiah 52:7 (7–10)
• 1 Nephi 14:14
• 2 Nephi 31:20–21
• 2 Nephi 32:2–3
• Jacob 5:75 (70–76)
• 3 Nephi 20:40
• 3 Nephi 27:16
• D&C 21:9

1 Nephi 13:35–36

35 For, behold, saith the Lamb: I will manifest myself unto thy seed, that they shall write many things which I shall minister unto them, which shall be plain and precious; and after thy seed shall be destroyed, and dwindle in unbelief, and also the seed of thy brethren, behold, these things shall be hid up, to come forth unto the Gentiles, by the gift and power of the Lamb.

36 And in them shall be written my gospel, saith the Lamb, and my rock and my salvation.

Of course, these verses refer to the recording and hiding up of The Book of Mormon. It will be a record of the ministry of Christ (both personal and through his prophets) among the children of Lehi. As such, it contains the gospel of Jesus Christ and becomes another witness for Him.

verse 35

• 2 Nephi 29:1 (1–2)

verse 36

• 3 Nephi 11: 39 (38–39)
• 3 Nephi 27:21

1 Nephi 13:33–34

33 Wherefore saith the Lamb of God: I will be merciful unto the Gentiles, unto the visiting of the remnant of the house of Israel in great judgment.

34 And it came to pass that the angel of the Lord spake unto me, saying: Behold, saith the Lamb of God, after I have visited the remnant of the house of Israel—and this remnant of whom I speak is the seed of thy father—wherefore, after I have visited them in judgment, and smitten them by the hand of the Gentiles, and after the Gentiles do stumble exceedingly, because of the most plain and precious parts of the gospel of the Lamb which have been kept back by that abominable church, which is the mother of harlots, saith the Lamb—I will be merciful unto the Gentiles in that day, insomuch that I will bring forth unto them, in mine own power, much of my gospel, which shall be plain and precious, saith the Lamb.

I suppose if the Gentiles had the fullness of the gospel from the beginning, things may have been much different. In other words, instead of smiting the remnant of Lehi’s seed they might have tried to gather them in. The gospel has that effect on people—they seem to be more peaceable. However, the Lord needed them to smite the Lamanites, so he used these gentiles who were on a land quest to do the smiting. The gentiles, who were unaware that they acted out of ignorance, couldn’t really be punished for playing that role. When they were done and the Lord’s purpose was accomplished, then He revealed much of His gospel to the Lamanites through the gentiles in His mercy.

• 1 Nephi 14:1 (1–3)
• 2 Nephi 26:20

1 Nephi 13:32

32 Neither will the Lord God suffer that the Gentiles shall forever remain in that awful state of blindness, which thou beholdest they are in, because of the plain and most precious parts of the gospel of the Lamb which have been kept back by that abominable church, whose formation thou hast seen.

After promising to Nephi that the Gentiles would not be allowed to destroy his seed, nor that of the Lamanites, the Lord makes a promise in their behalf. He promises that the Gentiles will not remain in ignorance of the gospel. After all, they came to that state of ignorance through no fault of their own. As it says here, the plain and most precious parts of the gospel had been held back by that abominable church discussed earlier (see vs. 4–9). So the Lord, in his mercy, will spare the gentiles and provide the means for them to gain the necessary knowledge for returning to Him. This comes by way of the Restoration, through Joseph Smith, and all the things related to it (scriptures, ordinances, priesthood, etc.)

1 Nephi 13:31

31 Neither will he suffer that the Gentiles shall destroy the seed of thy brethren.

The Lord has all this worked out to the last detail how He will fulfill His covenant with the seed of Abraham, including everyone’s role and their limits. We don’t always see it, probably because we are in the middle of fulfilling those prophesies connected with the covenant, but when the Lord says He is bound when we do what He says (D&C 82:10), He means it. Here is an example of how because of Abraham’s righteousness, whole generations and populations will be preserved in spite of their own ignorance or wickedness. A very similar covenant was made with Lehi. Because of his faithfulness, his posterity would be preserved (see 2 Nephi 4:7).

• 2 Nephi 4:7
• 2 Nephi 10:18 (18–19)
• Jacob 3:6 (5–9)
• Helaman 15:12 (10–17)

1 Nephi 13:30

30 Nevertheless, 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, which is the land that the Lord God hath covenanted with thy father that his seed should have for the land of their inheritance; wherefore, thou seest that the Lord God will not suffer that the Gentiles will utterly destroy the mixture of thy seed, which are among thy brethren.

This verse, among other things, prophesies that eventually the Nephites and Lamanites will be determined more by belief than by blood lineage. We tend to think about the remnants of Lehi’s family has Lamanites only, sometimes forgetting that they were mixed toward the end of the Book of Mormon. It is also evident that the Lord keeps His covenants, particularly the covenants He has made with His prophets who don’t break the covenant. Lehi was promised this would be a land for his inheritance. The Lord will keep that promise, even though many of Lehi’s posterity are not worthy recipients of that blessing at this time. (The same could also be said of the Abrahamic covenant.) So, as powerful as the gentiles will become, they won’t be allowed to destroy Lehi’s seed, because that would break the covenant. In fact, this and the next few verses are as much about the Gentiles as they are about the seed of Lehi. This particular verse assures Nephi that even though the covenant Nephites will be destroyed, Nephi’s blood descendents will be preserved.

In a strange kind of way this is a bit like the atonement. Everyone will be resurrected, but only those who make and keep covenants with the Lord will be exalted. Lehi’s seed will continue in the land, but really it will only be a promised land to those who keep the covenants. They are the ones who receive the promise that they will prosper in the land. Interesting. I need to think about that type a bit more.

• 2 Nephi 3:3
• Alma 45:14 (10–14)
• 4 Nephi 1:17, 35–39