3 And thus we see that the commandments of God must be fulfilled. And if it so be that the children of men keep the commandments of God he doth nourish them, and strengthen them, and provide means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them; wherefore, he did provide means for us while we did sojourn in the wilderness.
This is one of those verses that helps us draw conclusions.
This happens throughout the Book of Mormon. The author (or editor—Mormon)
records an experience, then says in effect, “This is what you should have
learned from that.” In this case, Nephi is referring to the previous two verses
about how even though there was a lot of hardship, they were able to handle it
through the strength of the Lord. And those verses, especially in context of
this verse and verse four, are a kind of brief summary of the whole journey. So
the thing we are to learn is that the Lord takes care of you while on His
errand. He won’t take away the problems, because that is how we learn and grow,
but he will strengthen us to bear those trials. This happens again later on
with Alma and his followers. They are being persecuted by Amulon, and the Lord strengthens
them to bear it (Mosiah 24:14–15).
The Lord’s purposes will be accomplished (D&C 10:43), and
one of our decisions in life is whether we will help or hinder that happening.
Those who help, like Nephi, are rewarded with support and the means to
accomplish the task. This is one of the blessings of being on the Lord’s side.
- 1 Nephi 3:7
- Mosiah 2:41
- Mosiah 24:14–15
- D&C 10:43
- D&C 98:3
