54 And it came to pass that I stretched forth my hand unto my brethren, and they did not wither before me; but the Lord did shake them, even according to the word which he had spoken.
I just find this verse interesting. Usually when the Lord
wants to show a sign or get someone’s attention he works through a prophet, as
He did here, but this instance seems to be different. It seems like the Lord
usually does these kinds of things in such a way that there is no question that
it’s the Lord’s power showing forth. I just find it interesting that in this
instance, by Nephi stretching forth his hand to do the shocking, the brothers
could get the impression that the power came from Nephi instead of through Nephi from God. But again, I
suppose the big goal here is cooperation, more than conversion, so it fills the
Lord’s purpose to use his servants in that way.
