6 Nevertheless, I do not write anything upon plates save it be that I think it be sacred. And now, if I do err, even did they err of old; not that I would excuse myself because of other men, but because of the weakness which is in me, according to the flesh, I would excuse myself.
The ancients like Nephi obviously had to have had something
less permanent than plates to write on. They had things like animal skins
primarily. Paper had definitely not been invented yet, and I don’t think that
even papyrus was invented at the time of Nephi’s record. The point is that
Nephi knew the sacred nature of his record made it so it needed to be much more
permanent and durable than skins or even clay, which was also in use at the time.
These records needed to last, so they were put onto these plates where they
would be preserved until the latter days.
Nephi gives us another peek into his humanness as he
apologizes for any mistakes he might have made in this record. The mistake he
seems to be referring to here is any mistake in judgment as to what should be
included or excluded in this record. That makes me think that the Lord dictated
not everything in the record, but Nephi had the ability to decide what was
sacred and what was not. And furthermore, that seems to be the pattern of
prophets before his time as well. If Nephi is making a mistake in what he
includes in this record, then the prophets older than him did as well. I
presume this is because the types of things Nephi includes are consistent with
previous scripture. Another way of looking at it is that because Nephi’s
writings are so Christ-centered, the other prophets’ writings are also
Christ-centered. In this regard, when Nephi talks about his weakness he is
still wiser and “stronger” than others who are not receiving revelation from
God (see 1 Corinthians 1:25).
- Mormon 8:17 (13–17)
- Ether 12:23 (23–28)
