2 Nephi 1: 4

4 For, behold, said he, I have seen a vision, in which I know that Jerusalem is destroyed; and had we remained in Jerusalem we should also have perished.

Of course, now the destruction of Jerusalem in Lehi’s day, or the days of Zedekiah the king is a matter of history. At the time Lehi states he knows of its destruction in this verse, the only way he could have know is by revelation. And that is because he heeded the Lord’s warning and escaped Jerusalem before it was destroyed. His family has to take it on faith that he’s right, but a couple hundred years later the fact of Jerusalem’s destruction would be verified when the Nephites discover the Mulekites in Zarahemla. The Mulekites were descendants of a group of people who were led by the Lord out of Jerusalem at the time of destruction. Of course, Lehi and his family were long dead by the time of their discovery, so they had to take Lehi’s word on faith.

• 2 Kings 25
• 1 Nephi 17: 14
• Omni 1: 13–15

2 Nephi 1: 3

3 And he also spake unto them concerning the land of promise, which they had obtained—how merciful the Lord had been in warning us that we should flee out of the land of Jerusalem.

The Lord really does have a track record of protecting and warning his people. Lehi’s family was neither the first nor the last to be warned that they should leave or flee for their safety. And Lehi was not the first or last one to heed that warning and end up in a promised land. There are people who say the God of the Old Testament is vengeful and demanding, but they miss the reputation He truly deserves: merciful.

2 Nephi 1: 2

2 And he spake unto them concerning their rebellions upon the waters, and the mercies of God in sparing their lives, that they were not swallowed up in the sea.

The first thing Lehi reminds his sons about is how the Lord has been merciful to them even though they had been rebellious, and specifically on the water when they tied up Nephi. He could have cited other examples, but that one was still fresh. I don’t think they had been in the Promised Land for too long at this time. At any rate, that was an instance where they could not deny the Lord’s hand. Some of the other experiences they might rationalize away, especially after some separation by time, but the timing of that storm was just too much to be coincidence. It was an undeniable show of God’s power and mercy, not Nephi’s personality that spared their lives, even though they had rebelled.

In a way, this parallels how we teach about the Atonement. We start with the Fall of Adam and Eve, and how man was lost as a result, if not for the mercy of the Atonement. That Fall created the need for a Savior, otherwise justice would demand that man could not return to Heavenly Father, due not only to Adam’s Fall, but due to our own sins. Once we realize our hopeless condition, we are ready to hear about mercy. Once Lehi’s sons recognized their hopeless condition they were ready to talk about mercy. They had personal experience with God’s mercies, as do we all. We just need to recognize it.

• 1 Nephi 18: 9 (9–20)
• Alma 18: 38

2 Nephi 1: 1

1 And now it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had made an end of teaching my brethren, our father, Lehi, also spake many things unto them, and rehearsed unto them, how great things the Lord had done for them in bringing them out of the land of Jerusalem.

It seems that one of the key ingredients to heart softening on the way to conversion is remembering the merciful dealings God has had with men. Moroni certainly understood this as he wrote it in his great promise to readers of The Book of Mormon (see Moroni 10: 3). It is important that we have this perspective so that we can trust the Lord in our own conversions. That’s one reason the scriptures are so important to us as a record of God’s dealings with man. If the scriptures record how the Lord responded in a certain way to a person’s actions, then we should be reasonably confident that we would receive the same treatment for those same actions. We find out in the scriptures that He is absolutely consistent; over the whole history of man there is no wavering or waffling. So it’s important that we remember His mercy as well as his justice. That gives us hope and a reason to make changes in our lives.

In this case Nephi’s brethren had personal experience with the Lord they could draw upon. They may not have been big scripture readers, but they had personal experience. Lehi starts his preaching by reminding them of that and putting it into perspective. In the next few verses he will cite specific examples from their experience, all in an effort for them to turn from their periodic (or frequent) rebellions. Again, this perspective is important as we develop a relationship of trust with the Lord. Even if He can’t always trust us to do the right thing, we can always trust Him (see D&C 58: 31–33).

• Moroni 10: 3 (3–5)

2 Nephi Chapter 1—Overview

Lehi prophesies of a land of liberty—His seed will be scattered and smitten if they reject the Holy One of Israel—He exhorts his sons to put on the armor of righteousness. About 588–570 B.C.

This seems to be the beginning of the end, so to speak, of Lehi and his ministry. It is a second witness to Nephi’s testimony, and the beginning of Lehi’s last sermon to his wayward sons. By the things he says and the tone in which they are said, it’s clear that Lehi believes his time in this life is short. We don’t know how much longer Lehi lives after this, but he clearly thinks his time is limited. I wonder how much blame he assigns himself for the way Laman and Lemuel turned out.

1 Nephi 22: 29–31

29 And now I, Nephi, make an end; for I durst not speak further as yet concerning these things.
 30 Wherefore, my brethren, I would that ye should consider that the things which have been written upon the plates of brass are true; and they testify that a man must be obedient to the commandments of God.
 31 Wherefore, ye need not suppose that I and my father are the only ones that have testified, and also taught them. Wherefore, if ye shall be obedient to the commandments, and endure to the end, ye shall be saved at the last day. And thus it is. Amen.

I have wondered over the years why there are two books of Nephi, written by the same person. I suppose there could be several reasons, but this passage kind of represents a shift in the narrative. First Nephi was about the journey to the Promised Land; Second Nephi is about establishing the civilizations, Nephites and Lamanites, in that Promised Land. First Nephi was under Lehi as the prophet; Second Nephi is about Nephi’s ministry as the prophet. So this seems like an appropriate place to break Nephi’s record into two books.

Nephi ends this book with his testimony. He testifies of the truthfulness of the scriptures (the brass plates); he testifies of the truthfulness of the gospel, and that keeping the commandments matters because it is key to obtaining eternal life. And he testifies of the living prophets (at that time), his father and himself. He adds his testimony to that of Lehi’s and all the prophets who are recorded in the brass plates that we must keep the commandments and endure to the end if we are to have hope of eternal life.