1 Nephi 4:17

17 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause—that I might obtain the records according to his commandments.

Nephi shows a huge amount of faith that he’s doing the right thing, not to mention confidence in his receiving some difficult revelation here as he affirms that Laban was delivered into his hands to get the plates. Again, Nephi keeps his eye on the purpose of the mission.

1 Nephi 4:16

16 And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass.

Again, I wonder why Laban would have these plates of brass. They contained the Law of Moses, the record of the Jews that was kept current (1 Nephi 5:12), and also the prophecies of the prophets, including the current prophet, Jeremiah (1 Nephi 5:13). Obviously, Laban had no personal use for these things. Why would he keep them current, especially the prophecies? Was he some sort of official record keeper? Was this happening without him knowing it? Was there some official reason for keeping these things current?

1 Nephi 4:15

15 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses, save they should have the law.

One of the convincing arguments that Nephi thinks about as he considers killing Laban is the importance of these records in teaching his posterity to live the Law of Moses. There is no way that the whole Law could have been taught without records. Their memory just wouldn’t allow that, and besides, each successive generation would forget more and more until there was nothing left. This is why it is so important to have the printed scriptures. We know the Nephites lived the Law of Moses because it is recorded in Jacob 4:5 that they did. They also understood why they had and kept the Law. Compare that to the Mulekites, whose language and religion had both become corrupted. This was because they had no records (see Omni 1:17). This is why it’s so important to study the scriptures themselves instead of just commentaries. Always return to the source. They needed the brass plates because they were a primary source.

• Jacob 4:5
• Omni 1:17

1 Nephi 4:14

14 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: Inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise.

Here is mention again of prospering in the land of promise if Nephi and his seed keep the commandments. I see this as a multi-layered expression. The obvious and most visible layer is exactly what is said, that Nephi’s seed will prosper in the land as long as they are obedient. Ether 2:7–12 brings that promise to any nation that inhabits the land, and Mormon here speaks directly and pointedly to us Gentiles of the last days. This promise extends to any nation that possesses the land. Getting more specific, in Mosiah 2:22, King Benjamin makes this a personal promise, that “if [we] do keep his commandments he doth bless [us] and prosper [us].”

The whole concept of the “Promised Land” can be taken even deeper as a metaphor of this life’s journey and our return to our Heavenly Father. In 1 Nephi 2:20, where Nephi is first given this promise, the Lord tells him that he would be led to “a land which I have prepared for you; yea a land which is choice above all other lands.” This reminded me of John 14:2, where Christ tells his disciples that in “my Father’s house are many mansions…I go to prepare a place for you.” This life is a spiritual journey leading back to Heavenly Father. 1 Nephi 17:13 talks about how the Lord will lead them to the promised land, which is how we return to the “most promised land” of the Kingdom of God. That is, only through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.

• Omni 1:6
• Mosiah 2:22
• Ether 2:7 (7–12)

1 Nephi 4:13–18

Here Nephi is reminded of the main purpose for this whole mission of getting the plates. He’s reminded that he has to think beyond himself (as we all do in fulfilling callings for the Lord). He has a whole nation of his seed to consider. The Lord promised him that his seed would prosper in a promised land if they would keep the commandments. He realizes that if he doesn’t get the plates, which have the Law of Moses engraved on them, his people will not learn it, and therefore won’t be able to keep those commandments. Nephi also realizes that this opportunity was provided by the Lord. So he obeyed the voice of the Spirit and killed Laban. It’s interesting to glimpse Nephi’s thought process as he struggles to keep this commandment. It tells me that even after we are converted, as Nephi most definitely was, we sometimes struggle with a commandment. There is no shame in the struggle, unless we decide to not keep the commandment. Even though this instruction or commandment from the Spirit went against everything that Nephi had been taught and believed about “Thou shalt not kill,” etc., acting with faith that it really was the right thing in this case, Nephi killed Laban. It reminds me of an example I have used since my mission to explain the relationship between the scriptures and living prophets. A living police officer directing traffic at an intersection might give instruction different from, even contrary to the signal from the traffic light. We follow the instruction of the living officer (living prophet) instead of the light (scriptures), which works perfectly well. The traffic light is the default, but the officer is aware of the particular circumstance with the traffic. The scriptures give us the law and the principles to live by, but the living prophet is aware of how those teachings apply to the current circumstances.

1 Nephi 4:13

13 Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief.

Nephi is reminded that the Lord makes way for His righteous purposes often by removing the wicked obstacle. He teaches us to do the same thing with our personal obstacles. In Matthew 5:29–30 we are taught that if there is something preventing our righteousness, we should remove it (“if they right eye offend thee, pluck it out…it is profitable for thee that one of thy members shall perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.”). It is not God’s work that is frustrated, but man’s. And if the wicked need to be removed to make room for the righteous, so be it. This really does have application in our personal lives. If there is a part of our personal lives that is preventing our coming to Christ, some sin that is an obstacle, we should remove it and replace that sin with a positive righteous practice. In this way we repent; in this way we return to our Heavenly Father. I’m reminded of King Lamoni’s father, who in praying after Aaron taught him, said he would “give away all [his] sins to know [God].”

• Matthew 5: 29–30
• D&C 3:1–4

1 Nephi 4:11–13

11 And the Spirit said unto me again: Behold the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands. Yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had taken away our property.

12 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands;

13 Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief.

Here is where Nephi has to show a lot of faith. The Spirit is commanding a reluctant but determined Nephi to kill a defenseless man, which, under normal circumstances, would have been murder. Even though it is the Lord commanding him to do this, Nephi still struggles with justifying this thing that is against everything he has been taught. He remembers his past experiences with Laban. He’s reminding himself that Laban is not just a bad guy, he’s done personal harm by stealing Lehi’s property, and by trying to kill Nephi and his brothers. Even at that, the Spirit has to remind Nephi that the Lord sometimes works this way. He sometimes kills the wicked so that his righteous purposes can be accomplished. This is consistent with D&C 3:1–4 that tells us that God’s work is not frustrated, but man’s. Still, it’s interesting that the Lord had Nephi kill Laban instead of just doing it himself. I think this was one of the very defining moments in Nephi’s life, similar to Abraham being willing to sacrifice Isaac. Just how committed are you, Nephi, to obeying the Lord?