The Book of Mormon
~600–592 BC

1 Nephi 12

1

And it came to pass that the angel said unto me, Look, and behold thy seed, and also the seed of thy brethren! And I looked and beheld the land of promise; and I beheld multitudes of people, yea, even as it were in number, as many as the sand of the sea.

2

And it came to pass that I beheld multitudes gathered together, to battle one against the other; and I beheld wars, and rumors of wars, and great slaughters with the sword among my people.

3

And it came to pass that I beheld many generations pass away, after the manner of wars and contentions in the land; and I beheld many cities, yea, even that I did not number them.

4

And it came to pass that I saw a mist of darkness on the face of the land of promise; and I saw lightnings, and I heard thunderings, and earthquakes, and all manner of tumultuous noises; and I saw the earth and the rocks, that they rent; and I saw mountains tumbling into pieces; and I saw the plains of the earth, that they were broken up; and I saw many cities, that they were sunk; and I saw many, that they were burned with fire; and I saw many, that they did tumble to the earth, because of the quaking thereof.

5

And it came to pass that after I saw these things, I saw the vapor of darkness, that it passed from off the face of the earth; and behold, I saw multitudes which had fallen, because of the great and terrible judgments of the Lord.

6

And I saw the Heavens open, and the Lamb of God descending out of Heaven; and he came down and shewed himself unto them.

7

And I also saw and bear record, that the Holy Ghost fell upon twelve others; and they were ordained of God, and chosen.

8

And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the twelve disciples of the Lamb, which are chosen to minister unto thy seed.

9

And he saith unto me, Thou remembereth the twelve apostles of the Lamb? Behold, they are they which shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel; wherefore, the twelve ministers of thy seed, shall be judged of them; for ye are of the house of Israel;

10

and these twelve ministers which thou beholdest, shall judge thy seed. And behold, they are righteous forever; for because of their faith in the Lamb of God, their garments are made white in his blood.

11

And the angel saith unto me, look! And I looked and beheld three generations did pass away in righteousness; and their garments were white, even like unto the Lamb of God. And the angel said unto me, These are made white in the blood of the Lamb, because of their faith in him.

12

And I, Nephi, also saw many of the fourth generation, which did pass away in righteousness.

13

And it came to pass that I saw the multitudes of the earth gathered together.

14

And the angel said unto me, Behold thy seed, and also the seed of thy brethren!

15

And it came to pass that I looked, and beheld the people of my seed gathered together in multitudes against the seed of my brethren; and they were gathered together to battle.

16

And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the fountain of filthy water which thy father saw; yea, even the river of which he spake; and the depths thereof, are the depths of hell;

17

and the mists of darkness, are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they may perish, and are lost;

18

and the large and spacious building which thy father saw, is vain imaginations, and the pride of the children of men. And a great and a terrible gulf divideth them; yea, even the word of the justice of the Eternal God, and Jesus Christ, which is the Lamb of God, of whom the Holy Ghost beareth record, from the beginning of the world until this time, and from this time henceforth and forever.

19

And while the angel spoke these words, I beheld and saw that the seed of my brethren did contend against my seed, according to the word of the angel; and because of the pride of my seed, and the temptations of the devil, I beheld that the seed of my brethren did overpower the people of my seed.

20

And it came to pass that I beheld and saw the people of the seed of my brethren, that they had overcome my seed; and they went forth in multitudes upon the face of the land.

21

And I saw them gathered together in multitudes; and I saw wars, and rumors of wars among them; and in wars, and rumors of wars, I saw many generations pass away.

22

And the angel said unto me, behold, these shall dwindle in unbelief.

23

And it came to pass that I beheld that after they had dwindled in unbelief, they became a dark, and loathsome, and a filthy people, full of idleness and all manner of abominations.

Influences

  • 12:1 — Hebrews 11:9 (KJV)
    By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
  • 12:2 — Matthew 24:6 (KJV)
    And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.
  • 12:4 — Revelation 8:5 (KJV)
    And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.
  • 12:4 — Matthew 27:51 (KJV)
    And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;
  • 12:6 — Revelation 21:10 (KJV)
    And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God,
  • 12:7 — Acts 11:15 (KJV)
    And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning.
  • 12:9 — Revelation 21:14 (KJV)
    And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and in them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
  • 12:9 — Matthew 19:28 (KJV)
    And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
  • 12:10 — Revelation 7:14 (KJV)
    And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
  • 12:11 — Revelation 7:14 (KJV)
    And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
  • 12:17 — Matthew 4:1 (KJV)
    Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
  • 12:18 — Romans 1:21 (KJV)
    Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
  • 12:18 — Luke 16:26 (KJV)
    And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
  • 12:18 — Ephesians 3:9 (KJV)
    And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
  • 12:21 — Matthew 24:6 (KJV)
    And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet.

Notes

  • 12:1-23

    Both Joseph Smith’s father and Nephi’s father are described as having multiple dreams. In her book, Lucy Mack Smith recounts several of her husband’s visions, which were likely shared often within the family. One of these dreams is dated sixteen years before Joseph Smith obtained the plates:

    "In 1811, we moved... to the town of Lebanon, New Hampshire. Soon after arriving here, my husband received another very singular vision, which I will relate..."

    Readers have noted similarities between this account and the dream of Lehi in the Book of Mormon.

    The following outlines parallels between Joseph Smith Sr.’s dream, as recorded in Lucy Smith's Biographical Sketches of Joseph Smith the Prophet and His Progenitors for Many Generations, and Lehi’s dream in 1 Nephi 8, along with Nephi’s expanded description of the same vision in 1 Nephi 11-14.

    1. Both Joseph Smith's father and Lehi state they were traveling (1 Nephi 8:8; Smith, p. 58).
    2. Both mention a field (1 Nephi 8:4,9; Smith, p. 58).
    3. Both dreams compare the field to a world (1 Nephi 8:20; Smith, p. 58).
    4. Both Joseph Smith Sr. and Lehi have a guide (1 Nephi 8:5-6; Smith, p. 58).
    5. Both mention a broad road or roads (1 Nephi 12:17; Smith, p. 58).
    6. Both mention a narrow path (1 Nephi 8:20; Smith, p. 58).
    7. Both mention a stream of water (1 Nephi 8:13; Smith, p. 58).
    8. Both mention something extending along the bank of the stream (1 Nephi 8:19; Smith, p. 58).
    9. Both mention a tree (1 Nephi 8:10; Smith, p. 58).
    10. Both mention the beauty of the tree (1 Nephi 11:8; Smith, p. 58).
    11. Both trees bore fruit (1 Nephi 8:10; Smith, p. 58).
    12. Both compared the whiteness of the fruit to snow (1 Nephi 11:8; Smith, p. 58).
    13. Both Joseph Smith Sr. and Lehi ate of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:11; Smith, p. 58).
    14. Both found the fruit to be delicious (1 Nephi 8:11; Smith, p. 58).
    15. Both wanted their families to partake of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:12; Smith, p. 58).
    16. Both families came and partook of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:16; Smith, p. 58).
    17. After eating the fruit both experienced great joy (1 Nephi 8:12; Smith, pp. 58-59).
    18. Both mention a spacious building (1 Nephi 8:26; Smith, p. 59).
    19. Both indicate the building reached high into the air (1 Nephi 8:26; Smith, p. 59).
    20. Both buildings were filled with people (1 Nephi 8:27; Smith, p. 59).
    21. In both buildings the people were finely dressed (1 Nephi 8:27; Smith, p. 59).
    22. In both cases the people in the building pointed the finger of scorn at those partaking of the fruit (1 Nephi 8:33; Smith, p. 59).
    23. Both state they ignored the people in the building (1 Nephi 8:33; Smith, p. 59).
    24. Both state the meaning of the fruit is the pure love of God (1 Nephi 11:21-22; Smith, p. 59).
    25. Both state two members of the family are not present (1 Nephi 8:17; Smith, p. 59).
    26. Both mention the fall of the building (1 Nephi 11:36; Smith, p. 59)
    27. Both imply that pride was connected with the building or its inhabitants (1 Nephi 11:36; Smith, p. 59).

    For a full treatment of this subject, including a side-by-side comparison of the above references, see Jerald Tanner and Sandra Tanner, Joseph Smith's Plagiarism of the Bible in the Book of Mormon, pp. 161–163.

  • 12:18

    The current editions of the Book of Mormon (1981, 2013) state, "... even the word of the justice of the Eternal God, and the Messiah who is the Lamb of God..."

    "The first edition, in fact, makes it clear that the name Jesus Christ was known not only before Lehi's death, but it was used by Nephi himself before he came to the New World:

    'And a great and a terrible gulf divideth them; yea, even the word of the justice of the Eternal God, and Jesus Christ, which is the Lamb of God...' (Book of Mormon, 1830 edition, page 28).

    Since the Book of Mormon later states that the name was first made known to Jacob years after Lehi's death (2 Nephi 10:1-3), in the second edition Joseph Smith changed the words Jesus Christ to the Messiah. It must be born in mind that the change could not represent a better translation as Smith did not claim to have access to the plates at that time....The printer's manuscript of the Book of Mormon was also altered to reflect this serious change. The words Jesus Christ, which have been struck out, and the words Mosiah who have been written in above the line. It is obvious, of course, the correct words should be Messiah who...it is obvious that a deliberate change was made..." -Jerald and Sandra Tanner, Joseph Smith's Plagiarism of the Bible in the Book of Mormon, p. 216.

1 Nephi 111 Nephi 13