We have now reached possibly one of the most significant stories in the Book of Mormon. The turning point of the entire book. Nephi and his brothers are going to be tasked with returning to Jerusalem to retrieve the brass plates from Laban.
Keep in mind, that Lehi and his family are a retelling of the Israelites. Lehi is Moses, Nephi is Joshua, Laman, Lemuel and Sam are the composite of the rest of the Israelites.
I believe that this story is one of the most critical to understand, as it is one of the most memorable, and controversial events in the Book of Mormon. It also serves as a major turning point in our story as it sets us up to be able to step away from the Old Testament and toward the parallels in New World.
Lets pick up where we left off, with Nephi returning from his vision. He was just told that he will be guiding his people to the promised land. His father Lehi, will send him and his brothers into Jerusalem, to retrieve the brass plates and the genealogy of their family.
Let's first share our biblical parallel to set the stage.
~~~~~The Old Testament~~~~~
1 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel: of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a man, every one a ruler among them. (Numbers 13:1-2)
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For reference, Canaan is huge. Moses is sending out multiple groups to explore the land and to see the strength of their enemies. The plan is to eventually conquer the land of Canaan as the land of their inheritance.
The reenactment of this effort will be performed by Nephi and his brothers. Their account is a themetic summary of various events that we are going to see in the books of Numbers, Deuteronomy, and Joshua. There are some instances where Joseph Smith's parallels could have been pulled from multiple events, I'll do my best to pick the most likely one.
The Book of Mormon, pg 9
~~~~~ The Book of Mormon ~~~~~
"And it came to pass that I, Nephi, returned from speaking with the Lord, to the tent of my father. And it came to pass that he spake unto me, saying: Behold I have dreamed a dream, in the which the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brethren shall return to Jerusalem. For behold, Laban hath the record of the Jews, and also a genealogy of my forefathers, and they are engraven upon the plates of brass. Wherefore the Lord hath commanded me that thou and thy brothers should go unto the house of Laban, and seek the records, and bring them down hither into the wilderness. (pg 9)
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The mission of the Isrealites is similar, but with a few key differences. While Lehi's sons are going to retrieve the word of God and their family's genealogy from Laban, the Isrealites are seeking to identify the lay of the land and the strength of their enemies. We'll see how these two themes tie into each other a bit better as we continue reading.
Over and over, the Israelites are describes murmuring against Moses. I shared this in by previous post, but we can see that Laman and Lemuel really are the embodiment of this murmuring people.
~~~~~The Old Testament~~~~~
2 And the whole congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness (Exodus 16:2)
2 And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron... (Numbers 14:2)
5 ...and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against [Moses]. (Numbers 17:5)
3 And the people thirsted there for water; and the people murmured against Moses... (Numbers 17:3)
41 But on the morrow all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron... (Numbers 16:41)
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The list goes on.
You get the idea. Moving forward, I'll share less biblical references to the murming since it's source material has been pretty well-established .
~~~~~ The Book of Mormon ~~~~~
"And now, behold, thy brothers murmur, saying: It is a hard thing which I have required of them; but behold I have not required it of them, but it is commanded of the Lord. Therefore go, my son, and thou shalt be favored of the Lord, because thou hast not murmured. (pg 9)
~~~~~The Old Testament~~~~~
7 And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must go with this people unto the land which the Lord hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it.
8 And the Lord, he it is that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed. (Deuteronomy 31:7-8)
~~~~~ The Book of Mormon ~~~~~
"And it came to pass, that I, Nephi, said unto my father, I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." (pgs 9-10)