I first wrote about Helaman 6 to 12 in 2016. This post will cover Helaman 7 to 12. If you would like to read my previous post, you can check it out at: https://gospeldoctrine2016.blogspot.com/2016/10/book-of-mormon-34-how-could-you-have.html
The
Gadianton Robbers are mentioned repeatedly in the chapters of Helaman. In my
initial post I discussed secret combinations and the Gadianton Robbers. I found
a clear explanation of secret combinations in 30 Characteristics of Secret Combinations. These 30 characteristics also appear in
an article called Waking Up to Secret Combinations (2011)
by Darren Andrews. When Nephi returned from northern lands to the Land of
Zarahemla he found that the Gadianton robbers were filling the judgement seats,
laying aside God’s commandments, and corrupting justice (verse
4). The robbers were condemning the righteous, letting the guilty buy their
way out of punishment, and seeking glory and adulation, using their position to
more easily commit adultery, steal, murder, and do whatever they wanted (verse
5). When we look at the U.S.A. today we see the same things. The laws have
been corrupted, the guilty buy their way to power and freedom from conviction,
and those who rule are prime examples of this corruption. The prevalence of
secret combinations today is terrifying. We know that their power comes from
Satan.
In Helaman
7:7-8 we read, “Oh, that I could have had my days in the days when my
father Nephi first came out of the land of Jerusalem, that I could have joyed
with him in the promised land; then were his people easy to be entreated, firm
to keep the commandments of God, and slow to be led to do iniquity; and they
were quick to hearken unto the words of the Lord—Yea, if my days could have
been in those days, then would my soul have had joy in the righteousness of my
brethren.” Brother John Bytheway called these verses, “Those were the days”.
How often do we think about previous years and compare them to 2020, with the
same attitude, “Those were the days”? I know I miss travelling. I haven’t seen
my oldest son and his beautiful family for several years. I was due to fly to
Sydney before the Covid-19 pandemic. Now all I see are photos and videos on
Facebook and Instagram. My mum (96 years old) was admitted to Middlemore
Hospital in mid-August. For the first nine days I was unable to see her because
of the Covid lock-down. Then, for compassionate reasons, I was the only support
person allowed in to see her once per day. Now, she has been home for nearly a
week and I am her primary caregiver. I am responsible for end-of-life care. I
know I often think about previous months and years – “Those were the days”!
The story that follows in Helaman 7 to 9 is covered so well in three media files from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Brother John
Bytheway pointed out some interesting ideas in his podcast on Helaman
7-12:
- Verse 13: Passers-by have stopped to hear Nephi pray on his garden tower. Nephi warns them of their iniquities.
- Verse 17: “O repent ye, repent ye! Why will ye die?” Nephi points out to his listeners that they were choosing to die spiritually.
- Verse 19: “And behold, instead of gathering you, except ye will repent, behold, he shall scatter you forth that ye shall become meat for dogs and wild beasts.” The idea that the righteous will be gathered while the wicked will be scattered appears repeatedly in scriptural references.
- Verses 6-7: Some reject and condemn Nephi, while others defend him as a ‘good man’.
- Verse 27: Nephi delivers a real-time prophecy that the chief judge has been murdered, “he lieth in his blood; and he hath been murdered by his brother…”
- Verse 4: Five men run to the chief judge and find him lying in his own blood. They believe Nephi and they fall to the earth. They are found and thrown in to prison because of a misunderstanding. It is thought that they killed the chief judge.
- Verse 20: The trial of Nephi is described. The five are released and Nephi is accused of plotting the death of the chief judge. He is offered money to reveal the murderer with whom he plotted. The following verses are Nephi’s condemnation of the people.
- Verse 26: Nephi tells his accusers to look for evidence of the murder at Seantum’s house, as he had killed his own brother, the Chief Judge Seezoram. The events that followed occurred according to Nephi’s words.
- Verse 1: They could not convict Nephi. “And it came to pass that there arose a division among the people, insomuch that they divided hither and thither and went their ways, leaving Nephi alone, as he was standing in the midst of them.”
There are two
videos from Knowhy (Book of Mormon Central) that cover some interesting aspects
of the events in these chapters. The first discusses why Nephi’s words in Helaman
7-8 sounded so much like a funeral speech. The second looks at how Seantum
was able to be convicted under the Law of Moses without two witnesses to his
crime.
In Chapter
11, Nephi was bestowed with great blessings because of his unwearying
obedience and faithfulness. He is promised, “I will make thee mighty in word
and in deed, in faith and in works…that ye shall have power over this people, and
shall smite the earth with famine, and with pestilence, and destruction,
according to the wickedness of this people…I give unto you power, that
whatsoever ye shall seal on earth shall be sealed in heaven; and whatsoever ye
shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven; and thus shall ye have power
among this people” (Helaman
11:5-7). Nephi calls for a famine to bring the wicked and hard-hearted to
repentance. The Knowhy video (Book of Mormon Central) below addresses the
question of how Nephi used the power to seal on Earth and in Heaven.
Miracles can strengthen the faith of believers. Sometimes they can
be the reason why people believe. However, many people witnessed Nephi’s
miracles and still hardened their hearts. The danger of relying on miracles to
build faith is illustrated by the story of Mrs Johnson (Joseph Smith and the Restoration, p. 176, 199)
This incident was
enough for Ezra Booth and he joined the Church. Miracles are not sufficient by
themselves to truly convert a person. After only a few months in the Church,
Ezra apostatized and even wrote a number of articles against the Prophet. (Joseph Smith and the Restoration, p.
176, 199)
It amazes me that with the famine, the people began to remember God (Helaman 11:7), yet once the famine ended, within a few short years, they once again began to forget God (Helaman 11:36-37). It is sad that when things go well and there is plenty, pride creeps in and people stop being grateful or obedient. One of my favourite quotes from President Brigham Young is the one shown below.
A scripture that
made me ponder deeply was Helaman
12:7-8, “O how great is the nothingness of the children of men; yea, even
they are less than the dust of the earth…For behold, the dust of the earth
moveth hither and thither, to the dividing asunder, at the command of our great
and everlasting God.” There is a footnote on this scripture that leads to Moses
1:10 which reads, “Now, for this cause I know that man is nothing, which thing
I never had supposed.” In his communication with God, Moses recognised that man
on his own is nothing. It is when man connects with God that he can reach his
greatest potential and become something. As men and women we are less than the
dust of the Earth because we have rebellious spirits. Dust always obeys God but
we do not. My lesson from this scripture is that I need to connect with God, I
need to become what He wants me to become if I want to be something. I am a
child of God but that has the responsibility of being obedient and staying
close to the Spirit.
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