Comments on 3 Nephi 5 v1-3 After being led by the zealously religious Lachoneous and Gidgiddoni to a great victory over the Gadianton Robbers, all of the people are believers. All of them accept what the prophets have spoken regarding what should happen (v. 1) regarding Christ's coming (v. 2). So all of their former sins were left behind them (v. 3). As the most hardhearted Nephites and the wicked among the rising generation dissented to the Robbers (cf. 1:29-30), this left a group of people who were more religious. That coupled with their afflictions (cf. 1:27, 2:11), Lachoneous' preaching (cf. 3:15), and the great victory (cf. 4:29-32) resulted in the people being zealous for the Lord. v4-6 Those Robbers who are not killed in the battle are caught and imprisoned. The gospel is preached to them and those who repent are freed with a covenant of peace (v. 4), and those who do not repent are executed according to the law (v. 5). Thus the Gadianton Robbers are ended once and for all (v. 6), or at least for a couple of hundred years (cf. 4 Ne. 1:42). v4 "were set at liberty", cp. 6:3. v7-11 The years pass (v. 7) and many noteworthy things happen, but it is impossible to write everything down (v. 8). While there are records which do contain all of history and significant events of the people, a shorter account is written by the contemporary Nephi (v. 9). The current record is taken from this abbreviated account, which account was written on the plates of Nephi (v. 10), presumably those large plates of Nephi which have been handed down from generation to generation (cf. 1:2). And, the current record is made on plates which the author physically created himself (v. 11). v11 Mormon's intent in indicating he made the plates himself is probably to let us know he isn't just making more historical records (v. 9) or more of the large plates of Nephi (v. 10). His record is physically separate and necessarily different (cf. V. 20-26) from those other records. v12-26 Mormon pauses from his writing to introduce himself and his work (v. 12-19), and to bear his testimony concerning the work he is involved in (v. 20-26). This is the first and only introduction Mormon gives us in the text. While we hear of Mormon and Moroni in the section of the book entitled _Words of Mormon_ that was inserted well after Mormon had written this history. Remember when reading these verses that they were written about 400 years after the present historical events being recounting. When Mormon is writing in v. 22-26 the Nephites are about to be annihilated by the Lamanites and the Lamanites are pretty wicked. Thus his comments about the remnants being gathered and learning about Christ at some point in the future. v12-19 Mormon identifies himself by name and also indicates his namesake (v. 12). He states he was called by Jesus Christ to preach the gospel to his people (v. 13), and part of that calling has become writing this record in fulfilment of all the promises made to the patriarchs (v. 14). Mormon says he makes his abridged version of events from Lehi to the present time (v. 15) from extant records in his possession (v. 16). Once this is completed he will append a record of events in his own time (v. 17). He knows the record he writes is true even though it is not as detailed or verbose as these other records he is abridging from (v. 18). He now ends the introduction of himself and his record keeping and returns to the task at hand (v. 19). v12 "being called after the land of Mormon", cf. Mosiah 18:4. In the Mosiah passage note the way Mormon extolls the virtues of his namesake. When the Nephites are doing terribly bad, Mormon waxes nostalgic for a time when a genuinely righteous splinter group forms in an idyllic setting. v19 In this verse Mormon says he is going to proceed with the account of the things which occurred before him. This sounds like he is going return to the historical record, and yet v. 20- 26 doesn't pick up the history from v. 7. Instead it talks about the redemption of Israel, and doesn't pick up the current history until the start of the next chapter. If we look more closely at the quote, we can see what Mormon is talking about when he says "And now I...proceed to give my account of the things which have been before me." In the next few verses he does just that, but he goes way back, not just a few hundred years. He references the ancient covenant history of Lehi, Jacob, and Joseph, which is part of "the things which have been before me". v20-26 These verses have Mormon presenting a rather interesting commentary on the covenant relationship with Israel in general and the Lehites in specific. For background, we have to note that when Mormon is writing this the Nephites are in their final apostasy, after some 200 years of righteousness, which will result in their annihilation at the hands of the Lamanites. Note where Mormon places these verses in the historical text. Between 5:1-6 where the Lehites are doing quite well and ch. 6 where the Nephites start their last slide into apostasy before the great cataclysmic destruction of ch. 8. So, there is a strong parallel between Mormon's contemporary history and the history he is presently writing. This is reflected in what Mormon writes as he indicates the people are very blessed as a result of their lineage (v. 20-21), are blessed whenever they are righteous (v. 22), and will at a later date be gathered and brought to a knowledge of the Lord (v. 23-26). Mormon's present comments ignore the negative issues of apostasy and wickedness because he is speaking of the covenants made to the fathers, per v. 14, which will bring this record he is writing to a remnant of the Lehites. But, while there is no explicit mention made in the present comments, it is implicit. Why would there be any gathering if they weren't scattered? Why would they need to be apprized of their covenant relationship with the Lord unless they had lapsed into apostasy? But, regardless of the implicit negatives, that is not Mormon's primary interest. His view right now is eternal, not temporal. He sees the big picture, the necessity of his writing this monumental spiritual work when everything around him is crumbling in apostasy. He is explaining why he is writing this record. And, how merciful the Lord is in sparing a remnant of Jacob via Joseph via Lehi so that at a later date they will receive this record and be apprized of their covenant relationship with the Lord. Mormon knows a remnant of the Lehites will receive this record he is writing, so he informs them how blessed they are and have been to have such knowledge available to them concerning salvation and their Savior Jesus Christ. Mormon identifies his lineage as being exclusively Lehite. He gives thanks that he is Lehite because the family of Lehi has been brought out from Jerusalem and blessed greatly with knowledge concerning salvation (v. 20). Mormon then goes back further in his genealogy to Jacob and Joseph, who have been greatly blessed by the Lord (v. 21). And he brings it up to date by saying the lineage of Lehi has been blessed insofar as they have kept the commandments (v. 23). Since the current outlook for the Lehites isn't good, the Lord will bring a remnant back to the knowledge of Him in the future (v. 23). In addition to these Josephites, as Lehi is lineage of Joseph via Menasseh, the Lord will gather all of Israel (v. 24) and bring them to a knowledge of Himself as well (v. 25). Then all of Israel will know that He is the Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. And the covenant with Abraham will be fulfilled when natural Israel is restored to the lands promised to his lineage (v. 26). v20 "a pure descendant of Lehi", Mormon is saying he is not part Judah, via the Mulekites, but is completely from descended from Joseph. This ties in with the v. 21 and 23 references to promises given to the lineage of Joseph. Mormon is of the lineage of Joseph and is fulfilling the promises to Joseph concerning his lineage. When Mormon says he is a pure Lehite, then we have to conclude there was no Mulekite lineage mixed with his. But, Mulekites were in the majority by at least twofold when they combined with the Nephites, cf. Mosiah 25:1-3. Perhaps Mormon is an exception to what one would think would have been typically a heterogeneous mix of Lehite and Mulekite lineage. If Mormon wasn't an exception then there must have been social conventions where Nephites and Mulekites did not intermarry. Unfortunately, we are not informed by Mormon on these matters. v26 emphasizes the redemption of Israel is twofold, both spiritual and physical. The Lord's initial promise to Abraham was for both a promised land and for eternal increase. In order for that to occur his lineage has to be spiritual set in order by accepting Christ, as well as be returned to Abraham's ancestral lands. The first half of v. 26 deals with the spiritual redemption, and the second half of the verse deals with the physical redemption. 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