Comments on Helaman 7

v1-9  Nephi returns home to Zarahemla after spending about 5
years preaching in the North countries (v. 1-2).  Having been
entirely rejected by those who he was preaching to in the North,
he had to return home (v. 3).
     Much to his dismay he discovers that in his absence the
people in Zarahemla have become terribly wicked and have embraced
the secret combinations of Gandianton (v. 4-5).  When he
witnesses the growth of such wickedness in such a short period of
time he is overwhelmed by agony and mourns out loud to God (v.
6).  Nephi wishes he could have lived back in the good old days
(v. 7), then he would have been happy because were righteous (v.
8).  Instead, he must live in sorrow among the wicked (v. 9).

v7-9 illustrate how eminently human these people are.  Nephi's
presentation and view of how things were back in the good old
days is remarkably selective.  It is common human behavior to
romanticize and idealize the good old days, especially when
things are bad in the present.  
     It is doubtful the original Nephi would have characterized
his family and people the way the contemporary Nephi does in v.
7.  Sure, the Nephites originally did pretty well for the first
couple of hundred years in the New World, but even then all of
the record keepers complain vehemently about the stiff-neckedness
of the people (cf. Jacob 1:15-19, Enos 1:23, Jarom 1:3-4). 
     Another factor is after landing in the New World the
Nephites and Lamanites split up shortly afterwards.  This
effectively polarized the two groups and the Nephites at that
point were the more religious people.  Of course they were easier
to deal with and were more prone to be admonished by the word of
God, because all of the nonbelievers had been left behind.  Prior
to that Laman and Lemuel repeatedly tried to dispose of Nephi and
were causing all kinds of problems.  But, the contemporary Nephi
selectively ignores this in creating his idealized view of how
good things were way back when.  Just like we all do.

v10-11  Now, Nephi is on top of a tower in his garden when he is
lamenting out loud, and his garden is located nearby a highway
which is on the way to the largest market in the city (v. 10). 
So, when some people who are sympathetic to Nephi's lament hear
him, they go and summon others so they may also hear Nephi's
lament over the wicked (v. 11).

v12-21 form a prophetic lament in the classic OT Prophetic style
(cp. Isa. 1:21-31, Jer. 8), complete with "How..." and "Why..."
rhetorical questions.

v19  A classic covenant curse, cp. Lev. 26:22.

v20 "in the very day", all of the adults were around some six to
twelve years ago when the Nephites were spared utter annihilation
at the hands of the Lamanites, and the miraculous conversion of
the Lamanites and subsequent ceding of the land back to the
Nephites.  Nephi's point is all of the events of the preceding
few chapters were witnessed firsthand by the present audience,
these things weren't in the historical past, in a day before
theirs.

v22-29 form a woe oracle once again in the classic OT Prophetic
style (cp. Isa. 5, Jer. 22-23).  Woe oracles are common among the
Minor Prophets as well, cp. Hab. 2.



Copyright © 2001 by S. Kurt Neumiller <kurtn@cybcon.com>.  All rights 
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