Helaman 16:4 4 For behold, Nephi was baptizing, and prophesying, and preaching, crying repentance unto the people, showing signs and wonders, working miracles among the people, that they might know that the Christ must shortly come--
Helaman 16:5 5 Telling them of things which must shortly come, that they might know and remember at the time of their coming that they had been made known unto them beforehand, to the intent that they might believe; therefore as many as believed on the words of Samuel went forth unto him to be baptized, for they came repenting and confessing their sins.
Helaman 16:6 6 But the more part of them did not believe in the words of Samuel; therefore when they saw that they could not hit him with their stones and their arrows, they cried unto their captains, saying: Take this fellow and bind him, for behold he hath a devil; and because of the power of the devil which is in him we cannot hit him with our stones and our arrows; therefore take him and bind him, and away with him.
Helaman 16:7 7 And as they went forth to lay their hands on him, behold, he did cast himself down from the wall, and did flee out of their lands, yea, even unto his own country, and began to preach and to prophesy among his own people.
Helaman 16:8 8 And behold, he was never heard of more among the Nephites; and thus were the affairs of the people.
Helaman 16:9 9 And thus ended the eighty and sixth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi.
Helaman 16:10 10 And thus ended also the eighty and seventh year of the reign of the judges, the more part of the people remaining in their pride and wickedness, and the lesser part walking more circ.u.mspectly before G.o.d.
Helaman 16:11 11 And these were the conditions also, in the eighty and eighth year of the reign of the judges.
Helaman 16:12 12 And there was but little alteration in the affairs of the people, save it were the people began to be more hardened in iniquity, and do more and more of that which was contrary to the commandments of G.o.d, in the eighty and ninth year of the reign of the judges.
Helaman 16:13 13 But it came to pa.s.s in the ninetieth year of the reign of the judges, there were great signs given unto the people, and wonders; and the words of the prophets began to be fulfilled.
Helaman 16:14 14 And angels did appear unto men, wise men, and did declare unto them glad tidings of great joy; thus in this year the scriptures began to be fulfilled.
Helaman 16:15 15 Nevertheless, the people began to harden their hearts, all save it were the most believing part of them, both of the Nephites and also of the Lamanites, and began to depend upon their own strength and upon their own wisdom, saying:
Helaman 16:16 16 Some things they may have guessed right, among so many; but behold, we know that all these great and marvelous works cannot come to pa.s.s, of which has been spoken.
Helaman 16:17 17 And they began to reason and to contend among themselves, saying:
Helaman 16:18 18 That it is not reasonable that such a being as a Christ shall come; if so, and he be the Son of G.o.d, the Father of heaven and of earth, as it has been spoken, why will he not show himself unto us as well as unto them who shall be at Jerusalem?
Helaman 16:19 19 Yea, why will he not show himself in this land as well as in the land of Jerusalem?
Helaman 16:20 20 But behold, we know that this is a wicked tradition, which has been handed down unto us by our fathers, to cause us that we should believe in some great and marvelous thing which should come to pa.s.s, but not among us, but in a land which is far distant, a land which we know not; therefore they can keep us in ignorance, for we cannot witness with our own eyes that they are true.
Helaman 16:21 21 And they will, by the cunning and the mysterious arts of the evil one, work some great mystery which we cannot understand, which will keep us down to be servants to their words, and also servants unto them, for we depend upon them to teach us the word; and thus will they keep us in ignorance if we will yield ourselves unto them, all the days of our lives.
Helaman 16:22 22 And many more things did the people imagine up in their hearts, which were foolish and vain; and they were much disturbed, for Satan did stir them up to do iniquity continually; yea, he did go about spreading rumors and contentions upon all the face of the land, that he might harden the hearts of the people against that which was good and against that which should come.
Helaman 16:23 23 And notwithstanding the signs and the wonders which were wrought among the people of the Lord, and the many miracles which they did, Satan did get great hold upon the hearts of the people upon all the face of the land.
Helaman 16:24 24 And thus ended the ninetieth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi.
Helaman 16:25 25 And thus ended the book of Helaman, according to the record of Helaman and his sons.
THIRD BOOK OF NEPHI
THE SON OF NEPHI, WHO WAS THE SON OF HELAMAN
And Helaman was the son of Helaman, who was the son of Alma, who was the son of Alma, being a descendant of Nephi who was the son of Lehi, who came out of Jerusalem in the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, the king of Judah.
3 Nephi 1 Chapter 1
3 Nephi 1:1 1 Now it came to pa.s.s that the ninety and first year had pa.s.sed away and it was six hundred years from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem; and it was in the year that Lachoneus was the chief judge and the governor over the land.
3 Nephi 1:2 2 And Nephi, the son of Helaman, had departed out of the land of Zarahemla, giving charge unto his son Nephi, who was his eldest son, concerning the plates of bra.s.s, and all the records which had been kept, and all those things which had been kept sacred from the departure of Lehi out of Jerusalem.
3 Nephi 1:3 3 Then he departed out of the land, and whither he went, no man knoweth; and his son Nephi did keep the records in his stead, yea, the record of this people.
3 Nephi 1:4 4 And it came to pa.s.s that in the commencement of the ninety and second year, behold, the prophecies of the prophets began to be fulfilled more fully; for there began to be greater signs and greater miracles wrought among the people.
3 Nephi 1:5 5 But there were some who began to say that the time was past for the words to be fulfilled, which were spoken by Samuel, the Lamanite.
3 Nephi 1:6 6 And they began to rejoice over their brethren, saying: Behold the time is past, and the words of Samuel are not fulfilled; therefore, your joy and your faith concerning this thing hath been vain.
3 Nephi 1:7 7 And it came to pa.s.s that they did make a great uproar throughout the land; and the people who believed began to be very sorrowful, lest by any means those things which had been spoken might not come to pa.s.s.
3 Nephi 1:8 8 But behold, they did watch steadfastly for that day and that night and that day which should be as one day as if there were no night, that they might know that their faith had not been vain.
3 Nephi 1:9 9 Now it came to pa.s.s that there was a day set apart by the unbelievers, that all those who believed in those traditions should be put to death except the sign should come to pa.s.s, which had been given by Samuel the prophet.
3 Nephi 1:10 10 Now it came to pa.s.s that when Nephi, the son of Nephi, saw this wickedness of his people, his heart was exceedingly sorrowful.
3 Nephi 1:11 11 And it came to pa.s.s that he went out and bowed himself down upon the earth, and cried mightily to his G.o.d in behalf of his people, yea, those who were about to be destroyed because of their faith in the tradition of their fathers.
3 Nephi 1:12 12 And it came to pa.s.s that he cried mightily unto the Lord, all that day; and behold, the voice of the Lord came unto him, saying:
3 Nephi 1:13 13 Lift up your head and be of good cheer; for behold, the time is at hand, and on this night shall the sign be given, and on the morrow come I into the world, to show unto the world that I will fulfill all that which I have caused to be spoken by the mouth of my holy prophets.
3 Nephi 1:14 14 Behold, I come unto my own, to fulfill all things which I have made known unto the children of men from the foundation of the world, and to do the will, both of the Father and of the Son--of the Father because of me, and of the Son because of my flesh. And behold, the time is at hand, and this night shall the sign be given.
3 Nephi 1:15 15 And it came to pa.s.s that the words which came unto Nephi were fulfilled, according as they had been spoken; for behold, at the going down of the sun there was no darkness; and the people began to be astonished because there was no darkness when the night came.
3 Nephi 1:16 16 And there were many, who had not believed the words of the prophets, who fell to the earth and became as if they were dead, for they knew that the great plan of destruction which they had laid for those who believed in the words of the prophets had been frustrated; for the sign which had been given was already at hand.
3 Nephi 1:17 17 And they began to know that the Son of G.o.d must shortly appear; yea, in fine, all the people upon the face of the whole earth from the west to the east, both in the land north and in the land south, were so exceedingly astonished that they fell to the earth.
3 Nephi 1:18 18 For they knew that the prophets had testified of these things for many years, and that the sign which had been given was already at hand; and they began to fear because of their iniquity and their unbelief.
3 Nephi 1:19 19 And it came to pa.s.s that there was no darkness in all that night, but it was as light as though it was mid-day. And it came to pa.s.s that the sun did rise in the morning again, according to its proper order; and they knew that it was the day that the Lord should be born, because of the sign which had been given.
3 Nephi 1:20 20 And it had come to pa.s.s, yea, all things, every whit, according to the words of the prophets.
3 Nephi 1:21 21 And it came to pa.s.s also that a new star did appear, according to the word.
3 Nephi 1:22 22 And it came to pa.s.s that from this time forth there began to be lyings sent forth among the people, by Satan, to harden their hearts, to the intent that they might not believe in those signs and wonders which they had seen; but notwithstanding these lyings and deceivings the more part of the people did believe, and were converted unto the Lord.
3 Nephi 1:23 23 And it came to pa.s.s that Nephi went forth among the people, and also many others, baptizing unto repentance, in the which there was a great remission of sins. And thus the people began again to have peace in the land.