1 Nephi 4 [RE] says, “And it came to pass that I beheld the Spirit of God, that it wrought upon other Gentiles; and they went forth out of captivity upon the many waters.” In Nephi’s vision, this is the first time he mentions a group of Gentiles coming out of captivity. That is exactly what we want to do. As long as we are in captivity, we are of no use to anyone. Israel will remain scattered until some Gentiles repent. Perhaps Nephi’s vision can give us some clues that will help us in our desire to be free so we can begin to help God in His work to fulfill His covenants.
Directly before Nephi mentions the “other Gentiles,” he tells us about one man in particular. “And I looked and beheld a man among the Gentiles, who was separated from the seed of my brethren by the many waters; and I beheld the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man, and he went forth upon the many waters, even unto the seed of my brethren who were in the promised land.” I want you to forget, for a moment, everything you may think about the identify of this man. I want to suggest that this man is someone other than one of the men identified in popular interpretations of this scripture. I simply hope that you can entertain an alternative understanding of who this man is and see where that leads you.
At this point in Nephi’s vision, he has seen Jesus among the Jews, the crucifixion, and the apostasy of the New Testament church. Nephi has seen the history of his people on the promised land, their visitation by Christ, and their eventual destruction and dwindling in unbelief. Finally, Nephi has seen the build-up of the kingdoms of the Gentiles and the way their church binds down and tortures the saints and brings them down into captivity. In short, Nephi has seen an absolutely corrupt future. Nephi’s vision up to that point is one depressing scene after another with seemingly no chance of anyone ever again having the power to hold to the rod, cross the everlasting gulf of misery, and partake of the tree life (remember this is all Nephi’s expanded vision of his father’s dream).
But then, after all the abominations that Nephi has witnessed, there is a restoration of hope. After all the pride, the unbelief, and the captivity, seemingly out of nowhere the Spirit of God has actually come down and wrought upon a man and enlightened his understanding. This man caught hold of the word of God. He crossed the awful gulf that separates the wicked from the tree of life. And he had a work to do among the Lamanites (a people with a promise to one day partake of the tree of life, even if the tree is currently barren). This man began a work that will eventually fulfill the promises made to Lehi and the other Book of Mormon fathers. Who is that man? I want to suggest to you that the man is Joseph Smith. In what was perhaps an outward token of his mission and role, Joseph’s last instruction he received from God was to cross the great waters of the Mississippi River to go find the Book of Mormon remnant in the promised land (and who’s to say he will not eventually do that very thing?).
This interpretation of who Nephi saw is so much more than simply an amusing possibility. It is instructive in many ways but we will only touch on one thing in particular here. Joseph Smith, his work, and his life were all meant to be a forerunner to some number of Gentiles actually leaving behind the virtually inescapable captivity found inside the great and abominable church that has been formed among the Gentile kingdoms. Joseph informed us of the possibility of escape with his ministry. Nephi’s vision does not mention how much time passed between the time the man went forth upon the waters and the time the other Gentiles went forth upon the waters. The timing is up to the Gentiles who think they want to escape.
Where do we want to go? If we do not want to go the direction Joseph Smith was aiming for then we probably should not bother and we should remain content with our captivity. But if our desires are aimed towards the same goal that the Lord had in mind when He began the restoration through Joseph Smith, then we have a chance. Perhaps we ought to carefully consider going upon the many waters, even unto the seed of Nephi’s brethren who are in the promised land, as a man with the Spirit of God once advocated. Would doing so be a critical part of accepting the new covenant of the Book of Mormon?
Dan, This was excellent. I do want to go in the direction of Joseph Smith. I have been pondering on the "remnant people" for some time, and I so appreciate this post.
ReplyDelete"Perhaps we ought to carefully consider going upon the many waters, even unto the seed of Nephi’s brethren who are in the promised land, as a man with the Spirit of God once advocated. Would doing so be a critical part of accepting the new covenant of the Book of Mormon?" I am ready and willing. Most of my life, (until my later years), was involved with the "seed of Nehpi's brethren." I feel ready and oh so willing. Waiting upon the Lord and His timing.
Thank you again for your spirit and insight. This was a great blog post.
My first break with the hierarchy was when I realized the traditional interpretation of "the man among the gentiles" was wholly, thoroughly, entirely wrong. :) And that incorrect interpretation leads the church to some fundamental errors that may well prove it's damnation. The church isn't doing the work it was charged with doing--namely recovering the remnant of Lehi. Great post.
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