READING FOR JANUARY 21
Helaman 13-16
“THE TERRIFYING BOOK OF HELAMAN”
“[The book of Helaman] should not be read primarily as a history as it sometimes is. Even though we learn about the ministries of Helaman, Nephi, and Samuel the Lamanite, and of the Gadianton robbers, as well as the reaction of the Nephites to all of those in the book of Helaman, to read it primarily as a history is to miss the point.”
“Mormon uses the history of the Nephites to warn us to avoid wickedness that could lead to our destruction. He shows in the book of Helaman that the Nephites condemned themselves to destruction through choosing wickedness and refusing to allow God to prepare them to meet Christ. He shows that when God sent signs, miracles, and prophets, the Nephites rejected them. As they sought the “things of this world and . . . the honors of men” (D&C 121:35), they began to persecute the righteous and reward the wicked, creating in the process a society of crime, intolerance, injustice, immorality, and hypocrisy.As Mormon unfolds this history, he shows how the destruction of the wicked Nephites that occurs in 3 Nephi is just.”
Gerald Hansen Jr., https://archive.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/terrifying-book-helaman
STAY IN THE BOAT
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/media-library/video/topics/hope?lang=eng
“...we will seek you, find you, minister to you, and pull you safely back onto the Old Ship Zion”
Elder M. Russell Ballard, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2014/10/stay-in- the-boat-and-hold-on?lang=eng
NEPHI’S DIVINE COUNCIL
“In Helaman 10, after revealing the murderer of the chief judge, Nephi began to walk back to his house, pondering upon the wickedness of the people.As he was thinking about all that had just transpired, God reassured Nephi that his diligence did not go unnoticed (v. 3–5). Suddenly, God stated that His words to Nephi were being given “in the presence of [God’s] angels” (v. 6), and then it appears that God’s declaration to Nephi was being given in a temple (“if ye shall say unto this temple,” v. 8).These somewhat unexpected and often overlooked details suggest that Nephi was being shown a vision of the divine council inside a holy temple.
In ancient Israel, some prophets received visions in which they saw God’s “divine council,” a group composed of God and His “royal court” in heaven.Accounts of these experiences have similar elements: the prophet has a pressing need for help, often related to knowing how to help a wicked group of people.The prophet is in a temple or mountain setting. He sees the divine council, or a messenger from the council.The Lord reassures him and gives him knowledge. He is then empowered and called to speak and act on God’s behalf.
Over the years, several LDS biblical scholars have noted continuities between these Israelite throne manifestations and the revelatory experiences of Book of Mormon prophets. Recently, David Bokovoy, one such LDS biblical scholar, explained that elements like these “provide a type of template for depicting an official encounter between witness and worshipper in preparation for the introduction to advanced revelatory truths.”
“Seeing Nephi the son of Helaman as being admitted into the presence of the divine council explains the presence of angels, temples, mountains, and sealing in Helaman 10.As the leading Nephite prophet and high priest Nephi would have been familiar with the Israelite temple traditions, having officiated over the main temple in Zarahemla, the temple King Benjamin, Mosiah, Alma, and Helaman used.
Moreover, Nephi was “much cast down because of the wickedness of the people of the Nephites” (Helaman 10:3). Considering that he had narrowly escaped being put to death and that the Gadianton robbers had killed the chief judge, his great concern and need for divine guidance and reassurance was certainly a reasonable response.
Yet it was during this difficult time of personal obedience and sacrifice that
Nephi not only heard God’s voice (Helaman 10:3) but had an expansive
prophetic experience with the Lord and His heavenly host.”
https://knowhy.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/why-is-there-temple-imagery-in-helaman-10
SEALING POWER
“In Helaman 10, Nephi received great power from the Lord, when He told him, “whatsoever ye shall seal on earth shall be sealed in heaven” (Helaman 10:7). It is not clear, at first, how Nephi used this power. However, a careful look at the chapter shows one way in which he may have used this gift.
In his encounter with the Divine, the Lord told Nephi he would be able to “smite the earth with
famine,” (Helaman 10:6) and then, in the very next verse, gave him the power to “seal” and “loose” “on earth” and “in heaven” (v. 7). Because “seal” and “loose” can also mean “close” and “open,” it is possible that Nephi assumed that his power to cause famine, when necessary, was related to this ability to “close” things up “in heaven.”1 Nephi may have realized that he was literally able to close the heavens themselves to keep it from raining.
Nephi would not be the first prophet to use the priesthood to cause drought.The first recorded words from Elijah in the Old Testament are his testament to the wicked king Ahab, that “there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word” (1 Kings 17:1). Elijah, just like Nephi, used the priesthood to “seal” the heavens to keep it from raining.Thus, it is likely that Nephi received power to “seal” in Helaman 10, and then used it to “seal” the heavens in Helaman 11.
This idea becomes more likely when one looks carefully at chapter 11. In Helaman 11:2–4 Nephi asked the Lord to stop a terrible war by replacing this war with a famine. It is clear that this famine was caused by drought, because when Nephi asked the Lord to stop the famine, he specifically asked him to “send forth rain” (v. 13).This may indicate that Nephi had used his recently-acquired power to “seal” the heavens, just like Elijah. “
https://knowhy.bookofmormoncentral.org/content/how-did-nephi-use-the-power-to-seal-on-earth-and-in-heaven
SPIRITUAL TREASURES
“How I yearn for you to understand that the restoration of the priesthood is just as relevant to you as a woman as it is to any man. Because the Melchizedek Priesthood has been restored, both covenant-keeping women and men have access to “all the spiritual blessings of the church” or, we might say, to all the spiritual treasures the Lord has for His children. Every woman and every man who makes covenants with God and keeps those covenants, and who participates worthily in priesthood ordinances, has direct access to the power of God.Those who are endowed in the house of the Lord receive a gift of God’s priesthood power by virtue of their covenant, along with a gift of knowledge to know how to draw upon that power.
The heavens are just as open to women who are endowed with God’s power flowing from their priesthood covenants as they are to men who bear the priesthood. I pray that truth will register upon each of your hearts because I believe it will change your life. Sisters, you have the right to draw liberally upon the Savior’s power to help your family and others you love.”
President Russell M. Nelson, https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/general-conference/2019/10/36nelson?lang=eng
CHIASM HELAMAN 6:7-13
https://knowhy.bookofmormoncentral.org/ content/why-was-chiasmus-used-in- nephite-record-keeping
GRATITUDE
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=WumYqNE9OF4
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