means whereby they can accomplish the thing which he has commanded them; wherefore, he did provide means for us while we did sojourn in the wilderness.1 Nephi 17:4
4 And we did sojourn for the space of many years, yea, even eight years in the wilderness.
1 Nephi 17:5
5 And we did come to the land which we called Bountiful, because of its much fruit and also wild honey; and all these things were prepared of the Lord that we might not perish. And we beheld the sea, which we called Irreantum, which, being interpreted, is many waters.
1 Nephi 17:6
6 And it came to pass that we did pitch our tents by the seashore; and notwithstanding we had suffered many afflictions and much difficulty, yea, even so much that we cannot write them all, we were exceedingly rejoiced when we came to the seashore; and we called the place Bountiful, because of its much fruit.
1 Nephi 17:7
7 And it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had been in the land of Bountiful for the space of many days, the voice of the Lord came unto me, saying: Arise, and get thee into the mountain. And it came to pass that I arose and went up into the mountain, and cried unto the Lord.
1 Nephi 17:8
8 And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Thou shalt construct a ship, after the manner which I shall show thee, that I may carry thy people across these waters.
1 Nephi 17:9
9 And I said: Lord, whither shall I go that I may find ore to molten, that I may make tools to construct the ship after the manner which thou hast shown unto me?
1 Nephi 17:10
10 And it came to pass that the Lord told me whither I should go
to find ore, that I might make tools.
1 Nephi 17:11
11 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, did make a bellows
wherewith to blow the fire, of the skins of beasts; and after I
had made a bellows, that I might have wherewith to blow the fire, I did smite two stones together that I might make fire.
1 Nephi 17:12
12 For the Lord had not hitherto suffered that we should make much fire, as we journeyed in the wilderness; for he said: I will make thy food become sweet, that ye cook it not;
1 Nephi 17:13
13 And I will also be your light in the wilderness; and I will prepare the way before you, if it so be that ye shall keep my commandments; wherefore, inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments ye shall be led towards the promised land; and ye shall know that it is by me that ye are led.
1 Nephi 17:14
14 Yea, and the Lord said also that: After ye have arrived in
the promised land, ye shall know that I, the Lord, am God; and that I, the Lord, did deliver you from destruction; yea, that I
did bring you out of the land of Jerusalem.
1 Nephi 17:15
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15 Wherefore, I, Nephi, did strive to keep the commandments of the Lord, and I did exhort my brethren to faithfulness and diligence.
1 Nephi 17:16
16 And it came to pass that I did make tools of the ore which I
did molten out of the rock.
1 Nephi 17:17
17 And when my brethren saw that I was about to build a ship, they began to murmur against me, saying: Our brother is a fool, for he thinketh that he can build a ship; yea, and he also
thinketh that he can cross these great waters.
1 Nephi 17:18
18 And thus my brethren did complain against me, and were desirous that they might not labor, for they did not believe that I could build a ship; neither would they believe that I was instructed of the Lord.
1 Nephi 17:19
19 And now it came to pass that I, Nephi, was exceedingly sorrowful because of the hardness of their hearts; and now when they saw that I began to be sorrowful they were glad in their hearts, insomuch that they did rejoice over me, saying: We knew that ye could not construct a ship, for we knew that ye were lacking in judgment; wherefore, thou canst not accomplish so great a work.
1 Nephi 17:20
20 And thou art like unto our father, led away by the foolish imaginations of his heart; yea, he hath led us out of the land of Jerusalem, and we have wandered in the wilderness for these many years; and our women have toiled, being big with child; and they have borne children in the wilderness and suffered all things,
save it were death; and it would have been better that they had died before they came out of Jerusalem than to have suffered these afflictions.
1 Nephi 17:21
21 Behold, these many years we have suffered in the wilderness, which time we might have enjoyed our possessions and the land of our inheritance; yea, and we might have been happy.
1 Nephi 17:22
22 And we know that the people who were in the land of Jerusalem were a righteous people; for they kept the statutes and judgments
of the Lord, and all his commandments, according to the law of Moses; wherefore, we know that they are a righteous people; and our father hath judged them, and hath led us away because we would hearken unto his words; yea, and our brother is like unto him. And after this manner of language did my brethren murmur and complain against us.
1 Nephi 17:23
23 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, spake unto them, saying: Do ye believe that our fathers, who were the children of Israel, would have been led away out of the hands of the Egyptians if they had not hearkened unto the words of the Lord?
1 Nephi 17:24
24 Yea, do ye suppose that they would have been led out of
bondage, if the Lord had not commanded Moses that he should lead them out of bondage?
1 Nephi 17:25
25 Now ye know that the children of Israel were in bondage; and ye know that they were laden with tasks, which were grievous to
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be borne; wherefore, ye know that it must needs be a good thing for them, that they should be brought out of bondage.
1 Nephi 17:26
26 Now ye know that Moses was commanded of the Lord to do that great work; and ye know that by his word the waters of the Red
Sea were divided hither and thither, and they passed through on dry ground.
1 Nephi 17:27
27 But ye know that the
