Sunday, January 5, 2020

Goodness, mercy and power

In 1 Nephi 1:14, when praising the Lord, Lehi says
the power, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of the earth; and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish
Keeping in mind that the name, Nephi, might come from the Egyptian, nfr, which means "good/goodly", it is interesting to see what Nephi says in verse 20.
I, Nephi [goodness], will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance.
It might seem that Nephi is making a connection to his father's praising saying that these were not just empty words but they are manifest in my own life. Connecting the meaning of his name into this further suggests that he considers himself a living proof of the Lord's goodness. Note how he says that "I will show unto you", and then starts the next verse with the clause, "for behold, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto my father, yea, even in a dream..." and goes on with the story about how the Lord delivered them from the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem and led them to the promised land. The whole book of 1st Nephi is Nephi's demonstration that the things that his father said in 1 Nephi 1:14 are true.