Nephi is beholding a vision that is shown to him by the hand of the angel of the Lord. He has seen the coming of the Savior, born of a virgin, and he has seen that Lamb slain for the sins of the world. He has seen the wars that will break out between his seed and the seed of his brethren, and he has seen that Christ will come to the New World and choose out twelve righteous men to be his apostles.
11. And the angel said unto me: Look! And I looked, and beheld three generations pass away in righteousness; and their garments were white even like unto the Lamb of God. And the angel said unto me: These are made white in the blood of the Lamb, because of their faith in him.
12. And I, Nephi, also saw many of the fourth generation who passed away in righteousness.
13. And it came to pass that I saw the multitudes of the earth gathered together.
14. And the angel said unto me: Behold thy seed, and also the seed of thy brethren.
15. And it came to pass that I looked and beheld the people of my seed gathered together in multitudes against the seed of my brethren; and they were gathered together to battle.
For four generations after the coming of Christ to the Promised Land, the people were righteous. But the further they got from His visit, the more their memories dimmed, and they turned back to their old ways. As those who were present at His coming passed away, the first person testimonies died with them, and the young chose not to believe the things they were taught. Their hearts turned again to war.
16. And the angel spake unto me, saying: Behold the fountain of filthy water which thy father saw; yea, even the river of which he spake; and the depths thereof are the depths of hell.
17. And the mists of darkness are the temptations of the devil, which blindeth the eyes, and hardeneth the hearts of the children of men, and leadeth them away into broad roads, that they perish and are lost.
As the people listened to the whisperings of the devil rather than to those who remembered Christ’s words, their hearts were turned and they were blinded. They thought they were doing what they ought to find happiness, but what they found instead was misery and confusion.
18. And the large and spacious building, which thy father saw, is vain imaginations and the pride of the children of men. And a great and a terrible gulf divideth them; yea, even the word of the justice of the Eternal God, and the Messiah who is the Lamb of God, of whom the Holy Ghost beareth record, from the beginning of the world until this time, and from this time henceforth and forever.
When we seek to follow our own paths, believing that we know what is best for us and refusing to listen to wise counsel, we are deluding ourselves and having what this scripture calls “vain imaginations.” We pretend to be wise, to know what we should do and what will bring us joy, but we are filled with pride, believing that we have no need for a Savior to guide us. We can do it just fine by ourselves, thank you very much. The farther we stray from the guidance of the Spirit, the more of a gulf it becomes, until it seems impossible to ever return.
From today’s reading: What are our own personal “vain imaginations?” What do we like to believe about ourselves that simply isn’t true? What can we do to strengthen our testimonies that through Christ, we can do anything, but it is only through Christ that the power comes?
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