Have you ever had someone question you about Nephi being commanded to slay Laben? Here is a most enlightening answer from Maija-Liisa Årsnes Written by a Jew 1 Nephi 4:11 And the Spirit said unto me again: Behold the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands. Yea, and I also knew that he had sought to take away mine own life; yea, and he would not hearken unto the commandments of the Lord; and he also had taken away our property. It is no coincidence that Nephi stated that Laban tried to take his life. According to Jewish law two are the kinds of people who deserve death by beheading: murderers and idolaters: the following are decapitated: a murderer, and the inhabitans of a seduced city. (b.Sanhedrin 76b) Laban fit both categories and thus was unequivocally slain in justice. 12 And it came to pass that the Spirit said unto me again: Slay him, for the Lord hath delivered him into thy hands; 13 Behold the Lord slayeth the wicked to bring forth his righteous purposes. It is better that one man should perish than that a nation should dwindle and perish in unbelief. This seems in line with Enoch 95:3 which says: Fear not the sinners, ye righteous; For again will the Lord deliver them into your hands, that ye may execute judgement upon them according to your desires. Being a scribe Nephi was likely familiar with the writings of Enoch. 14 And now, when I, Nephi, had heard these words, I remembered the words of the Lord which he spake unto me in the wilderness, saying that: Inasmuch as thy seed shall keep my commandments, they shall prosper in the land of promise. 15 Yea, and I also thought that they could not keep the commandments of the Lord according to the law of Moses, save they should have the law. Why would Nephi worry about this? Wouldn’t ignorance be an excuse to them not keeping the law? Not according to Jewish law. In Judaism, ignorance is only considered an excuse if it’s unintentional. If Nephi had acted negligently towards the law he would not have been excused. Rabbi Antine thus summarizes the Jewish take on ignorance: “Ignorance might be a legal excuse but it is not a spiritual excuse. Nobody is expected to know everything. We do not know everything about halakha, we do not know everything about others and we don’t even know everything about ourselves. And when we lack knowledge we make mistakes; in ritual observance in our friendships (we hurt people). The question that everyone must ask him or herself is: Am I someone who is thirsty to learn more and change based on that knowledge? Am I someone who is content with where I am at, or am I always striving for more?” 16 And I also knew that the law was engraven upon the plates of brass. 17 And again, I knew that the Lord had delivered Laban into my hands for this cause—that I might obtain the records according to his commandments. 18 Therefore I did obey the voice of the Spirit, and took Laban by the hair of the head, and I smote off his head with his own sword. Why did Nephi mention that he took Laban by the hair? Hair is seen in Israelite culture to be a symbol of spiritual protection. By being able to take Laban by his hair Nephi is saying that the Spirit of G-d that was with him overcame the spiritual forces that might have been working behind the acts of Laban. This only reinforces the idea that Laban was indeed engaged in the worship of foreign gods.
Posted on: Sat, 09 Nov 2013 21:20:35 +0000
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