Earlier in today’s Scripture Study, I reviewed 1 Nephi 14:1-2, which reads:
1. And it shall come to pass, that if the Gentiles shall hearken unto the Lamb of God in that day that he shall manifest himself unto them in word, and also in power, in very deed, unto the taking away of their stumbling blocks—
2. And harden not their hearts against the Lamb of God, they shall be numbered among the seed of thy father; yea, they shall be numbered among the house of Israel; and they shall be a blessed people upon the promised land forever; they shall be no more brought down into captivity; and the house of Israel shall no more be confounded.
I hope you don’t mind a little bit of repetition, but I found these two verses very compelling and wanted to dig into them a little bit deeper.
As we look at these verses, pay special attention to the task given to the Gentiles in verse 1: “hearken unto the Lamb of God.”
In verse two, they are told to: “harden not their hearts against the Lamb of God.”
They are told to hearken and to harden not their hearts. These two commandments are linked together—you cannot properly fulfill one while ignoring the other.
To hearken means to listen, to pay attention, to give something your total focus. You aren’t just sort of listening, your mind isn’t wandering—you are tuning in with your mind and your heart.
To harden not your heart means that you are humble, willing to learn, and that you don’t turn away as soon as you hear something you don’t like. You are not making excuses for yourself, explaining away your behavior or your choices. You are ready to hear the truth, to act on it, and accept it for what it is—a door opening up to great possibilities.
When we put the two together, we are listening intently, ready to hear whatever we need to hear in order to draw closer to the Lord and to abide by His precepts.
Other words come to mind: obedience, humility, meekness, diligence, reverence.
When the Lord speaks to us, if we will but listen with total attention, showing Him the reverence and the respect He deserves, being willing to accept chastisement, if He needs to give it, and we don’t make excuses for ourselves, we will be numbered with the House of Israel, a blessed people, free forever. What a tremendous and amazing promise.
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