Lehi has gone to preach to the Jews concerning the things he saw in his vision. Verse twenty:
And when the Jews heard these things they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had cast out, and stoned, and slain; and they also sought his life, that they might take it away. But behold, I, Nephi, 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.
There’s a lot of content in this verse.
First, we see that the Jews were not only upset by Lehi’s preaching, they determined to kill him for it. It’s said that the wicked take the truth to be hard, and that’s certainly true in this case. They wanted to get rid of the thorn in their side – they didn’t want a constant reminder of their wickedness. They were enjoying their sins just a little too much. We aren’t told just what their plan was to kill Lehi, but given their history of stoning, we can imagine it would have been brutal.
But, Nephi wants us to understand the tender mercies of the Lord. I love that expression – “tender mercies.” It sounds like a parent tiptoeing in to tuck in a child after a long hard day. I like to think of our Heavenly Father looking down on us, and the benevolence that fills His heart when He sees us. Nephi is foreshadowing what is to happen next – the delivery of Lehi from the threat of death.
Next is the comment, “all those whom He hath chosen, because of their faith.” We all have the capability of becoming chosen, but it’s all up to us. We decide if we’re going to develop and exercise our faith, or if we’re going to let it go stagnant.
The last statement is, “to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance.” So we have persons who have chosen to exercise their faith, and in turn, they have been chosen of God to do a special work Because of that faith, they are being made mighty. This doesn’t mean that they now have super-sized muscles and can fight their way out of situations – it means that they are mighty in spirit, and because of that spiritual power, they can call upon Heaven to deliver them from their circumstances.
Applying today’s reading – What sins do we have that are thorns in our sides? Do we get defensive whenever someone reminds us of our shortcomings? How do you envision Heavenly Father – as a God of wrath, or as a tender parent? What are some of the tender mercies He’s shown you in your life? What situations have you been delivered from, or would like to be delivered from, by the strength of His hand?
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