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3 Nephi 10


Chapter 10

There is silence in the land for many hours—The voice of Christ promises to gather His people as a hen gathers her chickens—The more righteous part of the people have been preserved. About A.D. 34–35.

And now behold, it came to pass that all the people of the land did hear these sayings, and did witness of it. And after these sayings there was silence in the land for the space of many hours;

For so great was the astonishment of the people that they did cease lamenting and howling for the loss of their kindred which had been slain; therefore there was silence in all the land for the space of many hours.

And it came to pass that there came a voice again unto the people, and all the people did hear, and did witness of it, saying:

O ye people of these great cities which have fallen, who are descendants of Jacob, yea, who are of the house of Israel, how oft have I gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and have nourished you.

And again, how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, who have fallen; yea, O ye people of the house of Israel, ye that dwell at Jerusalem, as ye that have fallen; yea, how oft would I have gathered you as a hen gathereth her chickens, and ye would not.

O ye house of Israel whom I have spared, how oft will I gather you as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, if ye will repent and return unto me with full purpose of heart.

But if not, O house of Israel, the places of your dwellings shall become desolate until the time of the fulfilling of the covenant to your fathers.

And now it came to pass that after the people had heard these words, behold, they began to weep and howl again because of the loss of their kindred and friends.

And it came to pass that thus did the three days pass away. And it was in the morning, and the darkness dispersed from off the face of the land, and the earth did cease to tremble, and the rocks did cease to rend, and the dreadful groanings did cease, and all the tumultuous noises did pass away.

10 And the earth did cleave together again, that it stood; and the mourning, and the weeping, and the wailing of the people who were spared alive did cease; and their mourning was turned into joy, and their lamentations into the praise and thanksgiving unto the Lord Jesus Christ, their Redeemer.

11 And thus far were the scriptures fulfilled which had been spoken by the prophets.

12 And it was the more righteous part of the people who were saved, and it was they who received the prophets and stoned them not; and it was they who had not shed the blood of the saints, who were spared

13 And they were spared and were not sunk and buried up in the earth; and they were not drowned in the depths of the sea; and they were not burned by fire, neither were they fallen upon and crushed to death; and they were not carried away in the whirlwind; neither were they overpowered by the vapor of smoke and of darkness.

14 And now, whoso readeth, let him understand; he that hath the scriptures, let him search them, and see and behold if all these deaths and destructions by fire, and by smoke, and by tempests, and by whirlwinds, and by the opening of the earth to receive them, and all these things are not unto the fulfilling of the prophecies of many of the holy prophets.

15 Behold, I say unto you, Yea, many have testified of these things at the coming of Christ, and were slain because they testified of these things.

16 Yea, the prophet Zenos did testify of these things, and also Zenock spake concerning these things, because they testified particularly concerning us, who are the remnant of their seed.

17 Behold, our father Jacob also testified concerning a remnant of the seed of Joseph. And behold, are not we a remnant of the seed of Joseph? And these things which testify of us, are they not written upon the plates of brass which our father Lehi brought out of Jerusalem?

18 And it came to pass that in the ending of the thirty and fourth year, behold, I will show unto you that the people of Nephi who were spared, and also those who had been called Lamanites, who had been spared, did have great favors shown unto them, and great blessings poured out upon their heads, insomuch that soon after the ascension of Christ into heaven he did truly manifest himself unto them—

19 Showing his body unto them, and ministering unto them; and an account of his ministry shall be given hereafter. Therefore for this time I make an end of my sayings.

      • B.C. (noun)

        Before the birth of Christ.

      • account (noun)

        A story; a description or record, written or verbal.

      • as (adverb)

        Like.

      • ascension (noun)

        Christ’s going up to heaven after His Resurrection (see Acts 1:9–11 in the Bible).

      • because of (conjunction)

        By reason of; through.

      • behold (interjection, archaic)

        Look! See! In fact.

      • plates of brass (noun)

        An ancient record, similar to the Bible, kept on metal plates.

      • cease (verb)

        To stop; to come to an end.

      • Christ (noun)

        A title for Jesus Christ. The titles Christ and Messiah both mean a king or priest sent by God to save the world.

      • it came to pass (verb phrase)

        It happened; it took place.

      • concerning (preposition)

        About.

      • covenant (noun)

        A promise God makes to a person or group if they will obey Him.

      • descendant (noun)

        One’s children, their children, theirs, and so on.

      • destruction (noun)

        The tearing down or complete ruin of something.

      • did, didst (verb, archaic)

        A term used before verbs to make them past tense.

      • drown (verb)

        Die from inhaling water into one’s lungs.

      • dwell (verb)

        To live; to reside.

      • earth (noun)

        Ground.

      • fall (verb)

        To fail spiritually; to rebel; to lose status and power; to be expelled from God’s presence.

      • fathers (noun)

        Ancestors (one’s parents, their parents, theirs, and so on).

      • for (conjunction)

        Because.

      • for (preposition)

        Because of.

      • hath (verb, archaic)

        Has.

      • heaven (noun)

        The place where God lives.

      • holy (adjective)

        Sacred; pure; sent by God.

      • insomuch (adverb)

        So much; to such an extent.

      • house of Israel (proper noun)

        God’s ancient covenant people, as described in the Bible (house means a nation or tribe); members of God’s Church.

      • Jerusalem (proper noun)

        Capital of the ancient kingdom of Judah, located in modern Israel; site of key events of the Bible.

      • Jesus Christ (proper noun)

        The Son of God. He created the earth and rules it. He often speaks and acts for His Father. He suffered so that we could be forgiven of our sins and be resurrected.

      • Joseph (proper noun)

        Prophet who was the ancestor of one of the tribes of Israel, as recounted in the first part of the BIble

      • Lamanites (proper noun)

        A people of the Book of Mormon, often enemies of the Nephites, who descended from Nephi’s brother Laman and of those who followed him.

      • Lehi (proper noun)

        A prophet who lived in about 600 B.C.; ancestor of the Nephites and Lamanites.

      • Lord (noun)

        A term of respect for God the Father or Jesus Christ.

      • make an end (verb phrase)

        Finish; stop.

      • manifest (verb)

        To appear; to show.

      • minister (verb)

        To teach; to serve.

      • ministry (noun)

        Acts in service to God and to other people.

      • Nephites, people of Nephi (proper noun)

        A people of the Book of Mormon descended from Nephi and from those who followed him.

      • nourish (verb)

        To feed; to care for (physically or spiritually).

      • O (interjection, archaic)

        A word placed before the name of someone being addressed, often to show strong feeling.

      • pass away (verb)

        To elapse; to go by; to come to an end.

      • prophecy (noun)

        A message from God delivered by a prophet. In some cases these reveal future events.

      • prophet (noun)

        A person sent by God to speak for Him.

      • receive (verb)

        To allow someone to enter.

      • Redeemer (proper noun)

        A title of Jesus Christ. A redeemer is someone who saves another person. Christ rescues us from death and the consequences of sin.

      • remnant (noun)

        Those left when members of a group of people die or disappear.

      • repent (verb)

        To feel sorrow for one’s sins, ask to be forgiven, and change one’s life.

      • righteous (adjective)

        Good; virtuous; just; consistent with God’s law.

      • saints (noun)

        Members of Christ’s Church; individuals become holy through living the principles of the gospel.

      • scripture (noun)

        Sacred writings given by God or recording God’s dealings with His children.

      • seed (noun)

        Posterity; descendants.

      • shall, should (verb)

        Will, would.

      • shed blood, shed the blood of (verb phrase)

        Kill; attack with a weapon to injure or kill.

      • slay (verb)

        To kill.

      • for the space of (adverb phrase)

        During; for the period of time of.

      • spake (verb, archaic)

        Said.

      • spare (verb)

        To treat with leniency; not to kill; to save.

      • stand (noun)

        Endure; last.

      • stone (verb)

        To throw stones at in order to kill or punish.

      • testify (verb)

        To state that something is true.

      • that (conjunction)

        Who.

      • therefore (adverb)

        For this reason.

      • thus (adverb)

        In this way.

      • tumultuous (adjective)

        Loud; confused; violent.

      • unto (preposition)

        To.

      • unto (preposition)

        To.

      • unto (preposition)

        Sufficient for; resulting in.

      • mist of darkness, vapor of smoke or darkness (noun phrase)

        A cloud of water vapor, dust, or smoke that hides the light of day.

      • whoso (pronoun)

        Anyone that; whoever; whosoever.

      • would (verb)

        Desire to; want to; would like to.

      • witness (verb)

        To see.

      • word (noun)

        Message; teachings.

      • ye (pronoun, archaic)

        You.

      • yea (interjection, archaic)

        Indeed; yes. This is pronounced “yay.”