Personal Study - Thursday, 31 December, 2020

A Father and Mother are One

 

 

I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

- The Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 1:1

  

"And I God, created man in mine own image, in the image of mine Only Begotten created I him, male and female created I them." 

- Genesis 1:29, JST

 

"And it is not good that man should be alone; I will make an help meet for him." 

- Genesis 2:18, KJV

 

"And I, the Lord God, caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and I slept, and I took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in the stead thereof; and the rib, which I, the Lord God had taken from him, made I a woman, and brought her unto the man.

"And Adam said, This I know now is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.  She shall be called woman

"Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife; and they shall be one flesh."

- Genesis 2:28-30, JST

 

    Nephi's mother was no less serviceable as a "goodly parent," Sariah, being one with her husband, Lehi.  Mothers are especially as divinely commissioned to mentor their daughters and teach their children.  As the man and the woman are one - goodly parents are a model for how a father and mother are one.

***  Friday, I January, 2021 ***

    S0, the very first phase of The Book of Mormon exemplifies the intimate teaching relationship between children and parents.

Personal Study - Tuesday, 22 December, 2020

Am I Goodly?

 

I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

- The Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 1:1

 

So... are we goodly?  Am I goodly?

~~ 

Still on 1 Nephi 1:1 

"...therefore I was taught in all the learning of my father."

 

Nephi here, relates his close and intimate relationship with his father.  I can imagine that this was a relationship that had been cultivated by both of them.  Lehi, being goodly must have been, by definition, actively seeking a relationship with God, and as a father, truly desired to cultivate that in his sons.  Lehi had a wealth of knowledge, experience and wisdom to share, recognizing his duty to teach his posterity.  I can guess from these wrigings that Nephi was also a willing student, recognizing his duty as a son, to be mentored by his mortal maker.  As a son resembles his father, being made in his image, Nephi sought to enhance that image beyond just physical recognition.  Lehi served as a "goodly" stepping stone to help Nephi connect with Christ and Heavenly Father.

...have ye spiritually been born of God?  Have ye received His image in your countenances?

- Alma 5:14

Fathers have a sacred responsibility to teach - particularly - their sons, engage with them and build such a mentoring relationship like Christ and His Father, our Father, have.

 

 

Personal Study - Monday, 21 December, 2020

What Does It Mean To Be Goodly - Part 2

 

 I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

- The Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 1:1

 

Still pondering 1 Nephi 1:1 and left off with the question...

"What does it mean to be goodly?"

Webster's American dictionary of the English Language - 1828 defines "goodly" for our purposes here:

-    adjective: being of handsome form; beautiful; graceful; as a goodly person; goodly raiment; goodly houses.

1.    pleasant; agreeable, desirable, as in goodly days

 

In seeking understanding from other translations off The Book of Mormon, all that I checked being Russian, French, German and Hebrew use the word, "good."

These translations from English are less pure than the translation that Jospeh Smith received directly from the plates.  While Nephi may have considered his parents pleasant to look upon, this would not be contextually consistent with the narrative of The Book of Mormon.

It is notable that translating from the plates to English, the Prophet Joseph Smith does not come up with the word "good."

"And Jesus said unto them, Why callest thou me good?  There is none good but one, that is, God."

- Mark 10:18 (see also Matthew 19:17)

So, if Christ Himself eschewed being referred to as "good," it was unlikely that Nephi would refer to his parents as "good."    What say ye?  That Nephi did not have the New Testament?  Of course not.  Yet Nephi and the contributors to The Book of Mormon had something more.  They were inspired by the Spirit of the Lord.  There is not place in the entire Book of Mormon that I have found, after a brief search, where the Lord refers to the term, "good man" at any time.  Indeed, there are several places we are told...

"...there is none that doeth good..."

• Psalms 14:1
• Roman 3:12
  
• Moroni 10:35
• Doctrine & Covenants 35:12 (has an exception)

 S0... what does it mean to be "goodly?"  It was probably the best approximation that Joseph could be given for translation at the time.

Let's submit, then, a definistion of goodly that may better fit the meaning Nephi is striving to convey.

Goodly: striving to please God

                   striving to know God

                   striving to be god-like; godly

With this definition, "goodly" fits the account more accurately - it seems - and offers an example to follow.

Personal Study - Thursday, 17 December, 2020

 

What Does It Mean To Be Goodly?

 

    I Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, nevertheless, having been highly favored of the Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.

- The Book of Mormon, 1 Nephi 1:1

    Nephi honors his "goodly" parents and mentions how he is taught in all the learning of his father. 

    Fathers have learning to pass on to their sons. It appears that fathers, in Nephi's experience, are the primary instructors of sons and it would also seem that it is the duty of a son to seek knowledge of and from his father.  A mentorship is implied here, which might not be as effective in any other way.

    Even before completion of the first sentence of the first verse of the first chapter of The Book of Mormon, we have profound and inspired guidance for the good of a free society.

    Fathers, be "goodly" so that you can mentor your sons.  Sons, look to your goodly fathers for your example of "goodly" life and character.

    How is that working for us today?

    What does it mean to be "goodly?"