Here's what happens: Lehi and his family (his wife, Sariah; and his sons, Laman; Lemuel; Sam; and Nephi) have been traveling through the wilderness for three days. Lehi is warned by God that they need to retrieve the Brass Plates from Laban, a powerful, wicked, man who lives in the city of Jerusalem. The Brass Plates are essentially the first five books of the Old Testament (The Books of Moses), along with a few other books, including the prophecies of Isaiah. Basically, Heavenly Father wanted Lehi and his family to have scriptures, so they'd be able to keep his commandments and thrive, both spiritually and physically.
So, Lehi tells his four sons they need to retrieve the plates. Laman and Lemuel, of course, start complaining. They whine about how powerful Laban is, and how much of a moron they think their father is. Nephi, on the other hand, says that he will go and do, because he knows God will never ask us to do anything without preparing a way for us to accomplish the thing he commands. Sadly, we don't hear much about Sam. I like Sam. From what we know, Sam was a good kid who I envision as being Nephi's sidekick, even though Sam's older than him.
Nephi convinces his brothers to go, citing how The Lord helped Moses accomplish a seemingly impossible task when he brought the Israelites out of Egyptian slavery and to a choice land. When they get back to Jerusalem, Nephi has the idea that they may as well just ASK if they can have the plates. After all, Laban isn't a religious guy. They draw lots (a way of saying they played an ancient game of chance) to see who would go ask. Laman was the lucky man who drew the lot, so he visits Laban at his place. When he politely asks for the plates, Laban becomes infuriated, saying that Laman is a robber, and calls his guard. Laman (wisely) flees back to his brothers.
Nephi has another idea: let's go back to our abandoned house and grab all their gold and silver, and buy the plates from Laban! This is a solid plan. So, they bring their riches to Laban. He decides he'll just kill them, keep the plates, and steal their wealth. The boys flee once again.
At this point, Laman and Lemuel are ticked. They've lost their money, and they almost lost their lives. They're so angry that they grab some sticks and start wailing on Sam and Nephi. Then, an *angel* shows up, and commands them to stop. He tells them that Heavenly Father *will* deliver Laban into their hands. What an amazing promise! Laman and Lemuel are skeptical and continue to murmur, but Nephi andSam have their heads on straight, and know what's up.
Nephi has one more idea. While his brothers hide, he creeps into the city.
At this point, I'd like to clarify: Nephi doesn't know what he's doing. He's acting on the spirit, following its promptings.
Wow. This is getting really long. The rest of the story will come with tomorrow's post!
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