1 Nephi 21
People in this chapter
Nephi's family had been carried out of Jerusalem, across a desert, and over an ocean to a land no one in Israel knew existed. In the last chapter Nephi called them a branch who have been broken off (1 Nephi 19:24). A broken branch can easily wonder whether the tree remembers it.
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1 Nephi 21:1-3All Ye That Are Broken Off
1And again: Hearken, O ye house of Israel, all ye that are broken off and are driven out because of the wickedness of the pastors of my people; yea, all ye that are broken off, that are scattered abroad, who are of my people, O house of Israel. Listen, O isles, unto me, and hearken ye people from far; the Lord hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name.
The Book of Mormon version of this chapter begins with a line not found in the Bible, spoken to everyone in Israel who has been broken off and scattered abroad. That included Nephi's family.
Isaiah calls to the isles and people from far. Nephi's brother Jacob later says the Nephites themselves were upon an isle of the sea.
2And he hath made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand hath he hid me, and made me a polished shaft; in his quiver hath he hid me; 3And said unto me: Thou art my servant, O Israel, in whom I will be glorified.
The Servant was called before birth, given words like a sharp sword, and kept hidden like an arrow in a quiver until the right time. Above all, this describes the Savior.
1 Nephi 21:4-9A Light to the Gentiles
4Then I said, I have labored in vain, I have spent my strength for naught and in vain; surely my judgment is with the Lord, and my work with my God. 5And now, saith the Lord—that formed me from the womb that I should be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him—though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the Lord, and my God shall be my strength.
Even the Servant says, I have labored in vain. But he leaves the result with God: my judgment is with the Lord. Faithfulness is measured by God, not by results.
6And he said: It is a light thing that thou shouldst be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel. I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the ends of the earth.
7Thus saith the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to him whom man despiseth, to him whom the nations abhorreth, to servant of rulers: Kings shall see and arise, princes also shall worship, because of the Lord that is faithful. 8Thus saith the Lord: In an acceptable time have I heard thee, O isles of the sea, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and give thee my servant for a covenant of the people, to establish the earth, to cause to inherit the desolate heritages; 9That thou mayest say to the prisoners: Go forth; to them that sit in darkness: Show yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pastures shall be in all high places.
The Servant is despised by men, yet kings will bow. He is given for a covenant and frees prisoners. Latter-day Saints also see His work for the dead in these words.
1 Nephi 21:10-13These Shall Come from Far
10They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them. 11And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted. 12And then, O house of Israel, behold, these shall come from far; and lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim.
The Lord promises to lead His scattered people home: no hunger, no scorching sun, springs of water, mountains made into roads. They will come from every direction.
13Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; for the feet of those who are in the east shall be established; and break forth into singing, O mountains; for they shall be smitten no more; for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted.
1 Nephi 21:14-17I Will Not Forget Thee
14But, behold, Zion hath said: The Lord hath forsaken me, and my Lord hath forgotten me—but he will show that he hath not. 15For can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee, O house of Israel.
Zion says, The Lord hath forsaken me. The Book of Mormon adds the answer right away: but he will show that he hath not.
Can a mother forget her nursing baby? It almost never happens. But the Lord says even if it did, yet will I not forget thee.
16Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. 17Thy children shall make haste against thy destroyers; and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee.
1 Nephi 21:18-26Kings Shall Be Thy Nursing Fathers
18Lift up thine eyes round about and behold; all these gather themselves together, and they shall come to thee. And as I live, saith the Lord, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on even as a bride. 19For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants; and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away. 20The children whom thou shalt have, after thou hast lost the first, shall again in thine ears say: The place is too strait for me; give place to me that I may dwell. 21Then shalt thou say in thine heart: Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? And who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where have they been?
Zion, who thought she had lost her children, looks up and sees so many coming home that there is not enough room. She asks, Who hath begotten me these?
22Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people; and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. 23And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers; they shall bow down to thee with their face towards the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.
The Lord raises a standard to the Gentiles, and the Gentiles carry Israel's children home. Nephi explains in the next chapter that this means the gospel coming to Lehi's descendants through the Gentiles.
They shall not be ashamed that wait for me. Those who keep trusting the Lord while they wait will not be let down.
24For shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captives delivered? 25But thus saith the Lord, even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. 26And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; they shall be drunken with their own blood as with sweet wine; and all flesh shall know that I, the Lord, am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.
Can captives be taken back from a mighty captor? The Lord says yes: I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. He is thy Savior and thy Redeemer.
Research trail
Sources & further study
These references support the historical, linguistic, manuscript, and contextual notes in this chapter. Scripture remains the primary text; external sources are provided so readers can inspect the research directly.
- Who Is the Servant of Isaiah 49/1 Nephi 21?Discusses readings of the Servant in verses 1-6 as Israel and as the Messiah, and the view of some Latter-day Saint scholars that the passage also fits Joseph Smith as a type pointing to Christ.
- How Might Isaiah 48-49 Be “Likened” to Lehi’s Family?Shows how this chapter's images, such as a mouth like a sharp sword and a light to the Gentiles, may have called to Nephi's mind his own experiences and his vision of the Gentiles.
- What Vision Guides Nephi’s Choice of Isaiah Chapters?Argues that Nephi chose Isaiah passages that follow the outline of his own vision in 1 Nephi 11-14, ending with the restoration of Israel this chapter describes.
Where this echoes in Scripture
All Ye That Are Broken Off
- Isaiah 49:1Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far.Where the Bible version begins.
- 2 Nephi 10:20-21We are upon an isle of the sea. But great are the promises of the Lord unto them who are upon the isles of the sea.
- Ezekiel 34:2-6Woe be to the shepherds of Israel… my flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth.Scattered because of the pastors.
- Revelation 1:16Out of his mouth went a sharp twoedged sword.
A Light to the Gentiles
- Luke 2:32A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.Simeon blesses the infant Jesus.
- Acts 13:47I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth.
- Luke 4:18He hath sent me… to preach deliverance to the captives.
- Matthew 23:37How often would I have gathered thy children together… and ye would not!The Savior's own sorrow over those not gathered.
- D&C 138:18The Son of God appeared, declaring liberty to the captives who had been faithful.
These Shall Come from Far
- Revelation 7:16-17They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more… the Lamb… shall lead them unto living fountains of waters.
- Isaiah 40:4Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low.
- Jeremiah 16:14-15The LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the lands whither he had driven them.
- 3 Nephi 20:13Gathered in from the east and from the west, and from the south and from the north.
I Will Not Forget Thee
- John 20:27Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands.
- 3 Nephi 11:14-15Feel the prints of the nails in my hands… going forth one by one.The Nephites feel the marks Isaiah foretold.
- D&C 45:51-52What are these wounds in thine hands and in thy feet?… These wounds are the wounds with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.
- Psalm 27:10When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up.
- Isaiah 49:15-16Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands.The Bible wording, without “O house of Israel.”
Kings Shall Be Thy Nursing Fathers
- 1 Nephi 22:6-8It is likened unto their being nourished by the Gentiles and being carried in their arms and upon their shoulders.Nephi's own explanation of verses 22-23.
- 2 Nephi 10:9The kings of the Gentiles shall be nursing fathers unto them, and their queens shall become nursing mothers.
- Isaiah 40:31They that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength.
- Mark 3:27No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man.
- D&C 82:14Zion must increase in beauty, and in holiness; her borders must be enlarged; her stakes must be strengthened.