- 7Some years later, a man came among the Nephites named Sherem. 2He began to preach among the people and tell them there would be no Christ. He preached many things to deceive the people, and he did this to overthrow Christ’s doctrine. 3He worked hard to mislead the hearts of the people, and he deceived many of them. Because he knew that I, Jacob, had faith in Christ who was to come, he sought every opportunity to confront me. 4He was well educated with a comprehensive vocabulary and spoke eloquently; as a result, he could be very persuasive and convincing when speaking, inspired by the accuser’s power. 5He was hoping to shake me from the faith, despite the many revelations and numerous things God had given to me. I had in fact seen angels who ministered to me. I had also heard the Lord’s voice actually speaking to me from time to time; therefore I couldn’t be shaken.
- 6He came to see me and said this: Brother Jacob, I’ve sought repeatedly to come and see you, because I’ve heard and understand you travel a great deal, preaching what you call the gospel or Christ’s doctrine. 7You’ve misled many of the people, so they corrupt and pervert God’s right way and don’t keep the Law of Moses, which is the right way. You misinterpret the Law of Moses into the worship of a being who you say will come hundreds of years from now. Now I Sherem declare to you this is blasphemy; no one knows about such things because it’s impossible to predict future events. Sherem argued this way with me. 8But the Lord God poured His Spirit into my soul to such a degree that I proved him wrong in everything he said. 9I asked him: Do you deny Christ, who is to come? He replied: If there were a Christ, I wouldn’t deny Him; but I know that there’s no Christ — there hasn’t been a Christ, and there will never be a Christ. 10I asked him: Do you believe the scriptures? He replied: Yes. 11I said to him: Then you don’t understand them since they testify truthfully of Christ. I tell you that no prophet has written or prophesied without speaking about Christ. 12And this isn’t everything. I’ve been shown, have heard, and seen by the power of the Holy Ghost and therefore I know that if there were no atonement made, all mankind would certainly be lost.
- 13Then he said to me: Show me a sign by this power of the Holy Ghost that lets you know so much.
- 14I said to him: Who am I to put God to the test to show you a sign about things you already know to be true? You would still deny it because you belong to the accuser. Nevertheless, I don’t want it, but if God strikes you, let that be a sign to you that He has power in both heaven and earth and that Christ will come. And may it happen, O Lord, according to Your will, not mine.
- 15When I had said these words, the Lord’s power descended on him and he collapsed helplessly onto the ground. He received care for many days. 16Then he asked the people: Come together tomorrow because I’m going to die — I would like to speak to the people before I die.
- 17On the following day, when a crowd had assembled, he spoke openly to them, denying what he had taught them and acknowledging Christ, the power of the Holy Ghost, and the ministering of angels. 18He admitted openly that he had been deceived by the accuser’s power. He also spoke about hell, eternity, and eternal punishment. 19Then he said: I’m afraid I’ve committed the unpardonable sin, because I’ve lied to God, denied Christ, and claimed I believed the scriptures — and they testify truthfully of Him. Because I’ve lied to God in this way, I’m very afraid of my position before Him, so I’m making this confession before God.
- 20After he said this, he was unable to speak anymore and he died. 21When the crowd heard him say this as he was about to die, they were very astonished, so much so that God’s power descended on them and they were overcome, bowing down to the ground. 22Now this pleased me, because I asked my Father in heaven for it to happen. He heard my cry and answered my prayer.
- 23And so peace and God’s love were restored among the people. They carefully studied the scriptures and stopped listening to this evil man’s words. 24There were many plans made to reclaim and restore the Lamanites to the knowledge of the truth; but our plans were all fruitless because they had permanent hatred for us, their relatives, and took pleasure in wars and slaughter, frequently trying to kill us with their weapons. 25So the Nephites prepared to defend themselves with their weapons and all their strength, trusting in God, the Rock of their Salvation. As a result, up to this time, we were able to defeat our enemies.
- 26Then I began to grow old. And because this people’s history is kept on Nephi’s other plates, I’ll conclude this record. I declare I’ve written to the best of my knowledge. Our time and lives came and went like a dream to us, since we’re a lonesome, careful people, wanderers thrown out of Jerusalem, born in difficulty in wild, unsettled lands, and hated by our relatives, which has led to wars and conflicts. Therefore our lives were filled with sorrow.
- 27When I sensed I was going to die soon, I told my son Enos: Take control of these plates. I related to him the things my brother Nephi had commanded me to do, and he promised to obey the same commands. So I conclude my brief writing on these plates and say goodbye to the reader, hoping many of my people will respect my words. Brothers and sisters, farewell.
Chapter 5