HelamanChapter5

And it came to pass that in this same year, behold, Nephi delivered up the judgment-seat to a man whose name was Cezoram.

That same year Nephi handed over the judgment seat to a man named Cezoram.

For as their laws and their governments were established by the voice of the people, and they who chose evil were more numerous than they who chose good, therefore they were ripening for destruction, for the laws had become corrupted.

Their laws and their government were established by the voice of the people, and those who chose evil had grown more numerous than those who chose good. So they were ripening for destruction, because the laws had become corrupt.

Yea, and this was not all; they were a stiffnecked people, insomuch that they could not be governed by the law nor justice, save it were to their destruction.

And that was not all. They were a stubborn people, so stubborn that they could not be governed by law or by justice, except to their own destruction.

And it came to pass that Nephi had become weary because of their iniquity; and he yielded up the judgment-seat, and took it upon him to preach the word of God all the remainder of his days, and his brother Lehi also, all the remainder of his days;

Nephi had grown weary of their wickedness, so he gave up the judgment seat and took it upon himself to preach the word of God for the rest of his days; and his brother Lehi did the same, for the rest of his days.

For they remembered the words which their father Helaman spake unto them. And these are the words which he spake:

They did this because they remembered the words their father Helaman had spoken to them. These are the words he spoke:

Behold, my sons, I desire that ye should remember to keep the commandments of God; and I would that ye should declare unto the people these words. Behold, I have given unto you the names of our first parents who came out of the land of Jerusalem; and this I have done that when you remember your names ye may remember them; and when ye remember them ye may remember their works; and when ye remember their works ye may know how that it is said, and also written, that they were good.

"My sons, I want you to remember to keep the commandments of God, and I want you to declare these words to the people. I have given you the names of our first ancestors, who came out of the land of Jerusalem. I did this so that when you remember your names you will remember them; and when you remember them you will remember their works; and when you remember their works you will know that it is said, and also written, that they were good.

Therefore, my sons, I would that ye should do that which is good, that it may be said of you, and also written, even as it has been said and written of them.

So, my sons, I want you to do what is good, so that it may be said of you, and also written, just as it has been said and written of them.

And now my sons, behold I have somewhat more to desire of you, which desire is, that ye may not do these things that ye may boast, but that ye may do these things to lay up for yourselves a treasure in heaven, yea, which is eternal, and which fadeth not away; yea, that ye may have that precious gift of eternal life, which we have reason to suppose hath been given to our fathers.

And now, my sons, there is one more thing I ask of you. Do not do these things so that you can boast. Do them to lay up for yourselves a treasure in heaven, one that is eternal and never fades away, and so that you may have that precious gift of eternal life, which we have good reason to believe was given to our ancestors.

O remember, remember, my sons, the words which king Benjamin spake unto his people; yea, remember that there is no other way nor means whereby man can be saved, only through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, who shall come, yea, remember that he cometh to redeem the world.

"O remember, remember, my sons, the words king Benjamin spoke to his people. Remember that there is no other way or means by which anyone can be saved, only through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ, who will come. Remember that he comes to redeem the world.

And remember also the words which Amulek spake unto Zeezrom, in the city of Ammonihah; for he said unto him that the Lord surely should come to redeem his people, but that he should not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins.

And remember also the words Amulek spoke to Zeezrom in the city of Ammonihah. He told him that the Lord would surely come to redeem his people, but that he would not come to redeem them in their sins, but to redeem them from their sins.

And he hath power given unto him from the Father to redeem them from their sins because of repentance; therefore he hath sent his angels to declare the tidings of the conditions of repentance, which bringeth unto the power of the Redeemer, unto the salvation of their souls.

And the Father has given him power to redeem them from their sins because of repentance. That is why he has sent his angels to declare the news of the conditions of repentance, which brings people to the power of the Redeemer, to the salvation of their souls.

And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, yea, when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which ye are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation whereon if men build they cannot fall.

"And now, my sons, remember, remember that it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that you must build your foundation; so that when the devil sends out his mighty winds, yes, his arrows in the whirlwind, yes, when all his hail and his mighty storm beat upon you, it will have no power over you to drag you down to the gulf of misery and endless woe, because of the rock on which you are built, which is a sure foundation, a foundation on which, if people build, they cannot fall."

And it came to pass that these were the words which Helaman taught to his sons; yea, he did teach them many things which are not written, and also many things which are written.

These were the words Helaman taught his sons. He taught them many things that are not written, and also many things that are written.

And they did remember his words; and therefore they went forth, keeping the commandments of God, to teach the word of God among all the people of Nephi, beginning at the city Bountiful;

And they remembered his words. So they went out, keeping the commandments of God, to teach the word of God among all the people of Nephi, beginning at the city of Bountiful,

And from thenceforth to the city of Gid; and from the city of Gid to the city of Mulek;

and from there to the city of Gid, and from the city of Gid to the city of Mulek,

And even from one city to another, until they had gone forth among all the people of Nephi who were in the land southward; and from thence into the land of Zarahemla, among the Lamanites.

and on from one city to another, until they had gone among all the people of Nephi who were in the land southward; and from there into the land of Zarahemla, among the Lamanites.

And it came to pass that they did preach with great power, insomuch that they did confound many of those dissenters who had gone over from the Nephites, insomuch that they came forth and did confess their sins and were baptized unto repentance, and immediately returned to the Nephites to endeavor to repair unto them the wrongs which they had done.

They preached with such power that they refuted many of the dissenters who had gone over from the Nephites, and those dissenters came forward and confessed their sins and were baptized to repentance, and immediately returned to the Nephites to try to repair the wrongs they had done.

And it came to pass that Nephi and Lehi did preach unto the Lamanites with such great power and authority, for they had power and authority, given unto them that they might speak, and they also had what they should speak given unto them—

Nephi and Lehi preached to the Lamanites with such power and authority, because they had been given power and authority to speak, and they had also been given what they should speak.

Therefore they did speak unto the great astonishment of the Lamanites, to the convincing them, insomuch that there were eight thousand of the Lamanites who were in the land of Zarahemla and round about baptized unto repentance, and were convinced of the wickedness of the traditions of their fathers.

So they spoke, and the Lamanites were astonished and convinced, and eight thousand of the Lamanites who were in the land of Zarahemla and the country round about were baptized to repentance, and were convinced of the wickedness of the traditions of their ancestors.

And it came to pass that Nephi and Lehi did proceed from thence to go to the land of Nephi.

Then Nephi and Lehi went on from there to the land of Nephi.

And it came to pass that they were taken by an army of the Lamanites and cast into prison; yea, even in that same prison in which Ammon and his brethren were cast by the servants of Limhi.

And they were taken by an army of the Lamanites and thrown into prison, the very same prison where Ammon and his brothers had been thrown by the servants of Limhi.

And after they had been cast into prison many days without food, behold, they went forth into the prison to take them that they might slay them.

After they had been in prison many days without food, men came into the prison to take them and kill them.

And it came to pass that Nephi and Lehi were encircled about as if by fire, even insomuch that they durst not lay their hands upon them for fear lest they should be burned. Nevertheless, Nephi and Lehi were not burned; and they were as standing in the midst of fire and were not burned.

But Nephi and Lehi were encircled as if by fire, and the men did not dare lay their hands on them, for fear of being burned. Yet Nephi and Lehi were not burned; they stood as if in the middle of a fire, and they were not burned.

And when they saw that they were encircled about with a pillar of fire, and that it burned them not, their hearts did take courage.

And when Nephi and Lehi saw that they were encircled by a pillar of fire, and that it did not burn them, their hearts took courage.

For they saw that the Lamanites durst not lay their hands upon them; neither durst they come near unto them, but stood as if they were struck dumb with amazement.

For they saw that the Lamanites did not dare lay their hands on them, and did not dare come near them, but stood as if struck speechless with amazement.

And it came to pass that Nephi and Lehi did stand forth and began to speak unto them, saying: Fear not, for behold, it is God that has shown unto you this marvelous thing, in the which is shown unto you that ye cannot lay your hands on us to slay us.

So Nephi and Lehi stood forward and spoke to them: "Do not be afraid. It is God who has shown you this marvelous thing, and in it he has shown you that you cannot lay your hands on us to kill us."

And behold, when they had said these words, the earth shook exceedingly, and the walls of the prison did shake as if they were about to tumble to the earth; but behold, they did not fall. And behold, they that were in the prison were Lamanites and Nephites who were dissenters.

And when they had said this, the earth shook violently, and the walls of the prison shook as if they were about to tumble to the ground; but they did not fall. Now those who were in the prison were Lamanites and Nephites who were dissenters.

And it came to pass that they were overshadowed with a cloud of darkness, and an awful solemn fear came upon them.

And a cloud of darkness came over them, and an awful, solemn fear came upon them.

And it came to pass that there came a voice as if it were above the cloud of darkness, saying: Repent ye, repent ye, and seek no more to destroy my servants whom I have sent unto you to declare good tidings.

And a voice came, as if from above the cloud of darkness, saying, "Repent, repent, and seek no longer to destroy my servants, whom I have sent to you to declare glad tidings."

And it came to pass when they heard this voice, and beheld that it was not a voice of thunder, neither was it a voice of a great tumultuous noise, but behold, it was a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it did pierce even to the very soul—

And when they heard this voice, they realized that it was not a voice of thunder, and it was not a voice of loud, roaring noise. It was a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it pierced to the very soul.

And notwithstanding the mildness of the voice, behold the earth shook exceedingly, and the walls of the prison trembled again, as if it were about to tumble to the earth; and behold the cloud of darkness, which had overshadowed them, did not disperse—

And in spite of the mildness of the voice, the earth shook violently, and the walls of the prison trembled again as if they were about to tumble to the ground; and the cloud of darkness that had covered them did not disperse.

And behold the voice came again, saying: Repent ye, repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand; and seek no more to destroy my servants. And it came to pass that the earth shook again, and the walls trembled.

And the voice came again, saying, "Repent, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Seek no longer to destroy my servants." And the earth shook again, and the walls trembled.

And also again the third time the voice came, and did speak unto them marvelous words which cannot be uttered by man; and the walls did tremble again, and the earth shook as if it were about to divide asunder.

And a third time the voice came, and it spoke marvelous words to them that no one can utter; and the walls trembled again, and the earth shook as if it were about to split apart.

And it came to pass that the Lamanites could not flee because of the cloud of darkness which did overshadow them; yea, and also they were immovable because of the fear which did come upon them.

And the Lamanites could not flee, because of the cloud of darkness that covered them; and they could not move, because of the fear that had come over them.

Now there was one among them who was a Nephite by birth, who had once belonged to the church of God but had dissented from them.

Now there was one among them who was a Nephite by birth, who had once belonged to the church of God but had broken away from it.

And it came to pass that he turned him about, and behold, he saw through the cloud of darkness the faces of Nephi and Lehi; and behold, they did shine exceedingly, even as the faces of angels. And he beheld that they did lift their eyes to heaven; and they were in the attitude as if talking or lifting their voices to some being whom they beheld.

He turned around, and through the cloud of darkness he saw the faces of Nephi and Lehi. Their faces were shining brilliantly, like the faces of angels. And he saw them lift their eyes toward heaven; they were in the posture of people talking, or lifting their voices to some being they could see.

And it came to pass that this man did cry unto the multitude, that they might turn and look. And behold, there was power given unto them that they did turn and look; and they did behold the faces of Nephi and Lehi.

And this man cried out to the crowd to turn and look. And they were given power to turn and look, and they saw the faces of Nephi and Lehi.

And they said unto the man: Behold, what do all these things mean, and who is it with whom these men do converse?

And they said to the man, "What do all these things mean? And who is it these men are talking with?"

Now the man’s name was Aminadab. And Aminadab said unto them: They do converse with the angels of God.

Now the man's name was Aminadab. And Aminadab said to them, "They are talking with the angels of God."

And it came to pass that the Lamanites said unto him: What shall we do, that this cloud of darkness may be removed from overshadowing us?

And the Lamanites said to him, "What must we do, so that this cloud of darkness will be lifted from us?"

And Aminadab said unto them: You must repent, and cry unto the voice, even until ye shall have faith in Christ, who was taught unto you by Alma, and Amulek, and Zeezrom; and when ye shall do this, the cloud of darkness shall be removed from overshadowing you.

And Aminadab said to them, "You must repent, and cry out to the voice, until you have faith in Christ, who was taught to you by Alma and Amulek and Zeezrom. And when you do this, the cloud of darkness will be lifted from you."

And it came to pass that they all did begin to cry unto the voice of him who had shaken the earth; yea, they did cry even until the cloud of darkness was dispersed.

So they all began to cry out to the voice of him who had shaken the earth; and they cried out until the cloud of darkness was dispersed.

And it came to pass that when they cast their eyes about, and saw that the cloud of darkness was dispersed from overshadowing them, behold, they saw that they were encircled about, yea every soul, by a pillar of fire.

And when they looked around and saw that the cloud of darkness had been lifted from them, they saw that they were encircled, every soul of them, by a pillar of fire.

And Nephi and Lehi were in the midst of them; yea, they were encircled about; yea, they were as if in the midst of a flaming fire, yet it did harm them not, neither did it take hold upon the walls of the prison; and they were filled with that joy which is unspeakable and full of glory.

And Nephi and Lehi were in the middle of them. They too were encircled; they were as if in the middle of a flaming fire, yet it did not harm them, and it did not take hold of the walls of the prison. And they were filled with that joy which is unspeakable and full of glory.

And behold, the Holy Spirit of God did come down from heaven, and did enter into their hearts, and they were filled as if with fire, and they could speak forth marvelous words.

And the Holy Spirit of God came down from heaven and entered into their hearts, and they were filled as if with fire, and they could speak marvelous words.

And it came to pass that there came a voice unto them, yea, a pleasant voice, as if it were a whisper, saying:

And a voice came to them, a pleasant voice, as if it were a whisper, saying,

Peace, peace be unto you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world.

"Peace, peace be to you, because of your faith in my Well Beloved, who was from the foundation of the world."

And now, when they heard this they cast up their eyes as if to behold from whence the voice came; and behold, they saw the heavens open; and angels came down out of heaven and ministered unto them.

And when they heard this, they lifted their eyes as if to see where the voice had come from; and they saw the heavens open, and angels came down out of heaven and ministered to them.

And there were about three hundred souls who saw and heard these things; and they were bidden to go forth and marvel not, neither should they doubt.

There were about three hundred souls who saw and heard these things, and they were told to go out and not to marvel, and not to doubt.

And it came to pass that they did go forth, and did minister unto the people, declaring throughout all the regions round about all the things which they had heard and seen, insomuch that the more part of the Lamanites were convinced of them, because of the greatness of the evidences which they had received.

So they went out and ministered to the people, declaring throughout all the regions round about everything they had heard and seen, and most of the Lamanites were convinced, because of the overwhelming evidence they had received.

And as many as were convinced did lay down their weapons of war, and also their hatred and the tradition of their fathers.

And all who were convinced laid down their weapons of war, and also their hatred and the traditions of their ancestors.

And it came to pass that they did yield up unto the Nephites the lands of their possession.

And they gave up to the Nephites the lands they possessed.