In his final counsel to Jacob, Lehi explains the role of adversity in our lives, while emphasizing our need for the Savior. Acknowledging the challenging life Jacob has led, Lehi explains that without opposition, we could never achieve the joy God wants us to have. He urges all of his sons to choose the liberty and life offered by the Messiah.
Chapter Outline
- You have been blessed in your afflictions (v. 1-4).
- Only the Messiah can bring us back to God (v. 5-10).
- There is opposition in all things (v. 11-16).
- The Fall of Adam and Eve made it possible for us to experience joy (v. 17-25)
- The Messiah enables us to choose liberty and life or captivity and death (v. 26-30)
My Takeaways
- God can consecrate our afflictions, making them beneficial to us.
- The opposition we experience in this life is an essential condition for us to find joy.
- Jesus offers us liberty and life, but we have to choose to receive it.
- The grace and truth which the Savior embodies fully are twin evidences of His love for us.
Featured Blog Posts
❖ Posts About the Full Chapter
How Can I Make Wiser Choices?
As I’ve pondered 2 Nephi 2 today, I’ve had the following insights about how to make good decisions: Start by reframing your circumstances as opportunities instead of obstacles. Lehi told Jacob that God would consecrate his afflictions for his gain (2 Nephi 2:2) and that the Fall of Adam and Eve made happiness possible (2…
❖ Blessed in Affliction – 2 Nephi 2:1-4
What Is the Purpose of Suffering?
Why isn’t life easier? Some people suffer more than others, and some trials are harder than others, but we all suffer to some degree and in some way. Why? Lehi’s son Jacob was born in the wilderness, far from the comforts his family had previously enjoyed in Jerusalem. In addition to the physical hardships associated…
He Shall Consecrate Thine Afflictions – 2 Nephi 2:1-2
1 And now, Jacob, I speak unto you: Thou art my firstborn in the days of my tribulation in the wilderness. And behold, in thy childhood thou hast suffered afflictions and much sorrow, because of the rudeness of thy brethren. 2 Nevertheless, Jacob, my firstborn in the wilderness, thou knowest the greatness of God; and…
2 Nephi 2:1-2 He Shall Consecrate Thine Afflictions for Thy Gain
Three ways God can convert our afflications into blessings: 1. Suffering may strengthen us. 2. We may develop greater empathy. 3. We may become humble enough to receive God’s grace.
❖ Grace and Truth – 2 Nephi 2:6
What Does It Mean That the Savior Is “Full of Grace and Truth?”
After explaining to his son Jacob the importance of the law, Lehi testified that redemption would come through the Messiah, “for he is full of grace and truth” (2 Nephi 2:6). What is it about those twin attributes—grace and truth—which qualified Him to be our Savior? Grace is a gift freely given because of love and…
❖ Opposition in All Things – 2 Nephi 2:11-16
Sense and Insensibility
Lehi identifies “sense” and “insensibility” as opposite outcomes made possible by opposition. Sense means intentional awareness, so insensibility must mean intentional unawareness. We can choose to perceive and discern the good and the evil around us.
❖ Agency – 2 Nephi 2:14-16, 26
Acting for Myself
Lehi taught his sons that God wants us to act for ourselves, instead of being “acted upon.” Elder David A. Bednar has applied that principle to many activities, not being offended, seeking the Holy Ghost, and engaging students in the learning process.
❖ The Fall of Adam and Eve – 2 Nephi 2:17-25
Why Did Adam and Eve Have to Break a Commandment of God? – 2 Nephi 2:15-25
Lehi taught his son Jacob that the Fall of Adam and Eve was a necessary step for their happiness and for ours. He explained what would have happened if they had not eaten the forbidden fruit: Everything would have been stagnant, unchanging. Adam and Eve would not have had children. They would not have experienced joy…
Which Fruit in the Garden of Eden Was Bitter, and Which Was Sweet?
Lehi had a clear message for his son Jacob: The adversity and the afflictions we experience in life don’t have to drag us down. They can lift us up. Lehi acknowledged that Jacob had faced many trials but assured him that God would “consecrate [those] afflictions to [his] gain” (2 Nephi 2:1-2). He described a…
Enticed by the One or the Other – 2 Nephi 2:16
16 Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that he was enticed by the one or the other. (2 Nephi 2:16) No one likes to be forced to do things. We all like making our own choices. In…
That They Might Have Joy
If you can have hope for the future, then you can have joy today. When Lehi taught his son Jacob that men (and women) “are that they might have joy,” he wasn’t talking about an easy life, free from adversity. There must be “opposition in all things,” he said. Jacob himself had endured significant trials,…
❖ Look to the Great Mediator – 2 Nephi 2:26-30
Why Is Jesus Called the Great Mediator?
The word “mediation” descends from the Latin word mediare, which means “to be in the middle.” A mediator stands with the people they are serving and engages with them personally.
To Act for Themselves – 2 Nephi 2:26
26 And the Messiah cometh in the fulness of time, that he may redeem the children of men from the fall. And because that they are redeemed from the fall they have become free forever, knowing good from evil; to act for themselves and not to be acted upon, save it be by the punishment…
What Is the Relationship Between Obedience and Agency?
Agency – the capacity, condition, or state of acting or of exerting power (Merriam-Webster, 2nd definition). Obedience – Compliance with an order, request, or law or submission to another’s authority (Oxford English Dictionary) The terms “agency” and “agent” do not appear in the Book of Mormon, but the principle is pervasive: We are agents. God…
Old Testament Foundations
Firstfruits
God commanded ancient Israel to bring their first crops each year to His house. Why were those crops considered holy? Because they represented the Savior, “the firstfruits of them that slept.” Jesus overcame death so that all of us can rise from the dead.
Forty Years
How long does it take to become spiritually mature? Answer: it is an ongoing process, and God guides us through that process by stages. The Lord led Abraham to the land of Canaan and promised that he and his descendants would live there. But immediately afterward, Abraham was forced to move south, to the land…
Mother Eve
Among the biblical characters Joseph F. Smith saw in his vision of the Redemption of the Dead, was “our glorious Mother Eve” (Doctrine and Covenants 138:39). In the Hebrew Bible, her name appears as Chavvah (חַוָּה), which means “life.” She was given this name because she was “the mother of all living,” or in other…
New Testament Parallels
Out of Much Affliction
Three principles from Paul about suffering: 1. God loves us and will comfort us when we suffer. 2. Suffering can result in growth and progression with God’s help. 3. We can find joy when we suffer, particularly when we maintain an eternal perspective.
Sin and Law
Law is good, because it helps us see what we should do. It can also be discouraging, as we recognize how far we fall short. But if that recognition leads us to reach out to the Savior and receive His mercy, then our awareness of the law has been fruitful.
All Things Work Together for Good
After affirming that we are children of God, and therefore His heirs, the apostle Paul testified that the afflictions and sorrows we endure will be overshadowed by the joy God has promised to the faithful. It’s true that our perspective is limited. We don’t always even know what to pray for. But a perfect Father…
Church History Connections
That They Might Have Joy
If you can have hope for the future, then you can have joy today. When Lehi taught his son Jacob that men (and women) “are that they might have joy,” he wasn’t talking about an easy life, free from adversity. There must be “opposition in all things,” he said. Jacob himself had endured significant trials,…
“My Law”
On the surface, the word “law” sounds like something that is imposed upon us, something that we are forced to obey, on pain of punishment. Book of Mormon prophets do in fact emphasize that there are consequences for disobeying the law. Lehi describes “the punishment which is affixed,” in contrast with “the happiness which is…
Agency
This life is a school of decision-making. The prophet Lehi taught his son Jacob that the reason we experience both good and evil is so that we can learn to choose the good: Wherefore, the Lord God gave unto man that he should act for himself. Wherefore, man could not act for himself save it should be that…
The Joy of Our Redemption
Eve recognized that the Fall and the Savior’s Atonement enabled her and Adam to experience “the joy of our redemption.” This joy is not limited to a future event. As Sister Kristin M. Yee has testified, the Savior’s redemptive power can be active in our lives every day.
All Posts Referencing 2 Nephi 2
- Jacob’s Blessings (3/22/2026)
- “It Was Not You That Sent Me Hither, But God” (3/20/2026)
- Unimaginable (3/10/2026)
- Abraham and the Posterity Priority (2/26/2026)
- Alma, Probation, and the Tree of Life (1/24/2026)
- Two Trees: Lehi on Opposition and Agency (1/20/2026)
- The Fall of Adam and Eve (1/19/2026)
- “Get Thee Hence”: Learning from Moses About Overcoming Temptation (1/10/2026)
- What Do We Know About the Council in Heaven? (1/8/2026)
- Multiply and Replenish (12/18/2025)
- Happiness in Family Life (12/17/2025)
- Predicated (11/15/2025)
- “Let Your Hearts Rejoice” (11/7/2025)
- “Take Especial Care of Your Family” (11/6/2025)
- Patriarchal Blessings (10/30/2025)
- Word of Wisdom: Principles (8/19/2025)
- Why Celestial Is Better (7/12/2025)
- Biblical References in Doctrine and Covenants 76 (7/8/2025)
- These Truths (7/4/2025)
- To Please the Eye and to Gladden the Heart (6/8/2025)
- Profit and Learning (5/13/2025)
- The Joy of Our Redemption (4/19/2025)
- “I Will Drink of the Fruit of the Vine with You” (3/27/2025)
- Samuel the Lamanite on the Burden of Freedom (9/10/2024)
- Received or Cast Out (8/9/2024)
- Exquisite (8/2/2024)
- Every Man [and Woman] (6/8/2024)
- General Conference and the Welfare of Our Souls (4/2/2024)
- Christmas, Easter, and the Book of Mormon (3/27/2024)
- Mercy (3/26/2024)
- He Will Consecrate (3/19/2024)
- The Lord of Hosts Hath Purposed (3/9/2024)
- Waiting for Clarity (3/2/2024)
- Lehi and Jacob (2/24/2024)
- Spiritually Minded (2/20/2024)
- Living After the Manner of Happiness (2/18/2024)
- Merits and Mercy and Grace (2/11/2024)
- Sense and Insensibility (2/10/2024)
- Land of Promise, Land of Liberty (2/9/2024)
- Acting for Myself (2/8/2024)
- Jesus Is the Christ (1/7/2024)
- Having Great Wrath (12/15/2023)
- Earning vs. Qualifying (9/28/2023)
- Out of Much Affliction (9/16/2023)
- Firstfruits (9/8/2023)
- Sin and Law (8/15/2023)
- Atonement and Reconciliation (8/13/2023)
- Only by His Grace (8/11/2023)
- Be of Good Cheer (3/9/2023)
- The Tree (12/23/2022)
- A Tree of Life (9/4/2022)
- The Book of Psalms and the Book of Mormon (8/27/2022)
- O Be Joyful (8/26/2022)
- Consoled, Restored, Refined (8/6/2022)
- Overcoming Temptation: Lessons from David and Corianton (6/24/2022)
- Finding Grace (6/12/2022)
- Your Past Does Not Define You (5/24/2022)
- Forty Years (5/14/2022)
- Patriarchs and Matriarchs (3/20/2022)
- “All the Plenty Shall Be Forgotten” (3/12/2022)
- “Iron Hath Entered His Soul” (3/9/2022)
- Glory (12/28/2021)
- The Living Christ and the Book of Mormon (12/26/2021)
- Mother Eve (12/4/2021)
- The Ancient of Days (10/13/2021)
- All Things Work Together for Good (8/18/2021)
- That They Might Have Joy (4/29/2021)
- “My Law” (4/21/2021)
- Agency (3/25/2021)
- No End (3/23/2021)
- “Inviteth and Enticeth” – Moroni 7:12-13 (12/11/2020)
- Book of Mormon References in Moroni 6 (12/5/2020)
- “I Will Show Unto Them Their Weakness” – Ether 12:27 (11/24/2020)
- Just and Merciful (7/31/2020)
- “He Hath Lied Unto Us” – Alma 10:28, Alma 12:3 (6/12/2020)
- “Every Man According to His Mind” – Alma 2:5 (5/26/2020)
- Justice and Mercy (4/4/2020)
- Why Did Adam and Eve Have to Break a Commandment of God? – 2 Nephi 2:15-25 (2/9/2020)
- How Can I Make Wiser Choices? (2/4/2020)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Clarify? (12/31/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Affirm? (12/28/2019)
- What Is Wisdom? (12/13/2019)
- Why Would God “Inflict” Things on Us? (12/3/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Teach about Sacrifice? (11/17/2019)
- What Does It Mean to “Cast Out Devils?” (10/24/2019)
- How Much Power Does the Devil Have? (10/22/2019)
- What Is the Relationship Between the Family and the Church? (9/18/2019)
- How Can I Teach the Gospel More Effectively in My Home? (9/16/2019)
- What Is the Purpose of Suffering? (8/28/2019)
- What Does It Mean to Be Saved “In and Through” the Grace of God? (8/27/2019)
- How Can I Recognize the Temptations of the Devil? (8/18/2019)
- Why Is Jesus Called the Great Mediator? (7/27/2019)
- Why Were Laman and Lemuel Unable to Overcome Their Negativity? (7/22/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Say About Teaching the Gospel in Families? (7/16/2019)
- What Is the Relationship Between Obedience and Agency? (7/2/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Teach About Happiness? (5/6/2019)
- What Does It Mean to Consecrate Something? (5/4/2019)
- What Is A Contrite Spirit? (4/30/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Teach About the Resurrection? (4/21/2019)
- What Does It Mean for Jesus to Be Our “Redeemer?” (3/10/2019)
- Which Fruit in the Garden of Eden Was Bitter, and Which Was Sweet? (2/9/2019)
- What Is a “Probationary State?” (2/8/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Teach About the Fall of Adam and Eve? (2/6/2019)
- What Does It Mean That the Savior Is “Full of Grace and Truth?” (2/2/2019)
- How Is the Word “Atonement” Used in the Book of Mormon? (1/30/2019)
- What Does the Book of Mormon Teach About Grace? (1/28/2019)
- Enticed by the One or the Other – 2 Nephi 2:16 (10/24/2018)
- Lehi Teaches Jacob – 2 Nephi 2 (8/29/2018)
- The Great Mediator – 2 Nephi 2:27-29 (8/16/2018)
- Enticed by the One or the Other – 2 Nephi 2:16 (8/15/2018)
- He Shall Consecrate Thine Afflictions – 2 Nephi 2:1-2 (10/4/2017)
- That They Might Have Joy – 2 Nephi 2:25 (10/3/2017)
- To Act for Themselves – 2 Nephi 2:26 (10/2/2017)
- He Is Full of Grace and Truth – 2 Nephi 2:6 (12/28/2016)
- The Father of All Lies – 2 Nephi 2:17-19 (9/5/2016)
- Thou Hast Suffered Afflictions – 2 Nephi 2:1-2 (8/11/2016)
- That They Might Repent While in the Flesh – 2 Nephi 2:21 (2/4/2016)
- The Work of Justice Could Not Be Destroyed – Alma 42:15, 2 Nephi 2:13 (1/4/2016)
- 2 Nephi 2:26 To Act for Themselves (2/5/2015)
- 2 Nephi 2:15-16 He Was Enticed By the One or the Other (2/5/2015)
- 2 Nephi 2:1-2 He Shall Consecrate Thine Afflictions for Thy Gain (2/4/2015)