“Laban Had Been Among the Elders of the Jews”

"The portrait of Laban is absolutely marvelous…He was in charge of everything as the military governor, and the records were kept in his office. Who was Laban? He was military governor of Jerusalem, we are told. They were out by night, remember, in secret council with the elders (the sarîm) and he was in his ceremonial armor when he met with them. Laman and Lemuel said, 'He's in charge of fifty men in the city and ten thousand men in the field.' He was in charge of the city police. He was the governor of the city, and the records were kept at his house. They were family records, and he was related to Lehi. That was where they knew they could get their records because they were kept in the house of Laban, the military governor. Not a likely place to keep the genealogy of the people, but that's where it was. It was the same thing in Lachish. In a time of alarm, they were put there for safekeeping. That was the safest place to keep them. And sure enough, we learn from the Copper Scroll that when Jerusalem was threatened, they took all the documents they could and hid them in various places around the city. They were quick to get them to a safe place; that's what happened. That's probably why the brass plates and all the genealogy were being held under guard-kept under lock and key by Laban. Laban wouldn't let the brothers have them unless they paid him plenty, so they paid him plenty and he said, 'April fool.'" (Hugh Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon, lecture 6)