Nephi not only reads the specific prophecies that concern them, but other texts that were to their profit. Here Nephi also gives a great key to the nature of the scriptures. Although they may have been directly written to a particular people at a particular time, the scriptures nevertheless contain truths that transcend space and time and are relevant to the reader. Each generation of reader takes up the same text, and in it sees not just history, but himself. It is the ability of the scriptures to communicate directly to the individual, in their individual circumstances, that give them the power to spiritually heal, comfort, or provoke to righteousness.