Jehovah continues with a description of Israel’s problems. Even though Jehovah had, in various ways, manifested himself to Israel, they had a tendency to misunderstand the source of God’s power. Isaiah says that Israel might rather say: “mine idol hath done them.”
Nephi saw this verse as clearly pointed to his brothers. Nephi has described them in terms of Jerusalem, and hence he easily connects Laman and Lemuel to the Jerusalem against which Jehovah spoke. Just as Israel might have seen miracles and believed that their idols had done them, Laman and Lemuel had also seen an angel and had miraculous deliveries from harm, so they must have reconciled to not mean what Nephi clearly understood them to mean.
Laman and Lemuel were among those who hearing, knew not. As with Israel, their ear was not opened. Pointedly, Nephi says to them, in Isaiah’s words: “I knew that thou wouldst deal very treacherously.”