John Tvedtnes indicates that though the word “rude” has come to mean “impolite” in twentieth-century English, at the time Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon it meant “wild” or “savage.” Lehi made a point of mentioning the effect of “the rudeness” of Laman and Lemuel on Jacob (2 Nephi 2:1). [John A. Tvedtnes, “My First-Born in the Wilderness,” in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, Spring 1994, F.A.R.M.S., p. 208]
In Thy Childhood Thou Jacob Has Suffered Afflictions and Much Sorrow Because of the Rudeness of Thy Brethren“
When Lehi blessed Jacob, he mentioned that, ”in thy childhood thou [Jacob] hast suffered afflictions and much sorrow, because of the rudeness of thy brethren“ (2 Nephi 2:1). Robert Matthews writes that the tone of these verses suggests that certainly Jacob and possibly Joseph were old enough to remember their parents’ suffering, the rebellion of Laman and Lemuel, and the goodness of Nephi while they were in the wilderness. Hence they would not have been mere infants at the time all of this was happening. Such evidence argues for Jacob’s having been born during the early part of the wilderness journey, and therefore being at least seven and possibly as many as ten years old when they arrived in the promised land. [Robert Matthews, ”Jacob: Prophet, Theologian, Historian," in The Book of Mormon: Jacob through Words of Mormon, To Learn with Joy, p. 35]