The first verse describes Nephi’s positive experiences in Yahweh’s service, while the next contains his ejaculation of sorrow: “O wretched man that I am!” Given Nephi’s many visions and dramatic blessings, why does he make this outcry? In Psalm 22:6 the Psalmist declares: “But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.” This self-abasement is an expression of reverence. Yahweh’s majesty is such that any man might be “a worm” before him. In Nephi’s case, the comparison to Yahweh’s greatness renders Nephi a “wretched man.”
His intent is to underscore the contrast between his blessings and his personal unworthiness. Nephi laments his humanness. What are the “iniquities” for which he grieves? I have a difficult time believing that he was guilty of heinous sins; rather, his heightened spiritual vision sees his imperfections more clearly than an ordinary person might and he felt more keenly the distance from Yahweh that such imperfections might cause.