Nephi apparently knows he is coming to the end of his life. He ends his commentary and prophesying, mainly based upon the prophecies of Isaiah, to record a few things concerning the “doctrine of Christ.” He acknowledges that his record has been but a few words compared to what he has been shown and what has been revealed to him. He has included a few of his brother Jacob’s speeches as well (2 Nephi 6–10), but these have also been few in comparison to what Jacob said.
Nephi’s comment about speaking unto men “according to their language, unto their understanding” (v. 3) was reaffirmed in a revelation to the prophet Joseph Smith concerning the compilation of the Book of Commandments that later became the Doctrine and Covenants:
Behold, I am God and have spoken it; these commandments are of me, and were given unto my servants in their weakness, after the manner of their language, that they might come to understanding. [D&C 1:24]
The phrase in the revelation “that they might come to understanding” reflects Nephi’s words a little more clearly.
Nephi’s desire to speak of the doctrine of Christ so that his people might come to an understanding, shows the same pattern Isaiah used regarding the coming forth of the Book of Mormon: “They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine” (2 Nephi 27:35; Isaiah 29:24).