Now Jacob was ready to make his final statement before he closed his record. He stated that by this time he had begun to be old, and we have seen he was very old. We later discover that he had lived at least a century and maybe a little longer. But as Jacob looked back on his life and all the things he had witnessed, it was virtually unbelievable. He said his life had been more like a dream.
And it had been a rugged life. Beginning with only a handful of people in Nephi they had built a great city, constructed a temple similar to that built by Solomon, they had broken vast tracts of land for cultivation, constructed houses, erected public buildings, excavated and established mining operations, and built up their domestic flocks and herds. What was equally important, they had accomplished this while under the constant harassment of guerrilla raids by the Lamanites. They had been forced to build mighty walls and towers and other defenses to keep themselves from being massacred. Jacob said that under all this distress and warfare and anxiety, they had been a lonesome and solemn people. Only on rare occasions did they have any sense of security, relaxation or happiness. Jacob therefore says they did mourn out their days.