Dwindling in unbelief will remove the protection of the covenant of the land. That will lead directly to “wars and pestilences … even until the people of Nephi shall become extinct.” Verses 12 and 13 repeat the basic information. This is a repetition of emphasis. This will really happen. The Nephites will be destroyed.
Also important in this prophecy is the recognition that it is the political destiny of a Nephite that is destroyed, not every person who had been called a Nephite. Verse 14 points out that those Nephites who remain after the destruction will be numbered among the Lamanites, “and shall become like unto them.” The exception is the three disciples who are granted permission to remain on this earth. Their story is told in 3 Nephi 28:4–10.