What is the most important book in the Book of Mormon? Many would argue that it is 3 Nephi which includes the Savior’s visit to the Nephites. Well, if you were Mormon, and you were going to make a concluding statement about this all-important book, what would you say? Mormon tells us to repent, but they are not his words, for he was commanded to write the words contained in this verse. The message is that the Gentiles need to repent. The context is the final days before the coming of the Son of Man. The alternative is the painful sword if his justice (3 Nephi 29:4).
"And Moroni reminded the Gentiles,
’And this cometh unto you, O ye Gentiles, that ye may know the decrees of God--that ye may repent, and not continue in your iniquities until the fulness come, that ye may not bring down the fulness of the wrath of God upon you as the inhabitants of the land have hitherto done.’ (Ether 2:11)
“Prophets and modern scripture warn the latter-day people of similar dangers. Though predicted calamities are conditioned upon repentance, it appears that, in general, the Gentiles are little interested in repentance. They appear to be treading the path of the former inhabitants but have not entered the final stages yet.” (Douglas Brinley, Book of Mormon Symposium Series, Helaman—3 Nephi 8, edited by PR Cheesman, MS Nyman, and CD Tate, Jr., 1988, p. 62)
Lest we be found sitting in our condemning, self-righteous judgment seats, ruminating over the imminent destruction of the Gentiles, we should remember the warning of Nephi to his people. The warning applies equally well to us, And now behold, my beloved brethren, I would speak unto you; for I, Nephi, would not suffer that ye should suppose that ye are more righteous than the Gentiles shall be. For behold, except ye shall keep the commandments of God ye shall all likewise perish (2 Nephi 30:1).
4 Nephi—The second great abbreviation
The Book of Mormon record comes to us in three main sections. The first from 1 Nephi to Enos establishes the beginning of the story. The next 290 years is abbreviated into two small books, Jarom and Omni. The middle section, from Mosiah to 3 Nephi, is separated from the ending by the abbreviated history known as 4 Nephi. While Jarom and Omni cover 290 years in 45 verses, 4 Nephi covers 286 years in 49 verses. As these two sections demonstrate, the point of the Book of Mormon is not to be an exhaustive history. In only 49 verses, Mormon takes us from complete, uniform righteousness to near complete apostasy. The many causes of this wicked metamorphosis do not require exhaustive elaboration for they are the same things which had previously plagued the Nephites: riches, pride, class distinctions, perverted doctrines, secret combinations, and willful rebellion.
Spencer J. Condie
"One question often raised about Mormon’s abridgement is, why is 4 Nephi such a brief book, with only four pages covering a period of 285 years? A corollary question is, if, during the first 166 years after the visit of Christ to the Nephites, ‘there could not be a happier people’ (4 Nephi 1:16), why do we not have a much more detailed record of their recipe for righteousness?
“A partial answer may be found in the fact that 3 Nephi does contain this recipe for righteousness. Fourth Nephi then records the natural consequences of righteousness, as ’they did walk after the commandments which they had received from their Lord and their God,‘ and ’there was no contention in the land, because of the love of God which did dwell in the hearts of the people’ (4 Nephi 1:3, 12, 15).” (Heroes From the Book of Mormon, p. 172-3)