And now it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had made an end of speaking to my brethren, behold they said unto me:
“Thou hast declared unto us hard things,
more than we are able to bear. ”
And it came to pass that I said unto them that I knew that I had spoken hard things against the wicked, according to the truth; and the righteous have I justified, and testified that they should be lifted up at the last day; wherefore, the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the very center. And now my brethren, if ye were righteous and were willing to hearken to the truth, and give heed unto it, that ye might walk uprightly before God, then ye would not murmur because of the truth, and say:
“Thou speakest hard things against us.”