"And his brethren were wroth with him because they understood not the dealings of the Lord; they were also wroth with him upon the waters because they hardened their hearts against the Lord."
This chapter does a good job explaining why the Lamanites had such a hatred of the Nephites. How because of the false traditions of their fathers they felt wronged by the Nephites, first when being made to flee Jerusalem and wronged in the wilderness, then while crossing the sea, then when they landed in the new world. All this because they felt they had a right to lead the people, even when Nephi was favored of the Lord. Why was Nephi favored? Because he was obedient and faithful in keeping the commandments of the Lord. The stunning thing to me is all of them passed through the same experiences. The difference is who they turned to and trusted in time of need.
From this feeling of being wronged they became wroth with the Nephites. Why? Because they did not understand the dealings of the Lord. Four times it described how they were wroth. From this the emotions turn to feeling robbed to hate, murder, robbing and plunder. Becoming cunning, lying, craftiness, deceiving and seek to destroy. It is amazing to me how after knowing the goodness of the Lord that a heart can harden when they turn away from God. Not only do the people turn from the Lord it turns against His people for generations. That anger and hatred can become all consuming. The ability to prosper leaves them because all they seek is to live off of the work of others. The ingratitude and feeling of entitlement then sweeps over them. Then they seek to take the Lord's people into bondage and over power them. I think there are a great number of Lamanites in our land.
Day 1839
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