The Sunday School material this week now covers the concluding segment of the small plates of Nephi. After Nephi’s plentiful quotes and prophesies, and Jacob’s sermons and writings, blank space in the small plates seems to have become scarce. So the writings of the subsequent authors (i.e. Jacob’s progeny) become increasingly brief. These authors were:

• Enos
• Jarom
• Omni
• Amaron
• Chemish
• Abinadom
• Amaleki

Chronologically, this section of the Book of Mormon covers a large span of time, where we learn very little about the societal developments of the Nephites or Lamanites. However, we do get enough insights that give us enough of a picture of what is going on. Here are some highlights:

Book of Enos

Enos is the son of Jacob, and is most famous for his day-long prayer in the woods. His story is one of conversion and redemption; when he feels his sins taken away, he is told it is possibly:

“Because of thy faith in Christ, whom thou hast never before heard nor seen. And many years pass away before he shall manifest himself in the flesh; wherefore, go to, thy faith hath made thee whole.” (Enos 8)

After this experience, Enos prays for the well being of his friends and of his enemies, and he eventually replaces Jacob as the Nephite spiritual leader. His faith and convictions are evident in his last recorded words:

“And I soon go to the place of my rest, which is with my Redeemer; for I know that in him I shall rest. And I rejoice in the day when my mortal shall put on immortality, and shall stand before him; then shall I see his face with pleasure, and he will say unto me: ‘Come unto me, ye blessed, there is a place prepared for you in the mansions of my Father.’ Amen.” (Enos 27)

Book of Jarom

Jarom becomes the next leader and custodian of the plates. Despite his dilligence and righteousness, he feels that he cannot add much to the content of the plates so far:

“For what could I write more than my fathers have written? For have not they revealed the plan of salvation? I say unto you, Yea; and this sufficeth me.” (Jarom 2)

On a more secular note, however, we learn that Jarom recorded (or had someone record) the Nephite saga of wars and political events on the large plates of Nephi, the translation of which was lost in the 116 pages.

Book of Omni

Omni was charged with the record keeping responsibility by his father Jarom, but it appears that Omni himself was a fearsome warlord with little interest for the things of God or righteousness. After Omni, the plates go hot-potato to his son Amaron, then to Amaron’s brother Chemish, both of whom have little to say. Chemish’s son Abinadom likewise has little to report other than wars, but we later learn from his son Amaleki that in Abinadom’s day, a Nephite named Mosiah had been warned by God to leave the land of Nephi, and took whoever would follow him north to the land of Zarahemla, where they meet another civilization: the Mulekites. Amaliki is born, and records the story of the Nephite integration into the Zarahemla. And finally, Amaleki reaches the end of his account, stating that “these plates are full. And I make an end of my speaking.” (Omni 30)

Words of Mormon

The Word of Mormon are awkwardly out of place, as they were written centuries later, by Mormon, as he was compiling the records. He originally intended to include only his abridgment of the large plates of Nephi, but after digging around his repository, he came across the small plates, and he felt inspired to include them. So, he felt the need to explain himself in doing so. To grasp the deeper significance of his actions, please see the past post: The Small Plates of Nephi in Our Lives.