User:Yvonne S/Notes on Sunday School Lesson

Sunday we talked about the first two chapters of 2 Nephi. I had agonized about the approach I should take to these two chapters. It seemed at that time that the thing to do would be to just sit down and read parts of chapter 2 with the class.

But, I decided I needed to talk about some of the things in chapter 1. So I made my plan and said my prayer on Sunday morning. So I to church went armed with my plan to talk first about the things the chapter 1 tells us about the land where Lehi’s family settled, the promised land, a land choice above all other land, and a little bit about what we could learn from Lehi’s relationship with Laman and Lemuel. Then I was going to read with the class some of chapter 2.

The first part of the lesson went just as planned, but we took a little more time than I thought we might take. As a result I had to sort of pare down what it was I wanted to read and discuss. So I read the part of verse 8 that says, “. . .that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of god, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah , who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise.”

My intent had been to follow that up with verse 10: And because of the intercession for all , all men come unto God: wherefore, they stand in the presence of him, to be judged of him according to the truth and holiness which is in him, unto the inflicting of the punishment which is affixed, which punishment that is affixed is in opposition to the happiness which is affixed, to answer the ends of the atonement— this verse leads into the discussion of the need for opposition in all things. But the relevant part in my mind ws that because of the atonement all men come and stand in the presence of God to be judged.

I readily admit that verse 9 is important to the whole passage. But, I never got that far because we got stuck talking about the false dichotomy of faith and works. The way I should have handled it was to read verses eight and nine, but I didn’t. Because we got hung up when someone referred to 2 Nephi 25:23 “For we labor diligently to write, to persuade our children, and also our brethren, to believe in Christ, and to be reconciled to God; for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do” with emphases on the last phrase, after all we can do.

Now I understand that in a periodic sentence the most important part comes last. If that is the case here then after all we can do is more than a parenthetical statement so it is important to understand what after all we can do means.

This is where there was no real consensus about whether it means subsequent to and in consequence of: After what has happened, I can never return or subsequent to and notwithstanding; in spite of: After all their troubles, they still manage to be optimistic. The previous definitions are for use of after as a preposition. But used idiomatically as after all, it means, despite what has occurred or been assumed previously; nevertheless: I've discovered I can attend the meeting after all.

The two latter definition are the definition of the word used in my German translation of the Book of Mormon.

The dictionary (Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.) gives more than fifteen English definitions for the word after including the idiomatic usage of after all. So as clear as this passage might seem and as clear cut as this one little word might appear it is nothing of the sort.

Having said all that, when one turns to 2 Nephi 10:24 the answer becomes more clear. “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, reconcile yourselves to the will of God, and not to the will of the devil and the flesh; and remember, after ye are reconciled unto God, that it is only in and through the grace of God that ye are saved.”

Thus it would appear that no matter which definition of after we might choose to embrace, to be reconciled with God is all we can do.