Brief Biography
Laman and Lemuel were the two oldest sons of Lehi. They lived in Jerusalem at the time their father received visions, warning of the destruction of the city. They accompanied their family into the wilderness, but frequently murmured against Lehi’s prophetic leadership and the teachings of their brother Nephi. Each married a daughter of Ishmael. On several occasions, they tried unsuccessfully to kill Nephi. After being chastened by God, they assisted Nephi in building a ship. During the sea voyage, they rebelled against Lehi and Nephi, nearly resulting in the destruction of the ship and their family. Following the death of their father, they planned to kill Nephi, but were unable to do so because the Lord warned their brother to flee into the wilderness. After the separation of the Nephites and the Lamanites, they taught their children and their followers to hate and make war against Nephi and his people.
Insights into the Words and Phrases
Laman and Lemuel
Did you know that when Laman and Lemuel said Lehi had been led away by the foolish imaginations of his heart, they were calling him a false prophet?
When Laman and Lemuel murmur against their father Lehi, they accuse him of being led by the "foolish imaginations of his heart" (1 Nephi 2:11; 17:20). The brothers’ contemporary Jeremiah used a similar phrase in early prophecies against his people. The phrase "imagination of his heart" or "imagination of their heart" appears ten times in the writings of that prophet (Jeremiah 7:24; 9:14; 11:8; 13:10; 16:12; 18:12; 23:17), twice elsewhere (Deuteronomy 29:19; Psalms 81:12), and nowhere else. Its prevalence in Jeremiah’s prophecies indicates that the phrase was an important theme of the time and would likely have been familiar to Lehi’s family. It was tied to the events of the Exodus, when Israel rebelled against God and suffered in the wilderness.
Jeremiah also uses the phrase in his warning against the false prophets who were deceiving the people with false dreams, saying, "I have dreamed, I have dreamed" (Jeremiah 23:25), and "speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord" (Jeremiah 23:16). In contrast to Jeremiah, who warned of coming destruction for the unrepentant, the false prophets proclaimed peace, and said to "everyone that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, no evil shall come upon you" (Jeremiah 23:17).
When Laman and Lemuel applied these words to their father and their brother Nephi, they were not simply calling them fools. They were accusing them of being false prophets, like those condemned by Jeremiah. This was ironic, since those false prophets, like Laman and Lemuel, rejected true prophets and did not believe Jerusalem could be destroyed. Jeremiah taught that, unlike the false prophets of his day, he had stood in the Lord’s heavenly council to receive his prophetic message (Jeremiah 23:21-22). Lehi had done the same (1 Nephi 1:8-14).
Key Insights
Because individuals sometimes wrest or misrepresent prophetic words, it is important to gain a testimony from the Holy Ghost of living prophets and their teachings, to prepare our minds, soften our hearts, and help us to recognize important truths and follow their counsel (1 Nephi 2:16-18).
Chronology
Before 600 B.C. Laman and Lemuel are born.
600 B.C. Laman and Lemuel depart from Jerusalem with their family.
596 B.C. Laman and Lemuel return to Jerusalem, where they obtain the plates of brass. Ishmael’s family joins them and each of them marry one of his daughters.
596-588 B.C. They travel in the wilderness. Laman and Lemuel frequently murmur against the Lord and their father. Children are born to them. On several occasions, they try unsuccessfully to kill Nephi.
588 B.C. After being chastened by God, Laman and Lemuel assist Nephi in building a ship.
589 B.C. While crossing the ocean on the ship, Laman and Lemuel rebel against Lehi and Nephi. They bind their brother and treat him harshly. They are abusive to others on the boat. After four days of terrible tempest, when they are about to be destroyed, they release their brother. They and their family reach the land of promise.
After 589 B.C. Laman and Lemuel are blessed by their father before he dies.
589-570 B.C. Following the death of their father Lehi, Laman and Lemuel plot to kill Nephi, but he departs from them before they can do so. They are angry because he takes with him the plates of brass and the Liahona, given by God to their father. They teach their children and their followers to hate and make war against the Nephites.
After 550 B.C. Deaths of Laman and Lemuel.