Wicked Nephite Judges

During the sixty-ninth year of the reign of the judges, Nephi the son of Helaman mourned the wickedness of his people. The corrupt Gadianton faction, led by wicked judges, had gained sole control of the government. Nephi reproved the people for their rapid slide into wickedness, prophesied their destruction if they did not repent, and announced the murder of the chief judge. Offended by Nephi’s prophecies, the judges unsuccessfully attempted to rally the people against him, and accused him of complicity in the crime. Nephi, through his divine prophetic gift, revealed the true murderer and was fully vindicated.

As might be expected, the Nephite judges characteristically use words related to legal matters. This includes the words, "murderer," "crime," "condemn," "condemned," "judge," and "confess." In the 246 words of text attributed to them, these references to legal terms occur over 50 times the rate in the rest of the Book of Mormon.

The wicked judges are the only speakers to use the world "detect" and the only Nephite or Lamanite speakers to use the word "confederate" (Helaman 9:20). The only other time that word appears is in the writings of Isaiah, where it appears once (2 Nephi 17:2).

Key Insights

The sample of words attributed to the Nephite judges, although small in size, suggests that they represented a real threat to Nephi. They were familiar with the law and knew how to manipulate it to their own advantage. This helps us to more fully appreciate how the Lord, despite these serious challenges, was able to deliver his prophet from danger. If we rely on the Lord and listen to promptings of the Holy Spirit, we also can be delivered.