According to Hugh Nibley, Nephi’s complaint, “they sought to take away my life, that they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts” (1 Nephi 7:16) is ever in the mouth of the Arab poet, for to leave one’s enemy lying in the desert to be devoured by wild beasts is standard and correct procedure when Arabs quarrel, and for all its popularity with the poets, no mere figure of speech. [Hugh Nibley, Lehi in the Desert, F.A.R.M.S., p. 46]
1 Nephi 7:16 They did bind me with cords ([Illustration] “My brethren were angry with me … and they did bind me with cords, for they sought to take away my life, that they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts,” by A&OR. [W. Cleon Skousen, Treasures from the Book of Mormon, Vol. 1, p. 1070]
1 Nephi 7:16 They sought to take away my life ([Illustration] Brothers Try to Slay Nephi [Gary E. Smith, Verse Markers, Book of Mormon, Vol. 1, p. 4]
“That They Might Leave Me in the Wilderness to Be Devoured by Wild Beasts”
Cleon Skousen asserts that the three most ferocious types of desert animals during this early period were the lion, the leopard and the wolf. The lion was especially feared on the desert because these beasts came down out of the barren cliffs so hungry they would attack almost anything alive. The Arabs had such a fear of these predatory creatures that they had more than 400 words relating to the lion (Hastings Bible Dictionary under “lion”). [W. Cleon Skousen, Treasures from the Book of Mormon, Vol. 1, p. 1071]
1[ Nephi 7:19] One of the Daughters of Ishmael … Did Plead:
As Hugh Nibley explains, all that saved Nephi’s life while returning to the valley of Lemuel with Ishmael and his family was the pleading of a daughter of Ishmael (1 Nephi 7:19) and her mother -- another authentic touch, since the proud Semite may yield only to entreaties of a woman without losing face. [Hugh Nibley, Lehi in the Desert, F.A.R.M.S., p. 70]
According to Nibley, this is a thing that no Arab under any circumstance can resist. If a mother or daughter from another tribe pleads, you are under obligation--even if it is your worst enemy. It’s the chivalric oath. [Hugh W. Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon, Semester 1, p. 169]
“They Sought to Take Away My Life That They Might Leave Me in the Wilderness”
According to Brant Gardner, whether intentional, by coincidence, or irony the story of Nephi continues to have remarkable parallels to his ancestor Joseph the son of Jacob. Like Joseph he is younger than his brothers. Like Joseph, he becomes rather unpopular with his older brothers, who in this instance appear to have the same designs upon Nephi as Joseph’s brothers did on him. In this case, however, the outcome is different. Nephi will end up ruling in a foreign country just like Joseph, and Laman and Lemuel will seek to do that which Joseph’s brothers intended to do before selling him to the Midianites--“they sought to take away [his] life that they might leave [him] in the wilderness” (1 Nephi 7:16).
One might also pause to consider the parallels in Nephi’s great covenant prayer and the resulting bursting of the bands: “O Lord, according to my faith which is in thee, wilt thou deliver me from the hands of my brethren; yea, even give me strength that I may burst these bands with which I am bound (1 Nephi 7:19). [Brant Gardner, ”Brant Gardner’s Page, Book of Mormon Commentary, [http://www]. highfiber.com/~nahualli/LDStopics/1Nephi/1Nephi7.htm, pp. 7-9]
Note* Many of the parallels between Nephi and Joseph of Old are implied in the patriarchal blessing of Nephi’s brother Joseph (see the commentary on 2 Nephi 3). Readers should be aware that the patriarchal blessing of Nephi is missing. [Alan C. Miner, Personal Notes]
“Wild Beasts”
George Potter notes that the Old English form of the word “wilderness” was wilddeoren, meaning “of wild beast.” This is also descriptive of the region in which Nephi entered Arabia. This region was anciently called Midian. On their journey from Jerusalem to the valley of Lemuel with Ishmael and his family, Laman and Lemuel rebelled and turned upon their younger brother Nephi. The wounded and probably bleeding Nephi wrote, “they [my brethren] were angry with me. And it came to pass that they did lay their hands upon me, for behold, they were exceedingly wroth, and they did bind me with cords, for they sought to take away my life, that they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts” (1 Nephi 7:16).
The Greek Agatharkides of Cnidos wrote of the ancient land of Midian:
There are many wild camels, many troops of stags and antelopes; also many flocks of sheep, and infinite herds of cattle and mules. Upon these gifts of fortune attends the nuisance that the earth breeds numbers of lions, wolves, and pards; and, that which makes the happiness of the land, causes unhappiness to its inhabitants."
Potter notes that the last lion in Arabia was killed in the region of Midian in 1926. [George Potter with Richard Wellington, Following the Words of Nephi: Part One: Discovering the Valley of Lemuel, Unpublished Manuscript, 1999, p. 14]
1 Nephi 7:16 That they might leave me in the wilderness to be devoured by wild beasts ([Illustration]Inscriptions of palm trees, camels and lions (Mount Yatib, NW Arabia, Thamudic period first millennium BC). An Introduction to Saudi Arabian Antiquities, Dept. of Antiquities and Museums, Ministry of Education, 1975, p. 120). [George Potter with Richard Wellington, Following the Words of Nephi: Part One: Discovering the Valley of Lemuel, Unpublished Manuscript, 1999, p. 15]