In 1 Nephi 2:19-24, we read the following:
And it came to pass
that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Blessed art thou, Nephi, because of thy
faith, for thou hast sought me diligently, with lowliness of heart. And
inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments, ye shall prosper, and shall be led
to a land of promise; yea, even a land which I have prepared for you; yea, a
land which is choice above all other lands. And inasmuch as thy brethren shall
rebel against thee, they shall be cut off from the presence of the Lord. And
inasmuch as thou shalt keep my commandments, thou shalt be made a ruler and a
teacher over thy brethren. For behold, in that day that they shall rebel
against me, I will curse them even with a sore curse, and they shall have no
power over thy seed except they shall rebel against me also. And if it so be
that they rebel against me, they shall be a scourge unto thy seed, to stir them
up in the ways of remembrance.
This text is reminiscent of texts from the prophet Jeremiah that speak
of the contingent nature of prophecy and the blessings and cursings promised by
God to then-righteous or then-sinful peoples, such as Jer 18:7-10:
At one moment I may declare concerning a
nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, but if
that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will change
my mind about the disaster that I intended to bring on it. And at another
moment I may declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and
plant it, but if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I
will change my mind about the good that I had intended to do to it. (Jer
18:7-10, NRSV)
For a fuller
discussion, especially as how it relates to soteriology and other core
doctrines, see: