“And it came to pass that Laman was angry with me, and also with my father; and also was Lemuel, for he hearkened unto the words of Laman. Wherefore Laman and Lemuel did speak many hard words unto us, their younger brothers, and they did smite us even with a rod.”
As we discussed previously, Laman was lusting after the wealth of his father, his inheritance. Although they’d been taken into the wilderness, the return to Jerusalem surely brought back some of these desires. Handling their wealth and offering to Laban must have been hard for him.
Then, they not only fail in their attempt to get the plates from Laban for their possessions they have to leave the possessions permanently; they fall in to Laban’s hands. Now the treasure is lost forever, no chance of return to wealth. Laman’s great inheritance is lost, his desires for wealth and power dashed because (from Laman’s perspective) Nephi was single-minded in getting the plates, which may seem a small thing to Laman. No wonder he reacts so poorly towards Nephi and Sam. His anger and frustration at this loss get the better of him and he becomes violent. I don’t mean to appear as an apologist for Laman’s behavior, but I think we can understand him better if we really understand things. Things are not always so black and white as when we read the scriptures as children.
Same scenario today: A great sum of money is owed to you as an inheritance, perhaps $1,200,000. You are waiting for it; it won’t be long – maybe 5-10 years. You know you’ll share some with your family, but the lion-share of it is yours. Although you are relatively young, and unmarried, you have great plans for this money. Unfortunately the family moves suddenly to a foreign country. You figure the estate will be settled eventually and you’ll get it. Your father was the Bishop in a ward at your old city and employed by the mayor. He realizes some sensitive church documents were left at the office and he asks you to return on a trip to get those documents. One of your siblings who joined you on the trip is trying to suck up to dad decides to offer the estate as a bargaining chip to get the documents. You protest, but finally agree that these church documents cannot be used for political reasons. However, the mayor is dirty and during your meeting he takes the estate and has you thrown out. You’ve lost the inheritance and now have nothing to show for it. What would you do?
Of course, the riches of this world cannot compare with the words of eternal life. But its easy to be short-sighted and want to react like Laman did.
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