Did the Lord help Nephi get the Plates?

Did the Lord help Nephi get the Plates?

 

After Nephi put all of Laban's clothes, armor, and sword on himself, he headed for the treasury. As he did so, he saw Laban's servant. He had the keys. Nephi knew that Laban would keep the record in the treasury, especially with all the robberies going on in Jerusalem at the time. But he needed the keys to get in--and here was the servant that had them. Things were falling into place.

 

From the record, we know that Nephi was a big lad. Apparently when the servant saw Nephi, he readily assumed it was Laban, because he saw a big man with all of Laban's clothes on and the sword at his side. To keep up the charade, Nephi mimicked Laban's voice when he spoke, telling the servant he wanted into the treasury to get the plates. Nephi soon held them in his hands.

 

How gratifying and reassuring it must have been for Nephi to hold the sacred record! For when he held them, his faith in the Lord's promises and commands was powerfully confirmed. All of his faith up to that moment was rewarded--and he knew the Lord had helped him. It was no accident that the servant of Laban happened to be walking by just at the moment Nephi needed the keys. Using his "matchless and marvelous power," the Lord had arranged for that circumstance.

 

Nephi asked the servant to come with him as he carried the plates to his "elder brethren" who were outside the walls of the city. Laban had been out drinking with the "elders" that night, and the servant assumed that's who Nephi was talking about. And so, he followed. Why did Nephi ask the servant to follow him? Wouldn't this complicate matters, allowing a stranger to see who they were? If he told the Jews, surely they would come after them and kill them. 

This is an example of where it's important to slow down when we study the scriptures. In holy writ, every sentence, phrase, and word can be important. It's not the same as reading a novel. Had Nephi left the servant behind, the servant could've told others what he saw. Together Laban's servants could have pieced together who killed Laban and took the plates, and then gotten the word out. Soon the same murderous folks who had sought to kill Lehi when he prophesied in town would be hot on his trail.  

As it turns out, the Spirit was still guiding Nephi, and the servant coming with him would turn out to be a great blessing. The servant was now coming with him on the journey. He wasn't going back to Laban's house. By inspiring Nephi to bring the servant along, the Lord made the trail go completely cold. There were no witnesses left in the city to anything that had happened that night. Lehi could continue with his crucial preparations for the journey to the Promised Land without looking over his shoulder for vengeful pursuers. How merciful and protective the Lord was being with him and his entire family!