1 Nephi 9

Read on churchofjesuschrist.org (with footnotes)

1And all these things did my father see, and hear, and speak, as he dwelt in a tent, in the valley of Lemuel, and also a great many more things, which cannot be written upon these plates.

2And now, as I have spoken concerning these plates, behold they are not the plates upon which I make a full account of the history of my people; for the plates upon which I make a full account of my people I have given the name of Nephi; wherefore, they are called the plates of Nephi, after mine own name; and these plates also are called the plates of Nephi.

3Nevertheless, I have received a commandment of the Lord that I should make these plates, for the special purpose that there should be an account engraven of the ministry of my people.

4Upon the other plates should be engraven an account of the reign of the kings, and the wars and contentions of my people; wherefore these plates are for the more part of the ministry; and the other plates are for the more part of the reign of the kings and the wars and contentions of my people.

5Wherefore, the Lord hath commanded me to make these plates for a wise purpose in him, which purpose I know not.

6But the Lord knoweth all things from the beginning; wherefore, he prepareth a way to accomplish all his works among the children of men; for behold, he hath all power unto the fulfilling of all his words. And thus it is. Amen.

Also cited in commentary

1 Nephi 3 — I Will Go and Do — Casting Lots, Failed Strategies, and the Sacred Archive
- I will go and do
1 Nephi 6 — The Editorial Manifesto and the Curated Word
- The providence that explains everything
- Where this lands
1 Nephi 12 — The Vision of the Seed, the Three-Day Darkness, and the Lamb Who Comes Down
- Hidden providence
1 Nephi 13 — The Two Churches, the Plain and Precious, and the Gentile Vessel
- Hidden providence
- Where this lands
1 Nephi 14 — The Two Churches Only, Saints Armed with Righteousness, and the Apostle John's Embargo
- Hidden providence
1 Nephi 19 — Zenock, Neum, Zenos, and the Hermeneutic of 'Liken'
- Two records, two purposes
- Where this lands
Jacob 1 — The Plates Pass to Jacob — Magnifying the Office, the Anxiety for Souls, and the Naming of Kings
- The plates pass to Jacob
- Where this lands
Omni 1 — Omni — Five Voices on a Closing Plate, Mosiah's Flight to Zarahemla, the Mulekites Found, and the Stone of Coriantumr
- The closing of the small plates
- Where this lands
Words of Mormon 1 — Words of Mormon — The Editor's Seam, the Wise Purpose, and the Providence That Reaches Across Centuries
- Where this lands
Doctrine and Covenants 3 — The Works of God Cannot Be Frustrated
- Where this lands
Doctrine and Covenants 10 — My Wisdom Is Greater Than the Cunning of the Devil
2 Kings 20 — The Fifteen Borrowed Years — Tears the Lord Saw, the Shadow That Climbed Backward, and the Treasures Shown to Babylon
- Set thine house in order

Cross-references are extracted from the project’s chapter essays — every link below points back into the original prose.

Public-domain text. The modern LDS edition with footnotes and chapter summaries is available on churchofjesuschrist.org ↗.