3 Nephi 5

There were no Nephites now who doubted the words of the holy prophets. They knew Jesus Christ had come because of the signs and the fulfilled prophecies. Because of this they were certain that the remaining prophecies would also be fulfilled. The Nephites repented for their sins, abominations, and fornications. They served God with diligence all day and all night.

The robbers that the Nephites had captured were thrown into prisons where the word of God was preached to them. All those robbers who repented for their sins and promised to never murder again were set free. For every robber who repented, there were just as many who held murder in their hearts. Those who threatened others were condemned, and punished according to the law. This put an end to the murders and secret conspiracies.

Many amazing things transpired at this time that cannot be written into this book. It would be impossible to mention even a hundredth of what happened in the 25 years following the birth of Jesus Christ. While there are records of much of it, a shorter and truthful account was made by Nephi and engraved onto the plates from which I, Mormon, read. From these, I make my own account on plates that I’ve made with my own hands.

I am named Mormon after the place where Alma established the first church of God. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. I have been called by him to declare his word among his people, so that they may have life everlasting. It is necessary, according to the will of God, that the prayers of my holy ancestors be fulfilled through the making of this record of what has happened before me. But this is only a small record of the many things that have taken place since the time that Lehi left Jerusalem until the present time. I make this record from the accounts given by those who witnessed these things, as well as what I’ve have seen with my own eyes. I know that my record will be an honest and truthful account, even though there is much that I need to leave out.

I am a pure descendant of Lehi. I am thankful to God, and my Savior Jesus Christ, for having brought my ancestors out of Jerusalem, and I am thankful for the knowledge about the salvation of our souls that has been given to my people. God has blessed the family of Jacob1 and has been merciful to the descendants of his son Joseph1. To the degree that the descendants of Lehi have kept his commandments, God has blessed them and given them prosperity according to his word.

I am certain that God will again bring the descendants of Joseph to the knowledge of the Lord, their God. God has promised to restore the family of Jacob to the knowledge of the covenants that he has made with them. When this happens they will know of their Redeemer, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The remnants of Jacob’s descendants will be gathered up from all corners of the earth to be restored to their own lands from which they have been scattered. So it will be.