“…we can know of their surety because we have them before our eyes.” — Mosiah 1:6
Imagine standing on the edge of a cliff just before sunrise. The world is still dark, and the path ahead is hidden. Then the first rays of light appear over the horizon. Suddenly, what was hidden and uncertain becomes clear. Obstacles that could have caused a fall are now visible. The trail stretches confidently before you. The landscape hasn’t changed—but your ability to see it has.
That is what the word of God does for our lives.
It does not remove every mountain or smooth every rough road. It does something even better. It gives us light to walk the path safely. It teaches us what is true, helps us recognize what is false, and reveals the Savior who walks beside us. King Benjamin understood this.
As his earthly ministry drew to a close, he gathered his sons. He had been a warrior and a peacemaker. He could have spoken of kingdoms, leadership, or military strategy. He could have shared stories of his greatest accomplishments or the lessons he learned through years of ruling a nation. Instead, his first recorded instruction centered on something far more important: The scriptures.
He reminded his sons (and us) why their people had remained spiritually strong while so many others had drifted and fallen away.
“For were it not for these plates... even our fathers would have dwindled in unbelief, and we should have been like unto our brethren, the Lamanites, who know nothing concerning these things, or even do not believe them... because of the traditions of their fathers.” Mosiah 1:5.
This verse is often quoted to encourage scripture study, and rightly so, but King Benjamin’s message goes much deeper than that. He was not simply saying, “Read your scriptures.” He was saying, “Your future depends on them.”
Imagine standing on the edge of a cliff just before sunrise. The world is still dark, and the path ahead is hidden. Then the first rays of light appear over the horizon. Suddenly, what was hidden and uncertain becomes clear. Obstacles that could have caused a fall are now visible. The trail stretches confidently before you. The landscape hasn’t changed—but your ability to see it has.
That is what the word of God does for our lives.
It does not remove every mountain or smooth every rough road. It does something even better. It gives us light to walk the path safely. It teaches us what is true, helps us recognize what is false, and reveals the Savior who walks beside us. King Benjamin understood this.
As his earthly ministry drew to a close, he gathered his sons. He had been a warrior and a peacemaker. He could have spoken of kingdoms, leadership, or military strategy. He could have shared stories of his greatest accomplishments or the lessons he learned through years of ruling a nation. Instead, his first recorded instruction centered on something far more important: The scriptures.
He reminded his sons (and us) why their people had remained spiritually strong while so many others had drifted and fallen away.
“For were it not for these plates... even our fathers would have dwindled in unbelief, and we should have been like unto our brethren, the Lamanites, who know nothing concerning these things, or even do not believe them... because of the traditions of their fathers.” Mosiah 1:5.
This verse is often quoted to encourage scripture study, and rightly so, but King Benjamin’s message goes much deeper than that. He was not simply saying, “Read your scriptures.” He was saying, “Your future depends on them.”
More Than a Daily Habit
Many faithful members of the Church have heard countless invitations to read the scriptures every day. We know it’s important. We know we should, and so we set goals. We begin reading plans. Sometimes we stay consistent, and other times life gets in the way. But somewhere along the line, perhaps we unintentionally reduce our scripture study to another item on a spiritual checklist.
King Benjamin saw things differently. For him, the scriptures were not a task to complete. They were the means by which a people remained connected to God. Without them, faith faded. Without them, truth became distorted. Without them, generations forgot who they were. Without them, people dwindled in unbelief. The danger wasn’t sudden rebellion. It was gradually forgetting.
That may be one of the adversary’s greatest strategies. Rarely does he persuade disciples to abandon Christ overnight. More often, he distracts us little by little until the things that once filled our hearts occupy less and less of our attention.
We become busy. We become comfortable. We become spiritually distracted. Eventually, we stop feasting on the word because we no longer feel hungry.
Many faithful members of the Church have heard countless invitations to read the scriptures every day. We know it’s important. We know we should, and so we set goals. We begin reading plans. Sometimes we stay consistent, and other times life gets in the way. But somewhere along the line, perhaps we unintentionally reduce our scripture study to another item on a spiritual checklist.
King Benjamin saw things differently. For him, the scriptures were not a task to complete. They were the means by which a people remained connected to God. Without them, faith faded. Without them, truth became distorted. Without them, generations forgot who they were. Without them, people dwindled in unbelief. The danger wasn’t sudden rebellion. It was gradually forgetting.
That may be one of the adversary’s greatest strategies. Rarely does he persuade disciples to abandon Christ overnight. More often, he distracts us little by little until the things that once filled our hearts occupy less and less of our attention.
We become busy. We become comfortable. We become spiritually distracted. Eventually, we stop feasting on the word because we no longer feel hungry.
Always Before Our Eyes
What if God’s word were always before our eyes? Not just a book resting on a nightstand. Not something we open only on Sundays. Not another box to check each morning. But something that shapes our thoughts, decisions, conversations, parenting, work, and worship.
What if God’s word were always before our eyes? Not just a book resting on a nightstand. Not something we open only on Sundays. Not another box to check each morning. But something that shapes our thoughts, decisions, conversations, parenting, work, and worship.
The Lord told ancient Israel to bind His words upon their hands and place them “as frontlets between thine eyes.” Deuteronomy 6:8. The word frontlets comes from the Hebrew concept of something bound between the eyes.
In ancient Judaism, many interpreted this literally, wearing small leather boxes (tefillin or phylacteries) containing passages of scripture on their foreheads and arms during prayer. That practice was rooted in a sincere desire to obey the commandment.
But I believe the Lord’s intention reaches much deeper than a physical object. The frontlets are placed—not over the eyes, but between them. The eyes determine what we see. What we place between the eyes determines how we see. I think that distinction is profound.
King Benjamin wasn’t merely telling his sons to read the brass plates. He wanted the word of God to shape the way they interpreted life. When God’s word is “between our eyes,” it becomes the lens through which we view everything.
We begin asking:
- What would Christ have me do?
- What eternal truth applies here?
- How does this trial fit into God’s plan?
- What can I learn from this experience?
The scriptures don’t change our circumstances, but they do change our vision.
Imagine putting on a pair of prescription glasses. The world doesn’t suddenly improve, but your eyesight does. What changes is the lens through which you see. Scripture functions in much the same way. Without it, we often see through the lenses of fear, pride, anger, discouragement, or the opinions of the world. With it, we begin to see through the mind of Christ.
When Nephi saw Laban, he saw an obstruction. When he listened to the Spirit, he saw God’s purpose. When the disciples saw a blind man, they asked, “Who sinned?” Yet Jesus saw someone through whom “the works of God should be made manifest.”
The difference was perspective.
I think this is exactly what King Benjamin was teaching. The brass plates weren’t magical. They didn’t bless people simply because they existed. They blessed people because they continually placed God’s truth before their minds. As those truths filled their hearts, they began to think differently. They made wiser decisions. They followed the commandments. Eventually, they understood “the mysteries of God.”
That progression is very revealing. The mysteries weren’t given to people who simply possessed the scriptures. They were revealed to people whose thinking had been transformed by the scriptures. Paul expressed this beautifully when he wrote: “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2.
The Greek word translated “transformed” shares the same root as the word metamorphosis. Transformation begins with a renewed mind. And one of God’s primary tools for renewing the mind is His word. The word of God becomes the lens through which we see our families, our trials, our blessings, our callings, and our future. It shapes not only what we know but also how we understand. When God’s word becomes the lens through which we view our lives, we begin to see as He sees.
The invitation is clear: let God’s word shape how you see everything. Whatever holds your attention eventually shapes your life. If your eyes are continually fixed on fear, you’ll become fearful. If they are fixed on the world, you’ll become worldly. If they are fixed on Christ, you will become more like Him.
The scriptures help us keep Christ always before our eyes.
The Great Invitation
The message of this book is not primarily about reading more chapters or checking more boxes. It is about becoming a certain kind of person:
King Benjamin believed people like that could change the destiny of generations. I believe that, too.
The message of this book is not primarily about reading more chapters or checking more boxes. It is about becoming a certain kind of person:
- A person who sees the world through the lens of God’s word.
- A person whose choices are guided by eternal truth rather than temporary opinion.
- A person who recognizes the whisperings of the Holy Ghost.
- A person who understands God’s commandments because they love Him.
- A person who gradually comes to understand the mysteries of God—not because they have mastered scripture, but because scripture has begun to master them.
King Benjamin believed people like that could change the destiny of generations. I believe that, too.
Emily Belle Freeman once invited listeners to try a simple experiment: leave your scriptures open, carry them from room to room, set them on the kitchen counter while making lunch, and leave them beside the laundry basket while doing laundry. Let God’s word quietly become part of the rhythm of your day.
Perhaps there is wisdom in doing exactly that—not because an open book has power by itself, but because an open book becomes an open invitation. Each glance is a reminder. Each verse is another opportunity to hear the Savior’s voice. Little by little, His word begins shaping not only what we know, but how we see.
I have often thought that King Benjamin might have smiled at Sister Freeman’s invitation. He taught his sons that they knew the records were true because “we have them before our eyes.” Perhaps one of the simplest ways to keep God’s word before our eyes is to do exactly that—to leave it open, ready to be read whenever our hearts are ready to listen.
That way, as Emily Freeman suggests, our scriptures will always be calling, “Welcome back.” And, even if we only read four verses, we may be tutored by the Spirit for hours!
Ultimately, the question is not whether we possess a copy of the scriptures. The question is whether the scriptures possess us.
Are they truly always before our eyes? That is the invitation we have been given. And it is a journey worth taking.
Becoming People of Understanding
King Benjamin didn’t end his counsel by warning against unbelief. He went on to say:
“...having been taught in the language of our fathers... they could read these engravings and know concerning the commandments of God, and also concerning his mysteries...” See Mosiah 1:2-6. Notice the progression. The scriptures preserved the language; the language preserved truth; and the truth revealed God’s commandments. Obedience to the commandments prepared people to understand the mysteries of God.
This is one of the great themes of the Restoration. God isn’t simply looking for informed disciples. He wants transformed disciples. He is not satisfied with us simply knowing facts about Him. He invites us to know Him personally.
There is a difference. Information fills the mind. Understanding changes the heart. Revelation changes the soul. That is the journey this book invites you to take.
King Benjamin didn’t end his counsel by warning against unbelief. He went on to say:
“...having been taught in the language of our fathers... they could read these engravings and know concerning the commandments of God, and also concerning his mysteries...” See Mosiah 1:2-6. Notice the progression. The scriptures preserved the language; the language preserved truth; and the truth revealed God’s commandments. Obedience to the commandments prepared people to understand the mysteries of God.
This is one of the great themes of the Restoration. God isn’t simply looking for informed disciples. He wants transformed disciples. He is not satisfied with us simply knowing facts about Him. He invites us to know Him personally.
There is a difference. Information fills the mind. Understanding changes the heart. Revelation changes the soul. That is the journey this book invites you to take.
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