Laman and Lemuel

"And I, Nephi, and my brethren took our journey in the wilderness, with our tents, to go up to the land of Jerusalem." (1 Nephi 3:9)

As I was reading this chapter, I was thinking a little about Nephi's older, rebellious brothers, Laman and Lemuel. I am using the verse quoted to illustrate what I find to be an interesting point. Laman and Lemuel murmured a lot.  They rebelled a lot. But the interesting thing to me is that they went. They could have just stayed in Jerusalem, not leaving with their father. They could have even been wealthy there. But no, they left with the rest of the family. Yes, when Lehi's tells them that The Lord wanted them to go back and get the brass plates from Laban, they complained and murmured again, and yet, they went back. Laman even took the first attempt at going to Laban with their request.

I don't mean to make them out to be great valiant souls or anything. After their second attempt at getting the plates, they beat Nephi and Sam with a rod until an angel came and told them to stop. An ANGEL! I think that would be a remarkable, humbling experience.  However, what happens immediately after?

"And after the angel had departed, Laman and Lemuel again began to murmur" (1 Nephi 3:31)

That's right. As soon as the angel left, they started complaining and questioning even the very thing the angel had told them: that Laban would be delivered into their hands.

Anyway, I was thinking about this and it occurred to me that the Lord ensured that there would be some opposition.  Not just for Lehi and Nephi, but for all sorts of future generations. Descendants of the Nephites needed the Lamanites to be there to provide opposition and balance. Sometimes the balance even shifted and it was the Lamanites who were the righteous ones, but the balance between the Nephites and Lamanites plays a pretty significant role in the entire historical account of the Book of Mormon.  Who knows what would have happened if Laman and Lemuel had just stayed behind in Jerusalem?