Though scattered, Israel needs to hearken to the words of the Lord. Those words come from prophets, the chief one of whom was the mortal Messiah. However, whether the Lord speaks or His prophets speak, it is the same.Whether this verse is viewed as a statement about Christ called from the womb or of His prophets called from the womb, the result is the same. It is equally true of each. Nephi was called as a prophet in the pre-earth councils. He, like all of us, was called before birth.
As Isaiah wrote in these words adopted by Nephi, these callings come from before the creation. Later, Jeremiah will adopt these words as his as well. Whether we view these words from Laman and Lemuel’s perspective or from our own, the result is the same: Nephi was called as a prophet and his words should be heeded. We reject, dismiss or belittle them at our peril. They are given to us by God, who called Nephi as a prophet. If we will receive them, these are the words of eternal life.
Skeptical brothers who found Nephi difficult to accept as a prophet are mirrored in our own day. Today Nephi’s words are dismissed as unbelievable fiction written by Joseph Smith. Everyone will one day come to realize, however, Nephi was called of God, and his inspired words could have saved us all.