The Words of Mormon
1 Now I, Mormon, am just about to give the records I have been making to my son Moroni. I have seen almost all the Nephites destroyed.
2 I am giving my son these records hundreds of years after Christ came, and I believe he will see the rest of the Nephites destroyed. But I pray that God will protect him so he will be able to write something about them, and something about Christ, so others may be blessed.
3 Now I will talk about what I have written. After I wrote a short history of the Nephites based on the plates of Nephi up to King Benjamin (about whom Amaleki spoke), I looked through all the records I had been given and found these small plates, which had a shorter history of the prophets from Jacob down to King Benjamin. These small plates had many of Nephi’s words written on them, too.
4 The things which are written on these small plates make me happy, because they talk about Christ’s coming. My close ancestors knew, and I know, that these prophecies about Christ came true. I also know that the things which have been prophesied about the future will also come true.
5 So I chose to finish the record I have made (based on the plates of Nephi) on these small plates. I can write only a few things about my people.
6 But I will take these smaller plates, which have so many prophecies and revelations, and put them with the rest of my record, because they are important to me, and I know they will be important to my brothers and sisters.
7 I do this for a wise reason. The Spirit of the Lord has told me to do it. I do not know everything, but I know the Lord knows everything that will happen, so I will do what he tells me.
8 I pray to God that my brothers and sisters will someday know about Christ again, so they will once again be a righteous and happy people.
9 Now I, Mormon, will finish my record based on the plates of Nephi. I will make it based on what the Lord has helped me know and understand.
10 After Amaleki gave these smaller plates to King Benjamin, King Benjamin put them with the other records the Nephite kings had kept from Nephi’s time down to King Benjamin.
11 They were kept from King Benjamin’s time all the way down to my time, when they were given to me. I, Mormon, pray to God that he will protect these plates for all time. I know they will be protected, because there are great and important things written on them. My people and their brothers and sisters will be judged by the things which are written on them, as God has said.
12 Now, about this King Benjamin: there were fights among his own people.
13 The Lamanites came down out of the land of Nephi to fight against them, too. But King Benjamin gathered his armies and fought against them. King Benjamin himself fought with the sword of Laban.
14 They fought against their enemies with the help of the Lord until thousands of Lamanites had been killed and chased out of all the Nephites’ lands.
15 Then after all the false Christs had been punished,
16 And after all the false prophets and teachers had been punished, and after many Nephites became Lamanites,
17 King Benjamin (who was a holy man and a righteous ruler) and the many prophets who were in the land spoke with the power of God to the people because of their stubbornness.
18 And with the help of the prophets, and by working as hard as he could, King Benjamin once more had peace in the land.
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