Jarom (2nd Grade)

Jarom 1

Verse	Original	2nd Grade
Jarom 1:1	Now behold, I, Jarom, write a few words according to the commandment of my father, Enos, that our genealogy may be kept.	I am Jarom. My dad, Enos, told me to write a little bit so we remember our family.
Jarom 1:2	And as these plates are small, and as these things are written for the intent of the benefit of our brethren the Lamanites, wherefore, it must needs be that I write a little; but I shall not write the things of my prophesying, nor of my revelations. For what could I write more than my fathers have written? For have not they revealed the plan of salvation? I say unto you, Yea; and this sufficeth me.	These plates are small. I am writing to help the Lamanites. I will write a little bit, but not about my prophecies or revelations. My fathers have already written about the plan of salvation. This is enough for me.
Jarom 1:3	Behold, it is expedient that much should be done among this people, because of the hardness of their hearts, and the deafness of their ears, and the blindness of their minds, and the stiffness of their necks; nevertheless, God is exceedingly merciful unto them, and has not as yet swept them off from the face of the land.	Look, we need to help these people a lot because they don’t listen, think, or understand very well. But God is very kind and has not taken them away yet.
Jarom 1:4	And there are many among us who have many revelations, for they are not all stiffnecked. And as many as are not stiffnecked and have faith, have communion with the Holy Spirit, which maketh manifest unto the children of men, according to their faith.	Some people have many messages from God because they are good and not stubborn. Those who believe and are good can feel the Holy Spirit because of their faith.
Jarom 1:5	And now, behold, two hundred years had passed away, and the people of Nephi had waxed strong in the land. They observed to keep the law of Moses and the sabbath day holy unto the Lord. And they profaned not; neither did they blaspheme. And the laws of the land were exceedingly strict.	Now, 200 years went by. The Nephi people were strong. They followed the law of Moses. They kept the Sabbath day holy. They didn’t speak bad words. The laws were very strict.
Jarom 1:6	And they were scattered upon much of the face of the land, and the Lamanites also. And they were exceedingly more numerous than were they of the Nephites; and they loved murder and would drink the blood of beasts.	They were spread out over the land. There were a lot of Lamanites. There were more Lamanites than Nephites. The Lamanites liked to kill and drink animal blood.
Jarom 1:7	And it came to pass that they came many times against us, the Nephites, to battle. But our kings and our leaders were mighty men in the faith of the Lord; and they taught the people the ways of the Lord; wherefore, we withstood the Lamanites and swept them away out of our lands, and began to fortify our cities, or whatsoever place of our inheritance.	The Lamanites came to fight us many times. But our leaders believed in the Lord. They taught us about the Lord. So, we defended ourselves and chased the Lamanites away. Then we made our cities strong.
Jarom 1:8	And we multiplied exceedingly, and spread upon the face of the land, and became exceedingly rich in gold, and in silver, and in precious things, and in fine workmanship of wood, in buildings, and in machinery, and also in iron and copper, and brass and steel, making all manner of tools of every kind to till the ground, and weapons of war—yea, the sharp pointed arrow, and the quiver, and the dart, and the javelin, and all preparations for war.	We grew a lot and spread out on the land. We became very rich with gold, silver, and special things. We made nice things from wood, buildings, machines, and tools from iron, copper, brass, and steel. We made many tools for farming and weapons for fighting, like arrows, quivers, darts, and spears.
Jarom 1:9	And thus being prepared to meet the Lamanites, they did not prosper against us. But the word of the Lord was verified, which he spake unto our fathers, saying that: Inasmuch as ye will keep my commandments ye shall prosper in the land.	The Lamanites did not win because we were ready. God’s promise to our fathers came true: If you obey my rules, you will do well in the land.
Jarom 1:10	And it came to pass that the prophets of the Lord did threaten the people of Nephi, according to the word of God, that if they did not keep the commandments, but should fall into transgression, they should be destroyed from off the face of the land.	The prophets told the people of Nephi that God said if they did not obey His rules and did bad things, they would be taken away from the land.
Jarom 1:11	Wherefore, the prophets, and the priests, and the teachers, did labor diligently, exhorting with all long-suffering the people to diligence; teaching the law of Moses, and the intent for which it was given; persuading them to look forward unto the Messiah, and believe in him to come as though he already was. And after this manner did they teach them.	So the prophets, priests, and teachers worked hard. They were very patient and told the people to work hard too. They taught the law of Moses and why it was given. They told the people to look forward to the Messiah and believe in Him as if He was already there. This is how they taught them.
Jarom 1:12	And it came to pass that by so doing they kept them from being destroyed upon the face of the land; for they did prick their hearts with the word, continually stirring them up unto repentance.	And they kept them safe by helping them remember to be good.
Jarom 1:13	And it came to pass that two hundred and thirty and eight years had passed away—after the manner of wars, and contentions, and dissensions, for the space of much of the time.	Two hundred and thirty-eight years went by with many wars and fights most of the time.
Jarom 1:14	And I, Jarom, do not write more, for the plates are small. But behold, my brethren, ye can go to the other plates of Nephi; for behold, upon them the records of our wars are engraven, according to the writings of the kings, or those which they caused to be written.	I am Jarom. I cannot write more because the plates are small. You can read the other plates by Nephi. They have stories of our wars written by our kings.
Jarom 1:15	And I deliver these plates into the hands of my son Omni, that they may be kept according to the commandments of my fathers.	I give these plates to my son Omni, so he can take care of them like my fathers wanted.