1 Nephi 1:1 "Goodly Parents"

What does it mean to be a "goodly parent"? I think some of the more obvious answers are to be a teacher of the gospel to your children, to be an example of Christ, and to be a protector of your children. But there is another less obvious meaning as well.

But first to explain more in depth the scriptural references to being a "goodly parent".In Deuteronomy chapter 6 verses 6 and 7 reference is made to the responsibility of parents to teach the commandments to their children.6 And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart 7 And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.And the old adage of sparing the rod is contained in Proverbs 13 verse 24 that states:24 He that spareth his rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him chasteneth him betimes. And later in Proverbs it states that we are to train our children, that the modernistic ideal of letting the child do whatever he or she wants is a little off. Parents do have the responsibility to teach their children and raise them in the gospel; the children will eventually make their own decision whether or not to follow it. Proverbs 22 verse 6 states:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

It is also taught in Ephesians that parents should "not provoke their children to wrath" but to raise them by nuturing them and through admonition to the Lord.

The scriptures also teach us that being an example to your children is important. This especially rings true to me. Children are extremely honest and are very observant. If a parent teaches one thing and is another the child will know. And we become what our parents are many times. Everyone complains about it; the woman that becomes a mother and while teaching her children notices that she does so in the same way that her mother did; the man who grows up with a workaholic father reaches middle age and reflects that he is a workaholic as well. The same Nephi of this story demonstrates the importance of good examples. In 1 Nephi 2:16 it states: 16 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, being exceedingly young, nevertheless being large in stature, and also having great desires to know of the mysteries of God, wherefore, I did cry unto the Lord; and behold he did visit me, and did soften my heart that I did believe all the words which had been spoken by my father; wherefore, I did not rebel against him like unto my brothers.And the 2000 stripling warriors of the book of Alma who are under the command of Helaman attribute all their success to the faith of their mothers, giving another example of the importance of the example of the parents.

Concerning the protective responsibilities of parents in Alma chapter 43 verse 47 it states:47 And again, the Lord has said that: Ye shall defend your families even unto bloodshed.

Therefore for this cause were the Nephites contending with the Lamanites, to defend themselves, and their families, and their lands, their country, and their rights, and their religion.

Yet this is not the only definition of the word "goodly". And it was Hugh Nibley again who was the first to enter into this forray and question its meaning. He stated, "The opening verse of the Book of Mormon explains the expression 'goodly parents' not so much in a moral sense as in a social one: Nephi tells us he came of a good family and 'therefore' received a good traditional education" Could the word "goodly" connotate social status?Brother Marc Schindler analyzes this as being a "midrash". A midrashism is a discrepancy that arises concerning the meaning of a word because either there are multiple meanings of the word or the meanings have changed over time. The Bible is replete with these midrashisms due to its multiple translation. One would think that the Book of Mormon does not contain any because it was only translated one time into English. However, English is such a fluid language that the meaning of many words have changed since the publication of the Book of Mormon in 1830 an even if the meanings of the words had not changed still many words have multiple meanings.

An example of a possible midrashism is the word "goodly". To better understand another possible meaning of the word "goodly" let us analyze the context. The verse states: "I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen . . ." The word "therefore" is an adverb that means "for that reason, consequently, etc" Can we assume that Nephi recieved a very generous education, learning about the science of his father and Hebrew and Egyptian simply due to the kindness of his parents? I think that it is safe to assume that when Nephi introduces his parents he is not simply commenting on their kindness but on their socio-economic status as an attempt to explain the priviledges that he had experienced in life.

However, as Marc Schindler states, "Good scriptures are goodly enough in their scope to contain multiple meanings, which do not contradict each other, but enhance each other." It is not necessary to accept one interpretation and abandon the other. Each serve to enhance the total meaning.http://www.members.shaw.ca/mschindler/B/goodly.htm#B162