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THE AFRICAN BIBLE
THE RECORD OF THE ABYSSINIAN PROPHETS
By EMBAYE MELEKIN
AuthorHouse
Copyright © 2011 Embaye Melekin
All right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4567-4774-9
Chapter One
THE FIRST BOOK OF NEPHI HIS REIGN AND MINISTRY
An account of Lehi and his wife Sariah, and his four sons, being called, (beginning at the eldest) Laman, Lemuel, Sam and Nephi. The Lord warns Lehi to depart out of the land of Jerusalem, because he prophesieth unto the people concerning their iniquity and they seek to destroy his life. He taketh three days' into the wilderness with his family. Nephi taketh his brethren and returneth to the land of Jerusalem after the record of the Jews. The account of their sufferings. They take the daughters of Ishmael to wife. They take their families and depart into the wilderness. Their sufferings and afflictions in the wilderness. The course of their travels. They come to the large waters. Nephi's brethren rebel against him. He confoundeth them and buildeth a ship. They call the name of the place Bountiful. They cross the large waters into the promised land, and so forth. This is according to the account of Nephi; or in other words, I, Nephi, wrote this record.
1 Nephi 1
The Abyssinian book starts with the narration of Nephi 1. He writes his documentation in Sabean inscriptions. He begins his records with the story of the father of the Abyssinian people, Lehi, and his divine call and the difficulties he experienced with the Jews in Jerusalem. Lehi also preached the coming of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, in 600BC, long before the birth of the Son of God._.
[This is the beginning of the narration of the presence of the first Israelites in Africa. Local records agree with the documentations of the Book of Mormon and could be verified easily. The year 600BC is also important. It is the exact date claimed by local and oral histories in Eritrea and Ethiopia, as the time that the first Israelites came to Africa. It could also be verified that the rest of Africa and the black race, all over the world, are descendants of these Israelites. In essence, it could be verified, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that the Book of Mormon is the record of the ancestors of the African people. The Horn of Africa is still divided between the fair and dark colored Africans and the rivalries that began several centuries ago still persist. Similarly, the fair colored Africans (mixtures of the Lamanites and Nephites) occupy a much smaller region of Africa, compared to the Lamanites or the blacks, in fulfillment of the prophecies of the Book of Mormon. We could also verify and trace the Jaredites, the original inhabitants, that occupied the continent before the arrival of the Israelites around the year 600BC. As documented in the Book of Mormon, Nephites (Sabeans) would be extinct eventually. As prophesied accurately, only their histories and archaeological artifices and inscriptions are found in the region. And above all, the war that exterminated the Nephites (Sabaeans) is documented in the local history of Ethiopia and Eritrea. And furthermore, the Buri Peninsula, on the coast of Eritrea, where the Book of Mormon was most likely compiled, is still in existence and is considered to be the original place of some of the tribes in Eritrea, in agreement with the records of our forefathers, the Book of Mormon, the African bible.]
[1] I, Nephi, having been born of goodly parents, therefore I was taught somewhat in all the learning of my father; and having seen many afflictions in the course of my days, Lord in all my days; yea, having had a great knowledge of the goodness and the mysteries of God, therefore I make a record of my proceedings in my days.
[2] Yea, I make a record in the language of my father, which consists of the learning of the Jews and the language of the Egyptians Egyptians. [This is the Sabean language and their inscriptions. This is an extinct language and script found mainly in Eritrea, Ethiopia and some coastal parts of Yemen. The extinction of the language and the script could be traced to the late 300s AD, according to the last documented evidences uncovered. This is also the period in which the Book of Mormon claims that the Sabeans (fair colored Africans) were exterminated by their black African brethren.
[3] And I know that the record which I make is true; and I make it with mine own hand; and I make it according to my knowledge. The Book of Mormon is definitely the miracle of this millennium. Its authenticity is beyond any shadow of a doubt and could be proven very easily. The fulfillment of all the prophecies documented in the records of our forefathers is beyond belief. The prophecies are so accurate, particularly of events in the last three or four centuries. And the Lord, in His ultimate wisdom, ensured that the book did not get to the black people directly. The Gentiles were to find it first, but would not understand the true meaning of it. And only in "God's own time," which is now, would it reach Africans and the black race. Until then we are prophesied to be a "lost" people, with no knowledge of our history and our Israeli heritage as the descendants of Manasseh, son of Joseph, Israel, Isaac and Abraham.]
[4] For it came to pass in the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah, (my father, Lehi, having dwelt at Jerusalem in all his days); and in that same year there came many prophets, prophesying unto the people that they must repent, or the great city Jerusalem must be destroyed.
[5] Wherefore it came to pass that my father, Lehi, as he went forth prayed unto the Lord, yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people people.
[6] And it came to pass as he prayed unto the Lord, there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him; and he saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceedingly.
[7] And it came to pass that he returned to his own house at Jerusalem; and he cast himself upon his bed, being overcome with the Spirit and the things which he had seen.
[8] And being thus overcome with the Spirit, he was carried away in a vision, even that he saw the heavens open, and he thought he saw God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God.
[9] And it came to pass that he saw One descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his luster was above that of the sun at noon-day.
[10] And he also saw twelve others following him, and their brightness did exceed lowing that of the stars in the firmament.
[11] And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth; and the first came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book , and bade him that he should read.
[12] And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord.
[13] And he read, saying: Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations! Yea, and many things did my father read concerning Jerusalem - that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be carried away captive into Babylon.
[14] And it came to pass that when my father had read and seen many great and marvelous things, he did exclaim many things unto the Lord; such as: Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty! Thy throne is high in the heavens, and thy power, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of ness, the earth, and, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish!
[15] And after this manner was the language of my father in the praising of his God; for his soul did rejoice, and his whole heart was filled, because of the things which he had seen, yea, which the Lord had shown unto him.
[16] And now I, Nephi, do not make a full account of the things which my father hath written, for he hath written many things which he saw in visions and in dreams; and he also hath written many things which he prophesied and spake unto his children, of which I shall not make a full account.
[17] But I shall make an account of my proceedings in my days. Behold, I make an abridgment of the record of my father, upon plates which I have made with mine own hands; wherefore, after I have abridged the record of my father then will I make an account of mine own life. [The Book of Mormon is a documentation from the perspectives of the Nephites or Sabeans only. The records of the Lamanites or Agazians are those that are kept in Eritrea and Ethiopia. Hence, when we read the Book of Mormon we should understand that it is a one sided history, and only those of the Sabaeans.]
[18] Therefore, I would that ye should know, that after the Lord had shown so many marvelous things unto my father, Lehi, yea, concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, behold he went forth among the people, and began to prophesy and to declare unto them concerning the things which he had both seen and heard.
[19] And it came to pass that the Jews did mock him because of the things which he testified of them; for he truly testified of their wickedness and their abominations; and he testified that the things which he saw and heard, and also the things which he read in the book , manifested plainly of the coming of the Messiah, and also the redemption of the world.
[20] And when the Jews heard these things they were angry with him; yea, even as with the prophets of old, whom they had cast out, and stoned, and slain; and they also sought his life, that they might take it away. But behold, I, Nephi, will show unto you that the tender mercies of the Lord are over all those whom he hath chosen, because of their faith, to make them mighty even unto the power of deliverance.
"Greetings, grandfather Nephi," I introduced myself, "I am the one who visited you in Jerusalem before you left the city."
"I remember you. Where have you been? And how did you locate us? Many things have happened since you last saw us. It is a long story but to make it short, we had to leave the comforts of our homes and seek sanctuary in this desert. Only the Lord knows where we are heading. But as the Lord wills it, we shall follow His commandments, wherever it might lead us," grandfather Nephi replied.
"I know all the things that happened. Remember I am the man from the future. I read all the records you are documenting. Unfortunately, your writing will become extinct by the time it reaches us. Only a great Gentile prophet, called Joseph Smith, would be able to decipher it, with the help of the Almighty God. Even we, as your descendants, would not have the knowledge to do so. And the records you are keeping shall first be revealed unto the Gentiles before it reaches us," I said.
"It shames me to call you grandson for you look older than me, but if you are to be my descendant, it might be an appropriate term to use. How is it that our writing will become extinct? We shall make it a law that the knowledge of our writing is passed from generation to generation. Are you foretelling that our people shall perish along with our writing? For as long as any of us exists, the writing shall continue to be in our midst," Nephi inquired.
"I am not permitted to reveal the future unto you. However, your writing, which shall be called Sabean, and your descendants, Sabeans, which means 'faithfuls' or 'followers of God' shall, for reasons you shall understand someday, and in God's own time, cease to use it," I replied.
"Well! If you say so, and if it is the will of God, let it be so," he said.
"But how did you incorporate the language of the Egyptians with the language of the Jews to come up with the language of the Sabeans that you are using to write these records?" I asked curiously.
"Well! When we first arrived and settled on these lands, we found the ancient setters of the land who welcomed us as their guests. We mingled with them and learnt their ancient scripts, which were very inadequate to document our records. Hence, we modified their scripts to fit our own needs. That is how we came up with the "Sabean" script you talk about. And it was partly to confine our records to ourselves and to our future generations and to carve our identity as Israelites. For the people we met on this land were not descendants of Israel," he explained.
"I understand now. I was wondering why you did not stick to the language of the Jews that you came with, when you left Jerusalem. Now I get it," I agreed
"Son, when we first came here, it was not easy to maintain our traditions and cultures. Our children began to speak the local languages of the Egyptians and adopted their own scripts. We had to devise means of mixing both traditions, cultures and scripts of the Jews and the Egyptians without necessary losing our focus on our Jewish religion," he further explained.
"I could understand now the entire transformations. And I see how the traditions and cultures of Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt and Yemen evolved. These regions, particularly Eritrea and Ethiopia, had sustained purely Jewish traditions, for centuries, even if they had followed the Christian faith for all that period of time," I attempted to confirm his explanations.
"I don't know all the names you speak about. However, you seem to know much more than me and see that you have the guidance of the Almighty God," he replied.
"This area where you have settled in would be called Eritrea. Eri-rea or Eri-trea means revelation of prophecy. All the prophecies foretold about you and your families would emanate from Eritrea and unto the rest of Africa, the new world and other parts of the world. The areas where your descendants would establish themselves fully would be called the Buri Peninsula, along the shore of the Red Sea, on the Eritrean side," I explained, hoping he would understand my narrations.
"Son, I am still not with you. What you tell me I do not understand, but if it is meant to be so, let the ways of the Almighty God prevail," he replied.
1 Nephi 2
God instructs Lehi to leave Jerusalem and settle in the wilderness because the Jews were threatening his life. He pitches his tent on the shores of the Red Sea, northern Arabia. Lehi had the power of God in him and used it to admonish his two rebellious sons, Laman and Lemuel. Nephi, a younger son, was blessed by the Lord because of his uprightness and righteousness.
[1] For behold, it came to pass that the Lord spake unto my father, yea, even in a dream, and said unto him: Blessed art thou Lehi, because of the things which thou hast done; and because thou hast been faithful and declared unto this people the things which I commanded thee, behold, they seek to take away thy father, life.
[2] And it came to pass that the Lord commanded my father, even in a dream, that he should take his family and depart into the wilderness. [Because of the hostilities of the Jews towards those who prophesied the word of God, the Lord asked our forefather, Lehi, to depart from Jerusalem for his safety. The Jews had ripened in iniquity and would have killed him if he continued to stay in Jerusalem. Thus, starts his journey to Eritrea and the continent of Africa. The name Eritrea is a relatively new name, but in Tigre and Geez, "Eri-trea" or "Erit-rea" means "Revelation of-prophecies."]
[3] And it came to pass that he was obedient unto the word of the Lord, wherefore he did as the Lord commanded him.
[4] And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness. And he left his house, and the land of his inheritance, and his gold, and his silver, and his precious things, and took nothing with him, save it were his family, and provisions, and tents, and departed into the wilderness.
[5] And he came down by the borders near the shore of the Red Sea; and he traveled in the wilderness in the borders which are nearer the Red Sea; and he did travel in the wilderness with his family, which consisted of my mother, Sariah, and my elder brothers, who were Laman, Lemuel, and Sam. [The route taken by our forefathers is accurately documented by the Book of Mormon. From Jerusalem, they migrated southwards, on the shores of the Red Sea, on the Arabian coast side, on their journey towards Africa.]
[6] And it came to pass that when he had traveled three days in the wilderness, he pitched his tent in a valley by the side of a river of water.
[7] And it came to pass that he built an altar of stones, and made an offering unto the Lord, and gave thanks unto the Lord our God.
(Continues...)
Excerpted from THE AFRICAN BIBLE by EMBAYE MELEKIN Copyright © 2011 by Embaye Melekin . Excerpted by permission of AuthorHouse. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
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