1 Nephi 20

(Below is a list of questions and quotes that help me think about each verse as I read it. The numbers represent the verses in the chapter.)

The Lord invites those who have been disobedient to repent and return to Him.

1. What are the waters of Judah? Why was The Lord unhappy with Israel? Have you ever done something that was not consistent with the covenants you have made or with the standards of the church? How did you feel about your decision?

"Isaiah says that the house of Jacob has come forth out of the waters of Judah, a statement of great interest to Latter-day Saints in view of the fact that his words as recorded on the brass plates added the phrase 'or out of the waters of baptism', thus preserving in purity an Old Testament text about baptism." --Bruce R McConkie, Mormon Doctrine

2. What does it mean to stay yourself upon God?  What were the children of  Israel doing wrong? The Israelites felt that because they were the Lord's covenant people and they lived in the Holy city, God would always protect them. Why is it more important HOW you live than WHERE you live?

3. What are the former things that The Lord declared?

4. Why do you think that Isaiah used the image of an iron neck to describe the children of Israel?

3-4, 8, 18. What phrases in these verses indicate that Israel had not been faithful to The Lord?

3-8. What has The Lord done  to prove to His people who He is?

8-11. How are people, such as the children of Israel like gold when it first comes out of the ground? What sort of refining furnace did The Lord use on Israel? How do afflictions help to refine a person? How does this help explain why The Lord did not destroy Israel when they were unrighteous? Why does knowing this give comfort and hope to you today?

9-11, 14. Though the people had been rebellious in the past, how did The Lord respond to them? Why? 

12, 16. What did The Lord want His covenant people to do?

18-22. How does the world define peace? How does God define peace?

"Though the world may define peace as the absence of conflict, God can give a peace that remains constant even in the midst of conflict." -Scripture Study For Latter-day Saint Families: The Book of Mormon, p. 44

20. What did The Lord say the people must do? Why must the Lords covenant people be clean? Why must they leave the wickedness of spiritual Babylon behind them? What things do you do to ensure that you have fled and are continuing to flee Babylon?

1-22. What does Satan do to try to prevent us from turning back to The Lord when we have made mistakes in our lives?

"[Satan] wants us to feel that we are beyond forgiveness. Satan wants us to think that when we have sinned we have gone past a point of no return - that it is too late to change our course... Christ came to save us. If we have taken a wrong course, the Atonement of Jesus Christ  can give us the assurance that sin is not a point of no return. A safe return is possible if we will follow God's plan for our salvation." -- Dieter F Uchtdorf, GC, April 2007