Sunday, February 18, 2018

2 Nephi 8:25 -- On Escaping from Slavery

"Shake thyself from the dust; arise, sit down, O Jerusalem; loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion."
2 Nephi 8:25


The idea of shaking ourselves from the dust is an interesting one here.  I think that it give the idea of not just sitting around, but also the idea of not allowing ourselves to be corrupted--action and purity.  Then the verse goes on to ask us to loose ourselves basically from slavery. 

It's an interesting call to action, because we don't usually think of ourselves as slaves, or in need of shaking off dust.  Perhaps though, it is a good thing to think about.  Not so that we can feel sorry for ourselves about being oppressed in some way, but so that we can stand up and take action... and change.

We allow ourselves to become corrupted and enslaved by habits and addictions and desires that harm us, and the deeper we get into sin, the harder it is to free ourselves... or to think it is possible.  We become paralyzed with inaction, and the dust piles up.  And in a lot of ways it is true that at some point we can't escape those holes that we throw ourselves into--at least, we can't escape without God.  And calling upon God is exactly what is required here.  That's how we gain the impetus to rise and shake off the dust... the hope to arise, and the power to free ourselves.  We turn to God, and he helps us to escape even the slavery that is self-chosen.

Today, let's see the traps that we have fallen into for what they are, and let's call upon God to help us escape.

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