600 BC: The Departure of Lehi

Synopsis

The date was 600 BC. War was raging in the Middle East. As Assyria and Chaldea battled for control, the people and countries around them had to make choices of their own. Who did Pharaoh support? What did it take to fell the Assyrian empire? Were the Babylonian victors any less cruel than their predecessors? For the floundering nation of Judah, each turn of the tide brought uncertainty. As an increasing number of people were carried off captive, those remaining had to daily make the choice: do we stay or do we flee?

Lehi, led by the hand of God, took his family and escaped his war-torn homeland. Yet little is known about his epic journey or the forces that may have been at play during his time. A merchant by trade, Lehi certainly was familiar with Egyptian culture and may even have been influenced by the Greeks and the Romans. But did he ever meet Nebuchadnezzar? What about other important leaders of the time? Certainly he and his family were in danger simply because they were Jewish, but did his prophecies single him out in the eyes of the powerful world rulers?

In 600 BC, The Departure of Lehi, noted scholar Clay McConkie probes in-depth into the life of Lehi and the events surrounding the pivotal date of 600 BC; events which culminated in the death of the nation of Judah, and the birth of the nation of the Nephites.

Preface

On the third page of the Book of Mormon, the second chapter and fourth verse, begins with a very simple sentence: "And it came to pass that he departed into the wilderness." The one speaking is Nephi, of course, and the person referred to is his father, the prophet Lehi. At the bottom of the page is a footnote providing a date of departure, the exact time in history, according to Book of Mormon chronology, when Lehi left the city of Jerusalem and began an unusual journey. It is a very brief and unassuming date, but since the time it first appeared in print in 1830, the year of 600 BC has become a sign of recognition, not only heralding Lehi's departure, but more important, announcing the coming birth of Jesus Christ as well.

"And behold he cometh," the scripture says, "according to the words of the angel, in six hundred years from the time my father left Jerusalem."

Many things were occurring in the Middle East and the Mediterranean areas during this period of time, and together these areas provide a historical backdrop to what was taking place when Lehi left the city. Being warned in a dream to flee for his life, he and his family packed their tents and provisions and departed into the desert, leaving forever their material wealth and the land of their inheritance. It was a historic occasion in the annals of the Book of Mormon, and yet one completely unnoticed by the surrounding nations.

But the event was significant, nevertheless, and all that was occurring shortly before and after the time of 600 BC forms an interesting and informative picture of that particular time period for eight specific areas of the world:

Judah, Media, Israel, Egypt, Assyria, Greece, Chaldea, Rome

Knowing what occurred elsewhere at the time that Lehi left Jerusalem puts the account in the Book of Mormon in a meaningful perspective. In the context of a Middle Eastern setting, as well as in places such as Egypt, Greece, and Rome, it is possible to view the early history of the Nephite record in a different way, one that brings together not only important events and circumstances but also an array of interesting personalities.

One of these figures was Zedekiah, the inexperienced 21-year-old king who was just beginning his reign in Jerusalem at the time of Lehi's departure. He was the final ruler in the kingdom of Judah and unfortunately the one who brought it to a close!

Summary of Main Ideas

1. The departure of the prophet Lehi from Jerusalem in 600 B.C. represented a pivotal point in history and a landmark of time.
2. Events occurring in the Middle East and Mediterranean region during that time period provide a significant historical backdrop.
3. In eight different geographical areas, history unfolded in a way that gave meaning and perspective to what happened to Lehi.
4. Important occurrences relate to the one-half hour of silence at the beginning of the seventh seal, during which time period, or soon after, the construction of temples in the American Zion and city of Jerusalem will take place, along with a historic meeting in a place called Adam-ondi-Ahman.
5. The final events prior to the second coming of Christ will commence with the Battle of Armageddon, followed by a long series of earthqueakes resulting in an eventual transformation of the earth's surface. In the same vicinity of time, the lost tribes of Israel will return from a long seclusion, and according to prophesy seas and oceans will recede toward the northern part of the globe.
6. An exact chronology of these events is uncertain, but they will eventually be followed by miraculous signs in the sky relating to the sun, moon, and stars.
7. Finally the curtain of heaven referred to in scripture will be raised at the beginning of the Second Coming.

Chapter 1 - The Setting of 600 B.C.

Six hundred years before the birth of Christ, at a place near the city of Jerusalem, a man and his family began a historic journey. Logically it might have taken place at night when no one would see their departure, because this was not an ordinary occasion. The man was running for his life, trying to avoid those who earlier had threatened him and were now planning to kill him.

Like Jeremiah, Lehi was a prophet, and it was God who warned him in a vision to flee. It was necessary under the conditions to leave quickly and to take his family with him. So it was that, most likely under the cover of night, he left his homeland and the famous city of Jerusalem and silently departed into the wilderness.

Lehi's family at that time consisted of his wife and four sons, and the only things they took with them in their hurried flight were their tents and camels and a few possessions. They left their home and property behind, and in addition all of their gold and silver and precious things.

In the time of history it was in the commencement of the first year of the reign of Zedekiah, the last king to rule over the kingdom of Judah. The calendar date was 597 bc, but in the personal account kept by Lehi and his descendants, it was given as a different date, one which for centuries would be a landmark of time and a pivotal date in history.

It was in 600 bc, the family said, when they left the city and area of Jerusalem, six hundred years before the birth and advent of Jesus Christ. Often they used the date as a reference point in their writings.

"Yea, even six hundred years from the time that my father left Jerusalem," one of Lehi's sons wrote, "a prophet would the Lord God raise up among the Jews-even a Messiah, or, in other words, a Savior of the world."

Certainly it was the date of 600 bc above all others in the history of Lehi that became a standard of measurement among those who came after him. It was this particular aspect of their heritage that helped set them apart as a unique civilization, though they were outcasts from Jerusalem and wanderers in a strange land.

And yet as far as history is concerned, it was in 597 bc, and not 600, that Lehi left the city. It was on the later date that the man known as Zedekiah acceded to the throne and became the king of Judah. Also in that year other important events were taking place, including an earlier invasion of the city of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans of Babylonia and the continuation of what eventually became known as the Babylonian Captivity or Exile.

Many centuries later a similar discrepancy of dates would arise in relation to the birth of Christ. Biblical scholars often affirm, for example, that Jesus was not born at the beginning of the first century AD, according to the present calendar, but instead several years earlier, anywhere from 1 bc to 8 bc. Since the more common estimate appears to be between the years 3 and 4, it is significant how this relates to the 600 bc date given by Lehi.

Just as Lehi's history places the accession of Zedekiah at 600 instead of 597, a discrepancy of three years, so also do modern biblical scholars set the birth of Christ at 3 or 4 bc, a difference in calendar date of approximately the same amount.

But whatever the correct answer to these situations might be, 600 bc still remains an important date in history. To the people who followed Lehi in the early sixth century, it was a time of genesis and hope, the beginning of a migration to a distant land of promise, as well as a profession of faith in the person known as Jesus Christ. Indeed it was this particular date that announced the exact time in the future when Jesus would be born at a place not far from Jerusalem.

Definitely the time of 600 bc is a historic landmark and pivotal point in time, not only for the departure of Lehi and his family but for many other significant events which were taking place. More important, it was a time when the hand of the Almighty manifested itself in an extraordinary way. It was one of those occasions when God chose to intervene at a certain time and place and significantly change the course of history. Yet in another sense, it was also a time of adventure and discovery, a time of resolution and dedication. And as the small group of pilgrims left their home near Jerusalem that day, most likely under cover of night and with a death threat hovering over their leader, it was a dramatic moment, heralding a new beginning for the family of Lehi and also a promise for the future in the coming birth of the Messiah!