Near the end of what were the small plates of Nephi were writings that comprise the books of Enos, Jarom and Omni in today's Book of Mormon.
While these books are brief - each only one chapter in length - they contain valuable lessons on record keeping and the role of various Book of Mormon scribes.Although eight different scribes had a role in keeping the records in these books, their writings combined comprise only seven pages of printed text.
In Studies in Scripture: 1 Nephi-Alma 29, Victor L. Ludlow wrote, "The books of Enos, Jarom, and Omni bridge over 350 years of Nephite history. In other words, if all the 1,000-year history of Lehi's posterity were written so succinctly, the Book of Mormon would be a 20-page pamphlet instead of a 531-page book.
"The records of Enos begin with the death of his father, Jacob, about 500 B.C. The last scribe, Amaleki, turned the small plates of Nephi over to King Benjamin about 145 B.C.
"These records remained with the large plates of Nephi and were found centuries later by Mormon, who added a few last comments. These three small books, along with the Words of Mormon, barely highlight the Nephite and Lamanite history for this long period."
