The second man to rule the Nephites, anointed king by Nephi¹ near the end of Nephi’s life, according to the manner of the reigns of the kings (Jacob 1:9). After Nephi died, the people, who had loved him as their protector and the wielder of the sword of Laban, kept his name in their succession: each king who reigned in his stead was called by the people second Nephi, third Nephi, and so on, whatever his own name. This king’s given name is not recorded; he is known only as the second Nephi, or the second king (Jacob 1:10-11).
Under his reign the people of Nephi began to grow hard in their hearts and to take up wicked practices, including the keeping of many wives and concubines, as David and Solomon had done (Jacob 1:15). The history of his reign was kept on Nephi’s larger plates, which are not in the present record, so its length and the details of his rule are unknown.