Chapter 27
The Lord commands Ammon to lead the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi to safety—Upon meeting Alma, Ammon's joy exhausts his strength—The Nephites give them the land of Jershon—They are called the people of Ammon. About 90–77 B.C.
1 NOW it came to pass that when those Lamanites who had gone to war against the Nephites had found, after their many struggles to destroy them, that it was in vain to seek their destruction, they returned again to the land of Nephi.
2 And it came to pass that the Amalekites, because of their loss, were exceedingly angry. And when they saw that they could not seek revenge from the Nephites, they began to stir up the people in anger against their brethren, the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi; therefore they began again to destroy them.
3 Now this people again refused to take their arms, and they suffered themselves to be slain according to the desires of their enemies.
Alma 27:1-3 (Emphasis mine)
The Amalekites were not as successful as they hoped. They did not defeat the Nephites. Since they were angry, they had to take out their anger on someone. Who better than the Anti-Nephi-Lehites? Not only could they be defeated, it would be easy because they wouldn’t fight back.
We’re seeing a new type of conflicts. Todd Compton writes that “[i]n a new conflict, it is the Nephites, or the Amalekites, who begin to destroy the righteous Lamanites, the Anti-Nephi-Lehies (Alma 27:2). This is a striking inversion of the supposed cowboys-and-Indians plot of the Book of Mormon.” [1] (Emphasis mine)
Hugh Nibley described the situation this way.
“… the Amalekites were still strong and still dangerous. They began a movement against the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi, who were with the government that had taken over more or less … Remember, these various people who were members of the nation had their districts, states, or provinces they lived in, which were fairly uniform. They were going to make trouble for the king. They did rebel, but they were reduced. They began to destroy the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi, and the people still refused to take up arms. Well, that was a pushover for them now, but they were really mad about the Anti-Lehi-Nephi people.” [2] (Emphasis mine)
4 Now when Ammon and his brethren saw this work of destruction among those whom they so dearly beloved, and among those who had so dearly beloved them—for they were treated as though they were angels sent from God to save them from everlasting destruction—therefore, when Ammon and his brethren saw this great work of destruction, they were moved with compassion, and they said unto the king:
5 Let us gather together this people of the Lord, and let us go down to the land of Zarahemla to our brethren the Nephites, and flee out of the hands of our enemies, that we be not destroyed.
6 But the king said unto them: Behold, the Nephites will destroy us, because of the many murders and sins we have committed against them.
Alma 27:4-6 (Emphasis mine)
Something had to be done. Innocent people were dying. What could be done?
Ammon went to the king and said that they should flee to the land of Zarahemla. The king was hesitant. We will be killed because of the sins we committed against them. He feared the rest of the Nephites would treat them with the love and concern of Ammon and his brethren.
Duane Boyce explains that there fear was real.
“… the king emphasizes the ‘murders’ and even ‘the many murders’ they had committed against the Nephites. This does not seem to be a metaphorical usage of the term. Again, the record tells us more than once that the Lamanites delighted in shedding Nephite blood ... So reference to the term murder in Anti-Nephi-Lehi’s speech is not surprising. … the Ammonites’ killings—far from being reluctant—apparently had been wanton, and they had delighted in them. In their repentance, then, the Ammonites were not repenting of acts of killing that had occurred in conventional war … the Ammonites’ repentance was for acts that had been motivated by hatred and by a desire for Nephite blood, and that they explicitly describe as ‘murder’
“Note too that the Ammonite king is speaking of the murders that they themselves had committed … the new king here is speaking specifically of the murders that they, the repentant Lamanites, had committed against the Nephites.“ [3] (Emphasis mine)
7 And Ammon said: I will go and inquire of the Lord, and if he say unto us, go down unto our brethren, will ye go?
8 And the king said unto him: Yea, if the Lord saith unto us go, we will go down unto our brethren, and we will be their slaves until we repair unto them the many murders and sins which we have committed against them.
9 But Ammon said unto him: It is against the law of our brethren, which was established by my father, that there should be any slaves among them; therefore let us go down and rely upon the mercies of our brethren.
Alma 27:7-9 (Emphasis mine)
The king proposed a solution. Instead of living among the Nephites as equals, they would become slaves until they were able to repair their relationship with them.
Ammon told the king that King Mosiah had abolished slavery. Instead, they should go and rely upon the mercies of his brethren.
[1] The Spirituality of the Outcast in the Book of Mormon, Todd M. Compton, Maxwell Institute, accessed October 5, 2011.
[2] Lecture 53: Alma 23-27, Hugh W. Nibley, Maxwell Institute, accessed October 5, 2011.
[3] Were the Ammonites Pacifists? Duane Boyce, Maxwell Institute, accessed October 5, 2011.
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