21 And the king came out to meet him with his
guards, for he supposed that Amalickiah had fulfilled his commands, and that
Amalickiah had gathered together so great an army to go against the Nephites to
battle.
22 But behold, as the king came out to meet him
Amalickiah caused that his servants should go forth to meet the king. And they went and bowed themselves before the
king, as if to reverence him because of his greatness. 23
And it came to pass that the king put forth his hand to raise them, as was the
custom with the Lamanites, as a token of peace, which custom they had taken
from the Nephites. 24 And it came to pass that when he had raised the first from
the ground, behold he stabbed the king to the heart; and he fell to the earth.
Alma 47:21-24 (Emphasis mine)
Having organized the army, Amalickiah marches to meet King Lehonti. The king is pleased to see the army
united. He is ready to battle the
Nephites.
As the king approached, Amalickiah sent his servants to meet
the king. When they entered his
presence, they bowed before, a custom they had taken from the Nephites. For
example, when Ammon(1) met King Limhi, “he went forth and bowed himself before
the king; and rising again” before he spoke to the king (Mosiah 7:12). The “king put forth his hand to raise” the
first servant. “When he had raised the
first from the ground, behold he stabbed the king to the heart.” The king was dead.
25 Now the servants of the king fled; and
the servants of Amalickiah raised a cry, saying: 26 Behold, the
servants of the king have stabbed him to the heart, and he has fallen
and they have fled; behold, come and see.
27 And it came to pass that Amalickiah commanded
that his armies should march forth and see what had happened to the king; and
when they had come to the spot, and found the king lying in his gore, Amalickiah
pretended to be wroth, and said: Whosoever loved the king, let him go forth,
and pursue his servants that they may be slain.
28 And it came to pass that all they who loved the
king, when they heard these words, came forth and pursued after the servants of
the king. 29 Now when the servants of the king saw an army
pursuing after them, they were frightened again, and fled into the wilderness,
and came over into the land of Zarahemla and joined the people of Ammon.
Alma 47:25–29 (Emphasis mine)
The servants of the king fled. I would think that, seeing the king murdered,
they feared for their lives. The servant
who murdered the king called out “the servants of the king have stabbed him to
the heart, and he has fallen and they have fled.”
Amalickiah, leading the army, marched to see what had
happened to the king. When they saw “the
king lying in his gore,” Amalickiah’s act continued. He “pretended to be wroth and said: Whosoever
loved the king, let him go forth and pursue his servants that they may be
slain.”
The servants of the king “saw an army pursuing them … and
[they] fled … and came over into the land of Zarahemla and joined the people of
Ammon.”
30 And the army which pursued after them returned,
having pursued after them in vain; and thus Amalickiah, by his fraud, gained
the hearts of the people. 31 And it came to pass on
the morrow he entered the city Nephi with his armies, and took possession of
the city.
32 And now it came to pass that the queen, when she
had heard that the king was slain—for Amalickiah had sent an embassy to the
queen informing her that the king had been slain by his servants, that he had
pursued them with his army, but it was in vain, and they had made their escape—33
Therefore, when the queen had received this message she sent unto Amalickiah,
desiring him that he would spare the people of the city; and she also desired
him that he should come in unto her; and she also desired him that he should
bring witnesses with him to testify concerning the death of the king.
Alma 47:30-33 (Emphasis mine)
Having been unsuccessful in their attempt to slay the king’s
servants, Amalickiah marched the army into “the city Nephi … and took
possession of the city.”
The queen, having learned the king had been slain, was now
the ruler. “Politically, women had
rights of succession to the Lamanite throne, for when Amalickiah murdered a
Lamanite king, rule passed to the queen, whom Amalickiah then married to gain
the throne (Alma 47:32—35).”[1]
The queen sent a message to Amalickiah “desiring him that he
would spare the people of the city.” She
also wanted him to “bring witnesses with him to testify concerning the death of
the king.”
34 And it came to pass that Amalickiah took the same servant
that slew the king, and all them who were with him, and went in unto the queen,
unto the place where she sat; and they all testified unto her that the king was
slain by his own servants; and they said also: They have fled; does not this
testify against them? And thus they
satisfied the queen concerning the death of the king.
35 And it came to pass that Amalickiah sought the favor of
the queen, and took her unto him to wife; and thus by his fraud, and by the
assistance of his cunning servants, he obtained the kingdom; yea, he
was acknowledged king throughout all the land, among all the people of the
Lamanites, who were composed of the Lamanites and the Lemuelites and the
Ishmaelites, and all the dissenters of the Nephites, from the reign of Nephi down
to the present time. 36 Now these dissenters,
having the same instruction and the same information of the Nephites, yea,
having been instructed in the same knowledge of the Lord, nevertheless, it is
strange to relate, not long after their dissensions they became more hardened and impenitent,
and more wild, wicked and ferocious than the Lamanites—drinking in with
the traditions of the Lamanites; giving way to indolence, and all manner of
lasciviousness; yea, entirely forgetting the Lord their God.
Alma 47:34-36 (Emphasis mine)
Amalickiah was able to eventually to marry the queen and “by
his fraud … he obtained the kingdom.”
Kevin and Shauna Christensen observe:
“This is a thoroughly disturbing story, the more so because the queen is
sympathetically portrayed. She quite clearly feels an obligation to her
people and a distrust of Amalickiah. Whether she is taken in completely is not
clear. Perhaps she accepts him as a suitor out of respect or fear or because
she wants to avoid destructive conflicts. The sadness of the story lies in her
powerlessness despite her high office.”[2]
(Emphasis mine)
The kingdom consisted of “the Lamanites and the Lemuelites
and the Ishmaelites, and all the dissenters of the Nephites, from the reign of
Nephi down to the present time.” Many of
these dissenters had “been instructed in the same knowledge of the Lord.” Yet, they became “hardened and impenitent [not
feeling shame or regret about one's actions or attitudes], and more wild,
wicked, and ferocious than the Lamanites.”
The “entirely [forgot] the Lord their God.”
There are serious consequences to forgetting “the Lord their
God.” In the New Testament we read “[f]or
if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth,
there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation,
which shall devour the adversaries” (Hebrews 10:26-27).
Mormon warned that “we can plainly discern, that after a
people have been once enlightened by the Spirit of God, and have had great knowledge
of things pertaining to righteousness, and then have fallen away into sin and
transgression, they become more hardened, and thus their state becomes worse
than though they had never known these things” (Alma 24:30).
The “apostate Nephites under the Satanic influence of
Amalickiah as more hardened and impenitent and more wild, wicked, and ferocious
than even the Lamanites, entirely forgetting the Lord their God (Alma 47:36).
In this state of mind, their only goal was to get power for themselves, which
they eventually achieved.”[3]
[1] Women
in the Book of Mormon, Camille Williams, and Donna Lee Bowen, Provo,
Utah: Maxwell Institute, accessed April 3, 2012.
[2] Nephite
Feminism Revisited: Thoughts on Carol Lynn Pearson's View of Women in the Book
of Mormon, Kevin Christensen, and Shauna Christensen, Provo,
Utah: Maxwell Institute, accessed April 3, 2012.
[3] Economic
Insights from the Book of Mormon, Lindon J. Robison, Provo, Utah:
Maxwell Institute, accessed April 3, 2012.
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