Alma 7:1-9

The words of Alma which he delivered to the people in Gideon, according to his own record.

Comprising chapter 7.

Chapter 7

Christ shall be born of Mary—He shall loose the bands of death and bear the sins of his people—Those who repent, are baptized, and keep the commandments shall have eternal life—Filthiness cannot inherit the kingdom of God—Humility, faith, hope, and charity are required. About 83 B.C.

1 BEHOLD my beloved brethren, seeing that I have been permitted to come unto you, therefore I attempt to address you in my language; yea, by my own mouth, seeing that it is the first time that I have spoken unto you by the words of my mouth, I having been wholly confined to the judgment–seat, having had much business that I could not come unto you.

2 And even I could not have come now at this time were it not that the judgment–seat hath been given to another, to reign in my stead; and the Lord in much mercy hath granted that I should come unto you.

3 And behold, I have come having great hopes and much desire that I should find that ye had humbled yourselves before God, and that ye had continued in the supplicating of his grace, that I should find that ye were blameless before him, that I should find that ye were not in the awful dilemma that our brethren were in at Zarahemla.

4 But blessed be the name of God, that he hath given me to know, yea, hath given unto me the exceedingly great joy of knowing that they are established again in the way of his righteousness.

5 And I trust, according to the Spirit of God which is in me, that I shall also have joy over you; nevertheless I do not desire that my joy over you should come by the cause of so much afflictions and sorrow which I have had for the brethren at Zarahemla, for behold, my joy cometh over them after wading through much affliction and sorrow.

6 But behold, I trust that ye are not in a state of so much unbelief as were your brethren; I trust that ye are not lifted up in the pride of your hearts; yea, I trust that ye have not set your hearts upon riches and the vain things of the world; yea, I trust that you do not worship idols, but that ye do worship the true and the living God, and that ye look forward for the remission of your sins, with an everlasting faith, which is to come.

7 For behold, I say unto you there be many things to come; and behold, there is one thing which is of more importance than they all—for behold, the time is not far distant that the Redeemer liveth and cometh among his people.

8 Behold, I do not say that he will come among us at the time of his dwelling in his mortal tabernacle; for behold, the Spirit hath not said unto me that this should be the case.  Now as to this thing I do not know; but this much I do know, that the Lord God hath power to do all things which are according to his word.

9 But behold, the Spirit hath said this much unto me, saying: Cry unto this people, saying—Repent ye, and prepare the way of the Lord, and walk in his paths, which are straight; for behold, the kingdom of heaven is at hand, and the Son of God cometh upon the face of the earth.

Alma 7:1-9

Alma left Zarahemla and began preaching to the people.  His first stop is in Gideon.  This is the first time Alma’s been able to preach directly to the people because of his service as chief judge.  He realized he could not do both, so he resigned the chief judgeship.[1] 

Alma came with great hopes that they had continued in their faithfulness.  He was concerned he would find them “in the awful dilemma that our brethren were in at Zarahemla.”[2]

The address Alma gives to the righteous people of Gideon—the city named after a martyred hero—is strikingly different from the one he gave to the worldly people of Zarahemla. It is a low-key, loving, and sensitive sermon … The structure is effective in its simplicity. Alma begins with his hope and expectation that he will find the Gideonites faithful and not "in the awful dilemma that our brethren were in at Zarahemla" (Alma 7:3). The key word in his expression is trust, spoken five times in such phrases as, "I trust that ye are not lifted up in the pride of your hearts" (Alma 7:6). Better than hope, trust emphasizes the confidence Alma has in this expectation.[3]

Alma expresses his trust in the church in Gideon.  He trusts they are not lifted up in pride, they have not set their hearts upon wealth and fame, and they do not worship idols.

Idol worship was a problem in Nephite history.  Jacob addressed this problem.  “Yea, wo unto those that worship idols, for the devil of all devils delighteth in them” (2 Nephi 9:37). Because of their worship of idols, Mormon tells us the problems faced by the Nephites just before the birth of Christ.  “And now behold, [Satan] had got great hold upon the hearts of the Nephites; yea, insomuch that they had become exceedingly wicked; yea, the more part of them had turned out of the way of righteousness, and did trample under their feet the commandments of God, and did turn unto their own ways, and did build up unto themselves idols of their gold and their silver” (Helaman 6:31).

From where did these idols come?  John Tvedtnes explores that question.

A look at Book of Mormon passages that mention idols and idolatry is also helpful in determining whether there were other peoples in the land. We read, for example, of unnamed people in Jacob's time who worshipped idols (2 Nephi 9:37). The Lamanites to whom the sons of Ammon went as missionaries are said to have worshipped idols (Alma 17:15), while others in Alma's day worshipped idols (Alma 7:6).^[4]

He expresses the joy he experiences because of the faith of the church.  This is contrasted with the sadness felt because of the church in Zarahemla.

Many things are to come, but one is of more importance than anything else.  The “time is not far distant” when Christ will come.^[5]

As [Alma] expressed his pleasure at the privilege of teaching and testifying to the people of Gideon, he was forthright, clear, and direct in his witness of the Lord Jesus Christ, who was yet to come in His earthly ministry. He expressed his delight at the general faith and faithfulness of this group of good people and promised them that they would be the recipients of “many things to come” (Alma 7:7). In the midst of his discourse, describing things yet to come, he said, “There is one thing which is of more importance than they all— … the time is not far distant that the Redeemer liveth and cometh among his people” (Alma 7:7).^[6]

Alma makes it clear when Christ comes, during His mortal life, He will not dwell among the Nephites.[7]  Nephi had seen Christ’s visit to the Nephites during his great vision.

4 And it came to pass that I saw a mist of darkness on the face of the land of promise; and I saw lightnings, and I heard thunderings, and earthquakes, and all manner of tumultuous noises; and I saw the earth and the rocks, that they rent; and I saw mountains tumbling into pieces; and I saw the plains of the earth, that they were broken up; and I saw many cities that they were sunk; and I saw many that they were burned with fire; and I saw many that did tumble to the earth, because of the quaking thereof.

5 And it came to pass after I saw these things, I saw the vapor of darkness, that it passed from off the face of the earth; and behold, I saw multitudes who had not fallen because of the great and terrible judgments of the Lord.

6 And I saw the heavens open, and the Lamb of God descending out of heaven; and he came down and showed himself unto them.

7 And I also saw and bear record that the Holy Ghost fell upon twelve others; and they were ordained of God, and chosen.

1 Nephi 12:4-7

Alma had heard the Spirit tell him the cry would go out to the people, calling them to repent.^[8]  “[T]he kingdom of heaven is at hand, and the Son of God cometh upon the face of the earth.”

---

[1] “And this he did that he himself might go forth among his people, or among the people of Nephi, that he might preach the word of God unto them, to stir them up in remembrance of their duty, and that he might pull down, by the word of God, all the pride and craftiness and all the contentions which were among his people, seeing no way that he might reclaim them save it were in bearing down in pure testimony against them” (Alma 4:19).

[2] “I say unto you, can you imagine to yourselves that ye hear the voice of the Lord, saying unto you, in that day: Come unto me ye blessed, for behold, your works have been the works of righteousness upon the face of the earth? Or do ye imagine to yourselves that ye can lie unto the Lord in that day, and say—Lord, our works have been righteous works upon the face of the earth—and that he will save you?” (Alma 5:16-17).

[3] Feasting on the Word – "Know the Covenants of the Lord" – Sermons, Maxwell Institute, accessed February 27, 2015.

[4] Reinventing the Book of Mormon, reviewed by John A. Tvedtnes, Maxwell Institute, accessed February 27, 2015.

[5] “And not many days hence the Son of God shall come in his glory; and his glory shall be the glory of the Only Begotten of the Father, full of grace, equity, and truth, full of patience, mercy, and long-suffering, quick to hear the cries of his people and to answer their prayers” (Alma 9:26).

[6] Perilous Times, Elder Cecil O. Samuelson Jr, October 2004 General Conference.

[7] “And many of the people did inquire concerning the place where the Son of God should come; and they were taught that he would appear unto them after his resurrection; and this the people did hear with great joy and gladness” (Alma 16:20).

[8] “In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judæa, And saying, Repent [The Greek word denotes "a change of heart or mind," i.e., ‘a conversion.’] ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare [GR has come] ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Matthew 3:1-3).