Tuesday, March 31, 2015

Alma 10:24-32

24 And now it came to pass that the people were more angry with Amulek, and they cried out, saying: This man doth revile against our laws which are just, and our wise lawyers whom we have selected.
25 But Amulek stretched forth his hand, and cried the mightier unto them, saying: O ye wicked and perverse generation, why hath Satan got such great hold upon your hearts?  Why will ye yield yourselves unto him that he may have power over you, to blind your eyes, that ye will not understand the words which are spoken, according to their truth?
26 For behold, have I testified against your law?  Ye do not understand; ye say that I have spoken against your law; but I have not, but I have spoken in favor of your law, to your condemnation.
27 And now behold, I say unto you, that the foundation of the destruction of this people is beginning to be laid by the unrighteousness of your lawyers and your judges.
28 And now it came to pass that when Amulek had spoken these words the people cried out against him, saying: Now we know that this man is a child of the devil, for he hath lied unto us; for he hath spoken against our law.  And now he says that he has not spoken against it.
29 And again, he has reviled against our lawyers, and our judges.
30 And it came to pass that the lawyers put it into their hearts that they should remember these things against him.
31 And there was one among them whose name was Zeezrom.  Now he was the foremost to accuse Amulek and Alma, he being one of the most expert among them, having much business to do among the people.
32 Now the object of these lawyers was to get gain; and they got gain according to their employ.
Alma 10:24-32

After Amulek finished his words, the people were quite angry with him. He had done the unspeakable!  He had questioned their laws “which are just” and, even worse, their lawyers.[1]  “They would lay their legal traps, and if they failed to work, became righteously indignant … Such men are dangerous enough on their own, but when their position becomes official (either in education or government) they have a powerful lever for achieving their aims by force…”[2]

When he saw what was going on, Amulek stretched out his hand and “cred the mightier unto them.”  He called them a “wicked and perverse generation.”  Satan had taken hold of their hearts.  “When Satan claims you as his, there is indeed a horrible oneness; for he too will embrace you to get power over you …  He will hold you in his strong embrace, having a great hold over you (Alma 10:25; 12:17; 27:12; Helaman 16:23).

Joseph Smith felt that power, and it was not an imaginary power at all, a power many have felt since (JS-H 1:16).”[3]

They are yielding to the power of the devil.  He has blinded their eyes.  Paul told the Corinthians, “But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the flight of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them” (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). 

The Lord told Enoch, “And he heard a voice from heaven, saying: Enoch, my son, prophesy unto this people, and say unto them—Repent, for thus saith the Lord: I am angry with this people, and my fierce anger is kindled against them; for their hearts have waxed hard, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes cannot see afar off” (Moses 6:27).

Because Satan has blinded them, they will not listen to nor understand the ways of the Lord nor the words His servants speak.

During his mortal ministry, the Savior had to deal with lawyers like those in Ammonihah, constantly trying to trip Him up.  “But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law?  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.  This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Matthew 22:34-39).

Amulek then turns things back on the lawyers.  He points out that not only has he not testified against their laws, he speaks in support of them.  He speaks in support of their law to their condemnation.  The fact they failed to obey their laws will be the foundation of the destruction.  The foundation had been laid by their lawyers and judges.

In response, Amulek adamantly denied the charge that he had reviled their law (Alma 10:26). He claimed, instead, to have spoken in favor of their law, although to their condemnation, by reminding the people that they were indeed free to govern themselves by their own voice, but that Mosiah had also said that "if the time should come that the voice of this people should choose iniquity, . . . they would be ripe for destruction" (v. 19). Amulek admitted, however, that he meant what he had said about "the unrighteousness of [the] lawyers and [the] judges" (v. 27).[4]

This made the people even angrier with Amulek.  They called him a “child of the devil.”  This is not an unusual tactic used by the wicked. “He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him. Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law?  Why go ye about to kill me? The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee?” (John 7:18-20).

Amulek, they cried, has lied to us!  Why, he claims he has spoken for the law, but not against it.  Even worse, he condemned their lawyers and judges.

Amulek was then accused of lying for claiming that he had not spoken against the law when in fact he had (Alma 10:28). This charge of lying seems to have subsumed the prior accusation of reviling the law, for in the next verse the people seem to drop or diminish the reviling charge, which may have simply transmuted into the charge of reviling the lawyers, and now they accused Amulek of reviling not only "our lawyers" but also now "our judges" (v. 29).[5]

Mormon then lets us in on a secret.  Guess who was responsible for rousing the rabble?  That’s right!  The lawyers and judges!

The lawyer who was to question Amulek was Amulek’s chief accuser.  He was one of the best.  His intent was to take down Amulek.

[1] This was exactly the attitude Nephi found in his brethren.  “And it came to pass that I said unto them that I knew that I had spoken hard things against the wicked, according to the truth; and the righteous have I justified, and testified that they should be lifted up at the last day; wherefore, the guilty taketh the truth to be hard, for it cutteth them to the very center” (1 Nephi 16:2).
[2] An Approach to the Book of Mormon – The Way of the "Intellectuals", Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 31, 2015.
[3] Approaching Zion – The Meaning of the Atonement, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 31, 2015.
Posted by at No comments:

Sunday, March 29, 2015

Alma 10:17-23

17 Now they knew not that Amulek could know of their designs.  But it came to pass as they began to question him, he perceived their thoughts, and he said unto them: O ye wicked and perverse generation, ye lawyers and hypocrites, for ye are laying the foundations of the devil; for ye are laying traps and snares to catch the holy ones of God.
18 Ye are laying plans to pervert the ways of the righteous, and to bring down the wrath of God upon your heads, even to the utter destruction of this people.
19 Yea, well did Mosiah say, who was our last king, when he was about to deliver up the kingdom, having no one to confer it upon, causing that this people should be governed by their own voices—yea, well did he say that if the time should come that the voice of this people should choose iniquity, that is, if the time should come that this people should fall into transgression, they would be ripe for destruction.
20 And now I say unto you that well doth the Lord judge of your iniquities; well doth he cry unto this people, by the voice of his angels: Repent ye, repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
21 Yea, well doth he cry, by the voice of his angels that: I will come down among my people, with equity and justice in my hands.
22 Yea, and I say unto you that if it were not for the prayers of the righteous, who are now in the land, that ye would even now be visited with utter destruction; yet it would not be by flood, as were the people in the days of Noah, but it would be by famine, and by pestilence, and the sword.
23 But it is by the prayers of the righteous that ye are spared; now therefore, if ye will cast out the righteous from among you then will not the Lord stay his hand; but in his fierce anger he will come out against you; then ye shall be smitten by famine, and by pestilence, and by the sword; and the time is soon at hand except ye repent.
Alma 10:17-23

The lawyers of Ammonihah are going to attempt to trip up Amulek by getting him to contradict his words.  What they didn’t know was that, through the Lord, knew what they were planning.  He called the lawyers a “wicked and perverse generation.”[1]  They were hypocrites because they are attempting to trap a servant of the Lord.[2]  He was echoing the words of Alma.[3]

They had perverted the ways of “the righteous.”  This would bring destruction upon all residents of Ammonihah.[4]

The Ammonihahites represented King Mosiah’s warning against an unrighteous king.[5]  They had chosen sin over righteousness and destruction was in their future.[6]  The Lord set down the reasons why a society would be destroyed.

When iniquity ripens fully the cursings come. But what constitutes being ripe in iniquity? The Book of Mormon gives specific conditions: (1) when "the voice of this people should choose iniquity" (Alma 10:19); (2) when the people "turn aside the just for a thing of naught and revile against that which is good, and say that it is of no worth" (2 Nephi 28:16); (3) when they reject "every word of God" (1 Nephi 17:35); and (4) "when [they] shall cast out the righteous from among [them], then shall [they] be ripe for destruction" (Helaman 13:14).[7]

The Lord judges them because of their wickedness.  The message is to repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.  The Lord “will come down among my people, with equity and justice in my hands.”[8]

Only the prayers of the righteous kept them from being destroyed.[9]  If they are destroyed it will not be by flood.  It would be through famine, pestilence, and the Sword.[10]

The prescribed mode of execution of the inhabitants of an apostate city was by the "sword, destroying it utterly" (Deuteronomy 13:15). This is the only text in the law of Moses that calls for slaying by the sword. Significantly, Amulek twice focused his remarks on the manner in which the people of this city would be killed: "Ye would even now be visited with utter destruction; yet it would not be by flood, as were the people in the days of Noah, but it would be by famine, and by pestilence, and the sword" (Alma 10:22, and again in verse 23).[11]

This is a constant message in the Book of Mormon.

Over and over again we find this theme in the Book of Mormon: conversion and reconversion come by remembering; dedication, sacrifice, and covenant are one with memory. Sermon after sermon begins with a prophet reminding his listeners or readers of what the Lord has already done for them. They remind us of the flood (Alma 10:22), of the exodus from Egypt (Mosiah 7:19), and of the journey across the ocean (2 Nephi 10:20).[12] 

President Kimball warned us about the voices to which we listen.

There are voices all about us … rasping voices proclaiming “doctrines of devils,” saying there is no sin; there is no devil; there is no God. Saying that we will “eat, drink, and be merry” like the antediluvians who never believed that the flood would really come. Many voices of seducing spirits advocate carnal pleasures and unrestrained physical satisfactions. Our world is now much the same as it was in the days of the Nephite prophet who said: “… if it were not for the prayers of the righteous … ye would even now be visited with utter destruction. …” (Alma 10:22).[13] (Emphasis in original)

But it is by the prayers of the righteous that ye are spared; now therefore, if ye will cast out the righteous from among you then will not the Lord stay his hand; but in his fierce anger he will come out against you; then ye shall be smitten by famine, and by pestilence, and by the sword; and the time is soon at hand except ye repent.

The Ammonihahites must have been trying to cast out the righteous from their city as Amulek warned them they were the only people who were saving them.  If they did, the Lord will judge them and they will face “his fierce anger.”[14]

[1] The Savior would use similar wording.  “But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers [GR crop of serpents], who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” (Matthew 3:7).
[2] The same thing happened to our Savior. “But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, he answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts?” (Luke 5:22).
[3] “Behold, O ye wicked and perverse generation, how have ye forgotten the tradition of your fathers; yea, how soon ye have forgotten the commandments of God” (Alma 9:8).
[4] When dealing with Elymas, the Sorcerer Paul said, “And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?” (Acts 13:10).
[5] “And if the time comes that the voice of the people doth choose iniquity, then is the time that the judgments of God will come upon you; yea, then is the time he will visit you with great destruction even as he has hitherto visited this land” (Mosiah 29:27).
[6] The Book of Abraham teaches that the promise of the land to Abraham's posterity was conditional, "I will give unto thy seed after thee for an everlasting possession, when they hearken to my voice" (Abraham 2:6). When the iniquity of the descendants of Abraham was full, God would allow them to be destroyed and scattered from their promised land as well (1Nephi 17:43; cf. Alma 10:19; Ether 2:9–10).[6]
[7] Hubris and Atē: A Latter-day Warning from the Book of Mormon, Richard D. Draper, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 29, 2015.
[8] Abinadi also taught this principle.  “And now, did they .understand the law?  I say unto you, Nay, they did not all understand the law; and this because of the hardness of their hearts; for they understood not that there could not any man be saved except it were through the redemption of God. For behold, did not Moses prophesy unto them concerning the coming of the Messiah, and that God should redeem his people?  Yea, and even all the prophets who have prophesied ever since the world began—have they not spoken more or less concerning these things? Have they not said that God himself should come down among the children of men, and take upon him the form of man, and go forth in mighty power upon the face of the earth?” (Mosiah 13:32-34).
[9] The prayers of Alma1 and the people of the church led to Alma2’s conversion. “And again, the angel said: Behold, the Lord hath heard the prayers of his people, and also the prayers of his servant, Alma, who is thy father; for he has prayed with much faith concerning thee that thou mightest be brought to the knowledge of the truth; therefore, for this purpose have I come to convince thee of the power and authority of God, that the prayers of his servants might be answered according to their faith. And now behold, can ye dispute the power of God?  For behold, doth not my voice shake the earth?  And can ye not also behold me before you?  And I am sent from God. Now I say unto thee: Go, and remember the captivity of thy fathers in the land of Helam, and in the land of Nephi; and remember how great things he has done for them; for they were in bondage, and he has delivered them.  And now I say unto thee, Alma, go thy way, and seek to destroy the church no more, that their prayers may be answered, and this even if thou wilt of thyself be cast off” (Mosiah 27:14-16).
[10] Moroni told Joseph Smith about the destruction that would occur. “He commenced, and again related the very same things which he had done at his first visit, without the least variation; which having done, he informed me of great judgments which were coming upon the earth, with great desolations by famine, sword, and pestilence; and that these grievous judgments would come on the earth in this generation.  Having related these things, he again ascended as he had done before” (JS-History 1:45).
[11] Warfare in the Book of Mormon – Law and War in the Book of Mormon, John W. Welch, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 29, 2015.
[12] Remembrance, James E. Faulconer, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 29, 2015.
[13] Voices of the Past, of the Present, of the Future, President Spencer W. Kimball, April 1971 General Conference.
[14] Writing to Moroni, Mormon describe the Nephite people. “But O my son, how can a people like this, whose delight is in so much abomination—How can we expect that God will stay his hand in judgment against us?” (Moroni 9:13-14).
Posted by at No comments:

Saturday, March 28, 2015

Alma 10:12-16

10 And again, I know that the things whereof he hath testified are true; for behold I say unto you, that as the Lord liveth, even so has he sent his angel to make these things manifest unto me; and this he has done while this Alma hath dwelt at my house.
11 For behold, he hath blessed mine house, he hath blessed me, and my women, and my children, and my father and my kinsfolk; yea, even all my kindred hath he blessed, and the blessing of the Lord hath rested upon us according to the words which he spake.
12 And now, when Amulek had spoken these words the people began to be astonished, seeing there was more than one witness who testified of the things whereof they were accused, and also of the things which were to come, according to the spirit of prophecy which was in them.
13 Nevertheless, there were some among them who thought to question them, that by their cunning devices they might catch them in their words, that they might find witness against them, that they might deliver them to their judges that they might be judged according to the law, and that they might be slain or cast into prison, according to the crime which they could make appear or witness against them.
14 Now it was those men who sought to destroy them, who were lawyers, who were hired or appointed by the people to administer the law at their times of trials, or at the trials of the crimes of the people before the judges.
15 Now these lawyers were learned in all the arts and cunning of the people; and this was to enable them that they might be skilful in their profession.
16 And it came to pass that they began to question Amulek, that thereby they might make him across his words, or contradict the words which he should speak.
Alma 10:10-16

Amulek, speaking to the people after Alma, testifies to the truthfulness of his words.  He knows they are true because the Lord sent an angel who testified to the truthfulness of Alma’s words.

Amulek explains Alma had blessed his house and all occupants therein.  “When Amulek describes Alma's blessing, he paints a picture of how Amulek perceives his kin connections. These descriptions fit the general picture of Mesoamerican households.”[1]

Earlier, the Ammonihahites had rejected Alma’s message.  “And they said: Who is God, that sendeth no more authority than one man among this people, to declare unto them the truth of such great and marvelous things?” (Alma 9:6). “The people in Ammonihah rejected and ridiculed Alma and his message, but became astonished at the words of Amulek, “seeing that there was more than one witness that testified of the things whereof they were accused” (Alma 10:12; italics added). It was the second witness that astonished the people.”[2]

While some were astonished, there was a group who began to plot to take Alma and Amulek.  They would either use their words against them, or they would find witnesses against them.  In this, they acted like the chief priests who conspired to kill the Savior. “And the chief priests and all the council sought for witness against Jesus to put him to death; and found none. For many bare false witness against him, but their witness agreed not together. And there arose certain, and bare false witness against him, saying, We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands. But neither so did their witness agree together.” (Mark 14:55-59).

Their desire was to have them eventually imprisoned.  “It was the same old type, only clothed with public office and authority. The essence of their activity and success was still the clever manipulation of words, especially in questioning the prophets of the church, “that by their cunning devices they might catch them in their words, that they might find witness against them” (Alma 10:13). They would lay their legal traps, and if they failed to work, became righteously indignant.”[3]

Who were these lawyers in Nephite society?   How did the serve the community?

The lawyers in Ammonihah were not likely private advocates or independent professional counsel … No evidence indicates that the lawyers in Ammonihah represented clients or served as advocates for clients.  Rather, they were unique officers or officials of the state skilled in the study of the law. What little we know simply says that they were skilled and clever, and their role is described very briefly. They were “hired or appointed by the people to administer the law at their times of trials, or at the trials of the crimes of the people before the judges” (Alma 10:14) … [I]t is evident that three groups of judicial functionaries operated in the legal system in the land of Zarahemla: judges, lawyers (Alma 10:14–15), and officers … [O]ne might conclude that the officers did not receive the statutory wages paid to judges.32 Likewise, the “lawyers” were not judges, for at this time they only administered the law at trials before the judges (Alma 10:14).[4]

Mormon describes them as “cunning” and “skillful in their profession.”  They were most like the priests who constantly attempted to catch the Savior saying something they could use against Him.

“And the chief priests and the scribes the same hour sought to lay hands on him; and they feared the people: for they perceived that he had spoken this parable against them. And they watched him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him unto the power and authority of the governor. And they asked him, saying, Master, we know that thou sayest and teachest rightly, neither acceptest thou the person of any, but teachest the way of God truly: Is it lawful for us to give tribute [GR taxes] unto Cæsar, or no? But he perceived their craftiness, and said unto them, Why tempt ye me? Shew me a penny.  Whose image and superscription hath it?  They answered and said, Cæsar's. And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Cæsar the things which be Cæsar's, and unto God the things which be God's. And they could not take hold of his words before the people: and they marvelled at his answer, and held their peace” (Luke 20:18-26).

These lawyers began to question Amulek for the purpose of making him “cross his words.”  “[T]he verb to cross is used as a synonym for to contradict, a point made explicit in Alma 10:16. All [uses of the verb to cross] are in the context of legal interrogation.”[5]  Again we see how the devil is consistent in his efforts to destroy the works of God.  The priests had the same ultimate purpose when questioning the Savior.  “And they watched him, and sent forth spies, which should feign themselves just men, that they might take hold of his words, that so they might deliver him unto the power and authority of the governor.”  (Luke 20:20).

[1] Behind the Mask, Behind the Curtain: Uncovering the Illusion, reviewed by Brant Gardner, accessed March 27, 2015.
[2] The Book of Mormon, an Interpretive Guide to the New Testament, Dennis Largey, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 27, 2015.
[5] Scripture Insight: Book of Mormon Word Usage: To Cross Oneself, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 27, 2015.
Posted by at No comments:

Wednesday, March 25, 2015

Alma 10:1-11

Chapter 10

Lehi descended from Manasseh—Amulek recounts the angelic command that he care for Alma—The prayers of the righteous cause the people to be spared—Unrighteous lawyers and judges lay the foundation of the destruction of the people. About 82 B.C.

1 NOW these are the words which Amulek preached unto the people who were in the land of Ammonihah, saying:
2 I am Amulek; I am the son of Giddonah, who was the son of Ishmael, who was a descendant of Aminadi; and it was the same Aminadi who interpreted the writing which was upon the wall of the temple, which was written by the finger of God.
3 And Aminadi was a descendant of Nephi, who was the son of Lehi, who came out of the land of Jerusalem, who was a descendant of Manasseh, who was the son of Joseph who was sold into Egypt by the hands of his brethren.
4 And behold, I am also a man of no small reputation among all those who know me; yea, and behold, I have many kindreds and friends, and I have also acquired much riches by the hand of my industry.
5 Nevertheless, after all this, I never have known much of the ways of the Lord, and his mysteries and marvelous power.  I said I never had known much of these things; but behold, I mistake, for I have seen much of his mysteries and his marvelous power; yea, even in the preservation of the lives of this people.
6 Nevertheless, I did harden my heart, for I was called many times and I would not hear; therefore I knew concerning these things, yet I would not know; therefore I went on rebelling against God, in the wickedness of my heart, even until the fourth day of this seventh month, which is in the tenth year of the reign of the judges.
7 As I was journeying to see a very near kindred, behold an angel of the Lord appeared unto me and said: Amulek, return to thine own house, for thou shalt feed a prophet of the Lord; yea, a holy man, who is a chosen man of God; for he has fasted many days because of the sins of this people, and he is an hungered, and thou shalt receive him into thy house and feed him, and he shall bless thee and thy house; and the blessing of the Lord shall rest upon thee and thy house.
8 And it came to pass that I obeyed the voice of the angel, and returned towards my house.  And as I was going thither I found the man whom the angel said unto me: Thou shalt receive into thy house—and behold it was this same man who has been speaking unto you concerning the things of God.
9 And the angel said unto me he is a holy man; wherefore I know he is a holy man because it was said by an angel of God.
10 And again, I know that the things whereof he hath testified are true; for behold I say unto you, that as the Lord liveth, even so has he sent his angel to make these things manifest unto me; and this he has done while this Alma hath dwelt at my house.
11 For behold, he hath blessed mine house, he hath blessed me, and my women, and my children, and my father and my kinsfolk; yea, even all my kindred hath he blessed, and the blessing of the Lord hath rested upon us according to the words which he spake.
Alma 10:1-11

As we begin chapter 10, it would be nice to remember the words of Elder H. David Burton as he describes Alma and Amulek.  “Alma and Amulek listened to the angel. They responded to the call to missionary service, and they preached repentance. They stood tall in the face of adversity and imprisonment. They are heroes whose lives are worthy of emulation.”[1]

Amulek steps up and takes over from Alma. 

Amulek begins by declaring his linage.  He is the son of Giddonah, the son of Ishmael and a descendant of Aminadi.  Aminadi is an unknown player in Nephite history.  This is the only time we hear of him.  We learn he saw “certain words seen on the wall of a Nephite temple had been ‘written by the finger of God.”’[2] We have no idea when or where this occurred. 

From Aminadi, his lineage is through Nephi and Lehi.  This means he was a descendant of Manasseh as well as Joseph.

Amulek was known to the people as Ammonihah.  He had a good reputation among his friends, relatives, and associates.  He has worked hard and become rich through his labors.[3]

Amulek wasn’t all that interested in things of a religious nature.  He never knew about the Lord and how he worked.  Paul could have been writing to Amulek when he wrote the Romans,  “For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness [GR callousness] in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in” (Romans 11:25).

However, he made a mistake.  He had seen the power of God in the preservation of the Ammonihahites.  He was called by God many times, but had hardened his heart and did not hear him.  Alma had people like Amulek in mind when he said, “O ye workers of iniquity; ye that are puffed up in the vain things of the world, ye that have professed to have known the ways of righteousness nevertheless have gone astray, as sheep having no shepherd, notwithstanding a shepherd hath called after you and is still calling after you, but ye will not hearken unto his voice” (Alma 5:37).

He ignored the word of God and continued his rebellion.  “Nevertheless, thou hast seen great sorrow, for thou hast rejected me many times because of pride and the cares of the world” (D&C 39:9).  In his own way, he was like Saul.  “And he said, Who art thou, Lord?  And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks” (Acts 9:5).

Amulek was travelling to see a relative.  During his trip, he saw an angel.  He was told to return home.  He was to feed a prophet of the Lord who had been fasting for days. The Lord’s blessings would fall upon his house.

He returned home, and Alma arrived.  He recognized him as the holy man of God he was told to host.  He testified to people that Alma was a holy man because he received the testimony of an angel.[4]

Amulek next testified that an angel had told him that Alma was a holy man, and he swore with a solemn oath—"as the Lord liveth"—that Alma spoke the truth (Alma 10:9–10). The swearing of such an oath not only enhanced the seriousness of a witness's demeanor but also exposed him to divine punishment should the testimony be untrue.[5]

He further testified Alma had blessed his house, himself and my women[6], children, father and kinsfolk.

[1] Heroes, Elder H. David Burton, April 1993 General Conference.
[2]The Image of the Hand of God in the Book of Mormon and the Old Testament, David Rolph Seely, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 25, 2015.
[3] He would eventually lose everything because he choose to serve the Lord.  “And it came to pass that Alma and Amulek, Amulek having forsaken all his gold, and silver, and his precious things, which were in the land of Ammonihah, for the word of God, he being rejected by those who were once his friends and also by his father and his kindred” (Alma 15:16).
[4] King Benjamin also testified to the truthfulness of his words.  “And the things which I shall tell you are made known unto me by an angel from God.  And he said unto me: Awake; and I awoke, and behold he stood before me” (Mosiah 3:2).
[6] This probably refers to his wife and his mother/mother-in-law.
Posted by at No comments:

Monday, March 23, 2015

Alma 9:28-34

28 Therefore, prepare ye the way of the Lord, for the time is at hand that all men shall reap a reward of their works, according to that which they have been—if they have been righteous they shall reap the salvation of their souls, according to the power and deliverance of Jesus Christ; and if they have been evil they shall reap the damnation of their souls, according to the power and captivation of the devil.
29 Now behold, this is the voice of the angel, crying unto the people.
30 And now, my beloved brethren, for ye are my brethren, and ye ought to be beloved, and ye ought to bring forth works which are meet for repentance, seeing that your hearts have been grossly hardened against the word of God, and seeing that ye are a lost and a fallen people.
31 Now it came to pass that when I, Alma, had spoken these words, behold, the people were wroth with me because I said unto them that they were a hard–hearted and a stiffnecked people.
32 And also because I said unto them that they were a lost and a fallen people they were angry with me, and sought to lay their hands upon me, that they might cast me into prison.
33 But it came to pass that the Lord did not suffer them that they should take me at that time and cast me into prison.
34 And it came to pass that Amulek went and stood forth, and began to preach unto them also.  And now the words of Amulek are not all written, nevertheless a part of his words are written in this book.
Alma 9:28-34

Alma is wrapping up his sermon.  He tells them to prepare the way of the Lord.  We will reap a reward based on our works.  The Lord revealed, “Unto the day when the Lord shall come to recompense unto every man according to his work, and measure to every man according to the measure which he has measured to his fellow man” (D&C 1:10).  The Lord said, Fear not to do good, my sons, for whatsoever ye sow, that shall ye also reap; therefore, if ye sow good ye shall also reap good for your reward” (D&C 6:33).

David wrote:

“O love the LORD, all ye his saints: for the LORD preserveth the faithful, and plentifully rewardeth the proud doer” (Psalms 31:23),

“So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous: verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth” (Psalms 58:11).

Solomon said, “The wicked worketh a deceitful work: but to him that soweth righteousness shall be a sure reward” (Proverbs 11:18). The Savior taught, “Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you” (Matthew 5:12).

The wicked, on the other hand will reap damnation and become captives of the devil.  “His mischief shall return upon his own head, and his violent dealing shall come down upon his own pate” (Psalms 7:16).

Alma's very presence in Ammonihah attests to his desire to help those who once were enlightened to return to the path of eternal life. He taught that the way of salvation is only "according to the power and deliverance of Jesus Christ" (Alma 9:28) … An undeviating call for men to "repent, and harden not [their] hearts" against the true mysteries of God and to rely upon the mercy "through mine Only Begotten Son" (Alma 12:33) fills these chapters.[1]

Alma pronounces the words he speaks are the words of an angel.

Alma refers to them as “my beloved brethren, for ye are my brethren.” 

Alma's attitude toward his hearers is seen in his frequent reference to them as "my brethren," an appellation which occurs seven times in the beginning and middle of the sermon. At the end of the sermon when the logic of his argument reaches its climax—that is, when he hopes that the accumulated pleas and threats will bring his hearers to true repentance, Alma shifts to the more endearing "My beloved brethren," which he repeats three times. This is similar to the way Alma ends his second sermon, delivered not long after this one: "And now, my beloved brethren, for ye are my brethren, and ye ought to be beloved" (Alma 9:30). Thus, not only does Alma remind his hearers of their kinship and spiritual relationship, he reveals the charity he feels toward them in spite of his strong language condemning their recalcitrant wickedness.[2]

He told them they should bring forth works that are worthy of repentance.  This is because they have harden their hearts and become a lost and fallen people.[3]

Alma’s word were similar to Nephi’s. “And now behold, my people, ye are a stiffnecked people; wherefore, I have spoken plainly unto you, that ye cannot misunderstand.  And the words which I have spoken shall stand as a testimony against you; for they are sufficient to teach any man the right way; for the right way is to believe in Christ and deny him not; for by denying him ye also deny the prophets and the law” (2 Nephi 25:28).

Needless to say, the Ammonihahites were not pleased with Alma’s words.  They decided to throw both Alma and Amulek into jail. 

In response, the people immediately sought to imprison Alma (Alma 9:31–32). Even though their Nehorite doctrine, in theory, avowed belief in a God who would redeem all people, Alma's words in Alma 9 were extreme and could not be ignored. The people of Ammonihah lost their composure and became "angry" with Alma, specifically when he accused them of being "a lost and a fallen people" (vv. 30, 32). To these legally minded people, the offensive connotations of being consigned to "utter destruction" escalated to a nearly criminal accusation in the threatening implications of Alma's words when he called them "a lost and a fallen people." Alma thereby effectively identified them as an apostate people under Deuteronomy 13, making them subject to the mandate of annihilation.[4]

As they attempted to take hold of Alma and Amulek, Amulek stepped forward and began to preach.

[1] The Temple in Time and Eternity – Conflicting Orders: Alma and Amulek in Ammonihah, Thomas R. Valletta, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 23, 2015.
[2] Bountiful Harvest – Alma the Younger's Seminal Sermon at Zarahemla, Robert A. Rees, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 23, 2015.
[3] Alma would later use the phrase, “a lost and fallen people.”  “Now Alma said unto him: This is the thing which I was about to explain.  Now we see that Adam did fall by the partaking of the forbidden fruit, according to the word of God; and thus we see, that by his fall, all mankind became a lost and fallen people” (Alma 12:22)
[4] The Legal Cases in the Book of Mormon – The Trial of Alma and Amulek, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 23, 2015. 
Posted by at No comments:

Saturday, March 21, 2015

Alma 9:23-27

23 And now behold I say unto you, that if this people, who have received so many blessings from the hand of the Lord, should transgress contrary to the light and knowledge which they do have, I say unto you that if this be the case, that if they should fall into transgression, it would be far more tolerable for the Lamanites than for them.
24 For behold, the promises of the Lord are extended to the Lamanites, but they are not unto you if ye transgress; for has not the Lord expressly promised and firmly decreed, that if ye will rebel against him that ye shall utterly be destroyed from off the face of the earth?
25 And now for this cause, that ye may not be destroyed, the Lord has sent his angel to visit many of his people, declaring unto them that they must go forth and cry mightily unto this people, saying: Repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is nigh at hand;
26 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.
27 And behold, he cometh to redeem those who will be baptized unto repentance, through faith on his name.
Alma 9:23- 27

Alma continuing to preach Ammonihahites.  As the people had, at one time, been taught the gospel and were a righteous people, their transgression is even more serious.  Job said, “If they obey and serve him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures [HEB pleasantness]. But if they obey not, they shall perish by the sword, and they shall die without knowledge” (Job 36:11-12).

Solomon could very well have had the Ammonihahites in mind when he wrote, “Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD” (Proverbs 1:24-29).

To those who did not believe on Him, yet called Him Lord, the Savior said, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say” (Luke 6:46).  Stephen told the Jews, “Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted?  and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers: Who have received the law by the disposition of angels, and have not kept it” (Acts 7:52-53).

Alma again emphasizes the Lamanites will not face the same judgements as they had been corrupted by the traditions of their fathers.  As the people of Ammonihah had received His words, they will fact strict judgement.

The Lord has extended promises to the Lamanites.  Nephi wrote:

“And then shall the remnant of our seed know concerning us, how that we came out from Jerusalem, and that they are descendants of the Jews. And the gospel of Jesus Christ shall be declared among them; wherefore, they shall be restored unto the knowledge of their fathers, and also to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, which was had among their fathers. And then shall they rejoice; for they shall know that it is a blessing unto them from the hand of God; and their scales of darkness shall begin to fall from their eyes; and many generations shall not pass away among them, save they shall be a pure and a delightsome people. And it shall come to pass that the Jews which are scattered also shall begin to believe in Christ; and they shall begin to gather in upon the face of the land; and as many as shall believe in Christ shall also become a delightsome people” (2 Nephi 30:4-7).

The Lord revealed:

“Nevertheless, my work shall go forth, for inasmuch as the knowledge of a Savior has come unto the world, through the testimony of the Jews, even so shall the knowledge of a Savior come unto my people—And to the Nephites, and the Jacobites, and the Josephites, and the Zoramites, through the testimony of their fathers—And this testimony shall come to the knowledge of the Lamanites, and the Lemuelites, and the Ishmaelites, who dwindled in unbelief because of the iniquity of their fathers, whom the Lord has suffered to destroy their brethren the Nephites, because of their iniquities and their abominations. And for this very purpose are these plates preserved, which contain these records—that the promises of the Lord might be fulfilled, which he made to his people; And that the Lamanites might come to the knowledge of their fathers, and that they might know the promises of the Lord, and that they may believe the gospel and rely upon the merits of Jesus Christ, and be glorified through faith in his name, and that through their repentance they might be saved.  Amen” (D&C 3:16-20).

But, these promises are not offered to them.  The Lord has made it clear, save they repent, they will be destroyed.[1]

God does not want them destroyed.  He has sent an angel to visit people, calling on them to repent. “There is so much of evil everywhere. Temptation, with all its titillating influences, is about us everywhere. We lose some to these destructive forces, unfortunately. We sorrow over every one that is lost. We reach out to help them, to save them, but in too many cases our entreaties are spurned. Tragic is the course they are following. It is the way which leads down to destruction.”[2]

John the Baptist, called on the people to repent.  “And saying, Repent [The Greek word denotes "a change of heart or mind," i.e., "a conversion."] ye: for the kingdom of heaven cis at hand [GR has come]. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Matthew 3:2-3).

Alma told the people of Zarahemla, 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 7:9).

When Nephi2 and Lehi2 were in prison, they were miraculously released.  “And it came to pass that there came a voice as if it were above the cloud of darkness, saying: Repent ye, repent ye, and seek no more to destroy my servants whom I have sent unto you to declare good tidings. And it came to pass when they heard this voice, and beheld that it was not a voice of thunder, neither was it a voice of a great tumultuous noise, but behold, it was a still voice of perfect mildness, as if it had been a whisper, and it did pierce even to the very soul—And notwithstanding the mildness of the voice, behold the earth shook exceedingly, and the walls of the prison trembled again, as if it were about to tumble to the earth; and behold the cloud of darkness, which had overshadowed them, did not disperse—And behold the voice came again, saying: Repent ye, repent ye, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand; and seek no more to destroy my servants.  And it came to pass that the earth shook again, and the walls trembled” (Helaman 5:29-32).

Once when Alma was discouraged at his lack of success in preaching to the people of Ammonihah, the same angel visited him to send him back to tell the people that "except they repent the Lord God will destroy them" (Alma 8:16; see Alma 8:14–18). When he delivered his message in Ammonihah, Alma declared, "And now for this cause, that ye may not be destroyed, the Lord has sent his angel to visit many of his people" (Alma 9:25). This was the reason the angel had originally been sent to Alma and his friends. Alma then spoke of Christ's coming in words that remind us of his earlier vision, and added, "Now behold, this is the voice of the angel, crying unto the people" (Alma 9:29; see Alma 9:25–29).[3]


The day the Lord comes in his glory is coming.  He will be “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.”

When teaching the people of Zarahemla, Alma told them, “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” (Alma 7:7)  John wrote, “And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).  Through the grace of Christ, are we saved.  “But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they” (Acts 15:11).

In the record of Alma the Younger, Jesus Christ is said to be "full of grace, and mercy, and truth" (Alma 5:48) or "full of grace, equity, and truth" (Alma 9:26; 13:9). Only once does Alma address the question of how people obtain grace. Alma tells the people that they must continue "in the supplicating of his grace" (Alma 7:3), meaning that people had to ask for it.[4]

The Savior will come to redeem those who repent, are baptized, and have faith in His name.  “Alma did not say that Jesus would redeem everybody. The promise was restricted to those who, because of their faith in Christ, would repent and be baptized.”[5]

[1] Towards the end of Nephite history, Mormon would write, “And it came to pass that there were ten more who did fall by the sword, with their ten thousand each; yea, even all my people, save it were those twenty and four who were with me, and also a few who had escaped into the south countries, and a few who had deserted over unto the Lamanites, had fallen; and their flesh, and bones, and blood lay upon the face of the earth, being left by the hands of those who slew them to molder upon the land, and to crumble and to return to their mother earth” (Mormon 6:15). 
[2] My Testimony, President Gordon B. Hinckley, Ensign, May 2000, pg. 69.
[3] Book of Mormon Authorship Revisited – The Voice of an Angel, John A. Tvedtnes, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 21, 2015.
[4] The Grace of Christ, John Gee, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 21, 2015.
[5] Repentance, President Marion G.  Romney, October 1980 General Conference.
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)