23 And after he had
eaten and was filled he said unto Amulek: I am Alma, and am the high priest
over the church of God throughout the land.
24 And behold, I have
been called to preach the word of God among all this people, according to the
spirit of revelation and prophecy; and I was in this land and they would not
receive me, but they cast me out and I was about to set my back towards this
land forever.
25 But behold, I have
been commanded that I should turn again and prophesy unto this people, yea, and
to testify against them concerning their iniquities.
26 And now, Amulek,
because thou hast fed me and taken me in, thou art blessed; for I was an
hungered, for I had fasted many days.
27 And Alma tarried
many days with Amulek before he began to preach unto the people.
28 And it came to pass
that the people did wax more gross in their iniquities.
29 And the word came to Alma, saying: Go; and also say unto
my servant Amulek, go forth and prophesy unto this people, saying—Repent ye,
for thus saith the Lord, except ye repent I will visit this people in mine
anger; yea, and I will not turn my fierce anger away.
30 And Alma went
forth, and also Amulek, among the people, to declare the words of God unto
them; and they were filled with the Holy Ghost.
31 And they had power
given unto them, insomuch that they could not be confined in dungeons; neither
was it possible that any man could slay them; nevertheless they did not
exercise their power until they were bound in bands and cast into prison. Now, this was done that the Lord might show
forth his power in them.
32 And it came to pass
that they went forth and began to preach and to prophesy unto the people,
according to the spirit and power which the Lord had given them.
Alma 8:23-32
Having finished eating, Alma introduced himself to Amulek,
identifying himself as the high priest.
He explained the Lord had called him to preach to the people “according to the spirt of revelation and
prophecy.” This he did in Ammonihah,
but he was thrown out of the city.
Though he had been cast out, he was commanded to return and
preach to the people because of their sins.
He blessed Amulek for taking him in and feed him. He spent more time with Amulek until he was
ready to preach to the people.
Only by divine intervention and a
visit from an angel of the Lord to Alma was Ammonihah given another chance to
hear God's word through the prophet (see Alma 8:14–18). Returning to Ammonihah,
Alma found a spiritually receptive Amulek readily confessing that he knew, also
by angelic visitation, that Alma was "a holy prophet of God" (Alma
8:20). After spending "many days with Amulek" (Alma 8:27), presumably
teaching and preparing him for the ministry, Alma received revelation that they
both were to "go forth and prophesy" unto the people of Ammonihah
(Alma 8:29).[1]
And the Ammonihahites became more wicked, if that was
possible.
The day came when Alma was commanded to return and continue
his mission to Ammonihah. He was also
commanded to bring Amulek as his companion on his mission. He was commanded to repeat the same message
he did during his first mission. “Behold,
now I say unto you that he commandeth you to repent; and except ye repent, ye
can in nowise inherit the kingdom of God.
But behold, this is not all—he has commanded you to repent, or he will
utterly destroy you from off the face of the earth; yea, he will visit you in
his anger, and in his fierce anger he will not turn away. But behold, I say
unto you that if ye persist in your wickedness that your days shall not be prolonged
in the land, for the Lamanites shall be sent upon you; and if ye repent not
they shall come in a time when you know not, and ye shall be visited with cutter
destruction; and it shall be according to the fierce anger of the Lord” (Alma
9:12, 18).
After those days of instruction and
private association with Alma, Amulek was converted and called to "go
forth and prophesy" that if the people would not repent, the Lord would
not turn away his "fierce anger" (Alma 8:29). Amulek accepted the call,
and together he and Alma commenced their public mission (9:1). The exact text
and precise date of their judgment speech is not known, but fifty days after
Passover would place their public declaration, like Abinadi's, very close to
the time of the Feast of Pentecost, a time traditionally associated with
remembering the law and calling the nation to repentance.[2]
They went forth to preach to the people. They were filled with the Holy Ghost and
given great power. They could not be
slain or cast into prison. Even with
their power, they rarely used it.
According to Mormon, it was only when they were cast into prison that
Alma and Amulek used their power. We will
read:
“And
the chief judge stood before them, and smote them again, and said unto them: If
ye have the power of God deliver yourselves from these bands, and then we will
believe that the Lord will destroy this people according to your words. And it
came to pass that they all went forth and smote them, saying the same words,
even until the last; and when the last had spoken unto them the power of God
was upon Alma and Amulek, and they rose and stood upon their feet. And Alma
cried, saying: How long shall we suffer these great afflictions, O Lord? O Lord, give us strength according to our
faith which is in Christ, even unto deliverance. And they broke the cords with which they were
bound; and when the people saw this, they began to flee, for the fear of
destruction had come upon them” (Alma 14:24-26).
Their power was used as a warning to the people they were
filled with God’s power.
So, Alma and Amulek went froth and began preaching to the
Ammonihahites, being guide by the Lord’s Spirit.
[1] The
Temple in Time and Eternity – Conflicting Orders: Alma and Amulek in Ammonihah,
Thomas R. Valletta, Maxwell Institute, accessed March 13, 2015.
[2] The
Legal Cases in the Book of Mormon – The Trial of Alma and Amulek, Maxwell
Institute, accessed March 13, 2015.
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