Chapter 4
King Benjamin continues his address—Salvation comes
because of the atonement—Believe in God to be saved—Retain a remission of your
sins through faithfulness—Impart of your substance to the poor—Do all things in
wisdom and order. About 124 B.C.
1 AND now, it came to pass that when king Benjamin had
made an end of speaking the words which had been delivered unto him by the
angel of the Lord, that he cast his eyes round about on the multitude, and
behold they had fallen to the earth, for the fear of the Lord had come upon
them.
2 And they had viewed themselves in their own carnal
state, even less than the dust of the earth.
And they all cried aloud with one voice, saying: O have mercy, and apply
the atoning blood of Christ that we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and
our hearts may be purified; for we believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who
created heaven and earth, and all things; who shall come down among the
children of men.
3 And it came to pass that after they had spoken these
words the Spirit of the Lord came upon them, and they were filled with joy,
having received a remission of their sins, and having peace of conscience,
because of the exceeding faith which they had in Jesus Christ who should come,
according to the words which king Benjamin had spoken unto them.
Mosiah 4:1-3
King Benjamin ends the
message the angel told him to give his people.
When he looked over the people, they had prostrated themselves “for the
fear of the Lord had come upon them.” A
similar thing happened when princes were sent to Baruch, Jeremiah’s scribe, to
hear the words of Jeremiah. “Now it came
to pass, when they had heard all the words, they were afraid both one and
other, and said unto Baruch, We will surely tell the king of all these words” (Jeremiah
36:16).
"Why did the people fall
to the earth? I’ve never seen this
happen, no matter how powerful the message.
“[T]here is reason to believe that some kind of cue, such as the blowing
of a horn or the announcement of an acclamation, would have been given to
assemble the people (see Mosiah 2:9), to call them again to attention (see
Mosiah 3:1), to call the people to fall simultaneously to the ground
(see Mosiah 4:1), and to cry aloud all with one voice (see Mosiah 4:2;
5:2).”[1]
John Welch further explains, “Bowing
down—or more dramatically, full prostration—is not only an instinctive response
when coming into the presence of a superior being, but it is also a common
element of ritual. Collective group prostration, particularly in a temple
context, was more than simply a reaction of people being overcome. It had long
been a customary part of the Nephite covenant-making ceremony (see Mosiah
4:1).”[2]
So, we see the falling to the
earth was an important part of the ritual.
Benjamin’s words made the
people aware of their carnal state. They
were “Less than the dust of the earth.” The
people cried, saying, “have mercy, and apply the atoning blood of Christ that
we may receive forgiveness of our sins, and our hearts may be purified; for we
believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who created heaven and earth, and all
things; who shall come down among the children of men.”
Hugh Nibley explains the
people crying together.
“As
in Mosiah, there were frequent exchanges between the king and the people, the
latter reciting in unison. This explains the odd circumstance in which the
people ‘all cried aloud with one voice’ (Mosiah 4:2) and proceeded to recite in
unison an ecstatic statement of some fifty words. How could they do it
spontaneously ‘with one voice’? Throughout the world such acclamations were led
by a special cheerleader, sometimes called a stasiarch, who stood before the crowd and received notes
from important people or shouts from the audience requesting particular cheers.
He would recite a sentence to the people and wave a flag to lead them in a
uniform chant (compare Deuteronomy 27:14–26). Sometimes the king himself chose
to lead the cheering, and some Roman emperors enjoyed it. There was no limit to
what could be shouted in unison, and it could go on for hours.[3]
Asking the Lord to apply the “atoning
blood of Christ” is important. Hugh
Nibley explains we are given choice.
“If we would have God ‘apply
the atoning blood of Christ’ (Mosiah 4:2) to our case, we can also reject it.
We can take advantage of it or we can refuse it. The Atonement is either dead
to us or it is in full effect. It is the supreme sacrifice made for us, and to
receive it we must live up to every promise and covenant related to it—the Day
of Atonement was the day of covenants, and the place was the temple.”[4]
The Lord heard their
plea. The Spirit of the Lord came upon
the people. They rejoiced because they
had received a remission of their sins.
Their conscience was at peace.
This was all don through their faith in Christ and their acceptance of
what King Benjamin had told them.
[1] King
Benjamin's Speech in the Context of Ancient Israelite Festivals, Terrence
L. Szink & John W. Welch, Maxwell Institute, accessed July 31, 2014.
[2] Toward
an Understanding of the Sermon as an Ancient Temple Text, John W. Welch,
Maxwell Institute, accessed July 31, 2014.
[3] Assembly
and Atonement – Public and Private, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute,
accessed July 31, 2014.
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