Chapter 29
Mosiah proposes that
judges be chosen in place of a king—Unrighteous kings lead their people into
sin—Alma the younger is chosen chief judge by the voice of the people—He is
also the high priest over the Church—Alma the elder and Mosiah die. About 92–91B.C.
1 Now when Mosiah had
done this he sent out throughout all the land, among all the people, desiring
to know their will concerning who should be their king.
2 And it came to pass
that the voice of the people came, saying: We are desirous that Aaron thy son
should be our king and our ruler.
3 Now Aaron had gone
up to the land of Nephi, therefore the king could not confer the kingdom upon
him; neither would Aaron take upon him the kingdom; neither were any of the
sons of Mosiah willing to take upon them the kingdom.
4 Therefore king
Mosiah sent again among the people; yea, even a written word sent he among the
people. And these were the words that were written, saying:
5 Behold, O ye my
people, or my brethren, for I esteem you as such, I desire that ye should
consider the cause which ye are called to consider—for ye are desirous to have
a king.
6 Now I declare unto
you that he to whom the kingdom doth rightly belong has declined, and will not
take upon him the kingdom.
7 And now if there
should be another appointed in his stead, behold I fear there would rise
contentions among you. And who knoweth but what my son, to whom the kingdom
doth belong, should turn to be angry and draw away a part of this people after
him, which would cause wars and contentions among you, which would be the cause
of shedding much blood and perverting the way of the Lord, yea, and destroy the
souls of many people.
8 Now I say unto you
let us be wise and consider these things, for we have no right to destroy my
son, neither should we have any right to destroy another if he should be
appointed in his stead.
9 And if my son should
turn again to his pride and vain things he would recall the things which he had
said, and claim his right to the kingdom, which would cause him and also this
people to commit much sin.
10 And now let us be
wise and look forward to these things, and do that which will make for the
peace of this people.
11 Therefore I will be
your king the remainder of my days; nevertheless, let us appoint judges, to
judge this people according to our law; and we will newly arrange the affairs
of this people, for we will appoint wise men to be judges, that will judge this
people according to the commandments of God.
12 Now it is better
that a man should be judged of God than of man, for the judgments of God are
always just, but the judgments of man are not always just.
13 Therefore, if it
were possible that you could have just men to be your kings, who would
establish the laws of God, and judge this people according to his commandments,
yea, if ye could have men for your kings who would do even as my father
Benjamin did for this people—I say unto you, if this could always be the case
then it would be expedient that ye should always have kings to rule over you.
14 And even I myself
have labored with all the power and faculties which I have possessed, to teach
you the commandments of God, and to establish peace throughout the land, that
there should be no wars nor contentions, no stealing, nor plundering, nor
murdering, nor any manner of iniquity;
15 And whosoever has
committed iniquity, him have I punished according to the crime which he has
committed, according to the law which has been given to us by our fathers.
The time came when Mosiah asked the people who they wanted
as their king. The voice of the people said they wanted his son, Aaron to be
the king; however, Aaron had left on his mission to take the gospel to the
Lamanites in the land of Nephi. All his sons had made it clear they were not willing
to become king.
“[This was the] immediate situation that prompted Mosiah II
to institute a system of judges to govern the Nephites was the departure of his
four sons. The people asked that Aaron be appointed king, but he and his
brothers had gone to the land of Nephi to preach to the Lamanites and had
renounced their claims to the monarchy.”[1]
“[T]he Nephite shift described in Mosiah 29 resulted from
more immediate concerns, namely the succession after Mosiah2. With
the rightful heir, Mosiah’s son Aaron, proselyting among the Lamanites, the king
was concerned that if he appointed someone else as his successor, Aaron might
return and lay claim to the throne, resulting in civil strife. No doubt his
heightened awareness of the problems of royal succession in the Jaredite
writings (see Ether 7-15), along with the unfortunate events surrounding King
Noah (see Mosiah 11-19), influenced his decision
to end the monarchy and forestall calamity.”[2]
Mosiah sent a written epistle to his people. He wrote he was
addressing their desire to have a king. He reminded them none of his sons would
accept the kingship.
If he appointed someone else king, he feared this would
divide the people. What if one of his sons returned and desired the kingdom. This
could lead to a civil war and there would be “contentions among you, which
would be the cause of shedding much blood and perverting the way of the Lord,
yea, and destroy the souls of many people” (Mosiah 29:7).
“Such a situation
had never occurred among the Nephites, but it was common among the Jaredites
for brother to rebel against brother or father and draw away part of the people
to wage war … Indeed, the idea in Mosiah 29:7 of ‘drawing away’ supporters is
known in the Book of Mormon only from the Jaredite record.”[3]
Mosiah wrote he would remain king for the remainder of his
life. Then, he asked the people to appoint judges, “by the voice of this
people, judges, that ye may be judged according to the laws which have been
given you by our fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the
hand of the Lord” (Mosiah 29:25).
“‘Let us appoint judges,’ he says (Mosiah 29:11), and
everyone seems to know exactly what he means, for in his speech, which is given
in full, he does not have to explain the system to his hearers at all, and they
adopt his suggestions quite readily and without any of the confusion and
jamming that always goes with a shift from one type of government to a wholly
different one.”[4]
Mosiah reminded them it is better we should be judged by
God, for His judgments are always just, unlike the judgments of man which are
not always just.
“The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me, He
that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God” (2 Samuel
23:3).
“And the heavens shall declare his righteousness: for God is
judge himself” (Psalm 50:6).
“But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up
another” (Psalms 75:7).
“But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove
with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the
rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked” (2 Nephi
21:4).
If they could ensure they would have just men to be their
kings, like his father Benjamin, it would be appropriate for them to have a
king.
Mosiah had given his best efforts to teach them the
commandments of God and established peace throughout the land.
Those who were guilty of violations of the commandments were
punished according to the crime which they committed. Punishments were given “according
to the law which has been given to us by our fathers” (Mosiah 29:15).
[1] King
Mosiah and the Judgeship, John A. Tvedtnes, Maxwell Institute website.
[2] “And
it came to pass . . .”: The Sociopolitical Events in the Book of Mormon Leading
to the Eighteenth Year of the Reign of the Judges, Dan Belnap, Journal of
Book of Mormon Studies 23 (2014): 104-105.
[4] An Approach
to the Book of Mormon, Politics in Jerusalem, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell
Institute website.
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