10 And thus ended the
eighth year of the reign of the judges; and the wickedness of the church was a
great stumbling-block to those who did not belong to the church; and thus the
church began to fail in its progress.
11 And it came to pass
in the commencement of the ninth year, Alma saw the wickedness of the church,
and he saw also that the example of the church began to lead those who were
unbelievers on from one piece of iniquity to another, thus bringing on the
destruction of the people.
12 Yea, he saw great
inequality among the people, some lifting themselves up with their pride,
despising others, turning their backs upon the needy and the naked and those
who were hungry, and those who were athirst, and those who were sick and
afflicted.
13 Now this was a
great cause for lamentations among the people, while others were abasing
themselves, succoring those who stood in need of their succor, such as
imparting their substance to the poor and the needy, feeding the hungry, and
suffering all manner of afflictions, for Christ’s sake, who should come
according to the spirit of prophecy;
14 Looking forward to
that day, thus retaining a remission of their sins; being filled with great joy
because of the resurrection of the dead, according to the will and power and deliverance
of Jesus Christ from the bands of death.
15 And now it came to
pass that Alma, having seen the afflictions of the humble followers of God, and
the persecutions which were heaped upon them by the remainder of his people,
and seeing all their inequality, began to be very sorrowful; nevertheless the
Spirit of the Lord did not fail him.
16 And he selected a
wise man who was among the elders of the church, and gave him power according
to the voice of the people, that he might have power to enact laws according to
the laws which had been given, and to put them in force according to the
wickedness and the crimes of the people.
17 Now this man’s name
was Nephihah, and he was appointed chief judge; and he sat in the judgment-seat
to judge and to govern the people.
18 Now Alma did not
grant unto him the office of being high priest over the church, but he retained
the office of high priest unto himself; but he delivered the judgment-seat unto
Nephihah.
19 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.
20 And thus in the
commencement of the ninth year of the reign of the judges over the people of
Nephi, Alma delivered up the judgment-seat to Nephihah, and confined himself
wholly to the high priesthood of the holy order of God, to the testimony of the
word, according to the spirit of revelation and prophecy. (Alma 4:10-20)
In the ninth year of the reign of the judges, the wickedness
of church members led those who weren’t to go “from one piece of iniquity to
another” (Alma 4:11). There was inequality in society. The rich lifted
themselves up. They were a proud people. They despised the poor, ignoring their
need. Isaiah warned, “The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients [HEB
elders] of his people, and the princes [HEB rulers or leaders] thereof: for ye
have eaten [HEB consumed or burned] up the vineyard; the spoil [OR embezzled
gain] of the poor is in your houses” (Isaiah 3:14).
Jacob addressed this early in Nephite history. “Think of
your brethren like unto yourselves, and be familiar with all and free with your
substance, that they may be rich like unto you” (Jacob 2:17).
There were others who humbled themselves before the Lord. They
helped the poor and needy. They also suffered afflictions for their beliefs. “Therefore
I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions,
in distresses for Christ’s sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians
12:10).
Church members looked forward towards to the day they will
gain a remission of their sins.
“Rather than being portrayed as a lifelong process completed
only when one is perfect, remission of sins is almost always described as
something which occurs at the outset of an individual's acceptance of
Christ/the Gospel (2 Nephi 3 1: 17-20) and which must be retained (Mosiah 4:
11-12.26; Alma 4: 14) during the long and gradual process of sanctification
(Helaman 3:35, Alma 13: 10-12).”[1]
They also looked forward to the resurrection of the dead and
Christ’s delivering them from the bands of death.
Alma saw what was going on. Less then a decade earlier,
Mormon described Nephite society.
“And now, because of the steadiness of the church they began
to be exceedingly rich, having abundance of all things whatsoever they stood in
need—an abundance of flocks and herds, and fatlings of every kind, and also
abundance of grain, and of gold, and of silver, and of precious things, and
abundance of silk and fine-twined linen, and all manner of good homely cloth.
“And thus, in their prosperous circumstances, they did not
send away any who were naked, or that were hungry, or that were athirst, or
that were sick, or that had not been nourished; and they did not set their
hearts upon riches; therefore they were liberal to all, both old and young,
both bond and free, both male and female, whether out of the church or in the
church, having no respect to persons as to those who stood in need” (Alma
1:29-30).
He was sorrowful because of the inequality and persecutions
he saw among his people. Paul warned the Corinthians about neglecting the poor.
“But by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may be a supply for
their want, that their abundance also may be a supply for your want: that there
may be equality” (2 Corinthians 8:14).
The Lord told us, “But it is not given that one man should
possess that which is above another, wherefore the world lieth in sin” (D&C
49:20).
Even so, the Spirit of the Lord was with Alma.
Alma decided to resign his position as chief judge. He
selected “a wise man who was among the elders of the church.” (Alma 4:16). This
man was Nephihah.
Alma only stepped down as the chief judge. He kept his
office of high priest over the church. He did this so he could go among the
people and preach the word of God. This is how he approached his mission to the
Zoramites.
“And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency
to lead the people to do that which was just—yea, it had had more powerful
effect upon the minds of the people than the sword, or anything else, which had
happened unto them—therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try
the virtue of the word of God” (Alma 31:5).
He went forth to…
- stir them up in remembrance of their duty.
- remind them of their duty.
- pull down the pride, craftiness, and contentions among the people.
- bear pure testimony against the people.
This is also how the Lord expects us to teach the gospel. “Therefore,
strengthen your brethren in all your conversation, in all your prayers, in all
your exhortations, and in all your doings” (D&C 108:7).
“A testimony is what we know to be true in our minds and in
our hearts by the witness of the Holy Ghost (see D&C 8:2). As we profess
truth rather than admonish, exhort, or simply share interesting experiences, we
invite the Holy Ghost to confirm the verity of our words. The power of pure
testimony (see Alma 4:19) does not come from sophisticated language or
effective presentation; rather, it is the result of revelation conveyed by the
third member of the Godhead, even the Holy Ghost.”[2]
As the ninth year begins, Nephihah is the chief judge. Alma
is the high priest over the church, and his mission to his people has begun.
[1] Review
of Doctrines of the Book of Mormon: The
1991 Sperry Symposium (1992), edited by Bruce A. Van Orden and Brent L.
Top, Mack C. Stirling, Review of Books on
the Book of Mormon 5/1 (1993): 293.
[2] More
Diligent and Concerned at Home, Elder David A. Bednar, October 2009 General
Conference.
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