Alma 7:9-12

9 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.

10 And behold, he shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers, she being a virgin, a precious and chosen vessel, who shall be overshadowed and conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God.

11 And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

12 And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities. (Alma 7:9-)

Alma was told to call his people to repent, to prepare the way of the Lord, to walk in His straight paths. This message was the same as given by John, the Baptist.

“And saying, Repent [The Greek word denotes “a change of heart or mind,” i.e., “a conversion.”] ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand [GR is come].

“For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias[1], saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Matthew 3:2-3).

The kingdom of heaven is at hand and the Son of God will soon come upon the face of the earth.

“For behold, the time cometh, and is not far distant, that with power, the Lord Omnipotent who reigneth, who was, and is from all eternity to all eternity, shall come down from heaven among the children of men, and shall dwell in a tabernacle of clay, and shall go forth amongst men, working mighty miracles, such as healing the sick, raising the dead, causing the lame to walk, the blind to receive their sight, and the deaf to hear, and curing all manner of diseases” (Mosiah 3:5).

Alma prophesies he will be born in the land of Jerusalem, to a virgin, “who shall be overshadowed and conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost, and bring forth a son, yea, even the Son of God” (Alma 7:10).

Critics of the Book of Mormon frequently point to this scripture as evidence Joseph Smith wrote the Book of Mormon. They claim he wrote Christ would be born in Jerusalem. We all know he was born in Bethlehem.

The critics, once again, show they know little to nothing about the Book of Mormon and how lands and cities are described. Mormon explains how lands and cities are named. “Now it was the custom of the people of Nephi to call their lands, and their cities, and their villages, yea, even all their small villages, after the name of him who first possessed them; and thus it was with the land of Ammonihah” (Alma 8:7).

Nephites refer to both lands and cities. It is not unusual to identify a land and a city. For example:

“And I [Zeniff] went in unto the king, and he covenanted with me that I might possess the land of Lehi-Nephi, and the land of Shilom…

“And we began to build buildings, and to repair the walls of the city, yea, even the walls of the city of Lehi-Nephi, and the city of Shilom” (Mosiah 9:6-8).

“Behold, we followed the camp of the Amlicites, and to our great astonishment, in the land of Minon, above the land of Zarahemla, in the course of the land of Nephi, we saw a numerous host of the Lamanites; and behold, the Amlicites have joined them;

“And it came to pass that the people of Nephi took their tents, and departed out of the valley of Gideon towards their city, which was the city of Zarahemla” (Alma 2:24, 26).

“And it came to pass that Amalickiah marched with his armies (for he had gained his desires) to the land of Nephi, to the city of Nephi, which was the chief city” (Alma 47:20).

When Alma refers to the land of Jerusalem, he is speaking to a group of people some 500 years after Lehi’s party left Jerusalem. Individual cities would have meant little to the Nephites. Jerusalem had meaning. The land of Jerusalem includes all cities in that area, of which Bethlehem would be one of the cities in the land.

To the contrary, Joseph Smith’s use of the term “land of Jerusalem,” is in keeping with the Nephite record. It shows consistency in the record rather than a mistake.

“It is sometimes rather difficult to see the point of this hoary old anti-Mormon chestnut. After all, no Latter-day Saint has ever interpreted the Book of Mormon as claiming that Jesus was born in Jerusalem rather than in Bethlehem. Alma 7:10 does not even mention the city of Jerusalem. Rather, the text reads: ‘And behold, he [Jesus] shall be born of Mary, at Jerusalem which is the land of our forefathers’ (emphasis in original). The Jerusalem at which Jesus was to be born is thus quite clearly called a land, not a city … [T]his is quite consistent with both biblical and Near Eastern literary practice. Latter-day Saints are quite content to believe both Alma and the New Testament, and to see them in harmony.”[2] The entire article is worth reading.

During His ministry, he will suffer pain and afflictions.

“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:3-5).

He will suffer temptations. “For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted [GR tried, subject to trial], he is able to succour them that are tempted” (Hebrews 2:18).

“And lo, he shall suffer temptations, and pain of body, hunger, thirst, and fatigue, even more than man can suffer, except it be unto death; for behold, blood cometh from every pore, so great shall be his anguish for the wickedness and the abominations of his people” (Mosiah 3:7).

“And thus the flesh becoming subject to the Spirit, or the Son to the Father, being one God, suffereth temptation, and yieldeth not to the temptation, but suffereth himself to be mocked, and scourged, and cast out, and disowned by his people” (Mosiah 15:5).

“He suffered temptations but gave no heed unto them” (D&C 20:22).

He will fulfill the word which said He will take upon Himself our pains and sickness.

take upon him.

“He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

“Surely he has borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

“But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed” (Mosiah 14:3-5).

“The clear implication here and elsewhere in the Book of Mormon is that if Christ had not submitted to the pains and afflictions and temptations as a participant and not simply as an ideal spectator, he would have been inacapable of the deepest levels of compassion. Compassion came through his experience, experience in the flesh.”[3]

Christ will take upon Himself death so we can be freed from death.

“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.

“O Lord, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid: thou hast loosed my bonds” (Psalm 116:15-16).

“Wherefore, how great the importance to make these things known unto the inhabitants of the earth, that they may know that there is no flesh that can dwell in the presence of God, save it be through the merits, and mercy, and grace of the Holy Messiah, who layeth down his life according to the flesh, and taketh it again by the power of the Spirit, that he may bring to pass the resurrection of the dead, being the first that should rise” (2 Nephi 2:8).

He will take upon Himself our infirmities. By doing this, He will know, according to the flesh, how to succor us.

“Behold, and hearken, O ye elders of my church, saith the Lord your God, even Jesus Christ, your advocate, who knoweth the weakness of man and how to succor them who are tempted” (D&C 62:1).

“Uniquely, atoning Jesus also ‘descended below all things, in that he comprehended all things’ (D&C 88:6; see also D&C 122:8). How deep that descent into despair and abysmal agony must have been! He did it to rescue us and in order to comprehend human suffering. Therefore, let us not resent those tutoring experiences which can develop our own empathy further (see Alma 7:11–12). A slothful heart will not do, and neither will a resentful heart. So being admitted fully to ‘the fellowship of his sufferings’ requires the full dues of discipleship (Philip. 3:10; see also 1 Cor. 1:9).

“Moreover, Jesus not only took upon Him our sins to atone for them, but also our sicknesses and aching griefs (see Alma 7:11–12; Matt. 8:17). Hence, He knows personally all that we pass through and how to extend His perfect mercy—as well as how to succor us. His agony was all the more astonishing in that He trod ‘the wine-press alone’ (D&C 133:50).”[4]

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[1] “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (Isaiah 40:3).

[2] On Alma 7:10 and the Birthplace of Jesus Christ, Daniel C. Peterson, Matthew Roper, and William J. Hamblin, Maxwell Institute website.

[3] B. H. Roberts: the Book of Mormon and the Atonement, Truman G. Madsen, Maxwell Institute website.

[4] “Plow in Hope,” Elder Neal A. Maxwell, April 2001 General Conference.