Alma 13:4-9

4 And thus they have been called to this holy calling on account of their faith, while others would reject the Spirit of God on account of the hardness of their hearts and blindness of their minds, while, if it had not been for this they might have had as great privilege as their brethren.

5 Or in fine, in the first place they were on the same standing with their brethren; thus this holy calling being prepared from the foundation of the world for such as would not harden their hearts, being in and through the atonement of the Only Begotten Son, who was prepared—

6 And thus being called by this holy calling, and ordained unto the high priesthood of the holy order of God, to teach his commandments unto the children of men, that they also might enter into his rest—

7 This high priesthood being after the order of his Son, which order was from the foundation of the world; or in other words, being without beginning of days or end of years, being prepared from eternity to all eternity, according to his foreknowledge of all things—

8 Now they were ordained after this manner—being called with a holy calling, and ordained with a holy ordinance, and taking upon them the high priesthood of the holy order, which calling, and ordinance, and high priesthood, is without beginning or end—

9 Thus they become high priests forever, after the order of the Son, the Only Begotten of the Father, who is without beginning of days or end of years, who is full of grace, equity, and truth. And thus it is. Amen. (Alma 13:4-9)

Alma continues to teach them about those who are called to hold the priesthood.

Those who are called to receive the priesthood are called because of their faith. “Behold it was by faith that they of old were called after the holy order of God” (Ether 12:10).

Those who are not called are not called because they reject the Spirit of God because they have hardened their hearts and blinded their minds.

“Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch” (Matthew 15:14).

“But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which veil is done away in Christ” (2 Corinthians 3:14).

“Wo unto the blind that will not see; for they shall perish also” (2 Nephi 9:32).

Had they not, they would have received the priesthood as did their faithful brethren.

“[A]s people do in this world, the maturing spirits in the premortal world advanced at different rates and to different levels of spirituality, though Alma says that they were initially on the same standing with each other (Alma 13:5); that is, they had equal opportunity to advance, but some rejected the Spirit of God ‘on account of the hardness of their hearts and blindness of their mind’ (Alma 13:4) and did not make the progress that would have given them the privilege of entering the holy order.”[1]

At the first, all were on the same standing. “For there is no respect [GR partiality] of persons with God” (Romans 2:11). Those who received the calling were prepared from the beginning.

The did not harden their hearts “being in and through the atonement.”

Having been called and ordained to the high priesthood, they will teach His commandments to us so we might enter into his rest.

“You can study the word of God, not for yourself alone but to be an emissary of the Lord Jesus Christ to all the world. When you increase your power to teach the gospel, you are qualifying to help Heavenly Father in gathering His children. As you do that, another blessing will come. Should the need ever come in family life in this world, or in the world to come, to draw back lost sheep, you will have received more power than you may now recognize.”[2]

This priesthood, after the order of Christ, was from the foundation of the world, without beginning, “being prepared from eternity to all eternity, according to his foreknowledge of all things” (Alma 13:7).

“For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him;

“To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace;

“Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually”[3] (Hebrews 7:1-3).

“[Referring to Hebrews 7:1-3] Here we are left with the impression that there was a man, a king, with no father, mother, genealogy, beginning, or end. In Alma 13, we have an expanded discourse on Melchizedek and the clarification that Paul was not referring to a man but to the high priesthood: ‘This high priesthood being after the order of his Son, which order was from the foundation of the world; or in other words, being without beginning of days or end of years, being prepared from eternity to all eternity, according to his foreknowledge of all things’ (Alma 13:7; italics added).”[4]

They were ordained after they were called and ordained with a holy ordinance to the holy order.

Those ordained “high priests forever, after the order of the Son” (Alma 13:9).

“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth…

“For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ”[5] (John 1:14, 17).

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[1] Alma the Younger Covenants with the Fathers (Part 1), M. Catherine Thomas, Maxwell Institute website.

[2] Faith and the Oath and Covenant of the Priesthood, President Henry B. Eyring, April 2008 General Conference.

[3] “For this Melchizedek was ordained a priest after the order of the Son of God, which order was without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life. And all those who are ordained unto this priesthood are made like unto the Son of God, abiding a priest continually” (JST, Hebrews 7:3).

[4] The Book of Mormon, an Interpretive Guide to the New Testament, Dennis Largey, Maxwell Institute website.

[5] “For the law was given through Moses, but life and truth came through Jesus Christ” (JST, John 1:17).