Mosiah 12:9-16

9 And it came to pass that they were angry with him; and they took him and carried him bound before the king, and said unto the king: Behold, we have brought a man before thee who has prophesied evil concerning thy people, and saith that God will destroy them.

10 And he also prophesieth evil concerning thy life, and saith that thy life shall be as a garment in a furnace of fire.

11 And again, he saith that thou shalt be as a stalk, even as a dry stalk of the field, which is run over by the beasts and trodden under foot.

12 And again, he saith thou shalt be as the blossoms of a thistle, which, when it is fully ripe, if the wind bloweth, it is driven forth upon the face of the land.  And he pretendeth the Lord hath spoken it.  And he saith all this shall come upon thee except thou repent, and this because of thine iniquities.

13 And now, O king, what great evil hast thou done, or what great sins have thy people committed, that we should be condemned of God or judged of this man?

14 And now, O king, behold, we are guiltless, and thou, O king, hast not sinned; therefore, this man has lied concerning you, and he has prophesied in vain.

15 And behold, we are strong, we shall not come into bondage, or be taken captive by our enemies; yea, and thou hast prospered in the land, and thou shalt also prosper.

16 Behold, here is the man, we deliver him into thy hands; thou mayest do with him as seemeth thee good.

Mosiah 12:9-16

It’s not surprising to find after Abinadi finished presenting his message to the Nephites, they were not very happy with him.  In fact, they were quite angry over the words he spoke.  He was bound and, “[r]eflecting … typical Israelite practice, groups of people in the Book of Mormon were frequently the initiators of legal actions. The people seized Abinadi and took him to King Noah (Mosiah 12:9).”^[1] 

Not only had he said evil things about the people, he said the kings life would eventually “be as a garment in a furnace of fire.”  If that wasn’t bad enough, the people told the king Abinadi said, “thou shalt be as a stalk … which is run over by the beasts and trodden under foot.” 

As explained in Mosiah 12, King Noah's subjects charged Abinadi with two counts of false prophecy—one against the people, and the other against the king (Mosiah 12:9—10). Although King Noah coordinated most of the trial [50] and pronounced the final verdict against Abinadi, Noah's priests also exercised much power over the proceedings.^[2]

But, it doesn’t stop there.  He would be like the blossoms on a thistle.  He would be blown wherever the wind blew the thistle.

Had Abinadi declared, "The life of King Noah shall become of little value," his message would have lacked force and vitality. With imagery, his message is effective and stirring: the life of King Noah shall be "as a garment in a furnace of fire. . . . as a stalk, even as a dry stalk of the field, which is run over by the beasts and trodden under foot. . . . as the blossoms of a thistle, which, when it is fully ripe, if the wind bloweth, it is driven forth upon the face of the land" (Mosiah 12:10–12).[3]

The people told the king that they knew he had done no evil.  He has not committed any sin nor have the people.  Who does he think he is to claim God is judging the people and the king?

The people proclaimed themselves “guiltless.”  They hadn’t sinned nor had the king.  Abinadi was a liar.  Not only that, “he has prophesied in vain.”  They rejected his claim they would end up in bondage.  They were strong and prosperous.  This was all because of the king.

With these charges, Abinadi was delivered to king Noah.  They told him to “do with him as seemeth thee good.” 

---

[1] The Trial of Jeremiah: A Legal Legacy from Lehi's Jerusalem, John W. Welch, Maxwell Institute.

[2] Ancient Aspects of Nephite Kingship in the Book of Mormon, Todd R. Kerr, Maxwell Institute.

[3] "Not Cast Off Forever" – Imagery, Maxwell Institute.