Alma 19:29-36

29  And it came to pass that she went and took the queen by the hand, that perhaps she might raise her from the ground; and as soon as she touched her hand she arose and stood upon her feet, and cried with a loud voice, saying: O blessed Jesus, who has saved me from an awful hell!  O blessed God, have mercy on this people!

30  And when she had said this, she [clapped] her hands, being filled with joy, speaking many words which were not understood; and when she had done this, she took the king, Lamoni, by the hand, and behold he arose and stood upon his feet.

31  And he, immediately, seeing the contention among his people, went forth and began to rebuke them, and to teach them the words which he had heard from the mouth of Ammon; and as many as heard his words believed, and were converted unto the Lord.

32  But there were many among them who would not hear his words; therefore they went their way.

Alma 19:29-32 (Emphasis mine)

We find a mistake in verse 30.  The published version says that the queen ”clasped her hands.”  This should have been “clapped.”  Checking the original manuscript, Royal Skousen wrote:

“The 1830 typesetter apparently interpreted Oliver Cowdery's spelling claped as missing an s, yet this spelling is simply the result of the scribes' tendency to not double consonants after a short vowel. Elsewhere, the text does refer to the more emotional clapping of hands (‘they clapped their hands for joy,’ in Mosiah 18:11), but never to clasping hands. In this second example, Oliver Cowdery also spelled clapped with a single p.” [1] (Emphasis mine)

The time had come to end the contention.  Abish went forward and took the queen  by the hand.  The queen stood up and began to praise Christ. 

She then took Lamoni by the hand and he stood.  Seeing the contention, he immediately rebuked the people, putting an end to their contentions.  He proceeded to preach the words of Ammon to the people, and many were converted; however, many exercised their free agency to ignore his words.  This is not an usual result.  John recorded:

37  ¶ But though he had done so many miracles before them, yet they believed not on him:

John 12:37 (Emphasis mine)

33  And it came to pass that when Ammon arose he also administered unto them, and also did all the servants of Lamoni; and they did all declare unto the people the selfsame thing—that their hearts had been changed; that they had no more desire to do evil.

34  And behold, many did declare unto the people that they had seen angels and had conversed with them; and thus they had told them things of God, and of his righteousness.

35  And it came to pass that there were many that did believe in their words; and as many as did believe were baptized; and they became a righteous people, and they did establish a church among them.

36  And thus the work of the Lord did commence among the Lamanites; thus the Lord did begin to pour out his Spirit upon them; and we see that his arm is extended to all people who will repent and believe on his name

Alma 19:33-36 (Emphasis mine)

After Ammon arose, he administered to the people and proclaimed that their hearts had changed, “they had no more desire to do evil.”  (verse 33)

This is a powerful and mighty change.  Here we have people who knew nothing about the gospel.  Hearing and accepting Ammon’s words gave them a unique experience – to be taught by heavenly messengers. 

We have another example of this mighty change among the people.  This occurred among the Nephites after King Benjamin’s powerful sermon.  The scriptures tell us that:

2  And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.

Mosiah 5:2 (Emphasis mine)

This is also an important event in Book of Mormon history.  Hugh Nibley writes:

“Here we reach a critical point in Book of Mormon history. From this time on the Lamanites start going up in virtue, and the Nephites start going down. The Lamanites become the virtuous people now. It's a very strong trend we see from here on. This critical moment in history is the turning point.  It had to be, and the only way such a thing could happen would have to be by another Pentecost, by an eruption of the spirit…

“The big shift begins here in the Book of Mormon where the Lamanites begin to get a break. We talked about mixing races; from now on you're not going to be able to distinguish them at all. Many said ‘they had seen angels and had conversed with them . . . and as many as did believe were baptized; and they became a righteous people, and they did establish a church among them. And thus the work of the Lord did commence among the Lamanites.’ That's why this thing is so sensational, so very striking. The work of the Lord begins among the Lamanites. The moral of that, says Mormon, is ‘that his arm is extended to all people who will repent and believe on his name.’ “ [2] (Emphasis mine)

In closing, I would like to share some comments from James Faulconer.  Sharing his love of the Book of Mormon, he wrote:

“Though it was a while in coming, my experience with the Book of Mormon is that, as much or more than any other scriptural work, it opens the opportunity for me to enjoy an experience with the Spirit, an experience in which I learn not only the content of the Book of Mormon, but, more important, what it means to be a saint, a person who desires to be holy, who desires to be like the Savior, Jesus Christ. Reading the Book of Mormon gives me a chance to hear the call of the Spirit, to have, at least for a while, my desires purified, to have ‘no more desire to do evil’ (Alma 19:33). The Book of Mormon straightforwardly directs me along the path I started on when was baptized, and that is why I love it.” [3]  (Emphasis mine)

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[1] The Systematic Text of the Book of Mormon, Royal Skousen, Maxwell Institute, accessed September 11, 2011.

[2] Lecture 52: Alma 19-22, Hugh W. Nibley, Maxwell Institute, accessed September 11, 2011.

[3] With Real Intent, James E. Faulconer, Maxwell Institute, accessed September 11, 2011.

Alma 19:12-28

12  And it came to pass that he arose, according to the words of Ammon; and as he arose, he stretched forth his hand unto the woman, and said: Blessed be the name of God, and blessed art thou.

13  For as sure as thou livest, behold, I have seen my Redeemer; and he shall come forth, and be born of a woman, and he shall redeem all mankind who believe on his name.  Now, when he had said these words, his heart was swollen within him, and he sunk again with joy; and the queen also sunk down, being overpowered by the Spirit.

14  Now Ammon seeing the Spirit of the Lord poured out according to his prayers upon the Lamanites, his brethren, who had been the cause of so much mourning among the Nephites, or among all the people of God because of their iniquities and their traditions, he fell upon his knees, and began to pour out his soul in prayer and thanksgiving to God for what he had done for his brethren; and he was also overpowered with joy; and thus they all three had sunk to the earth.

Alma 19:12-14 (Emphasis mine)

Right on time, Lamoni arose and began prophesying and preaching Christ.  He proclaimed Christ would be born of a woman and would redeem all mankind. 

Then, he “sunk down, being overpowered by the Spirit.” (verse 13)  The queen was overpowered by the Spirit as well. 

Ammon began to pray and express his gratitude for what was happening.  Then Ammon became overpowered with joy and sunk to the ground.

Why was there all this passing out?  Hugh Nibley explains:

“An interesting thing is about to happen here. He [the king] arose and said, ‘I have seen my Redeemer.' … They were all passing out. This is the way you do when you are completely overwhelmed this way. Verse 14: ‘He fell upon his knees, and began to pour out his soul in prayer and thanksgiving to God for what he had done for his brethren [Ammon did this because his message has gotten over]; and he was also overpowered with joy [and he fell down, too]; and thus they all three had sunk to the earth.’

“Of course, the hardest thing to contain is joy … joy is a thing that scares the daylights out of you. You can't contain it and don't know what to do with it … that's the purpose of our existence—we ‘are that we might have joy.’ So we are learning to control joy and control ourselves when we have it. We can't contain it, you see. It's a hard thing to contain. What do you do? Do you shout and holler and run around? Do you make a fool of yourself, etc.? How can you contain that in yourself? Well, they are all sinking down here and passing out, and that's the best thing. After all, when pain becomes too great you black out automatically. So that takes care of that. It's the same thing with joy if you can't contain it. When you don't know how to handle a problem psychologically, what do you do? You black out. This is your defense.” [1] (Emphasis mine)

The Spirit had to have been very powerful and these three had great joy, joy beyond measure for there to be a response like this. 

15  Now, when the servants of the king had seen that they had fallen, they also began to cry unto God, for the fear of the Lord had come upon them also, for it was they who had stood before the king and testified unto him concerning the great power of Ammon.

16  And it came to pass that they did call on the name of the Lord, in their might, even until they had all fallen to the earth, save it were one of the Lamanitish women, whose name was Abish, she having been converted unto the Lord for many years, on account of a remarkable vision of her father—

17  Thus, having been converted to the Lord, and never having made it known, therefore, when she saw that all the servants of Lamoni had fallen to the earth, and also her mistress, the queen, and the king, and Ammon lay prostrate upon the earth, she knew that it was the power of God; and supposing that this opportunity, by making known unto the people what had happened among them, that by beholding this scene it would cause them to believe in the power of God, therefore she ran forth from house to house, making it known unto the people.

Alma 19:15-17 (Emphasis mine)

The servants, observing their king and queen, and the powerful Ammon on the ground, began to pray.  They, too, were overcome and fell to the Earth.

We here meet a remarkable woman, one of the few women in the Book of Mormon who is addressed by name.  Abish had been converted through a vision of her father.  She had secretly believed for many years.  Now, she was seeing the Spirit work among her people. 

Who is Abish?  She makes a brief appearance in this account, her name only mentioned once. 

 “The Book of Mormon [woman] … Abish … can be viewed not only as [a] historical [figure] but also as [an] archetypal [figure] of … the godly servant …

“Abish, a Lamanite convert of surpassing faith, servant to the queen of king Lamoni, recognized that the power of God had overcome the king, queen, and Ammon when they fell to the ground unconscious; she gathered people to witness the event and then raised the queen with her touch when the confusion of the crowd led to contention. Many believed the testimonies of the revived queen, who then raised the king, who also testified of Jesus (Alma 19:16—36).” [2]  (Emphasis mine)

 “In the very heart of the abridgment, Alma 19, is the story of the queen and her servant Abish, a narrative that could serve as a pattern for our efforts to understand ‘the things of God.’ These women are at opposite ends of the social scale: if anyone lived in luxury or had access to education, it was likely to be the king, the queen, and their children; we don't know Abish's marital status, but she was at least a working woman, if not a slave, and already converted to the Lord. Whatever else she didn't have, we know she had the gospel of Jesus Christ, the one thing we all must possess.

“We don't know the queen's name, but we know the name of the servant, a believer who was able to understand ‘the power of God’ (Alma 19:17) …

“The actions of the faithful servant woman in gathering a crowd and taking the hand of the queen set in motion the successive testimonies of the queen and the king, resulting in the conversion of many hearers. By the end of the story there are an abundance of witnesses: many hearts are changed, many see angels, many are baptized, and the church is established among the Lamanites … And like the queen and Abish, we each are dependent upon Jesus Christ for our salvation.”  [3]  (Emphasis mine)

She wanted to let the people know and see the power of God, hoping that this would cause them to believe.  She ran from house-to-house letting the people know what happened.

18  And they began to assemble themselves together unto the house of the king.  And there came a multitude, and to their astonishment they beheld the king, and the queen, and their servants prostrate upon the earth, and they all lay there as though they were dead; and they also saw Ammon, and behold, he was a Nephite.

19  And now the people began to murmur among themselves; some saying that it was a great evil that had come upon them, or upon the king and his house, because he had suffered that the Nephite should remain in the land.

20  But others rebuked them, saying: The king hath brought this evil upon his house, because he slew his servants who had had their flocks scattered at the waters of Sebus.

21  And they were also rebuked by those men who had stood at the waters of Sebus and scattered the flocks which belonged to the king, for they were angry with Ammon because of the number which he had slain of their brethren at the waters of Sebus, while defending the flocks of the king.

Alma 19:18-21 (Emphasis mine)

People came and saw the king, queen, and a Nephite lying on the ground, most likely dead.  Let the murmuring begin!  Some claimed the king brought it upon himself because he allowed the Nephites to stay in the land.  Others claimed that this came upon them because the king killed his servants. 

We also see the reappearance of those who attempted to scatter and steal the king’s sheep.  They were angry with Ammon because of their losses when the failed in their attempts to steal from the king.

22  Now, one of them, whose brother had been slain with the sword of Ammon, being exceedingly angry with Ammon, drew his sword and went forth that he might let it fall upon Ammon, to slay him; and as he lifted the sword to smite him, behold, he fell dead.

23  Now we see that Ammon could not be slain, for the Lord had said unto Mosiah, his father: I will spare him, and it shall be unto him according to thy faith—therefore, Mosiah trusted him unto the Lord.

Alma 19:22-23 (Emphasis mine)

One of the bad guys wanted to be sure that Ammon was dead.  He was going to exact revenge for Ammon’s killing his brother.  He raised his sword and immediately fell dead.

Mormon interjects his thoughts at this point.  Here, he tells us, is evidence that the Lord kept his promise to Mosiah.  Mosiah was promised that his children would be spared and Ammon was spared.

24  And it came to pass that when the multitude beheld that the man had fallen dead, who lifted the sword to slay Ammon, fear came upon them all, and they durst not put forth their hands to touch him or any of those who had fallen; and they began to marvel again among themselves what could be the cause of this great power, or what all these things could mean.

25  And it came to pass that there were many among them who said that Ammon was the Great Spirit, and others said he was sent by the Great Spirit;

26  But others rebuked them all, saying that he was a monster, who had been sent from the Nephites to torment them.

27  And there were some who said that Ammon was sent by the Great Spirit to afflict them because of their iniquities; and that it was the Great Spirit that had always attended the Nephites, who had ever delivered them out of their hands; and they said that it was this Great Spirit who had destroyed so many of their brethren, the Lamanites.

28  And thus the contention began to be exceedingly sharp among them.  And while they were thus contending, the woman servant who had caused the multitude to be gathered together came, and when she saw the contention which was among the multitude she was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto tears.

Alma 19:24-28 (Emphasis mine)

Seeing the dead man, contentions broke out again.  Ammon was the Great Spirit some claimed.  Others maintained he was sent by the Great Spirit.

Others said he was a monster sent to torment them.  Others said he was sent by the Great Spirit to torment them because of their sins.

Chaos reigned.

Abish watched this happen.  This is not what she wanted.  She wanted them to see the work of the Lord.  Because of the contention among the people, she was extremely upset.  Something had to be done.

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[1] Lecture 52: Alma 19-22, Hugh W. Nibley, Maxwell Institute, accessed September 10, 2011.

[2] Women in the Book of Mormon, Donna Lee Bowen, and Camille Williams, Maxwell Institute, accessed September 10, 2011.

[3] Women in the Book of Mormon, Camille Williams, Maxwell Institute, accessed September 10, 2011.