Alma 8:27-32, Alma 9:1-4

27  And Alma tarried many days with Amulek before he began to preach unto the people.

28  And it came to pass that the people did wax more gross in their iniquities.

29  And the word came to Alma, saying: Go; and also say unto my servant Amulek, go forth and prophesy unto this people, saying—Repent ye, for thus saith the Lord, except ye repent I will visit this people in mine anger; yea, and I will not turn my fierce anger away.

30  And Alma went forth, and also Amulek, among the people, to declare the words of God unto them; and they were filled with the Holy Ghost.

31  And they had power given unto them, insomuch that they could not be confined in dungeons; neither was it possible that any man could slay them; nevertheless they did not exercise their power until they were bound in bands and cast into prison.  Now, this was done that the Lord might show forth his power in them.

32  And it came to pass that they went forth and began to preach and to prophesy unto the people, according to the spirit and power which the Lord had given them.

Alma 8:27-32 (Emphasis mine)

Finally, the time came for Alma(2) to go and preach to the people.  But he was not to go alone.  Amulek was to go with him.  They went forth with the power of God behind them. 

It was not possible to kill them; they couldn’t be jailed.  Even though they had this protection, they only used it when they could show that they went forth with the power of the Lord.  For example, they only time they exercised their power to keep from being confined in prisons was when there were thrown into prisons.  Then they used their power and were released from confinement.

 Thomas Valletta writes: 

“After Alma's return to Ammonihah and while he was spiritually preparing Amulek, the people ‘did wax more gross in their iniquities’ (Alma 8:28). Again Alma ‘went forth,’ this time with Amulek, ‘to declare the words of God unto’ the wicked of Ammonihah (Alma 8:30). Filled with the Holy Ghost, Alma and Amulek preached and prophesied ‘according to the spirit and power which the Lord had given them’ (Alma 8:32). Alma was the first to speak, but his spirit and power seemed not to influence the people. They reacted contentiously (see Alma 9:1).” [1]     (Emphasis mine)

The words of Alma, and also the words of Amulek, which were declared unto the people who were in the land of Ammonihah.  And also they are cast into prison, and delivered by the miraculous power of God which was in them, according to the record of Alma.

Comprising chapters 9 to 14 inclusive.

Chapter 9

Alma commands the people of Ammonihah to repent—The Lord will be merciful to the Lamanites in the last days—If the Nephites forsake the light, they shall be destroyed by the Lamanites—The Son of God soon cometh—He shall redeem those who repent and are baptized and have faith in his name. About 82 B.C.

We now return to Alma(2)’s account.

1  AND again, I, Alma, having been commanded of God that I should take Amulek and go forth and preach again unto this people, or the people who were in the city of Ammonihah, it came to pass as I began to preach unto them, they began to contend with me, saying:

2  Who art thou?  Suppose ye that we shall believe the testimony of one man, although he should preach unto us that the earth should pass away?

3  Now they understood not the words which they spake; for they knew not that the earth should pass away.

4  And they said also: We will not believe thy words if thou shouldst prophesy that this great city should be destroyed in one day.

Alma 9:1-4 (Emphasis mine)

Alma(2) began to preach and he was immediately challenged by the people of Ammonihah.

Who are you?  Why should we believe the testimony of one man?  Then they made it clear that the rejected his prophecy that Ammonihah would be destroyed in one day. 

(Jump ahead to Alma 16:9-10:  And thus ended the eleventh year of the judges, the Lamanites having been driven out of the land, and the people of Ammonihah were destroyed; yea, every living soul of the Ammonihahites was destroyed, and also their great city, which they said God could not destroy, because of its greatness.  But behold, in one day it was left desolate; and the carcasses were mangled by dogs and wild beasts of the wilderness.  So much for their foresight.)

Hugh Nibley said:

“But first Alma was preaching to them. Was it the same old thing here? Well, it was different because they put up a fight. They argued back. They shouted back and forth. It turned out to be a shouting match. Alma began to preach to the people, and he said (chapter 9, verse 1): ‘As I began to preach unto them, they began to contend with me, saying … This is Alma's own record here; before it was [Mormon’s] record. They said, you have no clout—we don't know who you are … they said, ‘Suppose ye that we shall believe the testimony of one man, although he should preach unto us that the earth should pass away? Now they understood not the words which they spake; for they knew not that the earth should pass away.’ They were pronouncing the doom on themselves. Their city was buried completely.”  [2] (Emphasis mine)

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[1] Conflicting Orders: Alma and Amulek in Ammonihah, Thomas R. Valletta, Maxwell Institute, accessed October 13, 2011.

[2] Lecture 47: Alma 5-10, Hugh W. Nibley, Maxwell Institute, accessed October 13, 2011.

Mosiah 11:26-29; 12:1

26  Now it came to pass that when Abinadi had spoken these words unto them they were wroth with him, and sought to take away his life; but the Lord delivered him out of their hands.
27  Now when king Noah had heard of the words which Abinadi had spoken unto the people, he was also wroth; and he said: Who is Abinadi, that I and my people should be judged of him, or who is the Lord, that shall bring upon my people such great affliction?
28  I command you to bring Abinadi hither, that I may slay him, for he has said these things that he might astir up my people to anger one with another, and to raise contentions among my people; therefore I will slay him.
29  Now the eyes of the people were blinded; therefore they hardened their hearts against the words of Abinadi, and they sought from that time forward to take him.  And king Noah hardened his heart against the word of the Lord, and he did not repent of his evil doings.

Mosiah 11:26-29 (Emphasis mine)

After Abinadi preached, we see the standard response of the wicked. 

First they were upset with him.  We see the standard question of the wicked expressed by King Noah:  "... Who is Abinadi, that I and my people should be judged of him, or who is the Lord ..." (v27)  We see the arrogance of the people and King.  "Who does Abinadi think he is?  How dare he judge us?  We're good people.  Let's get him."  (Today, we tend to ignore the preaching rather than trying to punish the messenger in a physical manner.)

Noah sees problems as well.  From his perspective, things are going well.  They people are prosperous.  The Lamanites aren't attacking them.  Then, Abinadi enters the picture and starts shaking things up.  The natives are starting to become restless.  Who knows where that could lead.  Why, they might even, at some point, listen to him and realize he's right.  What would happen to Noah?  He knows he could possibly lose his lifestyle; he could lose his wealth; he could lose his slaves.  No, this is not something Noah wants.

The arrogance of the wicked is also seen in Noah's response - "... who is the Lord ..."  (v27)  Noah believes he is so powerful that no one can stand in his way.  Who does the Lord think He is?  The God of this world?  The Father of our souls?  Our guide on our path to eternal life?  (Well, Noah probably didn't think this!)  To Noah, this "lord" is nothing more than an annoyance that is upsetting his great society.

When the people try to detain Abinadi, he escapes through help from the Lord and the people can't find him.  I have no doubt their attitude is "Good riddance."

Rejecting the words of the prophet is a "time honored" activity.  The wicked don't want to hear the truth, so if they get rid of the messenger, all is well.

9  ¶ And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here, Elijah?
10  And he said, I have been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.

1 Kings 19:9-10 (Emphasis mine)

20  And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the LORD, that ye cannot prosper?  because ye have forsaken the LORD, he hath also forsaken you.
21  And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the LORD.

2 Chronicles 24:20-21 (Emphasis mine)

18  ¶ And the LORD hath given me [Jeremiah] knowledge of it, and I know it: then thou shewedst me their doings.
19  But I was like a lamb or an ox that is brought to the slaughter; and I knew not that they had devised devices against me, saying, Let us destroy the tree with the fruit thereof, and let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be no more remembered.
20  But, O LORD of hosts, that judgest righteously, that triest the reins and the heart, let me see thy vengeance on them: for unto thee have I revealed my cause.
21  Therefore thus saith the LORD of the men of Anathoth, that seek thy life, saying, Prophesy not in the name of the LORD, that thou die not by our hand:

Jeremiah 11:18-21 (Emphasis mine)

11  Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
12  Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Matthew 5:11-12 (Emphasis mine)

24  And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country.
25  But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
26  But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow.
27  And many lepers were in Israel in the time of EliseusNaaman the Syrian.
28  And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,
29  And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.

Luke 4:24-29 (Emphasis mine)

51  ¶ Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.
52  Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted?  and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
57  Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord,
58  And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul.
59  And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.
60  And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge.  And when he had said this, he fell asleep.

Acts 7:51-52; 57-60 (Emphasis mine)

 Chapter 12

Abinadi is imprisoned for prophesying the destruction of the people and the death of King Noah—The false priests quote the scriptures and pretend to keep the law of Moses—Abinadi begins to teach them the Ten Commandments. About 148 B.C.

1  AND it came to pass that after the space of two years [about 148 B.C.] that Abinadi came among them in disguise, that they knew him not, and began to prophesy among them, saying: Thus has the Lord commanded me, saying—Abinadi, go and prophesy unto this my people, for they have hardened their hearts against my words; they have repented not of their evil doings; therefore, I will visit them in my anger, yea, in my fierce anger will I visit them in their iniquities and abominations.

Mosiah 12:1 (Emphasis mine)

Two years have past and nothing has changed.  The people are still wicked; the Lord send Abinadi back to the people to warn them the consequences of their sins.

We will look more at his words in the next post.

Our Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson said in the April 2007 General Conference:

"Today, as always, the skeptic’s voice challenges the word of God, and each must choose to whom he will listen. Clarence Darrow, the famous lawyer and agnostic, declared, 'No life is of much value, and … every death is [but a] little loss.' Schopenhauer, the German philosopher and pessimist, wrote, 'To desire immortality is to desire the eternal perpetuation of a great mistake.' And to their words are added those of new generations, as foolish men crucify the Christ anew—for they modify His miracles, doubt His divinity, and reject His Resurrection ... My brothers and sisters, we laugh, we cry, we work, we play, we love, we live. And then we die. Death is our universal heritage. All must pass its portals. Death claims the aged, the weary and worn. It visits the youth in the bloom of hope and the glory of expectation. Nor are little children kept beyond its grasp. In the words of the Apostle Paul, “It is appointed unto men once to die.'And dead we would remain but for one Man and His mission, even Jesus of Nazareth. Born in a stable, cradled in a manger, His birth fulfilled the inspired pronouncements of many prophets. He was taught from on high. He provided the life, the light, and the way. Multitudes followed Him. Children adored Him. The haughty rejected Him. He spoke in parables. He taught by example. He lived a perfect life.  Though the King of kings and Lord of lords had come, He was accorded by some the greeting given to an enemy, a traitor. There followed a mockery which some called a trial. Cries of “crucify him, crucify him' filled the air. Then commenced the climb to Calvary’s hill. He was ridiculed, reviled, mocked, jeered, and nailed to a cross amidst shouts of 'Let Christ the King of Israel descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe.'  'He saved others; himself he cannot save.' His response: 'Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do to thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.' His body was placed by loving hands in a sepulchre hewn of stone. On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, along with others, came to the sepulchre. To their astonishment, the body of their Lord was gone. Luke records that two men in shining garments stood by them and said: 'Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen.' "  (In the last sentence, we see the seven most important and powerful words ever spoken on Earth.  Christ had won.  We all can now go back and live eternally with God.  "  (Emphasis mine)