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return again to the account of Ammon,
and Aaron, Omner and Himni, and their brethren.
CHAPTER XIV.
Behold, now it came to pass that the king of the Lamanites
sent a proclamation among all his people, that they should not lay their hands on Ammon or Aaron,
or Omner, or Himni, nor neither of their brethren which should go forth preaching the word of God,
in whatsoever place they should be, in any part of the land; yea,
he sent a decree among them, that they should not lay their hands on them to bind them, or to cast them into prison;
neither should they spit upon them, nor smite them, nor cast them out of their synagogues, nor scourge them; neither
should they cast stones at them, but that they should have free access to their houses, and also their temples, and
their sanctuaries; and thus they might go forth and preach the word according to their desires,
for the king had been converted unto the Lord, and all his household; therefore he seat this proclamation throughout
the land unto his people, that the word of God might have no obstruction, but that it might go forth throughout all
the land,
that his people might be convinced concerning the
wicked traditions of their fathers,
and that they might
be convinced that they were all brethren, and that they had not ought to murder, nor to plunder, nor to steal, nor to commit adultery,
not to commit any manner of wickedness. And now it came to pass that when the king had sent forth this proclamation,
that Aaron and his brethren went forth from city to city, and from one house
of worship to another, establishing churches, and consecrating priests and teachers throughout the land among the
Lamanites, to preach and to teach the word of God among them; and thus they began to have great success.
And thousands were brought
to the knowledge of the Lord, yea, thousands were brought to
believe in the traditions of
the Nephites; and they were taught the records and the prophecies which were handed down, even to the present
time; and as sure as the Lord liveth, so sure as many as believed, or as many as were brought
to the knowledge of
the truth, through the preaching of Ammon and his brethren, according to the spirit of revelation
and of prophecy, and the power of God, working miracles in them; yea, I say unto you,
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as the Lord liveth, as many of the Lamanites as believed in their preaching, and were converted unto the Lord,
never did fall away, for they became a righteous people; they did lay down the weapons of their rebellion,
that they did not fight against God no more, neither against any of their brethren. --
Now these are they which were converted unto the Lord:
The people of the Lamanites which were in the land of Ishmael,
and also the people of the Lamanites which were in the land of Middoni,
and also of the people of the Lamanites which were in the city of
Nephi,
and also of the people of the Lamanites which were in the land of Shilom,
and which were in the land of Shemlon,
and in the city of Lemuel,
and the city of Shimnilom; and these are the names of the cities of the
Lamanites which were converted unto the Lord; and these are they that laid down the weapons of their rebellion, yea,
all their weapons of war; and they were all Lamanites. And the Amalekites were not converted,
save only one; neither was any of the Amulonites; but they did harden their hearts, and also the hearts of the
Lamanites in that part of the
land whithersoever they dwelt;
yea, and all their villages and all their cities;
therefore we have named all the cities of the Lamanites
in which they did repent and come to
the knowledge of the truth, and were converted.
And now it came to pass that the king and those people which were converted, were desirous that they might have a name,
that thereby they might be distinguished from their brethren; therefore the king consulted with Aaron and many of their priests,
concerning the name that they should take upon them, that they might be distinguished.
And it came to pass that they called their name Anti-Nephi-Lehies;
and they were called by this name, and were no more called Lamanites. And they began to be a very industrious people;
yea, and they were friendly with the Nephites; therefore they did open a correspondence with them,
and the curse of God did no more follow them.
And it came to pass that the Amalekites, and the Amulonites,
and the Lamanites which were in the land of Amulon,
and also in the land of Helam, and which was in the land of Jerusalem,
and in fine, in all the land round about,
which had not been converted,
and had not taken upon them the name of Anti-Nephi-Lehi,
were stirred up by the Amalekites, and
by the Amulonites, to anger against their brethren;
and their hatred became exceeding sore against them, even insomuch that
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they began to rebel against their king, insomuch that they would not that he should be their king;
therefore they took up arms against the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi.
Now the king conferred the kingdom upon his son;
and he called his name Anti-Nephi-Lehi. And the
king died in that self-same year that the Lamanites began to make
preparation for war against the people of God.
Now when Ammon and his brethren, and all those which had come up with him,
saw the preparations of the Lamanites to destroy their brethren,
they came forth to the land of Midian,
and there Ammon met all his brethren;
and from thence they came to the land of Ishmael,
that they might hold a council
with Lamoni, and also with his brother Anti-Nephi-Lehi,
what they should do to defend themselves against the Lamanites.
Now there was not one soul among all the people
which had been converted unto the Lord,
that would take up arms against their brethren; nay,
they would not even make any preparations for war;
yea, and also their king commanded them that they should not.
Now these are the words which he said unto the people concerning the matter: I thank my God,
my beloved people, that our great God has in goodness sent these our brethren, the Nephites, unto us to preach unto
us, and to convince us of the traditions of our wicked fathers. And behold, I thank my great God
that he has given us a portion of his spirit to soften our hearts, that we have opened a correspondence with these
brethren, the Nephites; and behold, I also thank my God that by opening this correspondence,
we have been convinced of our sins, and of the many murders which we have committed;
and I also thank my God, yea, my great God,
that he hath granted unto us that we might repent of these things,
and also that he hath forgiven us those many sins and murders which we have committed,
and took away the guilt from our hearts,
through the merits of his Son.
And now behold, my brethren, since it has been all that we could so,
(as we were the most lost of all mankind,) to repent of all our sins and the many murders which we have committed, and to
get God to take them away from our hearts, for it was all we could do to repent sufficiently before God, that he would
take away our stain. Now my best beloved brethren, since God hath taken away our stains, and our swords have become bright,
and let us stain our swords no more with the blood of our brethren.
Behold, I say unto you, Nay, let us retain our swords,
that they be not stained with the blood of our brethren: for perhaps,
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if we should stain our swords again,
they can no more be washed bright through the blood of the Son of our great God,
which shall be shed for the atonement of our sins. And the great God has had mercy on us,
and made these things known unto us, that we might not perish; yea, and he hath made these things known unto us beforehand,
because he loveth our souls as well as he loveth our children; therefore in his mercy he doth visit us by his angels,
that the plan of salvation might be made known unto us as well as unto future generations.
O how merciful is our God! And now behold, since it has been as much as we could do to get our stains taken away from
us, and our swords are made bright, let us hide them away that they may be kept bright, as a testimony to our God at
the last day, or at the day that we shall be brought to stand before him to be judged,
that we have not stained our swords in the blood of our brethren
since he imparted his word unto us, and has made us clean thereby.
And now my brethren, if our brethren seek to destroy us, behold, we will hide away our swords, yea, even we will bury
them deep in the earth, that they may be kept bright, as a testimony that we have never used them, at the last day;
and if our brethren destroy us, behold, we shall go to our God, and shall be saved.
And now it came to pass that when the king had made an end of these sayings, and all the people were assembled
together, they took their swords, and all the weapons which were used for the shedding of man's blood, and they did
bury them up deep in the earth; and this they did, it being in their view a testimony to God,
and also to men, that they never use weapons again for the shedding of man's blood; and this they did, vouching and
covenanting with God, that rather than to shed the blood of their brethren, they would give up their own lives; and
rather than to take away from a brother, they would give unto him; and rather than
to spend their days in idleness,
they would labor abundantly with theit hands; and thus we see that when these Lamanites were
brought to believe and to know the truth, that they were firm, and would suffer even unto death, rather than to
commit sin; and thus we see, that they buried the weapons of peace, or they buried the weapons of war, for peace.
And it came to pass that their brethren,
the Lamanites made preparations for war,
and came up to the land of Nephi,
for the purpose of destroying the king, and to place another
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in his stead, and also of destroying the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi out of the land. And it came
to pass that when the people saw that they were coming against them, they went out to meet them, and prostrated
themselves before them to the earth, and began to call on the name of the Lord; and thus they were in this attitude,
when the Lamanites began to fall upon them, and began to slay them with the sword; and thus
without meeting any resistance,
they did slay a thousand and five of them;
and we know that they were blessed,
for they have gone to dwell with their God.
Now when the Lamanites saw that their brethren would not flee from the sword
neither would they turn aside to the right hand or to the left,
but that they would lay down and perish, and praised God even in the very act of perishing under the sword;
now when the Lamanites saw this, they did forbear from slaying them;
and there were many whose hearts had swollen in them for those of their brethren who had fallen under the sword,
for they repented of the things which they had done.
And it came to pass that they
threw down their weapons of war,
and they would not take them again,
for they were stung for the murders which they had committed;
and they came down even as their brethren, relying upon
the mercies of those whose arms were lifted to slay them.
And it came to pass that the people of God were joined that day by more than
the number which had been slain;
and those which had been slain, were righteous people; therefore we have no reason to doubt but what they
were saved. And there was not a wicked man slain among them; but there were more than a thousand
brought to the knowledge of the truth; thus we see that the Lord worketh in many ways to
the salvation of his people. Now the greatest number of those of the Lamanites which slew so many of their brethren,
were Amalekites and Amulonites, the greatest number of whom were after the order of the Nehors.
Now among those which joined the people of the Lord, there were none which were Amalekites or Amulonites, or which
were of the order of Nehor, but they were actual descendants of Laman and Lemuel; and thus we
can plainly discern, that after a people has been once enlightened by the spirit of God, and hath had great knowledge
of things pertaining to righteousness, and then have fallen away into sin and transgression, they become more hardened,
and thus their estate becometh worse than as though they had never known these things.
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And behold, now it came to pass that those Lamanites were more angry,
because they had slain their brethren; therefore they swore vengeance upon the Nephites;
and they did no more attempt to slay the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi at that time;
but they took their armies and went over into the borders of the land
of Zarahemla, and fell upon the people which were in the land of Ammonihah,
and destroyed them. And after that,
they had many battles with the Nephites, in the which they were driven and slain,
and among the Lamanites which were slain, were almost all the seed of Amulon and his brethren,
which were the priests of Noah,
and they were slain by the hands of the Nephites;
and the remainder having fled
into the east
wilderness, and having usurped the power and authority over the Lamanites,
caused that many of the Lamanites should perish by fire, because of their belief:
for many of them, after having suffered much loss and so many afflictions,
they began to be stirred up in remembrance of the words which Aaron and his brethren had preached
to them in their land;
therefore they began to disbelieve the traditions of their fathers,
and to believe in the Lord,
and that he gave great power unto the Nephites;
and thus there were many of them converted in the wilderness.
And it came to pass that those rulers which were the remnant of the children of Amulon,
caused that they should be put to death, yea, all those that believed in these things.
Now this martyrdom caused that many of their brethren should be stirred up to anger; and there began to be contention in the wilderness;
and the Lamanites
began to hunt the seed of Amulon and his brethren, and began to slay them, and they fled into the east
wilderness. And behold, they are hunted at this day, by the Lamanites: thus the words of Abinadi
was brought to pass,
which he said concerning the seed of the priests which caused that he should suffer by fire.
For he said unto them, What ye shall do unto me,
shall be a type of things to come. And now Abinadi was the first that suffered death by fire, because of his belief in God:
now this is what he meant, that many should suffer death by fire, according as he had suffered.
And he said unto the priests of Noah,
That their seed should cause many to be put to death,
in the like manner as he was,
and that they should be scattered abroad and slain,
even as a sheep having no shepherd is driven and slain by wild beasts:
and now behold, these words were verified, for they
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were driven by the Lamanites, and they were hunted, and were smitten.
And it came to pass when the Lamanites saw that they could not overpower the Nephites,
they returned again to their own land;
and many of them came over to dwell in the land of Ishmael and the land of Nephi, and did join themselves
to the people of God, which was the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi;
and they did also bury their weapons of war, according as their brethren had, and they began to be a righteous people;
and they did walk in the ways of the Lord,
and did observe to keep his commandments, and his statutes, yea,
and they did keep the law of Moses:
for it was expedient that they should keep the law of Moses as yet, for it was not all
fulfilled. But notwithstanding the law of Moses, they did look forward to the coming of Christ, considering that the
law of Moses was a type of his coming, and believing that they must keep those outward performances, until the time
that he should be revealed unto them. Now they did not suppose that salvation came by the law
of Moses; but the law of Moses did serve to strengthen their faith in Christ;
and thus they did retain a hope through
faith, unto eternal salvation, relying upon the spirit of prophecy,
which spake of those things to come.
And now behold, Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner, and Himni,
and their brethren, did rejoice exceedingly, for
the success which they had
had among the Lamanites,
seeing that the Lord granted unto them according to their prayers, and that
he had also verified his word unto them in every particular. And now, these are the words of
Ammon to his brethren, which sayeth thus: My brothers and my brethren, behold I say unto you, how great reason have
we to rejoice; for could we have supposed, when we started from the land of Zarahemla,
that God would have granted unto us such great blessings? And now I ask, What great blessings hath he bestowed upon us?
Can ye tell? Behold, I answer for you, for our brethren, the Lamanites, were in darkness, yea, even in
the darkest abyss; but behold, how many of them are brought to behold the marvellous light of God! And this is the
blessing which hath been bestowed upon us, that we have been made instruments in the hands of God, to bring about this
great work. Behold, thousands of them do rejoice, and have been brought into the fold of
God. Behold, the field was ripe, and blessed are ye, for ye did thrust in the sickle, and did
reap with your mights, yea, all the day long did ye labor; and behold
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the number of your sheaves, and they shall be gathered into the garners, that they are not wasted;
yea, they shall not be beaten down by the storm, at the last day; yea, neither shall they be harrowed up by the
whirlwinds; but when the storm cometh, they shall be gathered together in their place, that the storm cannot penetrate
to them; yea, neither shall they be driven with fierce winds, whithersoever the enemy listeth to carry them.
But behold, they are in the hands of the Lord of the harvest, and they are his; and he will raise them up at the last
day. Blessed be the name of our God; let us sing to his praise, yea, let us give thanks to his
holy name, for he doth work righteousness forever. For if we had not come up out of the land of
Zarahemla, these our dearly beloved brethren, which have so dearly loved us, would still have been racked with hatred
against us, yea, and they would also have been strangers to God.
And it came to pass that when Ammon had said these words, his brother Aaron rebuked him saying: Ammon, I fear thy joy
doth carry thee away unto boasting. But Ammon saith unto him, I do not boast in my own strength,
or in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea, my heart is brim with joy, and I will rejoice in my
God; yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength, I am weak; therefore I will not boast
of myself, but I will boast of my God; for in his strength I can do all things; yea, behold,
many mighty miracles we have wrought in this land, for which we will praise his name forever.
Behold, how many thousands of our brethren hath he loosed from the pains of hell; and they are brought to sing redeeming love; and
this because of the power of his word which is in us; therefore have we not great reason to rejoice?
Yea, we have reason to praise him forever, for he is the Most High God, and has loosed our brethren from the chains
of hell. Yea, they were encircled about with everlasting darkness and destruction; but behold,
he hath brought them into his everlasting light, yea, into everlasting salvation;
and they are encircled about with the matchless bounty of his love; yea, and we have been instruments in his hands, of doing this great and marvellous
work; therefore let us rejoice, for our joy is full; yea, we will praise our God forever. Behold,
who can glory too much in the Lord? Yea, who can say too much of his great power, and of his mercy, and of his long
suffering towards the children of men? Behold I say unto you, I cannot
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say the smallest part which I feel. Who could have supposed that our God would have been so
merciful as to have snatched us from our awful, sinful, and polluted state? Behold, we went
forth even in wrath, with mighty threatnings to destroy this church. O then, why did he not
consign us to an awful destruction; yea, why did he not let the sword of his justice fall upon us, and doom us to
eternal despair? O my soul, almost as it were, fleeth at the thought. Behold, he did not
exercise his justice upon us, but in his great mercy hath brought us over that everlasting gulf of death and misery,
even to the salvation of our souls. And now behold, my brethren, what natural man is there,
that knoweth these things? I say unto you, There is none that knoweth these things, save it be the penitent;
yea, he that repenteth and exerciseth faith, and bringeth forth good works, and prayeth continually without ceasing:
unto such it is given the mysteries of God; yea, unto such it shall be given to reveal things which never have been
revealed; yea, and it shall be given unto such, to bring thousands of souls to repentance, even as it hath been
given unto us to bring these our brethren to repentance. Now do ye remember, my brethren, that
we said unto our brethren in the land of Zarahemla,
We go up to the land of Nephi, to preach unto our brethren, the
Lamanites, and they laughed us to scorn? For they said unto us, Do ye suppose that ye can bring
the Lamanites to the knowledge of
the truth? Do ye suppose that ye can convince the Lamanites of the incorrectness of
the traditions of their father,
as stiffnecked a people as they are; whose hearts delighteth in the shedding of
blood; whose days have been spent in the grossest iniquity; whose ways have been the ways of a transgressor,
from the beginning? Now my brethren, ye remember that this was their language. And moreover, they did say,
Let us take up arms against them, that we destroy them and their iniquity out of the land, lest they overrun
us and destroy us. But behold, my beloved brethren, we came into the wilderness not with the intent to
destroy our brethren but with the intent that perhaps we might save some few of their souls. Now when our
hearts were depressed, and we were about to turn back, behold, the Lord comforted us, and said, Go
amongst thy brethren, the Lamanites, and bear with patience thine afflictions, and I will give unto the
success. And now behold, we have come, and been forth amongst them; and we have been patient
in our sufferings and we have suffered every privation; yea, we have travelled
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from house to house, relying upon the mercies of the world; not upon the mercies of the world alone, but upon the
mercies of God; and we have entered into their houses and taught them in their streets; yea,
and we have taught them upon their hills; and we have also entered into their temples and their synagogues and
taught them; and we have been cast out, and mocked, and spit upon, and smote upon our cheeks; and we have been stoned,
and taken and bound with cords, and cast into prison; and through the power and wisdom of God, we have been delivered
again; and we have suffered all manner of afflictions, and all this, that perhaps we might be
the means of saving some soul; and we supposed that our joy would be full, if perhaps we could be the means of saving
some. Now behold, we can look forth and see the fruits of our labors; and are they few? I say
unto you, Nay, they are many; yea, and we can witness of their sincerity, because of their love towards their brethren,
and also towards us. For behold, they had rather sacrifice their lives than even to take the
life of their enemy; and they have buried their weapons of war deep in the earth, because of their love towards their
brethren. And now behold I say unto you, Has there been so great love in all the land? Behold,
I say unto you, Nay, there has not even among the Nephites. For behold, they would take up arms
against their brethren; they would not suffer themselves to be slain. But behold, how many of these have laid down
their lives; and we know that they have gone to their God, because of their love, and of their hatred to
sin. Now have we not reason to rejoice? Yea, I say unto you, There never was men that had so
great reason to rejoice as we, since the world began; yea, and my joy is carried away, even unto boasting in my God;
for he has all the power, all wisdom, and all understanding; he comprehendeth all things, and he is a merciful Being,
even unto salvation, to those who will repent and believe on his name. Now if this is boasting,
even so will I boast; for this is my life and my light, my joy and my salvation, and my redemption from everlasting wo.
Yea, blessed is the name of my God, who hath been mindful of this people, which are a branch of the tree of Israel,
and hath been lost from its body, in a strange land; yea, I say, blessed be the name of my God, who hath been mindful
of us wanderers in a strange land. Now my brethren, we see that God is mindful of every people,
in whatsoever land they may be in; yea, he numbereth his people,
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and his bowels of mercy is over all the earth.
Now this is my joy, and my great thanksgiving;
yea, and I will give thanks unto my God forever. Amen.
========
CHAPTER XV.
Now it came to pass that when those Lamanites which had gone to war against the Nephites, had found after their many
struggles for to destroy them, that it was in vain to seek their destruction,
they returned again to the land of Nephi.
And it came to pass that the Amalekites, because of their loss, were exceeding angry.
And when they saw that they could not seek revenge from the Nephites, they began to stir up the people in anger
against their brethren, the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi; therefore they began again to destroy them.
Now this people again rufused to take their arms, and they suffered themselves to be slain
according to the desires of their enemies. Now when Ammon and his brethren saw this work of destruction among those who
they so dearly loved, and among those who had so dearly loved them; for they were treated as though they were angels
sent from God to save them from everlasting destruction; therefore, when Ammon and his brethren saw this great work
of destruction, they were moved with compassion, and they said unto the king, Let us gather
together this people of the Lord,
and let us go down to the land of Zarahemla,
to our brethren, the Nephites, and flee
out of the hands of our enemies, that we be not destroyed. But the king saith unto them, Behold,
the Nephites will destroy us, because of the many murders and sins we have committed against them.
And Ammon saith, I will go and inquire of the Lord, and if he saith unto us, Go down unto our brethren, will ye
go? And the king saith unto him Yea; if the Lord saith unto us Go, we will go down unto our
brethren, and we will be their slaves until we repair unto them the many murders and sins which we have committed
against them. But Ammon saith unto him, It is against the law of our brethren, which was
established by my father, that there should be any slaves among them; therefore let us go down and rely upon the mercies
of our brethren. But the king saith unto him, Inquire of the Lord, and if he saith unto us Go,
we will go; otherwise we will perish in the land.
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And it came to pass that Ammon went and inquired of the Lord, and the Lord said unto him, Get
this people out of this land, that they perish not,
for Satan hath great hold on the hearts of the Amalekites, which
do stir up the Lamanites to anger against their brethren, to slay them; therefore get thee out of this land; and
blessed art this people in this generation; for I will preserve them.
And now it came to pass that Ammon went and told the king all the words which the Lord had said unto him.
And it came to pass that they gathered together all their people; yea, all the people of the Lord, and did gather
together all their flocks and herds, and departed out of the land, and came into the wilderness which divided the land
of Nephi from the land of Zarahemla, and came over
near the borders of the land.
And it came to pass that Ammon saith unto them, Behold,
I and my brethren will go forth into the land of Zarahemla,
and ye shall remain here until we return; and we will try the hearts of our brethren, whether they will that ye shall
come into their land.
And it came to pass that as Ammon was going forth into the land,
that he and his brethren met Alma, over in the place
of which has been spoken; and behold, this was a joyful meeting. Now the joy of Ammon was great,
even that he was full; yea, he was swallowed up in the joy of his God, even to the exhausting of his strength; and
he fell again to the earth. Now was not this exceeding joy? Behold, this is joy which none
receiveth save it be the truly penitent and humble seeker of happiness. Now the joy of Alma in
meeting his brethren was truly great, and also the joy of Aaron, of Omner,
and Himni; but behold, their joy was not
that to exceed their strength.
Now it came to pass that Alma conducted his brethren back
to the land of Zarahemla,
even to his own house. And it
came to pass that they went and told the Chief Judge all the things that had happened unto them in the land of Nephi
among their brethren, the Lamanites.
And it came to pass that the Chief Judge sent a proclamation throughout all the land,
desiring the voice of the people
concerning the admitting their brethren,
which were the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi.
And it came to pass that the voice of the people came saying,
Behold, we will give up the land of Jershon, which is on the east by the sea, which joins the land Bountiful,
which is on the south of the land of Bountiful;
and
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this land Jershon is the land which we will give unto our brethren, for an inheritance. And
behold, we will set our armies between the land of Jershon and the land of Nephi, that we may protect our brethren
in the land of Jershon; and this we do for our brethren, on account of their fear to take up arms against their
brethren, lest they should commit sin; and this their great fear came, because of their sore repentance which they
had, on account of their many murders, and their awful wickedness. And now behold, this will
we do unto out brethren, that they may inherit the land of Jershon; and we will guard them from their enemies with
our armies, on conditions that they will give us a portion of their substance to assist us, that we may maintain our
armies.
Now it came to pass that when Ammon heard this,
he returned to the people of Anti-Nephi-Lehi,
and also Alma with him,
into the wilderness, where they had pitched their tents, and made known unto them all these things.
And Alma also related unto them his conversion with Ammon,
and Aaron, and his brethren.
And it came to pass that it did cause great joy among them. And it came to pass that they went down into the land of Jershon,
and took possession of the land of
Jershon,
and they were called by the Nephites the people of Ammon;
therefore they were distinguished by that name ever after;
and they were among the people of Nephi, and also
numbered among the people which were of the Church of God.
And they were also distinguished for their zeal towards God, and also towards men;
for they were perfectly honest and upright in all things; and they were firm in the faith
of Christ, even unto the end. And they did look upon shedding the blood of their brethren with
the great abhorrence; and they never could be prevailed upon to take up arms against their brethren; and they never
did look upon death with any degree of terror for their hope and views of Christ and the resurrection; therefore
death was swallowed up to them by the victory of Christ over it; therefore they would suffer
death in the most aggravating and distressing manner which could be inflicted by their brethren, before they would
take the sword or the cimeter to smite them. And thus they were a zealous and beloved people,
a highly favored people of the Lord.
And now it came to pass that after the people of Ammon were established in the land of Jershon, and a church
also established in the land of Jershon; and the armies of the
Nephites were set round about the land of Jershon; yea, in all
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the borders round about the land of Zarahemla;
behold the armies of the
Lamanites had followed their brethren into the wilderness.
And thus a tremendous battle; yea, even such an one as never had been known
among all the people, in the land from the time Lehi left Jerusalem; yea, and tens of thousands of the Lamanites were
slain and scattered abroad. Yea, and also there was a tremendous slaughter among the people of
Nephi, nevertheless, the Lamanites were driven and scattered, and the people of Nephi returned again to their
land. -- And now this was a time that there was a great mourning and lamentation heard
throughout all the land, among all the people of Nephi; yea, the cry of widows mourning for
their husbands, and also fathers mourning for their sons, and the daughter for the brother; yea, the brother for
the father: and thus the cry of mourning was heard among every one of them; mourning for their kindred which had
been slain. And now surely this was a sorrowful day; yea, a time of solemnity, and a time of
much fasting and prayer: and thus ended the fifteenth year of the reign of the Judges over the
people of Nephi; and this is the account of Ammon and his brethren, their journeyings in the
land of Nephi, their sufferings in the land, their sorrows, and their afflictions, and their incomprehensible joy,
and the reception and safety of the brethren in the land of Jershon. And now may the Lord, the Redeemer of all men,
bless their souls forever. And this is
the account of the wars
and contentions among the Nephites,
and also the wars between the Nephites and the Lamanites; and the fifteenth year of the reign of the Judges
is ended; and from the first year to the fifteenth,
has brought to pass the destruction of
many thousand lives;
yea, it has brought to pass an awful scene of bloodshed; and the bodies
of many thousands are laid low in the earth,
while the bodies of many thousands are mouldering in heaps upon
the face of the earth;
yea, and many thousands are mourning for the loss of their kindred, because they have reason to fear,
according to the promises of the Lord, that they are consigned to a state of endless wo; while
many thousands of others truly mourn for the loss of their kindred,
yet they rejoice and exult in the hope, and even know,
according to the promises of the Lord, that ye are raised to dwell at the right hand of God,
in a state of never
ending happiness: and thus we see how great the iniquity of man is because of sin and
transgression, and the power of the Devil, which comes by the cunning plans which he hath devised to ensnare the
hearts of
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men; and thus we see the great call of diligence of men to labor in the vineyards of the Lord;
and thus we see the great reason of sorrow, and also of rejoicing: sorrow because of death and destruction among men,
and joy because of the light of Christ unto life. O that I were an angel, and could have the
wish of mine heart, that I might go forth and speak with the trump of God, with a voice to shake the earth, and cry
repentance unto every people; yea, I would declare unto every soul, as with the voice of thunder,
Repentance, and the plan of redemption, that they should repent and come unto God, that there might not be no more
sorrow upon all the face of the earth. But behold, I am a man, and do sin in my wish;
for I had ought to be content with the things which the Lord hath allotted unto me. I had not ought to
harrow up in my desires, the firm decree of a just God,
for I know that he granteth unto men according to their desires,
whether it be unto death or unto life; yea, I know that he allotteth unto men, yea, decreeth unto them decrees which
are unalterable, according to their wills; whether it be unto salvation or unto destruction;
yea, and I know that good and evil hath come before all men; or he that knoweth not good from evil, is blameless; but
he that knoweth good and evil, to him it is given according to his desires; whether he desireth good or evil, life
or death, joy or remorse of conscience. Now seeing that I know these things, why should I desire
more than to perform the work to which I have been called? Why should I desire that I was an
angel, that I could speak unto all the ends of the earth? --
For behold, the Lord doth grant unto all nations,
of their own nation and tongue, to teach his word; yea, in wisdom, all that he seeth fit that they
should have; therefore we see that the Lord doth counsel in wisdom, according to that which is just and true.
I know that which the Lord commanded me, and I glory in it; I do not glory of myself, but I glory in that which the
Lord hath commanded me; yea, and this is my glory, that perhaps I may be an instrument in the hands of God, to bring
some soul to repentance; and this is my joy. And behold, when I see many of my brethren truly
penitent, and coming to the Lord their God, then is my soul filled with joy; then do I remember what the Lord has
done for me; yea, that he hath heard my prayer; yea, then do I remember his merciful arm which he extended towards
me; yea, and I also remember
the captivity of my fathers;
for I surely do know that the Lord did deliver them out of bondage, and by this did establish
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his church; yea, the Lord God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob, did deliver them out of
bondage; yea, I have always remembered
the captivity of my fathers; and that same God who
delivered them out of the hands of the Egyptians,
did deliver them out of bondage; yea, and that same God did establish his church among them;
yea, and that same God hath called me by a holy calling, to preach the word unto his people,
and hath given me much success, in the which my joy is full; but I do not joy in my own success alone,
but my joy is more full because of the success of my brethren,
which have been up to the land of Nephi.
Behold, they have labored exceedingly, and have brought forth much
fruit; and how great shall be their reward. Now when I think of the success of these my
brethren, my soul is carried away, even to the separation of it from the body, as it were, so great is my joy.
And now may God grant unto these my brethren, that they may sit down in the kingdom of God; yea, and also all those which
are the fruit of their labors, that they may go no more out, but that they may praise him forever. And may God grant that
it may be done according to my words, even as I have spoken. Amen.
========
CHAPTER XVI.
Behold, now it came to pass that after the people of Ammon were established in the land of Jershon,
yea, and also after the Lamanites were driven out of the land,
and their dead were buried by the people of the land.
Now their dead were not numbered, because of the greatness of their numbers; neither were the dead of the Nephites
numbered. But it came to pass that after they had buried their dead, and also after the days of fasting, and mourning, and prayer,
(and it was in the sixteenth year of the reign of
the Judges over the people of Nephi,)
there began to be continual peace throughout all the land; yea, and the people did observe to keep the commandments of the Lord;
and they were strict in observing the ordinances of God,
according to the law of Moses;
for they were taught to keep the law of Moses, until it should be fulfilled; and thus the people did have no disturbance
in all the sixteenth year of
the reign of the Judges over the people of Nephi.
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And it came to pass
in the seventeenth year of the reign of the Judges,
there was continual peace.
But it came to pass in the latter end of the seventeenth year, there came a man into the land of Zarahemla; and he
was Anti-Christ, for he began to preach unto the people against
the prophecies which had been spoken by the prophets
concerning the coming of Christ.
Now there was no law against a man's belief;
for it was strictly contrary to the commands of God,
that there should be
a law which should bring men on to unequal grounds. For thus saith the Scripture:
Choose ye this day, whom ye will serve.
Now if a man desired to serve God, it was his privilege to serve him;
but if he did not believe in him, there was no law to punish him.
But if he murdered,
he was punished unto death; and if he robbed, he was also punished;
and if he stole, he was also punished; and if he committed adultery,
he was also punished; yea,
for all this wickedness, they were punished: for there was a law,
that men should be judged according to their crimes. Nevertheless,
there was no law against a man's belief;
therefore, a man was punished only for the crimes
which he had done;
therefore all men were on equal grounds.
And this Anti-Christ,
whose name was Korihor, and
the law could have no hold upon him. And he began to preach unto the people,
that there should be no Christ. And after this manner did he preach, saying: O ye that are bound down under a
foolish and a vain hope, why do ye yoke yourselves with such foolish things? Why do ye look for a Christ? For no man
can know of any thing which is to come. Behold, these things which ye call prophecies, which
ye say are handed down by the holy prophets, behold, they are foolish traditions of your fathers.
How do ye know of their surety? Behold, ye cannot know of things which ye do not see; therefore ye cannot know that
there shall be a Christ. Ye look forward and say, that ye see a remission of your sins. But
behold, it is the effects of a phrensied mind; and this derangement of your minds comes because of the tradition of
your fathers, which lead you away into a belief of things which are not so. And many more such
things did he say unto them, telling them that there could be no atonement made for the sins of men, but every man
fared in this life, according to the management of the creature; therefore every man prospered according to his genius,
and that every man conquered according to his strength; and whatsoever a man did, was no crime.
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And thus he did preach unto them, leading away the hearts of many, causing them to lift up their heads in their
wickedness; yea, leading away many women, and also men, to commit whoredoms; telling them that when a man was dead,
that was the end thereof.
Now this man went over to the land of Jershon,
lso, to preach these things among the people of Ammon, which were
once the people of the Lamanites. But behold, they were more wise than many of the Nephites;
for they took him, and bound him, and carried him before Ammon, which was a High Priest over that people.
And it came to pass that he caused that he should be carried out of the land.
And it came to pass that he came over
into the land of Gideon, and began to preach unto them also; and here he did not have much success, for he was taken
and bound, and carried before the High Priest,
and also the Chief Judge over the land.
And it came to pass that the High Priest saith unto him,
Why do ye go about perverting the ways of the Lord? Why do
ye teach this people that there shall be no Christ, to interrupt their rejoicings? Why do ye speak against all the
prophecies of the holy prophets?
Now the high priest's name was Giddonah.
And Korihor saith unto him, Because I do not teach the foolish traditions of your fathers,
and because I do not teach this people to bind themselves down under the foolish ordinances and performances
which are laid down by ancient priests, to usurp
power and authority over them, to keep them in ignorance, that they may not lift up their heads, but be brought down
according to thy words. Yea, say that this people is a free people. Behold, I say they are in
bondage. Ye say that those ancient prophecies are true. Behold, I say that ye do not know that they are true.
Ye say that this people is a guilty and a fallen people, because of the transgression of a parent. Behold, I say
that a child is not guilty because of its parents. And ye also say that Christ shall come.
But behold, I say that ye do not know that there shall be a Christ. And ye say also, that he shall be slain for the
sins of the world; and thus ye lead away this people after the foolish traditions of your
fathers, and according to your own desires; and ye keep them down, even as it were, in bondage that ye may glut
yourselves with the labors of their hands, that they durst not look up with boldness, and that they durst not enjoy
their rights and privileges; yea, they durst not make use of
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that which is there own, lest they should offend their priests,
which do yoke them according to their desires,
and hath brought them to believe by their traditions, and their dreams, and their whims, and their visions, and their pretended mysteries,
that they should, if they did not do according to their words, offend some unknown being,
which they say is God; a being which never hath been seen not known, which never was nor ever will be.
Now when the high priest and the Chief Judge saw the hardness of his heart;
yea, when they saw that he would revile even against God, they would not make any reply to his words;
but they caused that he should be bound;
and they delivered him up into the hands of the officers,
and sent him to the land of Zarahemla,
that he might be brought before Alma,
and the Chief Judge, which was governor over all the land.
And it came to pass that when he was brought before Alma and the Chief Judge, that he did go on in the same manner as
he did in the land of Gideon; yea, he went on to blaspheme. And he did rise up in great swelling
words before Alma, and did revile against the priests and teachers,
accusing them of leading away the people after
the silly traditions of their fathers,
for the sake of
glutting in the labors of the people. --
Now Alma saith unto him, Thou knowest that we do not glut ourselves upon the labors of this people;
for behold, I have labored even from the commencement of the reign of Judges, until now,
with mine own hands, for my support,
notwithstanding my many travels round about the land, to declare the word of God unto my people.
And notwithstanding the many labors which I have performed in the church, I have never received so much as even one
senine for my labor; neither hath any of my brethren, save it were in the judgment seat; and then we have received only
according to the law, for our time. And now if we do not receive any thing for our labors in the
church, what doth it profit us to labor in the church, save it were to declare the truth, that we may have rejoicings
in the joy of our brethren? Then why sayest thou that we preach unto this people to get gain,
when thou thyself knowest that we receive no gain? And now, believest thou that we deceive this people, that causeth
such joy in their hearts? -- And Korihor answered him, Yea. And then Alma
saith unto him, Believest thou that there is a God? And he answered, Nay,
Now Alma saith unto him, If ye deny again that there is a God, and also deny the Christ: for behold, I say unto
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you, I know there is a God, and also that Christ shall come. And now, what evidence have ye
that there is no God, or that Christ cometh not? I say unto you that ye have none, save it be your word only.
But behold, I have all things as a testimony that these things are true; and ye also have all things as a testimony
unto you that they are true; and will ye deny them? Believest thou that these things are true?
Behold, I know that thou believest, but thou are possessed with a lying spirit, and ye have put off the spirit of God,
that it may have no place in you; but the Devil hath power over you, and he doth carry you about, working devices,
that he may destroy the children of God. And now Korihor saith unto Alma, If thou wilt shew me
a sign, that I may be convinced that there is a God, yea, shew unto me that he hath power, and then I will be convinced
of the truth of my words. But Alma saith unto him, Thou hast had signs enough; will ye tempt
your God? Will ye say, Shew unto me a sign, when ye have the testimony of all these thy brethren, and also all the
holy prophets? The Scriptures are laid before thee, yea, and all things denote there is a God;
yea, even the earth,
and all things that is upon the face of it, yea, and its motion; yea, and also all the planets which move in their
regular form, doth witness that there is a Supreme Creator; and yet do ye go about, leading away
the hearts of this people, testifying unto them there is no God. And yet will ye deny against all these witnesses?
And he said, Yea, I will deny, except ye shall shew me a sign.
And now it came to pass that Alma said unto him, Behold,
I am grieved because of the hardness of your heart; yea,
that ye will resist the spirit of the truth,
that thy soul may be destroyed. But behold, it is better that thy soul should be
lost, than that thou shouldst be the means of bringing many souls down to destructions, by thy lying and by thy
flattering words; that thou shalt become dumb, that thou shalt never open thy mouth any more, that thou shalt not
deceive this people any more. Now Korihor saith unto him, I do not deny the existence of a God,
but I do not believe that there is a God; and I say also, that ye do not know that there is a God; and except ye
shew me a sign, I will not believe. Now Alma saith unto him, This will I give unto thee for a
sign, that thou shalt be struck dumb, according to my words; and I say, that in the name of God, that ye shall be
struck dumb,
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that ye shall no more have utterance. Now when Alma said these words, Korihor was struck dumb,
that he could not have utterance,
according to the words of Alma. And now when the Chief Judge
saw this, he put forth his hand and wrote unto Korihor, saying: Art thou convinced of the power of a God? In whom
did ye desire that Alma shew forth his sign? Would ye that he should afflict others, to shew unto thee a sign? Behold,
he hath showed unto you a sign; and now, will ye dispute more? And Korihor put forth his hand,
and wrote saying: I know that I am dumb, for I cannot speak; and I know that nothing, save it were the power of God
could bring this upon me; yea, and I also knew that there was a God. But behold, the Devil hath
deceived me; for he appeared unto me in the form of an angel, and said unto me, Go and reclaim this people, for they
have all gone astray after an unknown God. And he saith unto me, There is no God; yea, and he taught me that which I
should say. And I have taught his words; and I taught them, because they were pleasing unto the carnal mind; and I
taught them, even until I had much success, insomuch that I verily believed that they were true; and for this cause,
I withstood the truth, even until I have brought this great curse upon me. Now when he had said
this, he besought that Alma should pray unto god, that the curse might be taken from him. But
Alma said unto him, If this curse should be taken from thee thou wouldst again lead away the hearts of this people;
therefore, it shall be unto thee, even as the Lord will.
And it came to pass that the curse was not taken off of Korihor; but he was cast out, and went about from house to
house, a begging for his food. Now the knowledge of what had happened unto Korihor, was
immediately published throughout all the land; yea, the proclamation was sent forth by the Chief Judge, to all the
people in the land, declaring to those who had believed in the words of Korihor, that they must speedily repent,
lest the same judgments would come unto them.
And it came to pass that they were all convinced of the wickedness of Korihor; therefore they were all converted
again unto the Lord; and this put an end to the iniquity after the manner of Korihor. And Korihor did go about from
house to house, a begging food for his support.
And it came to pass that as he went forth among the people, yea, among a people which had
separated themselves from the
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Nephites, and called themselves Zoramites, being led by a man
whose name was Zoram;
and as he went forth amongst them,
behold, he was run upon, and trodden down, even until he was dead; and thus we see the end of
him who perverteth the ways of the Lord; and thus we see that the Devil will not Support his children at the last day,
but doth speedily drag them down to hell.
Now it came to pass after the end of Korihor,
Alma having received tidings that the Zoramites were perverting the ways
of the Lord, and that Zoram, which was their leader,
was leading the hearts of the people to bow down to dumb idols,
&c., his heart again began to sicken,
because of the iniquity of the people;
for it was the cause of great sorrow to Alma, to know of iniquity among his people;
therefore his heart was exceeding sorrowful,
because of the separation of the Zoramites from the Nephites.
Now the Zoramites had gathered themselves
together in a land which they called Antionum, which was east of the land of Zarahemla,
which lay nearly bordering
upon the seashore, which was south of the land of Jershon, which also bordered upon the wilderness south, which
wilderness was full of the Lamanites.
Now the Nephites greatly feared that the Zoramites would
enter into a correspondence with the Lamanites,
and that it would be the means of a great loss on the part of the Nephites.
And now, as the preaching of the word had a great tendency to lead the people to do
that which was just; yea,
it had had more power effect upon the minds
of the people than the sword,
or any thing else, which had happened unto them;
therefore Alma thought it was expedient that they should try the virtue of the word of God.
Therefore he took Ammon, and Aaron,
and Omner; and Himni he did leave in the
church of Zarahemla; but the former three he took with him,
and also Amulek and Zeezrom,
which were at Melek; and he also took two of his sons.
Now the eldest of his sons he took not with him;
and his name was Helaman;
but the names of those which he took with him, were Shiblon and Corianton:
and these are the names of those
which went with him among the Zoramites, to preach unto them the word.
Now the Zoramites were dissenters from the Nephites; therefore they had the word of God preached unto
them. But they had fell into great errors, for they would not observe to keep the commandments
of God, and his statutes, according to the law of Moses;
neither would they observe the performances
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of the church, to continue in prayer and supplication to God daily, that they might not enter into
temptation; yea, in fine, they did pervert the ways of the Lord in very many instances;
therefore, for this cause, Alma and his brethren went into the land, to preach the word unto them.
Now when they had come into the land, behold, to their astonishment,
they found that the Zoramites had built
synagogues, and that they did gather themselves together on one day of the week, which they did call the day of the
Lord; and they did worship after a manner which Alma and his brethren had never beheld; for
they had a place built up in the centre of their synagogue, a place of standing, which was high above the head; and
the top thereof would only admit one person. Therefore, whosoever desired to worship, must go
forth and stand upon the top thereof, and stretch forth his hands towards heaven, and cry with a loud voice,
saying: Holy, holy God; we believe that thou art God., and we believe that thou art holy,
and that thou wast a spirit, and that thou art a spirit, and that thou wilt be a spirit forever.
Holy God, we believe that thou hast separated us from our brethren; and we do not believe in the tradition
of our
brethren,
which was handed down to them by the childishness of their fathers;
but we believe that thou hast elected us to be thy holy children;
and also thou hast made it known unto us that there shall be no Christ;
but thou art the same, yesterday, to-day, and forever; and thou hast elected us, that we shall be saved, whilst all
around us are elected to be cast by thy wrath down to hell; for the which holiness, O God, we thank thee; and we
also thank thee that thou hast elected us, that we may not be led away after the foolish traditions of our brethren,
which doth bind them down to a belief of Christ, which doth lead their hearts to wander far from thee, our
God. And again: We thank thee, O God, that we are a chosen and a holy people. Amen.
Now it came to pass that after Alma and his brethren, and his sons, had heard these prayers, they were astonished
beyond all measure. For behold, every man did go forth and offer up the same prayers.
Now the place was called by them Rameumptom, which being interpreted is the Holy Stand. -- Now
from this stand, they did offer up, every man, the self-same prayer unto God, thanking their God that they were chosen
of him, and that he did not lead them away after the tradition of their brethren; and that their hearts were not
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stolen away to believe in things to come,
which they knew nothing about.
Now after the people had all offered up thanks after this manner,
they returned to their homes, never speaking of their God again,
until they had assembled themselves together again, to the holy stand,
to offer up thanks after their manner. Now when Alma saw this, his heart was grieved: for he saw that they were a wicked
and a perverse people; yea, he saw that their hearts were set upon gold, and upon silver, and upon all manner of fine
goods. Yea, and he also saw that their hearts were lifted up into great boasting, in their
pride. And he lifted up his voice to Heaven, and cried, saying: O how long O Lord, wilt thou
suffer that thy servants shall dwell here below in the flesh, to behold such gross wickedness among the children of
men. Behold, O God, they cry unto thee, and yet their hearts are swallowed up in their pride.
Behold, O God, they cry unto thee with their mouths, while they are puffed up, even to greatness, with the vain
things of the world. Behold, O my God, their costly apparel, and their ringlets, and their
bracelets, and their ornaments of gold, and all their precious things which they are ornamented with; and behold,
their hearts are set upon them, and yet they cry unto thee and say, We thank thee, O God, for we are a chosen people
unto thee, while others shall perish. Yea, and they say that thou hast made it known unto them,
that there shall be no Christ. O Lord God, how long wilt thou suffer that such wickedness and
iniquity shall be among this people? O Lord, wilt thou give me strength, that I may bear with mine infirmities? for
I am infirm, and such wickedness among this people doth pain my soul. O Lord, my heart is
exceeding sorrowful; wilt thou comfort my soul in Christ? O Lord, wilt thou grant unto me that I may have strength,
that I may suffer with patience these afflictions which shall come upon me, because of the iniquity of this
people? O Lord, wilt thou comfort my soul, and give unto me success, and also my fellow-laborers
which are with me; yea, Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner, and also Amulek, and Zeezrom, and also my two sons; yea, even
all these wilt thou comfort, O Lord? Yea, wilt thou comfort their souls in Christ? Wilt thou
grant unto them that they may have strength, that they may bear their afflictions which shall come upon them,
because of the iniquities of this people? O Lord, wilt thou grant unto us that we may have
success in bringing them again unto thee, in Christ? Behold, O Lord,
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their souls are precious, and many of them are our near brethren, therefore, give unto us O Lord, power and wisdom,
that we may bring these, our brethren, again unto thee.
Now it came to pass, that when Alma had said these words, that he clapped his hands upon all they which were with
him. And behold, as he clapped his hands upon them, they were filled with the holy Spirit.
And after that, they did separate themselves one from another, taking no thoughts for themselves what they should
eat, or what they should drink, or what they should put on. And the Lord provided for them
that they should hunger not, neither should they thirst; yea, and he also gave them strength, that they should
suffer no manner of afflictions, save it were swallowed up in the joy of Christ. --
Now this was according to the
prayer of Alma; and this because he prayed in faith.
And it came to pass that they did go forth, and began to preach the word of God unto the people, entering into their
synagogues, and into their houses; yea, and even they did preach the word in their streets. And
it came to pass that after much labor among them, they began to have success among the poor class of people; for behold,
they were cast out of the synagogues, because of the coarseness of their apparel; therefore they
were not permitted to enter into their synagogues to worship God, being esteemed as filthiness; therefore they were
poor; yea, they were esteemed by their brethren as dross; therefore they were poor as to things of the world; and
also they were poor in heart.
Now as Alma was teaching and speaking unto the people upon the hill Onidah,
there came a great multitude unto him,
which were those of which we have been speaking, of which were poor in heart, because of their poverty
as to the things of the world.
And they came unto Alma; and the one which was the most foremost among them,
saith unto him, Behold, what shall these my brethren do, for they are despised of all men, because of their poverty;
yea, and more especially by our priests; for they have cast us out of our synagogues, which we have labored abundantly
to build, with our own hands; and they have cast us out because of this our exceeding poverty, that we have no place
to worship God; and behold, what shall we do? And now when Alma heard this, he turned him about,
his face immediately towards him, and he beheld, with great joy; for he beheld that their afflictions had truly
humbled them, and that they were in a preparation
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to hear the word; therefore he did say no more to the other multitude, but
he stretched forth his hand,
and cried unto those which he beheld, which were truly penitent, and saith unto them,
I beheld that ye are lowly in heart; and if so, blessed are ye. Behold, thy brother hath said,
What shall we do? for we are cast out of our synagogues, that we cannot worship God. Behold I
say unto you, Do ye suppose that ye cannot worship God, save it be in your synagogues? And
moreover, I would ask, Do ye suppose that ye must not worship God only once in a week? I say
unto you, It is well that ye are cast out of your synagogues, that ye may be humbled, and that ye may learn wisdom;
for it is necessary that ye should learn wisdom; for it is because ye are cast out, that ye are despised of your
brethren; because of your exceeding poverty, that ye are brought to a lowliness of heart; for ye are necessarily
brought to be humble, blessed are ye; for a man sometimes, if he is compelled to be humble,
seeketh repentance; and now surely, whosoever repenteth, shall find mercy; and he that findeth mercy and endureth to
the end, the same shall be saved. And now as I said unto you, That because ye are compelled to
be humble, ye were blessed, do ye suppose that they are more blessed who truly humble themselves because of the
word? Yea, he that truly humbleth himself, and repenteth of his sin, and endureth to the end,
the same shall be blessed; yea, much more blessed than they who art compelled to be humble, because of their
exceeding poverty; therefore blessed are they who humbleth themselves without being compelled
to be humble; or rather, in other words, blessed is he that believeth in the word of God, and is baptized without
stubborness of heart; yea, without being brought to know the word, or even compelled to know, before they will
believe. Yea, there are many which do say, If thou wilt show unto us a sign from Heaven, then
we shall know of a surety; then we shall believe. Now I ask, Is this faith? Behold, I say unto
you, Nay; for if a man knoweth a thing, he hath no cause to believe, for he knoweth it. And
now, how much more cursed is he that only believeth, or only hath cause to believe, and falleth into
transgression? Now of this thing, ye must judge. Behold, I say unto you, That it is on the one
hand, even as it is on the other; and it shall be unto every man according to his work.
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And now as I said concerning faith: Faith, is not to have a perfect knowledge of things;
therefore if ye have faith, ye hope for things which is not seen, which are true. And now, behold, I say unto you: and I
would that ye should remember that God is merciful unto all who believe on his name; therefore he desireth,
in the first place, that ye should believe, yea, even on his word.
And now, he imparteth his word by angels, unto men; yea, not only men, but women also.
Now this is not all: little children doth have words given unto them many times, which doth confound the wise and learned.
And now. my beloved brethren, as ye have desired to know of me what shall ye do because ye are afflicted and cast
out: now I do not desire that ye should suppose that I mean to judge you only according to that which is
true; for I do not mean that ye all of you have been compelled to humble yourselves;. for I
verily believe there are some among you which would humble themselves, let them be in whatsoever circumstances they
might. Now as I said concerning faith -- that it was not a perfect knowledge, even so it is
with my words. Ye cannot know of their surety at first, unto perfection, any more than faith is a perfect
knowledge. But behold, if ye will awake and arouse your faculties, even to an experiment upon
my words, and exercise a particle of faith; yea, even if ye can no more than desire to believe, let this desire work
in you, even until ye believe in a manner that ye can give place for a portion of my words. Now
we will compare the word unto a seed. Now if ye give place, that a seed may be planted in your heart, behold, if it
be a true seed, or a good seed, if ye cast it out by your unbelief,
that ye will resist the spirit of the Lord,
behold, it will begin to swell within your breasts; and when you feel these swelling motions, ye will begin to say
within yourselves, It must needs be that this is a good seed, or that the word is good, for it beginneth to enlarge
my soul; yea, it beginneth to enlighten my understanding; yea, and it beginneth to be delicious to
me. Now behold, would not this increase your faith? I say unto you, yea; nevertheless it hath
not grown up to a perfect knowledge. But behold, as the seed swelleth, and sprouteth, and
beginneth to grow, and then ye must needs say, That the seed is good; for behold it swelleth, and sprouteth, and
beginneth to grow. And now behold, are ye sure that this is a good seed? I say unto you, Yea;
for every seed bringeth forth unto its own likeness; therefore. if a seed groweth, it is good,
but if it groweth not, behold,
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it is not good; therefore it is cast away. And now behold, because ye have tried the experiment,
and planted the seed, and it swelleth, and sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, ye must needs know that the seed is
good. And now behold, is your knowledge perfect? Yea, your knowledge is perfect in that thing,
and your faith is dormant; and this because you know; for ye know that the word hath swelled your souls; and ye also
know that it hath sprouted up, that your understanding doth begin to be enlightened, and your mind doth begin to
expand. O then, is not this real? I say unto you, yea, because it is light; and whatsoever is
light, is good, because it is discernible; therefore ye must know that it is good. And now behold, after ye have
tasted this light, is your knowledge perfect? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; neither must ye lay
aside your faith, for ye have only exercised your faith to plant the seed, that ye might try the experiment, to know
if the seed was good. And behold, as the tree beginneth to grow, ye will say, Let us nourish it
with great care, that ii may get root, that it may grow up and bring forth fruit unto us. And now behold, if ye
nourish it with much care, it will get root, and grow up, and bring forth fruit. But if ye
neglect the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold, it will not get any root; and when the heat of
the sun cometh and scorcheth it, and because it hath no root, it whithereth away, and ye pluck it up and cast it
out. Now this is not because the seed was not good; neither is it because the fruit thereof
would not be desirable. But it is because your ground is barren, and ye will not nourish the tree; therefore ye
cannot have the fruit thereof. And thus if ye will not nourish the word, looking forward with
an eye of faith to the fruit thereof, ye can never pluck of the fruit of the tree of life. But
if ye will nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith, with great diligence, and
with patience, looking forward to the fruit thereof, and it shall take root; and behold, it shall be a tree springing
up unto everlasting life; and because of your diligence, and your faith, and your patience with
the word, in nourishing it, that it may take root in you, behold, by and by, ye shall pluck the fruit thereof, which
is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is white above all that is white; yea, and pure
above all that is pure; and ye shall feast upon this fruit, even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither
shall ye thirst. Then my brethren ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence,
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and patience, and long suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you.
Now after Alma had spoken these words, they sent forth unto him desiring to know whether they should believe in one
God, that they might obtain this fruit of which he had spoken, or how they should plant the seed,
or the word, of which he had spoken,
which he said must be planted in their hearts; or in what manner they should begin to exercise
their faith. And Alma said unto them, Behold, ye have said that ye could not worship your God,
because ye are cast out of your synagogues. But behold, I say unto you, If ye suppose that ye cannot worship God,
ye do greatly err, and ye had ought to search the Scriptures; for if ye suppose that they have taught you this, ye
do not understand them. Do ye remember to have read what Zenos, the prophet of old, hath said
concerning prayer or worship? for he saith, Thou art merciful O God, for thou hast heard my
prayer, even when I was in the wilderness; yea, thou wast merciful when I prayed concerning those which were mine
enemies, and thou didst turn them to me; yea, O God, and thou wast merciful unto me when I did
cry unto thee in my field; when I did cry unto thee in my prayer, and thou didst hear me. And
again, O God, when I did turn to my house thou didst hear me in my prayer, And when I did turn
unto my closet, O Lord, and prayed unto thee, thou didst hear me; yea, thou art merciful unto
thy children, when they cry unto to thee to be heard of thee, and not of men; and thou wilt hear them;
yea, O God, thou hast been merciful unto me, and heard my cries in the midst of thy congregations;
yea, and thou hast also heard me when I have been cast out, and have been despised by mine enemies; yea, thou didst
hear my cries, and wast angry with mine enemies, and thou didst visit them in thine anger, with speedy
destruction; and thou didst hear me because of mine afflictions and my sincerity; and it is
because of thy Son that hast been thus merciful unto me; therefore I will cry unto thee in all mine afflictions; for
in thee is my joy; for thou hast turned they judgments away from me, because of thy Son.
And now Alma saith unto them, Do ye believe those Scriptures which have been written by them of old?
Behold, if ye do, ye must believe what Zenos saith; for behold, he saith, Thou hast turned away thy judgments, because
of thy Son. -- Now behold, my brethren, I would ask, if ye have read the Scriptures? If ye have,
how can ye disbelieve on the Son
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of God? For it is not written that Zenos alone spake of these things;
for behold, he saith, Thou art angry, O Lord, with this people, because they will not understand of thy mercies which
thou hast bestowed upon them, because of they Son. And now my brethren, ye see that a second
prophet of old has testified of the Son of God; and because the people would not understand his words, they stoned
him to death. But behold, this is not all; these are not the only ones which have spoken
concerning the Son of God. Behold, he was spoken of by Moses; yea, and behold, a type was raised
up in the wilderness, that whosoever would look upon it might live. And many did look and live.
But few understood the meaning of those things, and this because of the hardness of their hearts. But there were many
which were so hardened that they would not look; therefore they perished. Now the reason that they would not look,
is because they did not believe that it would heal them. O my brethren, if ye could be healed
by merely casting about your eyes, that ye might be healed, would ye not behold quickly, or would ye rather harden
your hearts in unbelief, and be slothful, that ye would not cast about your eyes, that ye might perish?
If so, wo shall come upon you; but if not so, then cast about your eyes, and begin to
believe in the Son of God, that
he will come to redeem his people,
and that he shall suffer and die to atone for their sins;
and that he shall rise again from the dead, which shall bring to pass the resurrection,
that all men shall stand before him, to be judged,
at the last and judgment day, according to their works. And now my brethren,
I desire that ye should plant this word in your hearts, and as it beginneth to swell,
even so nourish it by your faith. And behold, it will become a tree,
springing up in you unto everlasting life.
And then may God grant unto you that your burdens may be light,
through the joy of his Son.
And even all this can ye do, if ye will. Amen.
And now it came to pass that after Alma had spoken these words unto them, he sat down upon the ground, and Amulek
arose and began to teach them, saying: My brethren, I think that it is impossible that ye
should be ignorant of the things which have been spoken concerning the coming of Christ, who is taught by us to be
the Son of God; yea, I know that these things were taught unto you, bountifully, before your dissention from among
us. And as ye have desired of my beloved brother, that he should make known unto you what ye
should
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do, because of your afflictions; and he hath spoken somewhat unto you to prepare your minds; yea, and he hath exhorted
you unto faith, and to patience; yea, even that ye would have so much faith as even to plant
the word in your hearts, that ye may try the experiment of its goodness; and we have beheld that
the great question which is in your minds, is whether the word be in the Son of God, or whether there shall be no
Christ. And ye also beheld that my brother hath proven unto you, in many instances, that the
word is in Christ, unto salvation. My brother hath called upon the words of Zenos, that redemption
cometh through the Son of God, and also upon the words of Zenock;
and also he hath appealed unto Moses,
to prove these things are true. And now behold, I will testify unto you of myself, that these things are true. --
Behold, I say unto you, that I do know that Christ shall come among the children of men, to take upon him
the transgressions of his people,
and that he shall atone for the sins of the world; for the Lord God hath spoken
it; for it is expedient that an atonement should be made;
for according to the great plan of the
Eternal God, there must be an atonement made, or else all mankind must unavoidably perish; yea, all are hardened;
yea, all are fallen, and are lost, and must perish,
except it be through the atonement which it is expedient should
be made; for it is expedient that there should be a great and last sacrifice; yea, not a sacrifice
of man, neither beast, neither of any manner of fowl; for it shall not be a human sacrifice; but it must be an Infinite
and an Eternal sacrifice. Now there is not any man that can sacrifice his own blood, which will
atone for the sins of another. Now if a man murdereth, behold, will our law, which is just, take the life of his
brother? I say unto you Nay. But the law requireth the life of him who hath murdered; therefore
there can nothing, which is short of an Infinite atonement, which will suffice for the sins of the world;
therefore it is expedient that there should be a great and last sacrifice; and then shall there be,
or it expedient there should be a stop to the shedding of blood; then shall the law of Moses be fulfilled;
yea, it shall all be fulfilled; every jot and tittle, and none shall have passed away. And behold, this is the whole
meaning of the law; every whit a pointing to that great and last sacrifice; and that great and last sacrifice will
be the Son of God; yea, Infinite and Eternal; and thus he shall bring salvation to all those
who shall believe on his name; this being the intent of this last sacrifice, to bring
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about the bowels of mercy, which overpowereth justice and bringeth about means unto men that they may have faith
unto repentance. And thus mercy can satisfy the demands of justice, and encircles them in the
arms of safety, while he that exerciseth no faith unto repentance, is exposed to the whole law of the demands of
justice; therefore, only unto him that hath faith unto repentance, is brought about the great and Eternal plan of
redemption; therefore may God grant unto you, my brethren, that ye might begin to exercise your
faith unto repentance, that ye begin to call upon his holy name, that he would have mercy upon you;
yea, cry unto him for mercy; for he is mighty to save; yea, humble yourselves, and continue in
prayer unto him; cry unto him when ye are in your fields; yea, over all your flocks;
cry unto him in your houses, yea, over all your household, both morning, mid-day, and evening;
yea, cry unto him against the power of your enemies; yea, cry unto him against the Devil, which
is an enemy to all righteousness. Cry unto him over the crops of your fields, that ye may prosper
in them; cry over the flocks of your fields, that they may increase. But
this is not all: ye must pour out your souls in your closets, and your secret places, and in your
wilderness; yea, and when you do not cry unto the Lord, let your hearts be full, drawn out in
prayer unto him continually for your welfare, and also for the welfare of those which are around you.
And now behold, my beloved brethren, I say unto you, Do not suppose that this is all;
for after ye have done all these things,
if ye turn away the needy, and the naked, and visit not the sick and afflicted, and impart of your
substance, if ye have, to those who stand in need; I say unto you, if ye do not any of these things, behold, your
prayer is vain, and availeth you nothing, and ye are as hypocrites which do deny the faith;
therefore, if ye do not remember to be charitable, ye are as dross, which the refiners do cast out, (it being of
no worth,) and is trodden under foot of men.
And now, my brethren, I would that after ye have
received so many witnesses, seeing that the Holy Scriptures testify of these things, come forth and bring fruit unto
repentance; yea, I would that ye would come forth and harden not your hearts any longer; for
behold, now is the time, and the day of your salvation; and therefore, if ye will repent and harden not your hearts,
immediately shall the great plan of redemption be brought about unto you. For behold, this life
is the time for
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men to prepare to meet God; yea, behold, the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors.
And now as I said unto you before, as ye have had so many witnesses, therefore I beseech of you, that ye not
procrastinate the day of your repentance until the end; for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for
eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in this life, then cometh the night of darkness,
wherein there can be no labor performed.
Ye cannot say, when ye are brought to that awful crisis, that I will
repent, that I will return to God. Nay, ye cannot say this; for that same spirit which doth possess your bodies
at the time that ye go out of this life,
that same spirit will have power to possess your body in that eternal
world. For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance, even until death,
behold, ye have become subjected to the
spirit of the Devil,
and he doth seal you his;
therefore the spirit of the
Lord hath withdrawn from you, and hath no place in you, and the Devil hath all power over you: and this is the final
state of the wicked. And this I know, because the Lord hath said, he dwelleth not in unholy temples,
but in the hearts of the righteous doth he dwell;
yea, and he hath also said, that the righteous should sit down in his kingdom,
to go no more out; but their garments should be made white, through the blood of the Lamb.
And now my beloved brethren, I desire that ye should remember these things, and that ye should work out your salvation
with fear before God, and that ye should no more deny the coming of Christ; that ye contend no
more against the Holy Ghost, but that ye receive it, and take upon you the name of Christ; that ye humble yourselves
even to the dust, and worship God in whatsoever place ye may be in, in spirit and in truth; and that ye live in
thanksgiving daily, for the many mercies and blessings which he doth bestow upon you; yea, and
I also exhort you my brethren, that ye be watchful unto prayer continually, that ye may not be led away by the
temptation of the Devil, that he may not overpower you, that ye not become his subjects at the last day: for behold,
he rewardeth you no good thing. And now my beloved brethren, I would exhort you to have patience,
and that ye bear with all manner of afflictions; that ye do not revile against those who cast you out because of your
exceeding poverty, lest ye become sinners like unto them; but that ye have patience,
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and bear with those afflictions, with a firm hope that ye shall one day rest from all your afflictions.
Now it came to pass that after Amulek had made an end of these words, they withdrew themselves from the multitude, and
came over into the land of Jershon; yea, and the rest of the brethren, after they had preached
the word unto the Zoramites, also came over into the land of Jershon.
And it came to pass that after the more popular part of the
Zoramites had consulted together,
concerning the words which had been preached unto them,
they were angry because of the word, for it did destroy their craft; therefore they
would not hearken unto the words. And they sent and gathered together throughout all the land,
all the people,
and consulted with them concerning the words
which had been spoken.
Now their rulers, and their priests, and their teachers, did not let the people know concerning their desires; therefore therefore
they found out privily the minds of all the people.
And it came to pass that after they found out the
minds of all the people,
those which were in favor of the words
which had been spoken by Alma and his brethren,
were cast out of the land; and they were many; and they came over
also into the land of Jershon.
And it came to pass that Alma and his brethren did minister unto them.
Now the people of the Zoramites were angry with the people of Ammon
which were in Jershon,
and the chief ruler of the Zoramites being a very wicked man,
sent over unto the people of Ammon desiring them that they should cast out of their land all those
which came over from them into their land. And he breathed out many threatnings against them.
And now the people of Ammon did not fear their words, therefore they did cast them out,
but they did receive all the poor of the Zoramites that came over unto them; and they did nourish them,
and did clothe them, and did give unto
them lands for their inheritance; and they did administer unto them according to their wants.
Now this did stir up the Zoramites to anger against the people of Ammon,
and they began to mix with the Lamanites,
and to stir them up also to anger against them; and thus the Zoramites and the Lamanites began
to make preparations for the war against the people of Ammon, and also against the Nephites.
And thus ended the seventeenth year of the reign of Judges, over the people of Nephi.
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And the people of Ammon departed out of the land of Jershon, and came over into the land of Melek,
and gave place in the land of Jershon for the armies of the Nephites,
that they might contend with
the armies of the Lamanites, and
the armies of the Zoramites;
and thus commenced a war betwixt the Lamanites and the Nephites,
in the eighteenth year of the reign of the Judges; and an account shall be given of their wars hereafter. And Alma, and
Ammon, and their brethren and also the two sons of Alma,
returned to the land of Zarahemla,
after having been instruments in the hands of God of bringing many of the Zoramites to repentance,
were driven out of their land; but
they have lands for their inheritance in the land of Jershon,
and they have taken up arms to defend themselves,
and their wives, and their children, and their lands. Now Alma, being grieved for
the iniquity of his people,
yea, for the wars, and the bloodsheds, and the contentions which were among them; and having to declare
the word, or sent to declare the word, among all the people in every city;
and seeing that the hearts of the people began to wax hard,
and that they began to be offended because of the strictness of the word, his heart was exceeding
sorrowful; therefore, he caused that his sons should be gathered together, that he might give
unto them every one his charge, separately, concerning the things pertaining unto righteousness. And we have an
account of his commandments, which he gave unto them according to his own record.
========
CHAPTER XVII.
The Commandments of Alma, to his son Helaman.
My son, give ear to my words; for I swear unto you, that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God, ye
shall prosper in the land. I would that ye should do as I have done, in remembering
the captivity of our fathers; for they were in bondage, and none could deliver them, except it was the God of Abraham,
and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, and he surely did deliver them in their afflictions. --
And now, O my son Helaman, behold, thou art in thy youth, and therefore I beseech of thee that thou wilt hear my words,
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and learn of me; for I do not know that whomsoever shall put his trust in God, shall be supported in their trials,
and their troubles, and their afflictions, and shall be lifted up at the last day; and I would
not that ye think that I know of myself, not of the temporal, but of the spiritual; not of the carnal mind, but of
God. Now behold I say unto you, If I had not been born of God, I should not have known these
things; but God hath, by the mouth of his holy angel, made these things known unto me, not of any worthiness of
myself, for I went about with the sons of Mosiah, seeking
to destroy the church of God;
but behold, God sent his holy angel to stop us by the way. -- And behold, he spake unto us, as
it were the voice of thunder, and the whole earth did tremble beneath our feet, and we all fell to the earth, for
the fear of the Lord came upon us. But behold, the voice said unto me, Arise.
And I arose and stood up, and beheld the angel. And he said unto me, if thou wilt of thyself be destroyed, seek
no more to destroy the church of God.
And it came to pass that I fell to the earth; and it was for the space of three days and three nights,
that I could not open my mouth; neither had I the use of my limbs. And the angel spake more things unto me,
which were heard by my brethren, but I did not hear them; for when I heard the words, If thou wilt be
destroyed of thyself, seek no more to destroy the church of God,
I was struck with such great fear and
amazement, lest perhaps that I should be destroyed, that I fell to the earth, and I did hear no more;
but I was racked with eternal torment, for my soul was harrowed up to the greatest degree, and racked with
all my sins. Yea, I did remember all my sins and iniquities, for which I was tormented with the pains of hell;
yea, I saw that I had rebelled against my God, and that I had not kept his holy commandments; yea, and I had
murdered many of his children, or rather led them away unto destruction; yea, and in fine, so great had been
my iniquities, that the very thoughts of coming into the presence of my God, did rack my soul with
inexpressible horror. O, thought I, that I could be banished and become extinct both soul and body, that I
might not be brought to stand in the presence of my God,
to be judged of my deeds. And now, for
three days and for three nights was I racked, even with the pains of a damned soul.
And it came to pass that as I was thus racked with torment while I harrowed up by the memory of my many sins
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behold, I remembered also to have heard my father prophecy unto the people, concerning the coming of one Jesus Christ,
a Son of God, to atone for the sins of the world. Now as my mind caught hold upon this thought,
I cried within my heart, O Jesus, thou Son of God, have mercy on me, who art in the gall of bitterness, and art
encircled about by the everlasting chains of death.
And now behold, when I thought this, I could remember my pains no more; yea,
I was harrowed up by the memory of my sins no more. And O, what joy,
and what marvellous light I did behold; yea, my soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my
pain; yea, I say unto you, my son. that there could be nothing so exquisite and so bitter, as
was my pains. Yea, and again I say unto you, my son, that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and
sweet as was my joy; yea, and methought I saw even as our father Lehi saw,
God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of singing and praising their God;
yea, and my soul did long to be there. But behold, my limbs did receive their strength again, and I stood
upon my feet, and did manifest unto the people that I had been born of God; yea, and from that
time, even until now, I have labored without ceasing, that I might bring souls unto repentance; that I might bring
them to taste of the exceeding joy of which I did taste; that they might also be born of God, and be filled with the
Holy Ghost. Yea, and now behold, O my son, the Lord doth give me exceeding great joy in the
fruit of my labors; for because of the word which he hath imparted unto me, behold, many hath
been born of God, and hath tasted as I have tasted, and hath seen eye to eye, as I have seen; therefore they do know
of these things of which I have spoken, as I do know; and the knowledge which I have is of God.
And I have been supported under trials and troubles of every kind, yea,
and in all manner of afflictions; yea, God
hath delivered me from prison, and from bonds, and from death; yea, and I do put my trust in him, and he will still
deliver me; and I know that he will raise me up at the last day, to dwell with him in glory; yea,
and I will praise him forever, for he hath brought our fathers out of Egypt,
and he hath swallowed up the Egyptians
in the red sea; and he led them by his power into the promised land; yea, and he hath delivered them out of bondage
and captivity, from time to time; yea, and he hath also brought our fathers out of Jerusalem;
and he hath also, by his everlasting power,
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delivered them out of bondage and captivity, from time to time, even down to the present day; and I have always
retained in remembrance their captivity; yea, and ye also had ought to retain in remembrance, as I have done, their
captivity. -- But behold, my son, this is not all: for ye had ought to know, as I do know,
that inasmuch as ye shall keep the commandments of God, ye shall prosper in the land; and ye had ought to know also,
that inasmuch as ye will not keep the commandments of God, ye shall be cut off from his presence. Now this is
according to his word.
And now my son Helaman, I command you that ye take the records which have been entrusted with me;
and I also command you that ye shall keep a record of this people, according as I have done, upon the plates of Nephi,
and keep all these things sacred which I have kept, even as I kept them: for it is for a wise purpose that they are
kept; and these plates of brass which contain these engravings, which have the records of the
Holy Scriptures upon them, which have the genealogy of our forefathers, even from the beginning.
And behold, it hath been prophesied by our fathers, that they should be kept and handed down from one generation to
another, and be kept and preserved by the hand of the Lord, until they should go forth unto every nation, kindred,
tongue and people, that they shall know of the mysteries contained thereon. And now behold, if
they are kept, they must retain their brightness; yea, and they will retain their brightness; yea, and also shall all
the plates which do contain that which is Holy Writ. Now ye may suppose that this is foolishness
in me; but behold I say unto you, That by small and simple things, are great things brought to pass; and small means,
in many instances, doth confound the wise. And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about
his great and eternal purposes; and by very small means the Lord doth confound the wise, and bringeth about salvation
of many souls. And now, it hath hitherto been wisdom in God, that these things should be
preserved: for behold, they have enlarged the memory of this people, yea, and convinced many of the error of their
ways, and brought them
to the knowledge of their God,
unto the salvation of their souls. Yea,
I say unto you, were it not for these things that these
records do contain, which are on these plates,
Ammon and his brethren could not have convinced so many thousand of the Lamanites,
of the incorrect tradition of their fathers;
yea, these records and their words, brought them unto repentance; that is, they
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brought them to the knowledge of the Lord their God, and to rejoice in Jesus Christ, their Redeemer.
And who knoweth but what they will be the means of bringing many thousands of them,
yea, and also many thousands of our stiffnecked brethren,
the Nephites, which are now hardening their hearts in sin and iniquities,
to the knowledge of their Redeemer? -- Now these mysteries are not yet fully made known unto me; therefore I shall
forebear. And it may suffice, if I only say, they are preserved for a wise purpose, which purpose
is known unto God: for he doth counsel in wisdom over all his works, and his paths are straight, and his course is
one eternal round. O remember, remember, my son Helaman, how strict are the commandments of God.
And he saith, if ye will keep my commandments, ye shall prosper in the land; but if ye keep not his commandments, ye
shall be cut off from his presence. And now remember, my son, that God hath entrusted you with
these things, which are sacred, which he hath kept sacred, and also which he will keep and preserve for a wise purpose
in him, that he may shew forth his power unto future generations.
And now behold, I tell you by the spirit of prophecy, that if ye transgress the commandments of God, behold, these
things which are sacred, shall be taken away from you by the power of God, and ye shall be delivered up unto Satan,
that he may sift you as chaff before the wind; but if ye keep the commandments of God, and do
with these things which are sacred, according to that which the Lord doth command you, (for you must appeal unto the
Lord for all things whatsoever ye must do with them,) behold, no power of earth or hell can take them from you, for
God is powerful to the fulfilling of all his words: for he will fulfill all his promises which
he shall make unto you, for he hath fulfilled his promise which he hath made unto our fathers.
For he promised unto them that he would reserve these things for a wise purpose in him, that he might shew forth his
power unto future generations.
And now behold, one purpose hath he fulfilled,
even to the restoration of many thousands of the Lamanites
to the knowledge of the truth;
and he has shewn forth his power in them, and he will also still shew forth his power in them,
unto future generations; therefore they shall be preserved;
therefore I command you,
my son Helaman, that ye be diligent in fulfilling all my words, and that ye be diligent in keeping the commandments
of God, as they are written.
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And now, I will speak unto you concerning those twentyfour plates, that ye keep them, that the mysteries
and the works of darkness, and their secret works, or the secret works of those people,
which have been destroyed, may be made manifest unto this people; yea, all their murders, and robbings, and their plunderings, and all their wickedness,
and abominations, may be made manifest unto this people; yea, and that ye preserve these directors.
For behold; the Lord saw that his people began to work in darkness, yea, work secret murders and abominations; therefore
the Lord said, If they did not repent, they should be destroyed from off the face of the earth.
And the Lord said, I will prepare unto my servant Gazelem, a stone, which shall shine forth in darkness unto light,
that I may discover unto my people which serve me, that I may discover unto them the works of their brethren; yea,
their secret works, their works of darkness, and their wickedness and abominations. And now my
son, these directors were prepared, that the word of God might be fulfilled, which he spake saying:
I will bring forth out of darkness unto light, all their secret works and their abominations; and except they repent,
I will destroy them from off the face of the earth;
and I will bring to light all their secrets and abominations,
unto every nation that shall hereafter possess the land. And now my son, we see that they did
not repent; therefore they have been destroyed, and thus far the word of God hath been fulfilled; yea, their secret
abominations have been brought out of darkness, and made known unto us.
And now my son, I command you that ye retain all their oaths, and their covenants, and their agreements in their
secret abominations; yea, and all their sign and their wonders ye shall retain from this people, that they know them
not, lest peradventure they should fall into darkness also, and be destroyed. For behold, there
is a curse upon all this land, that destruction shall come upon all those workers of darkness,
according to the power of God,
when they are fully ripe; therefore I desire that this people might not be destroyed, --
Therefore, ye shall keep these secret plans of their oaths and their covenants from this people, and only their
wickedness, and their murders, and their abominations, shall ye make known unto them; and ye shall teach them to abhor
such wickedness, and abominations, murders; and ye shall also teach them, that these people were destroyed on account
of their wickedness, and abominations, and their murders. For behold,
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they murdered all the prophets of the Lord which came among them, to declare unto them concerning their iniquities;
and the blood of those which they murdered, did cry unto the Lord their God, for vengeance upon those which were
their murderers; and thus the judgments of God did come upon these workers of darkness and secret combinations;
yea, and cursed be the land forever and ever unto those workers of darkness and secret combinations, even unto
destruction, except they repent before they are fully ripe.
And now my son, remember the words which I have spoken unto you: trust not those secret plans unto this people,
but teach them an everlasting hatred against sin and iniquity; preach unto them repentance,
and faith on the Lord Jesus Christ; teach them to humble themselves, and to be meek and lowly in heart; teach them
to withstand every temptation of the Devil, with their faith on the Lord Jesus Christ; teach
them to never be weary of good works, but to be meek and lowly in heart: for such shall find rest to their
souls. O remember my son, and learn wisdom in thy youth; yea, learn in thy youth to keep the
commandments of god; yea, and cry unto God for all thy support; yea, let all thy doings be
unto the Lord, and whithersoever thou goest, let it be in the Lord; yea, thy thought be directed unto the Lord; yea,
let the affections of thy heart be placed upon the Lord forever; counsel the Lord in all thy
doings, and he will direct thee good; yea, when thou liest down at night, lie down unto the Lord, that he
may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning, let thy heart be full of thanks
unto god; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day. And now my son, I have somewhat
to say concerning the thing which our fathers call a ball, or director; our fathers called it liahona,
which is interpreted,
a compass; and the Lord prepared it. And behold, there cannot any man work after
the manner of so curious a workmanship. And behold, it was prepared to shew unto our fathers the course
which they should travel
in the wilderness; and it did work for them according to their faith in God; therefore if
they had faith to believe that God could cause that those spindles should point the way they should go, behold, it
was done; therefore they had this miracle, and also many other miracles wrought by the power of God, day by
day; nevertheless, because those miracles were worked by small means, nevertheless it did shew
unto them marvellous works. They were slothful, and
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forgot to exercise their faith and diligence, and those marvellous works ceased, and they did not progress in their
journey; therefore they tarried in the wilderness, or did not travel a direct course, and were
afflicted with hunger and thirst, because of their transgressions.
And now my son, I would that ye should understand that these things are not without a shadow; for as our fathers
were slothful to give heed to this compass, (now these things were temporal,) they did not prosper; even so it is
with things which are spiritual. For behold,
it is as easy to give heed to the word of Christ,
which will point to you a straight course to eternal bliss, as it was for our fathers to give heed to this compass,
which would point unto the a straight course to the promised land. And now I say, Is there not
a type in this thing? For just as suredly as this director did bring our fathers, by following its course, to the
promised land, shall the words of Christ, if we follow its course, carry us beyond this vale of sorrow, into a far
better land of promise.
O my son, do not let us be slothful, because of the easiness of the way; for so was it with our fathers; for so was
it prepared for them, that if they would look, they might live; even so it is with us. The way is prepared, and if
we will look, we may live forever. And now my son, see that ye take care of these sacred things;
yea, see that ye look to God and live. Go unto this people, and declare the word, and be sober. -- My son, farewell.
========
CHAPTER XVIII.
The Commandments of Alma, to his son Shiblon.
My son, give ear to my words: for I say unto you, even as I said unto Helaman, That inasmuch as ye shall keep the
commandments of God, ye shall prosper in the land; and inasmuch as ye will not keep the commandments of God, ye shall
be cast off from his presence. And now my son, I trust that I shall have great joy in you,
because of your steadiness and your faithfulness unto God; for as you have commenced in your youth, to look to the
Lord your God, even so I hope that you will continue in keeping his commandments: for blessed is he that endureth to
the end. I say unto you my
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son, that I have had great joy in thee already, because of thy faithfulness, and thy diligence, and thy patience,
and thy long suffering among the people of the Zoramites. For I knew that thou wast in bonds;
yea, and I also knew that thou wast stoned for the word's sake; and thou didst bear all these things with patience,
because the Lord was with thee: and now thou knowest that the Lord did deliver thee.
And now my son, Shiblon, I would that ye should remember that as much as ye shall put your trust in God, even so much
ye shall be delivered out of your trials, and your troubles, and your afflictions; and ye shall be lifted up at the
last day. Now my son, I would not that ye should think that I know these things of myself,
but it is the spirit of God which is in me, which maketh these things known unto me: for if I had not been born of
God, I should not have known these things. But behold, the Lord in his great mercy sent his
angel to declare unto me, that I must stop the work of destruction among his people; yea, and I have seen an angel
face to face; and he spake with me, and his voice was as thunder, and it shook the whole earth.
And it came to pass that I was three days and three nights in the most bitter pain and anguish of soul; and never,
until I did cry unto the Lord Jesus Christ for mercy, did I receive a remission of my sins. But behold, I did cry
unto him, and I did find peace to my soul. And now my son, I have told you this, that ye may
learn wisdom, that ye may learn of me that there is no other way or means whereby man can be saved, only in and
through Christ. Behold, he is the life and the light of the world. Behold, he is the word of truth and
righteousness. And now, as ye have begun to teach the word, even so I would that ye should
continue to teach; and I would that ye would be diligent and temperate in all things. See that
ye are not lifted up to pride; yea, see that ye do not boast in your own wisdom, nor of your much
strength; use boldness, but not overbearance; and also see that ye bridle all your passions,
that ye may be filled with love; see that ye refrain from idleness; do not pray as the Zoramites
do, for ye have seen that they pray to be heard of men, and to be praised for their wisdom.
Do not say, O God, I thank thee that we are better than our brethren; but rather say, O Lord, forgive my unworthiness,
and remember my brethren in mercy; yea, acknowledge your unworthiness before God at all times.
And may the Lord bless your soul, and receive you at the last
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day into his kingdom, to sit down in peace. Now go, my son, and teach the word unto this people. Be sober. My son,
farewell.
========
CHAPTER XIX.
The Commandments of Alma, to his son Corianton.
And now my son, I have somewhat more to say unto thee than what I said unto thy brother: for behold, have ye not
observed the steadiness of thy brother, his faithfulness, and his diligence in keeping the commandments of God?
Behold, has he not set a good example for thee? For thou didst not give so much heed unto my
words as did thy brother, among the people of the Zoramites.
Now this is what I have against thee: Thou didst go on
unto boasting in thy strength, and thy wisdom. And this is not all, my son. Thou didst do that
which was grievous unto me; for thou didst forsake the ministry, and did go over into the land of Siron, among the
borders of the Lamanites, after the harlot Isabel;
yea, she did steal away the hearts of many;
but this was no excuse for thee, my son. Thou shouldst have tended to the ministry, wherewith thou wast
entrusted. Know ye not, my son, that these things are an abomination in the sight of the Lord;
yea, most abominable above all sins, save it be the shedding of innocent blood, or denying the Holy
Ghost? for behold, if ye deny the Holy Ghost when it once hath had place in you, and ye know
that ye deny it; behold, this is a sin which is unpardonable; yea, and whosoever murdereth against the light and
knowledge of God, it is not easy for him to obtain forgiveness; yea, I say unto you, my son, that it is not easy for
him to obtain a forgiveness. And now my son,
I would to God that ye had not been guilty of
so great a crime.
I would not dwell upon your crimes, to harrow up your soul, if it were not for your
good. But behold, ye cannot hide your crimes from God; and except ye repent, they will stand as
a testimony against you at the last day. Now my son, I would that ye should repent, and forsake
your sins, and go no more after the lusts of your eyes, but cross yourself in all these things;
for except ye do this, ye can in no wise inherit the Kingdom of God. O remember, and take it upon you, and cross yourself
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in these things. And I command you to take it upon you to counsel your elder brothers in your
undertakings; for behold, thou art in thy youth, and ye stand in need to be nourished by your brothers. And give
heed to their counsel; suffer not yourself to be led away by any vain or foolish thing;
suffer not that the Devil lead away your heart again, after those wicked harlots. Behold, my son, how great iniquity ye
brought upon the Zoramites: for when they saw your conduct, they would not believe in my words.
And now the spirit of the Lord doth say unto me,
Command thy children to do good, lest they lead away the hearts of many people to destruction:
therefore I command you, my son, in the fear of God, that ye refrain from your iniquities;
that ye turn to the Lord with all your mind, might and strength; that ye lead away the hearts of no more, to do wickedly;
but rather return unto them, and acknowledge your faults, and retain that wrong which ye have done;
seek not after riches, nor the vain things of the world; for behold,
you cannot carry them with you.
And now my son, I would say somewhat unto you concerning the coming of Christ. Behold, I say unto you, that it is him
that surely shall come, to take away the sins of the world; yea, he cometh to declare glad tidings of salvation unto
his people. And now my son, this was the ministry unto which ye were called, to declare these
glad tidings unto his people, to prepare their minds; or rather that salvation might come unto them, that they may
prepare the minds of their children to hear the word at the time of his coming. And now I will
ease your mind somewhat in this subject. Behold, you marvel why these things should be known so long beforehand.
Behold, I say unto you, Is not a soul at this time as precious unto God, as a soul will be at the time of his
coming? Is it not as necessary that the plan of redemption should be made known unto this people,
as well as unto their children? Is it not as easy at this time, for the Lord to send his angel
to declare these glad tidings unto us, as unto our children; or as after the time of his coming?
Now my son, here is somewhat more I would say unto thee; for I perceive that thy mind is worried concerning the
resurrection of the dead. -- Behold, I say unto you, that there is no resurrection; or I would
say, in other words, that this mortal does not put on immortality; thus corruption does not put on incorruption, until
after the coming of Christ. Behold, he bringeth to pass
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the resurrection of the dead. But behold, my son, the resurrection is not yet. Now I unfold unto you a mystery;
nevertheless, there are many mysteries, which are kept, that no one knoweth them save God himself. But I shew unto
you one thing, which I have inquired diligently of God, that I might know; that is, concerning the
resurrection. Behold, there is a time appointed that shall come forth from the dead. -- Now when
this time cometh, no one knows; but God knoweth the time which is appointed. Now whether there
shall be one time, or a second time, or a third time, that men shall come forth from the dead, it mattereth not; for
God knoweth all these things; and it sufficeth me to know that this is the case; that there is a time appointed that
all shall rise from the dead. Now there must needs be a space betwixt the time of death, and
the time of the resurrection. And now I would inquire what becometh of the souls of men, from
this time of death, to the time appointed for the resurrection? -- Now whether there is more
than one time appointed for men to rise, it mattereth not; for all do not die at once; and this mattereth not; all
is as one day, with God; and time only is measured unto men; therefore there is a time
appointed unto men, that they shall rise from the dead; and there is a space between the time of death
and the
resurrection. And now concerning this space of time. What becometh of the souls of men, is the thing which I have
inquired diligently of the Lord to know; and this is the thing of which I do know. -- And
when the time cometh when all shall rise, then shall they know that God knoweth all the times which are appointed
unto man. Now concerning the state of the soul between death and the resurrection. Behold,
it hath been made known unto me by an angel, that the spirits of all men, as soon as they are departed from this
mortal body; yea, the spirits of all men, whether they be good or evil, are taken home to that God who gave them
life. And then shall it come to pass that the spirits of those which are righteous, are received
into a state of happiness, which is called paradise; a state of rest; a state of peace,
where they shall rest from all their troubles, and from all care, and sorrow, &c.
And then shall it come to pass,
that the spirits of the wicked,
yea, which are evil; for behold,
they have no part nor portion of the spirit of the Lord;
for behold, they chose evil works, rather than good;
therefore the spirit of the Devil did enter into them,
and
take possession of their house; and these shall be cast out into
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outer darkness; they shall be weeping, and wailing, and gnashing of teeth;
and this because of their own iniquity; being led captive by the will of the Devil.
Now this is the state of the souls of the wicked; yea, in darkness, and a state of awful,
fearful looking for of the fiery indignation of the wrath of God upon them;
thus they remain in this state,
as well as the righteous in paradise,
until the time of their resurrection.
Now there are some that have understood that this state of happiness,
and the state of misery of the soul, before the resurrection, was a first resurrection.
Yea, I admit it may be termed a resurrection; the raising of the spirit or the soul,
and their consignation to happiness or misery, according to the words which have been spoken.
And behold, again it hath been spoken, that there is a first resurrection;
a resurrection of all those which have been, or which are, or which shall be,
down to the resurrection of Christ from the dead. --
Now we do not suppose that this first resurrection which is spoken of in this manner,
can be the resurrection of the souls, and their consignation to happiness or misery.
Ye cannot suppose that this is what it meaneth.
Behold, I say unto you Nay;
but it meaneth the re-uniting of the soul with the body of those from the days of Adam,
down to the resurrection of Christ. Now whether the souls and the bodies of those of which
have been spoken, shall all be re-united at once, the wicked as well as the righteous, I do not say; let it suffice
that I say that they all come forth; or in other words, their resurrection cometh to pass before the resurrection of
those which die after the resurrection of Christ. Now my son, I do not say that their resurrection
cometh at the resurrection of Christ; but behold, I give it as my opinion,
that the souls and the bodies are re-united,
of the righteous, at the resurrection of Christ,
and his ascension into Heaven. But whether it be at his resurrection, or after, I do not say; but this much I say: That there is a space between death and the
resurrection of the body, and a state of the soul in happiness or in misery, until the time which is appointed of God
that the dead shall come forth, and be re-united, both soul and body, and be brought to stand before God, and be
judged according to their works; yea, this bringeth about the restoration of those things of
which have been spoken by the mouths of the prophets. The soul shall be restored to the body,
and the body to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint shall be restored to the soul; yea, and every limb and joint
shall be restored to its body; yea, even a hair of the head shall not be
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lost, but all things shall be restored to its proper and perfect frame. And now my son, this
is the restoration of which has been spoken by the mouths of the prophets: And then shall the
righteous shine forth in the Kingdom of God. But behold, an awful death cometh upon the wicked;
for they die as to things pertaining to things of righteousness; for they are unclean, and no unclean thing can inherit
the Kingdom of God; but they are cast out, and consigned to partake of the fruits of their labors or their works,
which have been evil; and they drink the dregs of a bitter cup.
And now my son, I have somewhat to say concerning the restoration of which has been spoken; for behold, some have
arrested the Scriptures, and have gone far astray, because of this thing. And I perceive that thy mind hath been
worried also, concerning this thing. But behold, I will explain it unto thee. I say unto thee,
my son, that the plan of restoration is requisite with the justice of God; for it is requisite that all things be
restored to their proper order. Behold, it is requisite and just,
according to the power and resurrection of Christ,
that the soul of man should be restored to its body, and that every part of the body should be restored to itself. --
And it is requisite with the justice of God, that man should be judged according to their
works; and if their works were good in this life, and the desires of their hearts were good, that they should also,
at the last day, be restored unto that which is good; and if their works are evil, they shall
be restored unto him for evil; therefore, all things shall be restored to their proper order; every thing to its
natural frame; mortality raised to immortality; corruption to incorruption; raised to endless happiness, to inherit
the Kingdom of God, or to endless misery, to inherit the kingdom of the Devil; the one on one hand, the other on the
other; the one raised to happiness, according to his desires of happiness; or good, according
to his desires of good; and the other to evil, according to his desires of evil; for as he has desired to do evil
all the day long, even so shall he have his reward of evil, when the night cometh. And so it
is on the other hand. If he hath repented of his sins, and desired righteousness until the end of his days, even so
he shall be rewarded unto righteousness. -- These are they that are redeemed of the Lord; yea,
these are they that are taken out, that are delivered from that endless night of darkness; and thus they stand or
fall; for behold, they are their own judges, whether to do good or do evil. --
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Now the decrees of God are unalterable; therefore the way is prepared, that whosoever will, may walk therein and be
saved. And now behold my son, do not risk one more offence against your God upon these points
of doctrine, which ye hath hitherto risked to commit sin. Do not suppose, because it hath been
spoken concerning restoration, that ye shall be restored from sin to happiness, Behold I say unto you, Wickedness
never was happiness. And now, my son, all men that are in a state of nature, or I would say, in
a carnal state, are in the gall of bitterness, and in the bonds of iniquity; they are without God in the world; and
they have gone contrary to the nature of God; therefore they are in a state contrary to the nature of
happiness. And now behold, is the meaning of the word restoration, to take a thing of a natural
state, and place it in an unnatural state, or to place it in a state opposite to its nature?
O, my son, this is not the case; but the meaning of the word restoration, is to bring back again evil for evil, or
carnal for carnal, or devlish for devlish; good for that which is good; righteous for that which is righteous; just
for that which is just; merciful for that which is merciful; therefore my son, see that ye are
merciful unto your brethren; deal justly, judge righteously, and do good continually; and if ye do all these things,
then shall ye receive your reward; yea, ye shall have mercy restored unto you again; ye shall have justice restored
unto you again; ye shall have a righteous judgment restored unto you again; and ye shall have good rewarded unto you
again; for that which ye doth send out, shall return unto you again, and be restored; therefore
the word restoration, more fully condemneth the sinner, and justifieth him not at all.
And now, my son, I perceive there is somewhat more which doth worry your mind, which ye cannot understand, which is
concerning the justice of God, in the punishment of the sinner: for ye do try to suppose that it is injustice that the
sinner should be consigned to a state of misery. Now behold, my son, I will explain this thing
unto thee: for behold, after the Lord God sent our first parents forth from the garden of Eden to till the ground, from
whence he was taken; yea, he drew out the man, and he placed at the east end of the garden of Eden, Cherubims, and a
flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the tree of life. Now we see that the man had
became as God, knowing good and evil; and lest he should put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and
eat,
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and live forever, that the Lord God placed Cherubims and the flaming sword,
that he should not partake of the fruit;
and thus we see, that there was a time granted unto man, to repent, yea, a probationary
time, a time to repent and serve God. For behold,
if Adam had put forth his hand immediately,
and partook of the tree of life, he would have lived forever,
according to the word of God,
having no space for repentance; yea, and also the word of God would have been void,
and the great plan of salvation would have been frustrated. But behold,
it was appointed unto man to die; therefore as they were cut off from the tree of life,
therefore they should be cut off from the face of the earth; and man became lost forever; yea,
they became fallen man. And now we see by this, that our first parents were cut off, both
temporally and spiritually, from the presence of the Lord; and thus we see they became subjects to follow after their
own will. Now behold, it was not expedient that man should be reclaimed from this temporal
death, for that would destroy the great plan of happiness; therefore, as the soul could never
die, and the fall had brought upon all mankind a spiritual death as well as a temporal; that is, they were cut off
from the presence of the Lord; therefore it was expedient that mankind should be reclaimed from this spiritual
death; therefore as they become carnal, sensual and devlish, by nature, this probationary state
became a state for them to prepare: it became a preparatory state. And now remember my son,
if it were not for the plan of redemption, (laying it aside,) as soon as they were dead, their souls were miserable,
being cut off from the presence of the Lord. And now there was no means to reclaim men from
this fallen state which man had brought upon himself, because of his own disobedience; therefore,
according to justice, the plan of redemption could not be brought about, only, on conditions of repentance of men
in this probationary state; yea, this preparatory state; for except it were for these conditions, mercy could not
take effect except it should destroy the work of justice. Now the work of justice could not be destroyed: if so, God
would cease to be God. And thus we see that all mankind were fallen, and they were in the grasp
of justice; yea, the justice of God, which consigned them forever to be cut off from his presence.
And now the plan of mercy could not be brought about, except an atonement should be made; therefore God himself atoneth
for the sins of the world, to bring about a plan of mercy, to appease the demands of justice,
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that God might be a perfect, just God, and a merciful God. Also, now repentance could not
come unto men, except there were a punishment, which also was as eternal as the life of the soul should be, affixed
opposite to the plan of happiness, which was as eternal also as the life of the soul. -- Now,
how could a man repent, except he should sin? How could he sin, if there was no law? How could there be a law, saved
there was a punishment? Now there was a punishment affixed, and a just law given, which
brought remorse of conscience unto man. Now if there was no law given, if a man murdered he
should die, would he be afraid he should die if he should murder? And also, if there was no
law given against sin, men would not be afraid to sin. And if there was no law given if men
sinned, what could justice do, or mercy either, for they would have no claim upon the creature?
But there is a law given, and a punishment affixed, and repentance granted; which repentance, mercy claimeth;
otherwise, justice claimeth the creature, and executeth the law, and the law inflicteth the punishment; if not so,
the works of justice would be destroyed, and God would cease to be God. But God ceaseth not to be God,
and mercy claimeth the penitent, and mercy cometh because of the atonement; and the atonement bringeth to pass the
resurrection of the dead; and the resurrection of the dead bringeth back men into the presence of god; and thus they
are restored into his presence, to be judged according to their works;
according to the law and justice;
for behold, justice exerciseth all his demands, and also mercy claimeth all which is her own; and thus, none but the
truly penitent are saved. What do ye suppose that mercy can rob justice? I say unto you, Nay;
not one whit. If so, God would cease to be God. And thus God bringeth about his great and
eternal purposes, which was prepared from the foundation of the world.
And thus cometh about the salvation and the redemption of men,
and also their destruction and misery; therefore, O my son, whosoever will come,
and partake of the waters of life freely; and whosoever will not come, the same is not compelled to come;
but in the last day, it shall be restored unto him, according to his deeds. If he hath desired to
do evil, and hath not repented in his days, behold, evil shall be done unto him,
according to the restoration of God.
And now my son, I desire that ye should let these things trouble you no more, and only
let your sins trouble you, with that trouble which shall bring you down
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unto repentance. O my son, I desire that ye should deny the justice of God no more. Do not
endeavor to excuse yourself in the least point, because of your sins, by denying the justice of God, but do you let
the justice of God, and his mercy, and long suffering, having full sway in your heart; but let it bring you down to
the dust, in humility. And now, O my son, ye are called of God to preach the word unto this
people. And now, my son, go thy way, declare the word with truth and soberness, that thou mayest bring souls unto
repentance, that the great plan of mercy may have claim upon them. -- And may God grant unto you even according to
my words. -- Amen.
========
CHAPTER
XX
And now it came to pass that the sons of
Alma
did go forth among the people,
to declare the word unto them.
And
Alma,
also,
himself,
could not rest,
and he also went forth. --
Now we shall say no more concerning their
preaching,
except that they
preached
the word,
and the truth,
according to the spirit of
prophecy
and
revelation;
and they
preached
after the holy order of God by which they were called.
And now I return to an account of the wars
between the
Nephites
and the
Lamanites,
in the
eighteenth
year of the reign of the Judges.
For behold,
it came to pass
that the
Zoramites
became
Lamanites;
therefore,
in the commencement of the
eighteenth
year,
the people of the
Nephites
saw that the
Lamanites
were coming upon them;
therefore they made preparations for war;
yea,
they
gathered
together their armies in the land of
Jershon.
And it came to pass that the
Lamanites
came with their thousands;
and they came into the land of
Antionam,
which was the land of the
Zoramites;
and a man by the name of
Zerahemnah
was their leader.
And now as the
Amalekites
were of a more wicked and
murderous
disposition than the
Lamanites
were,
in and of themselves,
therefore,
Zerahemnah
appointed
Chief Captains over the
Lamanites,
and they were all
Amalekites
and
Zoramites.
Now this he done,
that he might preserve their hatred towards the
Nephites;
that he might bring them into
subjection,
to the accomplishment of his designs;
for behold,
his designs
were to
stir
up the
Lamanites
to anger against