25 And it came to pass that they all went forth and smote them, saying the same words, even until the last; and when the last had spoken unto them the apower of God was upon Alma and Amulek, and they rose and stood upon their feet.
26 And Alma cried, saying: How long shall we suffer these great aafflictions, O Lord? O Lord, bgive us strength according to our faith which is in Christ, even unto cdeliverance. And they broke the cords with which they were bound; and when the people saw this, they began to flee, for the fear of destruction had come upon them.
27 And it came to pass that so great was their fear that they fell to the earth, and did not obtain the outer door of the aprison; and the earth shook mightily, and the walls of the prison were rent in twain, so that they fell to the earth; and the chief judge, and the lawyers, and priests, and teachers, who smote upon Alma and Amulek, were slain by the fall thereof.
28 And Alma and Amulek came forth out of the prison, and they were not hurt; for the Lord had granted unto them apower, according to their faith which was in Christ. And they straightway came forth out of the prison; and they were bloosed from their cbands; and the prison had fallen to the earth, and every soul within the walls thereof, save it were Alma and Amulek, was slain; and they straightway came forth into the city.
29 Now the people having heard a great noise came running together by multitudes to know the cause of it; and when they saw Alma and Amulek coming forth out of the prison, and the walls thereof had fallen to the earth, they were struck with great fear, and fled from the presence of Alma and Amulek even as a goat fleeth with her young from two lions; and thus they did flee from the presence of Alma and Amulek.
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THE BOOK OF ALMA
THE SON OF ALMA
CHAPTER 15
Alma and Amulek go to Sidom and establish a church—Alma heals Zeezrom, who joins the Church—Many are baptized and the Church prospers—Alma and Amulek go to Zarahemla. About 81 B.C.
1 And it came to pass that Alma and Amulek were commanded to depart out of that city; and they departed, and came out even into the land of Sidom; and behold, there they found all the people who had departed out of the land of aAmmonihah, who had been bcast out and stoned, because they believed in the words of Alma.
3 And also Zeezrom lay sick at Sidom, with a burning fever, which was caused by the great tribulations of his mind on account of his awickedness, for he supposed that Alma and Amulek were no more; and he supposed that they had been slain because of his iniquity. And this great sin, and his many other sins, did harrow up his mind until it did become exceedingly sore, having no deliverance; therefore he began to be scorched with a burning heat.
4 Now, when he heard that Alma and Amulek were in the land of Sidom, his heart began to take courage; and he sent a message immediately unto them, desiring them to come unto him.
5 And it came to pass that they went immediately, obeying the message which he had sent unto them; and they went in unto the house unto Zeezrom; and they found him upon his bed, sick, being very low with a burning fever; and his mind also was aexceedingly sore because of his iniquities; and when he saw them he stretched forth his hand, and besought them that they would heal him.
6 And it came to pass that Alma said unto him, taking him by the hand: aBelievest thou in the power of Christ unto salvation?
8 And Alma said: If thou believest in the redemption of Christ thou canst be ahealed.
11 And when Alma had said these words, aZeezrom leaped upon his feet, and began to walk; and this was done to the great astonishment of all the people; and the knowledge of this went forth throughout all the land of Sidom.
12 And Alma baptized Zeezrom unto the Lord; and he began from that time forth to preach unto the people.
14 And it came to pass that they were many; for they did flock in from all the region round about Sidom, and were baptized.
15 But as to the people that were in the land of Ammonihah, they yet remained a hard-hearted and a stiffnecked people; and they repented not of their sins, aascribing all the power of Alma and Amulek to the devil; for they were of the profession of bNehor, and did not believe in the repentance of their sins.
17 Therefore, after Alma having established the church at Sidom, seeing a great acheck, yea, seeing that the people were checked as to the pride of their hearts, and began to bhumble themselves before God, and began to assemble themselves together at their csanctuaries to dworship God before the ealtar, fwatching and praying continually, that they might be delivered from Satan, and from gdeath, and from destruction—
18 Now as I said, Alma having seen all these things, therefore he took Amulek and came over to the land of Zarahemla, and took him to his aown house, and did administer unto him in his tribulations, and bstrengthened him in the Lord.
19 And thus ended the tenth year of the reign of the judges over the people of Nephi.
The uplifting message of this reading is Zeezrom's change of heart. Isn't it interesting that he felt awful spiritually and had a profound effect on his physical health? I think we as a culture tend to underestimate the connection between our bodies and our spirits. This is a good reminder to me that they both deserve equal respect and attention.
The uplifting message of this reading is Zeezrom's change of heart. Isn't it interesting that he felt awful spiritually and had a profound effect on his physical health? I think we as a culture tend to underestimate the connection between our bodies and our spirits. This is a good reminder to me that they both deserve equal respect and attention.
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