pgs. 204 and 205...now it is better that a man should be judged of God than of man, for the judgments of God are always just...

THE BOOK OF MOSIAH

CHAPTER 29

Mosiah proposes that judges be chosen in place of a king—Unrighteous kings lead their people into sin—Alma the younger is chosen chief judge by the voice of the people—He is also the high priest over the Church—Alma the elder and Mosiah die. About 92—91 B.C.

1 Now when Mosiah had done this he sent out throughout all the land, among all the people, desiring to know their will concerning who should be their king.

2 And it came to pass that the voice of the people came, saying: We are desirous that Aaron thy son should be our king and our ruler.

3 Now Aaron had gone up to the land of Nephi, therefore the king could not confer the kingdom upon him; ^aneither would Aaron take upon him the kingdom; neither were any of the ^bsons of Mosiah ^cwilling to take upon them the kingdom.

4 Therefore king Mosiah sent again among the people; yea, even a written word sent he among the people. And these were the words that were written, saying:

5 Behold, O ye my people, or my brethren, for I esteem you as such, I desire that ye should consider the cause which ye are called to ^aconsider—for ye are desirous to have a king.

6 Now I declare unto you that he to whom the kingdom doth rightly belong has declined, and will not take upon him the kingdom.

7 And now if there should be another appointed in his stead, behold I fear there would rise ^acontentions among you. And who knoweth but what my son, to whom the kingdom doth belong, should turn to be angry and ^bdraw away a part of this people after him, which would cause wars and contentions among you, which would be the cause of shedding much blood and perverting the way of the Lord, yea, and destroy the souls of many people.

8 Now I say unto you let us be wise and consider these things, for we have no right to destroy my son, neither should we have any right to destroy another if he should be appointed in his stead.

9 And if my son should turn again to his pride and vain things he would recall the things which he had said, and claim his right to the kingdom, which would cause him and also this people to commit much sin.

10 And now let us be wise and look forward to these things, and do that which will make for the peace of this people.

11 Therefore I will be your king the remainder of my days; nevertheless, let ^aus appoint ^bjudges, to judge this people according to our law; and we will newly arrange the affairs of this people, for we will appoint wise men to be judges, that will judge this people according to the commandments of God.

12 Now it is better that a man should be ^ajudged of God than of man, for the judgments of God are always just, but the judgments of man are not always just.

13 Therefore, ^aif it were possible that you could have ^bjust men to be your kings, who would establish the ^claws of God, and judge this people according to his commandments, yea, if ye could have men for your kings who would do even as my father ^dBenjamin did for this people—I say unto you, if this could always be the case then it would be expedient that ye should always have kings to rule over you.

14 And even I myself have labored with all the power and faculties which I have possessed, to teach you the commandments of God, and to establish peace throughout the land, that there should be no wars nor contentions, no stealing, nor plundering, nor murdering, nor any manner of iniquity;

15 And whosoever has committed iniquity, him have I ^apunished according to the crime which he has committed, according to the law which has been given to us by our fathers.

16 Now I say unto you, that because all men are not just it is not expedient that ye should have a ^aking or kings to rule over you.

17 For behold, how much ^ainiquity doth one ^bwicked king cause to be committed, yea, and what great destruction!

18 Yea, remember king Noah, his ^awickedness and his abominations, and also the wickedness and abominations of his people. Behold what great destruction did come upon them; and also because of their iniquities they were brought into ^bbondage.

19 And were it not for the interposition of their all-wise Creator, and this because of their sincere repentance, they must unavoidably remain in bondage until now.

20 But behold, he did deliver them because they did ^ahumble themselves before him; and because they ^bcried mightily unto him he did deliver them out of bondage; and thus doth the Lord work with his power in all cases among the children of men, extending the arm of ^cmercy towards them that put their ^dtrust in him.

21 And behold, now I say unto you, ye cannot dethrone an iniquitous ^aking save it be through much contention, and the shedding of much blood.

22 For behold, he has his ^afriends in iniquity, and he keepeth his guards about him; and he teareth up the laws of those who have reigned in righteousness before him; and he trampleth under his feet the commandments of God;

23 And he enacteth laws, and sendeth them forth among his people, yea, laws after the manner of his own wickedness; and whosoever doth not obey his laws he ^acauseth to be destroyed; and whosoever doth rebel against him he will send his armies against them to war, and if he can he will destroy them; and thus an unrighteous ^bking doth pervert the ways of all righteousness.

24 And now behold I say unto you, it is not expedient that such abominations should come upon you.

25 Therefore, choose you by the ^avoice of this people, judges, that ye may be ^bjudged according to the ^claws which have been given you by our fathers, which are correct, and which were given them by the hand of the Lord.

26 Now it is not common that the ^avoice of the people desireth anything ^bcontrary to that which is right; but it is common for the lesser part of the ^cpeople to desire that which is not right; therefore this shall ye observe and make it your law—to do your business by the voice of the people.

This entire reading is the voice of Mosiah explaining why the people should not have a king. Instead he is suggesting judges who are voted in by the people. He tells all of the reasons why. It is interesting to compare his political suggestions to our system and others throughout the world today. Here is a great quote that expands on Mosiah's logic.

“I have a complete confidence in the aggregate wisdom of the . . . people if they are given and made to understand the facts. The wisdom of the mass is always greater than the wisdom of the individual or of the group. The few may be more subtle, more agile-minded, more resourceful; they may for a time push to the front and scamper ahead in the march; they may on occasion and for a time entice us down the wrong highway at the crossroads. But the great slow-moving, deliberate-thinking mass plods along over the years down the Divinely appointed way. Led astray, they slowly, cumberously swing back to the right road, no matter what the toil or the sacrifice may be, and when they start the return, they crush whatever lies in their path. So has humanity come up through the ages” (J. Reuben Clark, Jr., in Jerreld L. Newquist, comp., Prophets, Principles, and National Survival, p. 110).

pgs. 202 and 203...they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not bear that any human soul should perish.

33 But notwithstanding all this, they did impart much consolation to the church, confirming their faith, and exhorting them with long-suffering and much travail to keep the commandments of God.

34 And four of them were the ^asons of Mosiah; and their names were Ammon, and Aaron, and Omner, and Himni; these were the names of the sons of Mosiah.

35 And they traveled throughout all the land of Zarahemla, and among all the ^apeople who were under the reign of king Mosiah, ^bzealously striving to repair all the injuries which they had done to the church, ^cconfessing all their sins, and publishing all the things which they had seen, and explaining the prophecies and the scriptures to all who desired to hear them.

36 And thus they were instruments in the hands of God in bringing many to the knowledge of the truth, yea, to the knowledge of their Redeemer.

37 And how blessed are they! For they did ^apublish ^bpeace; they did publish good tidings of good; and they did declare unto the people that the Lord reigneth.

THE BOOK OF MOSIAH

CHAPTER 28

The sons of Mosiah shall have eternal life—They go to preach to the Lamanites—Mosiah translates the Jaredite plates with the two seer stones. About 92 B.C.

1 Now it came to pass that after the ^asons of Mosiah had done all these things, *they took a small number with them and returned to their father, the king, and desired of him that he would grant unto them that they might, with these whom they had ^bselected, go up to the land of ^cNephi that they might preach the things which they had heard, and that they might impart the word of God to their brethren, the Lamanites—

2 ^aThat perhaps they might bring them to the knowledge of the Lord their God, and convince them of the iniquity of their fathers; and that perhaps they might cure them of their ^bhatred towards the Nephites, that they might also be brought to rejoice in the Lord their God, that they might become friendly to one another, and that there should be no more contentions in all the land which the Lord their God had given them.

3 Now they were desirous that salvation should be declared to every creature, for they could not ^abear that any human ^bsoul should ^cperish; yea, even the very thoughts that any soul should endure ^dendless torment did cause them to quake and ^etremble.

4 And thus did the Spirit of the Lord work upon them, for they were the very ^avilest of sinners. And the Lord saw fit in his infinite ^bmercy to spare them; nevertheless they suffered much anguish of soul because of their iniquities, suffering much and fearing that they should be cast off forever.

5 And it came to pass that they did plead with their father many days that they might go up to the land of Nephi.

6 And king Mosiah went and ^ainquired of the Lord if he should let his sons go up among the Lamanites to preach the word.

7 And the Lord said unto Mosiah: Let them go up, for many shall believe on their words, and they shall have eternal life; and I will ^adeliver thy sons out of the hands of the Lamanites.

8 And it came to pass that Mosiah granted that they might go and do according to their request.

9 And they ^atook their journey into the wilderness to go up to preach the word among the Lamanites; and I shall give an ^baccount of their proceedings hereafter.

10 Now king Mosiah had no one to confer the kingdom upon, for there was not any of his sons who ^awould accept of the kingdom.

11 Therefore he took the records which were engraven on the plates of ^abrass, and also the plates of ^bNephi, and all the things which he had kept and preserved according to the commandments of God, after having translated and caused to be written the records which were on the ^cplates of gold which had been found by the people of Limhi, which were delivered to him by the hand of Limhi;

12 And this he did because of the great anxiety of his people; for they were desirous beyond measure to know concerning those people ^awho had been destroyed.

13 And now he translated them by the means of those two ^astones which were fastened into the two rims of a bow.

14 Now these things were prepared from the beginning, and were handed down from generation to generation, for the purpose of interpreting languages;

15 And they have been kept and preserved by the hand of the Lord, that he should discover to every creature who should possess the land the iniquities and abominations of his people;

16 And whosoever has these things is called ^aseer, after the manner of old times.

17 Now after Mosiah had finished ^atranslating these ^brecords, behold, it gave an account of the people who were ^cdestroyed, from the time that they were destroyed back to the building of the ^dgreat tower, at the time the Lord ^econfounded the language of the people and they were scattered abroad upon the face of all the earth, yea, and even from that time back until the creation of Adam.

18 Now this account did cause the people of Mosiah to mourn exceedingly, yea, they were filled with sorrow; nevertheless it gave them much knowledge, in the which they did rejoice.

19 And this account shall be ^awritten hereafter; for behold, it is expedient that all people should know the things which are written in this account.

20 And now, as I said unto you, that after king Mosiah had done these things, he took the plates of ^abrass, and all the things which he had kept, and ^bconferred them upon Alma, who was the son of Alma; yea, all the records, and also the ^cinterpreters, and conferred them upon him, and commanded him that he should keep and ^dpreserve them, and also keep a record of the people, handing them down from one generation to another, even as they had been handed down from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem.

* VERSE 1 (ABOUT 92 B.C.).

Every missionary finds inspiration in these actions of Alma and the sons of Mosiah. Their desire to leave their homeland, where they could have had an easy life, and go to their enemies to preach the gospel shows incredible courage, faith, and commitment to their conversion.

The writing in chapter 28 verses 11-20 regarding the "interpreters" is very interesting. I found this fascinating quote that taught me a lot about the importance of timing in the way the Lord reveals His word.

“The people of Limhi brought to Mosiah a record, ‘. . . engraven on plates of ore,’ which record Mosiah translated by the aid of ‘two stones which were fastened into the two rims of a bow,’ and which gave an account of the Jaredites. In translating this record Mosiah kept from going forth to the people that particular part forbidden of the Lord to be revealed until after he was lifted up upon the cross. These sacred revelations given to the brother of Jared were kept from the Nephite people, as well as many other things, until after the resurrection of Christ [see Alma 63:12]. After the appearing of the Savior to the Nephites, the vision of the brother of Jared was revealed to the Nephites. When Moroni made his abridgment of the record of Ether, he copied on his record the vision of the brother of Jared. At the command of the Lord, however, Moroni also sealed up the greater things in this vision and the ‘interpreters’—which were the same ‘two stones’ had by the brother of Jared, so that this vision should not be made known even in our day among the Gentiles, in the day of their wickedness [see 2 Nephi 27:8]; ‘. . . until the day that they shall repent of their iniquity, and become clean before the Lord.’ So we today do not have the fulness of the account written and sealed up by the brother of Jared and again sealed by Moroni. This part of the record the Prophet Joseph Smith was forbidden to translate. We have, then, received but the ‘lesser part.’

“Joseph Smith received with the ‘breastplate’ and the plates of the Book of Mormon, the Urim and Thummim, which were hid up by Moroni to come forth in the last days as a means by which the ancient record might be translated, which Urim and Thummim were given to the brother of Jared” (Joseph Fielding Smith, Answers to Gospel Questions, 1:161–62).

pgs. 200 and 201...the angel of the Lord appeared unto them; and he descended as it were in a cloud; and he spake as it were with a voice of thunder.

11 And as I said unto you, as they were going about ^arebelling against God, behold, the ^bangel of the Lord ^cappeared unto them; and he descended as it were in a ^dcloud; and he spake as it were with a voice of thunder, which caused the earth to shake upon which they stood;

12 And so great was their astonishment, that they fell to the earth, and understood not the words which he spake unto them.

13 Nevertheless he cried again, saying: Alma, arise and stand forth, for why persecutest thou the church of God? For the Lord hath said: ^aThis is my church, and I will establish it; and nothing shall ^boverthrow it, save it is the transgression of my people.

14 And again, the angel said: Behold, the Lord hath ^aheard the prayers of his people, and also the ^bprayers of his servant, Alma, who is thy father; for he has ^cprayed with much faith concerning thee that thou mightest be brought to the ^dknowledge of the truth; therefore, for this purpose have I come to ^econvince thee of the power and authority of God, that the ^fprayers of his servants might be answered according to their faith.

15 And now behold, can ye dispute the power of God? For behold, doth not my voice shake the earth? And can ye not also ^abehold me before you? And I am sent from God.

16 Now I say unto thee: Go, and remember the captivity of thy fathers in the land of ^aHelam, and in the land of Nephi; and remember how great things he has done for them; for they were in ^bbondage, and he has ^cdelivered them. And now I say unto thee, Alma, go thy way, and seek to destroy the church no more, that their prayers may be answered, and this even if thou wilt of ^dthyself be ^ecast off.

17 And now it came to pass that these were the last words which the angel spake unto Alma, and he departed.

18 And now Alma and those that were with him fell again to the earth, for great was their astonishment; for with their own eyes they had beheld an ^aangel of the Lord; and his voice was as thunder, which ^bshook the earth; and they knew that there was nothing save the power of God that could shake the earth and cause it to tremble as though it would part asunder.

19 And now the astonishment of Alma was so great that he became ^adumb, that he could not open his mouth; yea, and he became weak, even that he could not move his hands; therefore he was taken by those that were with him, and carried helpless, even until he was laid before his father.

20 And they rehearsed unto his father all that had happened unto them; and his father rejoiced, for he knew that it was the power of God.

21 And he caused that a multitude should be gathered together that they might witness what the Lord had done for his son, and also for those that were with him.

22 And he caused that the priests should assemble themselves together; and they began to fast, and to pray to the Lord their God that he would open the mouth of Alma, that he might speak, and also that his limbs might receive their strength—that the eyes of the people might be opened to see and know of the goodness and glory of God.

23 And it came to pass after they had fasted and prayed for the space of ^atwo days and two nights, the limbs of Alma received their strength, and he stood up and began to speak unto them, bidding them to be of good comfort:

24 For, said he, I have repented of my sins, and have been ^aredeemed of the Lord; behold I am born of the Spirit.

25 And the Lord said unto me: Marvel not that all mankind, yea, men and women, all nations, kindreds, tongues and people, must be ^aborn again; yea, ^bborn of God, ^cchanged from their carnal and ^dfallen state, to a state of righteousness, being redeemed of God, becoming his ^esons and daughters;

26 And thus they become new creatures; and unless they do this, they can in ^anowise inherit the kingdom of God.

27 I say unto you, unless this be the case, they must be cast off; and this I know, because I was like to be cast off.

28 Nevertheless, after ^awading through much ^btribulation, repenting nigh unto death, the Lord in mercy hath seen fit to snatch me out of an ^ceverlasting burning, and I am born of God.

29 My soul hath been ^aredeemed from the gall of bitterness and ^bbonds of iniquity. I was in the darkest abyss; but now I behold the marvelous light of God. My soul was ^cracked with eternal torment; but I am ^dsnatched, and my soul is ^epained no more.

30 I rejected my Redeemer, and denied that which had been spoken of by our fathers; but now that they may foresee that he will come, and that he remembereth every creature of his creating, he will make himself manifest unto ^aall.

31 Yea, ^aevery knee shall bow, and every tongue confess before him. Yea, even at the last day, when all men shall stand to be ^bjudged of him, then shall they confess that he is ^cGod; then shall they confess, who live ^dwithout God in the world, that the judgment of an everlasting punishment is just upon them; and they shall quake, and tremble, and shrink beneath the glance of his ^eall-searching eye.

32 And now it came to pass that Alma began from this time forward to teach the people, and those who were with Alma at the time the angel appeared unto them, traveling round about through all the land, publishing to all the people the things which they had heard and seen, and preaching the word of God in much tribulation, being greatly persecuted by those who were unbelievers, being smitten by many of them.

This is probably one of the most famous chapters in the Book of Mormon. Everyone takes notice when an angel is involved! Something that stood out to me this time that I hadn't thought about before is in verse 21. Alma gathers the people to see what the Lord had done "for" his son instead of "to" his son. This is meaningful because it shows that even though his son was suffering physically Alma was happy because his son was changing spiritually.

I like this quote about the ministering of angels by Wilford Woodruff. It was spoke to a man who said he had prayed for the visitation of angels.

“I said to him that if he were to pray a thousand years to the God of Israel for that gift, it would not be granted, unless the Lord had a motive in sending an angel to him. I told him that the Lord never did nor never will send an angel to anybody merely to gratify the desire of the individual to see an angel. If the Lord sends an angel to anyone, He sends him to perform a work that cannot be performed only by the administration of an angel. I said to him that those were my views. The Lord had sent angels to men from the creation of the world, at different times, but always with a message or with something to perform that could not be performed without. I rehearsed to him different times when angels appeared to men. Of course, I referred to the angel visiting Joseph Smith. The Revelator John said that in the last days an angel would fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel to preach to them that dwelt on the earth. The reason it required an angel to do this work was, the Gospel was not on the earth. The Gospel and the Priesthood had been taken from among men. Hence God had to restore it again.

“Now, I have always said, and I want to say it to you, that the Holy Ghost is what every Saint of God needs. It is far more important that a man should have that gift than he should have the ministration of an angel, unless it is necessary for an angel to teach him something that he has not been taught” (“Discourse Delivered at the Weber Stake Conference,” Deseret Weekly, 7 Nov. 1896, p. 1).

pgs. 198 and 199...yea, and as often as my people repent will I forgive them their trespasses against me. And ye shall also forgive one another.

25 And it shall come to pass that when the ^asecond trump shall sound then shall they that never ^bknew me come forth and shall stand before me.

26 And then shall they know that I am the Lord their God, that I am their Redeemer; but they would not be redeemed.

27 And then I will confess unto them that I never ^aknew them; and they shall ^bdepart into ^ceverlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

28 Therefore I say unto you, that he that will not ^ahear my voice, the same shall ye not receive into my church, for him I will not receive at the last day.

29 Therefore I say unto you, Go; and whosoever transgresseth against me, him shall ye ^ajudge ^baccording to the sins which he has committed; and if he ^cconfess his sins before thee and me, and ^drepenteth in the sincerity of his heart, him shall ye ^eforgive, and I will forgive him also.

30 Yea, and ^aas often as my people ^brepent will I forgive them their trespasses against me.

31 And ye shall also ^aforgive one another your trespasses; for verily I say unto you, he that forgiveth not his ^bneighbor’s trespasses when he says that he repents, the same hath brought himself under condemnation.

32 Now I say unto you, Go; and whosoever will ^anot repent of his sins the same shall not be numbered among my people; and this shall be observed from this time forward.

33 And it came to pass when Alma had heard these words he ^awrote them down that he might have them, and that he might judge the people of that church according to the commandments of God.

34 And it came to pass that Alma went and judged those that had been taken in iniquity, according to the ^aword of the Lord.

35 And whosoever repented of their sins and did ^aconfess them, them he did number among the people of the church;

36 And those that would not confess their sins and repent of their iniquity, the same were not numbered among the people of the church, and their names were ^ablotted out.

37 And it came to pass that Alma did regulate all the affairs of the church; and they began again to have peace and to prosper exceedingly in the affairs of the church, walking circumspectly before God, receiving many, and baptizing many.

38 And now all these things did Alma and his ^afellow laborers do who were over the church, ^bwalking in all diligence, teaching the word of God in all things, suffering all manner of afflictions, being persecuted by all those who did not belong to the church of God.

39 And they did admonish their brethren; and they were also ^aadmonished, every one by the word of God, according to his sins, or to the sins which he had committed, being commanded of God to ^bpray without ceasing, and to give ^cthanks in all things.

THE BOOK OF MOSIAH

CHAPTER 27

Mosiah forbids persecution and enjoins equality—Alma the younger and the four sons of Mosiah seek to destroy the Church—An angel appears and commands them to cease their evil course—Alma is struck dumb—All mankind must be born again to gain salvation—Alma and the sons of Mosiah declare glad tidings. Probably between 100 and 92 B.C.

1 And now it came to pass that the persecutions which were inflicted on the church by the unbelievers became so great that the church began to murmur, and complain to their leaders concerning the matter; and they did complain to Alma. And Alma laid the case before their king, Mosiah. And Mosiah ^aconsulted with his priests.

2 And it came to pass that king Mosiah sent a proclamation throughout the land round about that there should not any unbeliever ^apersecute any of those who belonged to the church of God.

3 And there was a strict command throughout all the churches that there should be no ^apersecutions among them, that there should be an ^bequality among all men;

4 That they should let no pride nor haughtiness disturb their ^apeace; that every man should ^besteem his ^cneighbor as himself, ^dlaboring with their own hands for their support.

5 Yea, and all their priests and teachers ^ashould ^blabor with their own hands for their support, in all cases save it were in sickness, or in much want; and doing these things, they did abound in the ^cgrace of God.

6 And there began to be much peace again in the land; and the people began to be very numerous, and began to scatter abroad upon the face of the earth, yea, on the north and on the south, on the east and on the west, building large cities and villages in all quarters of the land.

7 And the Lord did ^avisit them and ^bprosper them, and they became a large and wealthy people.

8 Now the sons of Mosiah were numbered among the ^aunbelievers; and also one of the sons of Alma was numbered among them, he being called Alma, after his father; nevertheless, he became a very wicked and an ^bidolatrous man. And he was a man of many words, and did speak much ^cflattery to the people; therefore he ^dled many of the people to do after the manner of his ^einiquities.

9 And he became a great hinderment to the prosperity of the church of God; ^astealing away the hearts of the people; causing much dissension among the people; giving a chance for the enemy of God to exercise his ^bpower over them.

10 And now it came to pass that while he was going about to ^adestroy the church of God, for he did go about secretly with the sons of Mosiah seeking to destroy the church, and to lead astray the people of the Lord, contrary to the commandments of God, or even the king—

The promise that the Lord will forgive us as often as we repent is so powerful. It is humbling and uplifting to know that He cares for all of us in that way. It helps us to realize our worth and importance to Him. We are so blessed to have the knowledge of this truth!

pgs. 196 and 197...blessed is this people who are willing to bear my name; for in my name shall they be called; and they are mine.

18 Therefore, Alma did go forth into the water and did ^abaptize them; yea, he did baptize them after the manner he did his brethren in the ^bwaters of Mormon; yea, and as many as he did baptize did belong to the church of God; and this because of their belief on the words of Alma.

19 And it came to pass that king Mosiah granted unto Alma that he might establish ^achurches throughout all the land of Zarahemla; and gave him power to ^bordain ^cpriests and ^dteachers over every church.

20 Now this was done because there were so many people that they could not all be governed by one teacher; neither could they all hear the word of God in one assembly;

21 Therefore they did ^aassemble themselves together in different bodies, being called churches; every church having their priests and their teachers, and every priest preaching the word according as it was delivered to him by the mouth of Alma.

22 And thus, notwithstanding there being many churches they were all one ^achurch, yea, even the church of God; for there was nothing preached in all the churches except it were repentance and faith in God.

23 And now there were seven churches in the land of Zarahemla. And it came to pass that whosoever were desirous to take upon them the ^aname of Christ, or of God, they did join the churches of God;

24 And they were called the ^apeople of God. And the Lord did pour out his ^bSpirit upon them, and they were blessed, and prospered in the land.

THE BOOK OF MOSIAH

CHAPTER 26

Many members of the Church are led into sin by unbelievers—Alma is promised eternal life—Those who repent and are baptized gain forgiveness—Church members in sin who repent and confess to Alma and to the Lord shall be forgiven; otherwise they shall be excommunicated. Probably between 120 and 100 B.C.

1 Now it came to pass that there were many of the rising generation that could not understand the ^awords of king Benjamin, being little children at the time he spake unto his people; and they did ^bnot believe the tradition of their fathers.

2 They did not believe what had been said concerning the resurrection of the dead, neither did they believe concerning the coming of Christ.

3 And now because of their ^aunbelief they could not ^bunderstand the word of God; and their hearts were hardened.

4 And they would not be baptized; neither would they join the ^achurch. And they were a separate people as to their faith, and remained so ever after, even in their ^bcarnal and sinful state; for they would not call upon the Lord their God.

5 And now in the reign of Mosiah they were not half so numerous as the people of God; but because of the ^adissensions among the brethren they became more numerous.

6 For it came to pass that they did ^adeceive many with their ^bflattering words, who were in the church, and did cause them to commit many sins; therefore it became expedient that those who committed sin, that were in the church, should be ^cadmonished by the church.

7 And it came to pass that they were brought before the priests, and delivered up unto the ^apriests by the teachers; and the priests brought them before Alma, who was the ^bhigh priest.

8 Now king Mosiah had given Alma the ^aauthority over the ^bchurch.

9 And it came to pass that Alma did not know concerning them; but there were many ^awitnesses against them; yea, the people stood and testified of their iniquity in abundance.

10 Now there had not any such thing happened before in the church; therefore Alma was troubled in his spirit, and he caused that they should be brought before the king.

11 And he said unto the king: Behold, here are many whom we have brought before thee, who are accused of their brethren; yea, and they have been taken in divers iniquities. And they do not repent of their iniquities; therefore we have brought them before thee, that thou mayest judge them according to their crimes.

12 But king Mosiah said unto Alma: Behold, I judge them not; therefore I ^adeliver them into thy hands to be judged.

13 And now the spirit of Alma was again troubled; and he went and inquired of the Lord what he should do concerning this matter, for he feared that he should do wrong in the sight of God.

14 And it came to pass that after he had poured out his whole soul to God, the ^avoice of the Lord came to him, saying:

15 Blessed art thou, Alma, and blessed are they who were baptized in the ^awaters of Mormon. Thou art blessed because of thy exceeding ^bfaith in the words alone of my servant Abinadi.

16 And blessed are they because of their exceeding faith in the words alone which thou hast spoken unto them.

17 And blessed art thou because thou hast established a ^achurch among this people; and they shall be established, and they shall be my people.

18 Yea, blessed is this people who are willing to bear my ^aname; for in my ^bname shall they be called; and they are mine.

19 And because thou hast inquired of me concerning the transgressor, thou art blessed.

20 Thou art my servant; and I covenant with thee that thou shalt have ^aeternal life; and thou shalt serve me and go forth in my name, and shalt gather together my sheep.

21 And he that will hear my voice shall be my ^asheep; and him shall ye receive into the church, and him will I also receive.

22 For behold, ^athis is my ^bchurch; whosoever is ^cbaptized shall be baptized unto repentance. And whomsoever ye receive shall ^dbelieve in my name; and him will I freely ^eforgive.

23 For it is I that taketh upon me the ^asins of the world; for it is I that hath ^bcreated them; and it is I that granteth unto him that believeth unto the end a place at my right hand.


Here is a great summary of this section in the Book of Mormon Institute Manual that sums up this reading much more effectively than I could:

There is a distinction between what is a sin and what is a crime. A sin is a violation of a law of God, while a crime is a violation of a public law. An act can be both, but many times it is not.

Alma sought King Mosiah’s help in dealing with sinful beliefs and practices being spread among the people. Mosiah, however, could not involve the government in Church matters. Even though the beliefs of some people were evil, Nephite law allowed them to believe as they chose (see Alma 30:7–11). In this sense, the people had committed no crime.

As the head of the Church it was Alma’s responsibility to judge such people, so he turned to the Lord for instructions. Mosiah 26:15–32 contains the revelation of the Lord to Alma. The Lord explained the need to forgive the repentant and to excommunicate the rebellious in maintaining the good name of the Church. This stance was reaffirmed in our dispensation when the Lord revealed that the Church could not punish a member beyond excommunication for any sin or crime committed (see D&C 134:10).

Also, HAPPY EASTER EVERYONE!!!!! This day is so wonderful in its symbolism and power. I am so thankful to our Savior Jesus Christ for his Atonement. Here is a great YouTube clip that brought the spirit of this day to my heart.

pgs. 194 and 195...and they gave thanks to God, yea, all...that could speak lifted their voices in the praises of their God.

14 And I will also ease the ^aburdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as ^bwitnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their ^cafflictions.

15 And now it came to pass that the burdens which were laid upon Alma and his brethren were made light; yea, the Lord did ^astrengthen them that they could bear up their ^bburdens with ease, and they did submit cheerfully and with ^cpatience to all the will of the Lord.

16 And it came to pass that so great was their faith and their patience that the voice of the Lord came unto them again, saying: Be of good comfort, for on the morrow I will deliver you out of bondage.

17 And he said unto Alma: Thou shalt go before this people, and I will go ^awith thee and deliver this people out of ^bbondage.

18 Now it came to pass that Alma and his people in the night-time gathered their flocks together, and also of their grain; yea, even all the night-time were they gathering their flocks together.

19 And in the morning the Lord caused a ^adeep sleep to come upon the Lamanites, yea, and all their task-masters were in a profound sleep.

20 And Alma and his people departed into the wilderness; and when they had traveled all day they pitched their tents in a valley, and they called the valley Alma, because he led their way in the wilderness.

21 Yea, and in the valley of Alma they poured out their ^athanks to God because he had been merciful unto them, and eased their ^bburdens, and had delivered them out of bondage; for they were in bondage, and none could deliver them except it were the Lord their God.

22 And they gave ^athanks to God, yea, all their men and all their women and all their children that could speak lifted their voices in the praises of their God.

23 And now the Lord said unto Alma: Haste thee and get thou and this people out of this land, for the Lamanites have awakened and do pursue thee; therefore get thee out of this land, and I will stop the Lamanites in this valley that they come no further in pursuit of this people.

24 And it came to pass that they departed out of the valley, and took their journey into the wilderness.

25 And after they had been in the wilderness ^atwelve days *they arrived in the land of Zarahemla; and king Mosiah did also ^breceive them with joy.

* VERSE 25 (ABOUT 120 B.C.).

THE BOOK OF MOSIAH

CHAPTER 25

The people (the Mulekites) of Zarahemla become Nephites—They learn of the people of Alma and of Zeniff—Alma baptizes Limhi and all his people—Mosiah authorizes Alma to organize the Church of God. About 120 B.C.

1 And now king Mosiah caused that all the people should be gathered together.

2 Now there were not so many of the children of Nephi, or so many of those who were descendants of Nephi, as there were of the ^apeople of Zarahemla, who was a descendant of ^bMulek, and those who came with him into the wilderness.

3 And there were not so many of the people of Nephi and of the people of Zarahemla as there were of the Lamanites; yea, they were not half so numerous.

4 And now all the people of Nephi were assembled together, and also all the people of Zarahemla, and they were gathered together in two bodies.

5 And it came to pass that Mosiah did read, and caused to be read, the records of Zeniff to his people; yea, he read the records of the people of Zeniff, from the time they ^aleft the land of Zarahemla until they ^breturned again.

6 And he also read the account of Alma and his brethren, and all their afflictions, from the time they left the land of Zarahemla until the time they returned again.

7 And now, when Mosiah had made an end of reading the records, his people who tarried in the land were struck with wonder and amazement.

8 For they knew not what to think; for when they beheld those that had been delivered ^aout of bondage they were filled with exceedingly great joy.

9 And again, when they thought of their brethren who had been ^aslain by the Lamanites they were filled with sorrow, and even shed many tears of sorrow.

10 And again, when they thought of the immediate goodness of God, and his power in delivering Alma and his brethren out of the hands of the Lamanites and of ^abondage, they did raise their voices and give thanks to God.

11 And again, when they thought upon the Lamanites, who were their brethren, of their sinful and ^apolluted state, they were filled with ^bpain and anguish for the ^cwelfare of their souls.

12 And it came to pass that those who ^awere the children of Amulon and his brethren, who had taken to wife the ^bdaughters of the Lamanites, were displeased with the conduct of their fathers, and they would no longer be called by the names of their fathers, therefore they took upon themselves the name of Nephi, that they might be called the children of Nephi and be numbered among those who were ^ccalled Nephites.

13 And now all the people of Zarahemla were ^anumbered with the Nephites, and this because the kingdom had been conferred upon none but those who were descendants of Nephi.

14 And now it came to pass that when Mosiah had made an end of speaking and reading to the people, he desired that Alma should also speak to the people.

15 And Alma did speak unto them, when they were assembled together in large bodies, and he went from one body to another, preaching unto the people repentance and faith on the Lord.

16 And he did exhort the people of Limhi and his brethren, all those that had been delivered out of bondage, that they should remember that it was the Lord that did deliver them.

17 And it came to pass that after Alma had taught the people many things, and had made an end of speaking to them, that king Limhi was desirous that he might be baptized; and all his people were desirous that they might be baptized also.

In chapter 24 the people of Alma are told by the Lord how to escape their captivity. The gratitude they show as described in verse 22 is inspiring. Unfortunately it is human nature to forget to thank our Father in Heaven as often as we ask for blessings. This is a great reminder to be thankful!

Chapter 25 tells of the reuniting of the people of Limhi who were in the wilderness as well as the people of Alma (who were just delivered out of captivity) with the people of Zarahemla. At this point King Mosiah II is ruling righteously in Zarahemla. He is the son of King Benjamin and the grandson of King Mosiah I so this brings us back to their story.